PLAIN ENGLISH
Maureen N. Maratita
The distinction of the first party in Guam not to require masks went to the Guam Business Magazine Executive of the Year reception on May 7 at the Hyatt Regency Guam.
Now that we have removed COVID restrictions on gathering, there are plenty of events either happening or about to happen and civic organizations have resurrected their meetings.
The Guam Hotel & Restaurant Association held its first tourism social at the Hilton, and in a magnanimous gesture Atkins Kroll hosted a golf tournament for its BMW clients and friends at Onward Mangilao Golf Club. The Guam Contractors Association and Guam Community College probably tie for the greatest number of events planned for 2022. …
When you read this, I will be a couple of days away from heading for Europe. Part of the reason for the trip is to clear my parents’ house in London, since my 101-year-old father passed away in February. I am grateful for the time we could spend with him and my late mother through the years and the trips my parents made to Guam when they could.
My husband and I agree that the object of the exercise is not to accumulate possessions because they are too good to part with. We have friends whose garage is full and who have a generous and equally full storage unit because of that challenge. And then there is the couple we know who have accumulated three dining tables for the same reason.
Years before Marie Kondo became famous as a “discarding” expert we cleared our houses of a multitude of possessions we felt we had outgrown. But (thanks to the generosity of gift givers) we still own four salad bowls in Guam — which is a relatively small failure. …
My brother has made a selective start on house clearing. He tells me of a photo of my paternal grandfather at age 10, taken in Odessa with his family before they left what was then Russia for England. (I remember the photo, but not where it was taken.)
My brother has also found a World War II ration book from my mother’s family. “I think we are still owed a couple of pounds of tea,” he says.
And then my brother mentions the dining table in my parents’ house, which is indeed a very nice one. I share with my brother the thought on not accumulating possessions.
My son in Philadelphia says we should only keep the dining table (or anything else) because we remember my parents or our family eating at it — an emotional connection. I ask if he will be coming to London to express that wisdom at the appropriate moment. Maybe, he says carefully. …
Before I leave, the days are full and so is my schedule and the to-do list. There is an influx of news and (glory be) we have clients calling with marketing needs. Guam’s newest tourism association — the Guam Travel & Tourism Association — will hold a June 7 forum with direct input from our major market sources, hot on the heels of the first in-person Guam Visitors Bureau quarterly membership meeting. Government of Guam revenue is up — salary increases for teachers are planned; our tourism numbers remain low. The U.S. military has plans for equipment for the security of the islands in the region. …
I read with horrible fascination that British Airways is asking travelers to deliver their luggage a day ahead of travel, to cut down on wait times and congestion at London’s airports. I read that PM Boris Johnson wants to bring back the imperial weights and measures system. England has settled on a hybrid model — a pint of beer is still a pint, but wine is measured in milliliter measures. (Most bars and pubs will simply ask if you want a “small” or a “large” glass of wine.)
I plan to travel hopefully. …
— Maureen N. Maratita is the publisher at Glimpses Media. Publications at Glimpses Media include the Marianas Business Journal, MBJ Life, The Real Estate Journal, Guam Business Magazine, Beach Road Magazine, Buenas and Drive Guam.
