Batch 4 Class Prophecy

(This was presented during the Batch 4 Graduation Rites of Homestead Schools, Inc., LVN Program ; March 21, 2009; at The Reef Restaurant, Long Beach, CA)

It was late spring of 2029. I just got home from my speaking engagement from Monaco in the French Riviera, to speak about IT trends of the 21st century.

I quit nursing ten years ago and decided to pursue my other degree in Computer Programming. Having finished my associate degree in 2004 at Los Angeles Institute of Computer Technology, I decided to go back to school to finish my Bachelor's degree in 2011 and finished it in 24 months.

Being knowledgeable and skilled in seven computer languages I decided to major in software and game programming. Together with my Thai friend, we invented MIRA which means Medical Interface Record Administration, a software program that files medical records and charts into a portable hardware. This discovery got rid of the traditional piles and storage of hospital charts and medical records by sending it to a portable computer storage. MIRA was a hit when it came out in 2018 and became the new trend and discovery of the 21st millennium.

NATTAVON (my Thai friend) and I initiated the program during our busy days at ICT and developed it into a computer interface, when we met each other back in 2011 for our bachelorship and then we have it patented, minted, and encrypted under our names. From then on every hospital around the globe tapped our interface and it became an instant worldwide success when we launched it seven years after we graduated from IT school. Now MIRA is also being used in all government and private offices all over the world.

I then moved to Seattle, WA and decided to put up our company there.

It was a Monday, after I got out from the stressful company meeting, my secretary handed me all my mails that day. Browsing through my mails I saw a sparkling silver envelope that immediately caught my attention. Curious about the envelope, I hurriedly opened it and there it says, "Homestead Batch 4 Class Reunion". It doesn't say where it came from but the reunion date is set on May 10, 2029; 7 pm at the Grand Ballroom of Hotel Buenaventure, Los Angeles, CA.

I can't believe my old students still remembered me despite of my long years of absence, after I quit teaching. I wondered how they got hold of my address. But I have a feeling that they knew about me because I was featured in Fortune Magazine, three years ago, as one of the top entrepreneur of the new millennium. So it won't be hard to keep track of me.

I then called my secretary to make a note of the date on my monthly itinerary and set me an appointment with my designer and hairstylist at Beverly Hills, not to mention the limousine service to pick me up for the said date.

Sitting in my office, memories flashed before me... the good old teaching days I had at Homestead Schools... mostly handling two Batches... Batch 4 and Batch 5.

God! I clearly remembered how it all began....How it all started..... How the students reacted about me... Almost 18 months for Batch 4 and 24 months for Batch 5 of togetherness. It was a brief, memorable, and unforgettable learning experience not forgetting the fun part, too.

A lot of questions went through my mind.... like.... how did my students look like now..... and what they have been doing for the past 20 years. I wonder what they had achieved and became after finishing their vocational program. For sure everyone was successful and well established.

It's May 9, 2029; I boarded a private jet plane from Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) International Airport going to Burbank Airport. My limousine service picked me up and dropped me at my designer's store at Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills for me to fit and pick up my tuxedo...... then the driver dropped me off at the You-nique Spa in Santa Monica for my spa treatment. From there my hairstylist met me and treated my hair. I am a guy who just refused to get old so I decided to color my graying hair with a darker color.

After the sessions, the limo driver picked me up and drove me to the downtown area where he dropped me at Hotel Buenaventure for me to check-in.

The next day, I phoned my cousin in Long Beach and we decided to meet up at the hotel's restaurant at the lobby for lunch. VAL still looks the same. He is still the usual perky guy I knew since we were little. He is now the clinical educator at the Coronary Care Unit in Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. After a long chat we exchanged new numbers and parted each other's ways.

I immediately went back to my suite, took a short nap and then prepared myself for the reunion party after I woke up.

May 10, 2029 (the day of the reunion)..... At 5 pm ...... All I can think is my excitement to see everybody again! I was excited and nervous, at the same time jittery. I had some chills inside me and couldn’t calm myself. I phoned for the room service and ordered a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne to calm my nerves.

I took a shower and prepared myself for the party. I then took the invitation out of my suitcase..... Which is the sparkling silver envelope I got from the mail a week ago...... and prepared to leave.

I took the elevator and went down to the grand ballroom where the venue for the reunion party is intended to be held. The ballroom looks elegant and well decorated with white Greek columns and intricate chandeliers suspended from the ceiling. The room was stylish and classy. It was filled with a lot excitement and welcoming attitude. Everybody were frantic and excited to see each other.

I slowly walked in the hallway and had myself checked off at the registration table. I was smiling at the well-mannered lady at the table who gladly accepts my silver invitation. I did not notice her youthful beauty and brown toned skin. She was wearing a white fluffy georgette gown with pink-colored streaks. My God!..... it was CLAIREJANE! She was the first person I saw. She planned and organized everything. Why I didn't think of that? Besides she was the class secretary anyway.

When she was trying to scan the name at the invitation she yelped and screamed, stood up and hugged me so tight. I was a little bit embarrassed at the same time happy to see her. My God...... she's still pretty. We chatted a little bit and she told me that she married her first boyfriend. Now they have two kids, a boy and a girl. She finished her Masters in Nursing and now she is the Chief Nursing Officer at UCLA Harbor in Torrance. I asked her about her mom and she told me that she was already retired and was enjoying her retirement in the Philippines.

After the registration she instructed the usher to help me find my designated table. I was assigned at table 10 where I will be sitting with the dynamic quartet: NIMFA, MALOU, ELOISA, and MELINDA, who were sitting and intensely talking with each other at the table.

I didn't even notice MALOU at first because she looks gorgeous in a simple red Valentino sequined gown. Her hair was long and she looks like she had lost 20 lbs. She finally got married to a white guy and her kids are all grown ups now. They owned a casino in Palm Springs and they also have several nursing homes in that area. She indeed used her management skills as well as her nursing skills.

NIMFA looks stunning with her fitting black and gold layered gown with a slit on the side. She also lost some weight and now wears a size 4. She travels a lot with her husband, now that their children have their own family. Her hobby now is collecting antique furnitures and postcards from the countries they had traveled.

ELOISA appears primp with her pale lavender chiffon gown. She brought her husband too and they both look elegant together. She practices as a Coronary Care Nurse at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center state of the art Coronary Care Unit.

MELINDA and her husband were there too. She appears elegant in a black and burgundy v-neck fitted ruffled gown matched with a sparkling diamond earrings. Mel works as a travelling nurse in the east coast mainly in the New York-New Jersey area.

The quartet is still intact with each other. They still get in touch and update each other about their respective progress and success in life.

On the adjacent table on the left, I saw ROSELLE with her husband HERALD. Roselle looks great on a pink taffeta cocktail gown. They're both sipping wine and seem excited together. I heard that they both owned several class A restaurants around the Long Beach and Orange County area. Roselle gave up her nursing career and now manages their business and tends their four kids. I also heard that JJ, their eldest son, is in college now. Herald had pursued his Masters in Nursing and is now a faculty at USC College of Nursing.

Sharing the table with Roselle is EVA SELENE. She wears a lovely blue silk tulle gown with beaded embroidery. She is so formal and dignified yet beautiful in bearing. I heard she went back to Mexico where her husband became a mayor at their hometown. They owned a large and famous medical center in Mexico City. She had also sponsored a lot of medical missions in remote areas of Mexico.

Seated on the front table is MARK and KRYSTEL’s family. My God, they’re still best of friends.

KRYSTEL is elegant and pretty on her single strapped mint green Vera Wang silk cocktail dress. She is Mark's eldest daughter's God-mother. She and her good-looking plastic-surgeon hubby were so intimate together, talking and sipping wine as well as enjoying a wide array of hors d’oeuvre being served by the uniformed waiters walking back and forth the room. She met him while he was a resident physician at UCLA Brentwood when she worked there at the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit after she graduated from her RN degree. Now she is one of the "Board of Director" of her husband's well-known surgical clinic and surgery centers.

On the other hand, MARK looks handsome with his black Calvin Klein two button suit with white embroidered shirt and a light blue silk necktie. He was been divorced twice and had one daughter and a son from each marriage. He is now engaged and dating a catalogue model. He gave up his nursing degree and pursued his love for business. That's the reason why he owns a luxury car dealership in Carson. Also, he is managing a limousine service company where he met his fiancée.

Arriving from the door, is ABBY and JHOAN with their respective families.

ABBY, appears chic with her Maria Clara inspired Pina dress with intricate lace and embroidery, custom made by Monique Lhuillier, a famous Filipino designer. I didn't even notice her because her coiffed hair is decorated with a fresh pink cattleya orchid. She looks stunning with the dress on her slim figure. She brought her Navy Captain husband who serves as a chaplain at the navy base in Camp Pendleton.

After finishing her VN program she enlisted the Navy and availed the scholarship grant for the RN program. She is now finishing her Masters in Nursing and is planning to be a nurse anesthetist at the navy hospital.

And there’s the class topnotcher, JHOAN, looking lovely with her vintage pink salmon embroidered gown, appears excited to see everyone, giggling with Abby at table 11. She also lost weight and still looks younger. She is now working as a humanitarian nurse attaché in Sweden at the UNICEF international office. She spearheaded the cholera and typhoid eradication program in east Africa during the year 2020 outbreak. She is now a famous epidemiologist and had authored five successful communicable diseases books. She also travels sometimes all over the globe, doing speaking engagements about her chosen specialty.

Sounds of laughters in the back table caught my attention. I turned around and checked it out. It was RON and EDWARD with their respective families looking enthusiastic at each other.

EDWARD, who looks dazzling in his black coat-and-tie Armani tux, was laughing out loud with Ron. Edward brought his beautiful wife..... his first girlfriend. They were blessed with two lovely twin daughters. Edward is the achiever of the group.

After finishing his LVN program he enrolled in the RN program at UCLA and graduated with high honors, and then he pursued his Masters and Doctorate degree. While in the nursing school, he recorded his first self titled hip-hop album in 2014 and the carrier single climbed up the billboard charts at number one for 47 weeks. He won three Grammy Awards a year after that. And now he is a very respected and successful Hip-hop artist.

Tossing a glass of wine and laughing with him on the same table is RON. Ron appears confident in his smooth black elegant Ralph Lauren vintage suit. Ron finished his RN program too, but is not practicing his profession. He is now doing his real passion which is spinning music. He is currently a successful and renowned disc-jockey all over the world and was been to several dance circuits everywhere. He also married his first girlfriend and was blessed with seven kids. His wife is very supportive to him and also travelling with him sometimes wherever he goes.

The night grows deep and I took advantage of it by hopping from table to table updating my former student’s success. It was a satisfying feeling that each and every one of them was successful in their own chosen career. I asked them if they happen to get hold of some of the faculty from the school and according to them they don’t have their current addresses. It just happened that they got hold my office address and phone number from the magazine that featured me.

It was already 12 midnight and the waiter announces the last call for the drinks. Everyone is still talking and giggling at each other - reminiscing the good old memories of college life. No one has manifested signs of fatigue and boredom. Everyone is still restless, excited, and interacting with each other as if they don’t want the night to pass or die out.

But still every party has to end..... and we all have to say our littlest goodbyes to everybody..... until we see each other again...... if God permits.