Hello Guen!!!


     Well by now you have probably received the first installment 
for your college fund. If you have not received it yet than it 
should be coming shortly. It is a real pleasure to assist you in 
this way and I hope that college goes very well for you. Thank you 
for letting me know in advance as to when the tuition was needed. 
Having the funds on time or before hand is really important. And 
again, I hope that everything goes very well for you in college. I 
want to wish you a lot of Good Luck in your studies and I hope 
that you will be able to find some nice quiet areas to study away 
from the hustle and bustle of city life. Oh and by the way, a 
receipt for the costs would really be appreciated. That way I can 
budget the proper amount for each semester. At the moment I 
believe I have sent about enough for two semesters. Of course I do 
not know the price for your books and such so I will have to wait 
for the information on that. Whatever is left over from this 
preliminary amount you can a save for the following  semester and 
I can make up the difference if needed. L.B.C. has informed me 
that it is better to have a direct delivery to you instead of a 
direct deposit to the bank. Apparently the bank may not be as 
efficient in making a deposit as you can be to make the deposit 
yourself. So I will mail the tuition to you directly ok? 


     And now I would like to take few moments to thank Manny and 
Carmen, Regalado, Cheryl, Amiel, Edsel and of course you sweet 
Guen for sending me all those wonderful birthday greetings. It was 
so nice to read all the cards and letters. I really appreciate 
your thoughtfulness. And of course the photo of you, Guen, was 
really cute! Thank you very much. 


     How is Pepita doing? Has she had her puppies yet? I hear she 
has been getting sort of mean while she is pregnant. Well it's 
probably natural for her to have an "attitude" at a time like 
this. She is just thinking of her young ones and we have to 
respect her opinions on these things. When you can, give her a big 
hug for me ok? And tell her I said Hi!



     As for me, things are going quite well in a peaceful sort of 
way. I'm working, staying healthy and spending as much time in my 
studio as I can. I'm watering the plants and things are still 
blooming around here. It's very simple and very nice. Not much to 
say really except that life is quite nice.


     I think though that I would like to clear up something that 
maybe a bit misunderstood at this time. Guen, I know that we have 
built up quite a relationship during the time that we have been 
writing to each other. And that relationship has been really 
great, full of love and wonderful dreams for the future. Certainly 
a wonderful closeness has developed, not only between you and I, but 
also between myself and your family members. The original 
motivation behind our writing to each other was initially
with the goal of marriage for the reasons we had at the 
time. And yet Guen it is quite clear to me that we cannot marry 
because of the difficulties which I have already mentioned in 
previous letters. The problem is of course mainly financial in 
nature and is nothing to be ashamed of. Yet to honour the time we 
have spent writing to each other I felt it was right to do what I 
could so we can both benefit from our time together. In other 
words, when I realised that we couldn't marry for very practical 
reasons, I was not satisfied to just leave things at that point. 
We have built a relationship. And even though our original goal 
cannot be realised there is still much to be gained from our time 
together. You may certainly have your own views on these things 
and those views may be different from mine. For me though, our 
time together was a great time of learning. I learned that two 
people can be very much in love while marriage is a much broader 
issue. Two people can certainly love each other even though they 
cannot marry. When two people marry, love is a very important and 
primary ingredient. Yet, in reality, when two people 
marry it is a complete combination of two people, their families, 
educations, religious beliefs, financial situations, sexual 
attitudes, general life experiences and even more. And marriage is 
a life long involvement so these things should really be 
considered before two people marry. Again, I know love is a very 
strong feeling that goes very deep. Love is indeed the very thing 
that makes life worth living. And this I firmly believe. And yet 
marriage is almost a separate thing unto itself of which love is a 
very important ingredient. We have been in love Guen and this fact 
is certainly true. But we cannot marry. Either I would have to 
quit my job and move to the Philippines or you would have to have 
the educated skills valuable for marriage life with me in the 
U.S.. Guen I always remember what you said about having your goals 
set on coming to the U.S. "For a better future". Well it is my 
firm belief that the success of that goal lies primarily in your 
education more than it does in simply marriage to me. You know 
Guen, with a fine education you may be able to come to the U.S. 
even without the need to be married to do so since that 
objective is really only a matter of money. I mean why should you 
be dependent on someone else to achieve your goals when you may 
ultimately have the tools to achieve them on your own? Isn't that 
really a better plan? What I mean is think about it for a bit ok? 
I am only saying that the more options you have for yourself the 
better off you will be in achieving what you desire. And right now 
education is the key. It will take four years to achieve your 
college degree. Four years is a very reasonable time, and you are 
at the perfect age, to significantly enhance your opportunities in 
life by this manner. Where you may have had limited choices in the 
past your four year degree opens doors which you may have never 
even considered before. To be quite honest I think that most of 
the truly successful Filipinos here in the U.S. achieved a degree 
before they arrived. Your future is really a lot brighter if you 
set your mind on the practical aspect of education first. Well I 
suppose there is a chance of finding some rich American who has so 
much money that he can support you and you may never have to work 
or worry for the rest of your days. You could just sit around, 
watch T.V. all day and get fat! YUCK! And of course all this is 
really only my opinion. You may think of things completely 
different and that my views are completely nuts. Well variety 
keeps the world an interesting place to live.


     As for me though, I have to look at the fact that I am now 39 
years of age. And at this age it is not practical for me to wait 
four years without looking for a permanent partner who is suited 
for my situation. Guen, what I'm saying is that I think I should 
go ahead and continue my search. There is no lack of love for you 
involved here. I am just being practical about my situation and 
yours. In fact it is with all true honour and respect for our 
relationship, not only between you and I but also with your 
family, that I offer you the opportunity to obtain your degree. I 
feel it is only fair to do this after all that we have been 
through. I hope you can understand my thinking on this. I really 
would like to see you achieve your goals of finding that "Better 
Future". And even though it may not mean marriage between you and 
I there is much that I can do to help you achieve your goal. Is 
that ok? I certainly hope that you can understand my feelings on 
this. I really think this is quite fair and considerate of what we 
have gained so far between us. 

     So keep in a light in your heart Guen. The world is a big and 
beautiful place. We cannot predict or determine the future all the 
time. Yet if we keep our hearts open we can enjoy life in ways 
that we may have never even imagined before.



     May the Good Lord bless you and your family now and forever. 
And may you always have a smile on your face and a song in your 
heart. And remember Guen-keep your mind on a miracle.



                              Your man in Crockett
                                        

                                         Donald.


P.S. I need the list of everyone's birthday again! You know Guen, 
I put the previous list you gave me in a special place so I 
wouldn't lose it and now I can't remember where that special place 
is! 


P.S.P.S. Oh and also, you can go ahead and use regular mail for 
your letters. It will save you a lot of money and since I don't 
plan on moving very soon I'm sure I'll receive all your mail. 

                                             Donald