By Eugene F. Ramos, MD
She first came into my practice in 2014 when she was 92 years old. She was referred to me by my wife, Josephine, who was taking care of her for some minor respiratory ailment. Her previous cardiologist, Dr. Simon Sawit, a senior colleague in Medical City was no longer in active practice. I asked her how she met Dr. Sawit. And that was how I learned of her backstory. She first met Dr. Sawit in New York some time in 1966 when she and her family were still living there. Her husband was then the ambassador to the U.S. during Ferdinand Marcos, Sr.’s presidency. Dr. Sawit was apparently still training and was still a bachelor, and she added with a mischievous chuckle, was dating beautiful ladies. With a smile, I told this gracious Marites that Dr. Sawit had since then been happily married to his beautiful wife, and the couple were, in fact, my close friends. ( Without meaning to, she validated what Dr. Sawit had implied to me of his happy bachelor days in New York, when I was training under him).
She was a sprightly and charming lady with interesting stories to tell, so she quickly got my attention, not only because I am ever mindful of my patients’ state of longevity, many of whom are already in their 80’s and 90’s (having been with me for over 30 years), but most especially because she was an adorable rarity. My first vivacious, coherent and independent nonagenarian. Before she came into my clinic, she silently waited for her turn outside, elegantly poised, with a head band that matched her dress. She exuded confidence when she spoke, and asked questions that commanded attention.
It was a delight conversing with her; I sensed right there that I would be spending a lot of time with her to satisfy my curiosity. She took her time extending our initial conversation; apparently, she, too, found in me someone to share a slice of her world with. I knew then that I had found my muse. If she was in good health at 92 – both body and mind – my patients in their 90s would have less reasons to doubt their own potentials.
In the many months that followed her 100th birthday in 2021 up to the present, she comes to see me in my clinic every month – as per my request, and which she also looks forward to. No more consultation fees since 2021, only a mutually delightful camaraderie, regularly documented with clinic snapshots of that regal poise (her wardrobe included). Just casual check-ups, talk about general wellness and the news outside, appetite and food choices, mobility and resistance training, sleep and relaxation, supplements, and, most of all, to listen to her historically interesting anecdotes about life – her life. What makes this fascinating lady outlive the usual expectations of people after age 100? That was for me to find out and to learn from.
She’s a storyteller, and I’m her avid listener. She talks about her daily activities at home, her daughters’ visits, the books she reads, the medicines she takes. I take notes. I study her family story, her siblings’ lifespans, her laboratory details. I give advice, I tell her stories, too, and keep the conversation going, until my secretary reminds me that other patients are waiting outside. As I stand up as a sign it’s time to end, I would warn her against falls in the early mornings and when she walks in a hurry. She did have a fall just a few months ago, luckily causing just a minor injury to her foot.
In the intervening months, her visits would bring new information about what she’s read and how some of her medications are not working. Earlier this 2026, just a month before her birthday, she had a mild stroke that slurred her speech a bit – something that, ironically, she loves to talk about. If this caused a setback, she didn’t show it. She’s undergoing physical therapy, and her speech is back with clarity. What lies ahead as she starts her 105th year, I know I should not worry about, but I nonetheless pray against. I know that whatever happens next is not in anybody’s control. At 105, what are the odds?
My amazing patient Victoria R. Pineda turned 105 years old in March 23, 2026. (I call her Vicky, not Aling or Mommy Victoria, because, to me and rightly so, she belongs to the 21st century.) Daughter Grace invited Jopie and me to a special lunch a day before her birthday at Senju, to celebrate her birthday quietly over Japanese cuisine and ice-cream. After dessert, the waiters did their jig, sang Happy Birthday and served Vicky cake with a candle to blow. Singing for and serving a seated dignified 105 year old lady in n their restaurant could only be a first to them. I watched Vicky gaze at the slice of cake while the candle flickered. For a brief moment, I saw grace lighten up her contented face.
How many lithe and lucid centenarians do we get to meet regularly ? How many 105-year olds are there around to carry on an intelligent conversation with? To mine the fascinating past for humor and wisdom? To be sure, Vicky has good genes for longevity, but she also has something much more – an outlook that appeals to living a good life one day at a time. Her elegant bearing and matter-of-factly dismay over current norms reflect an anachronism that straddles past traditions and present dispositions – a life of beauty and orderliness, on the one hand, and of adaptability to, and acceptance, of change, on the other.
Vicky is the widow of Ambassador Ernesto Pineda, who worked in New York during the Marcos regime. She has 2 daughters, Grace and Verda, who are US-based but who visit her regularly. She’s also Mayor Vico Sotto‘s neighbor in Pasig City. I wonder if Mayor Vico knows whether Vicky is the oldest Pasigueña around. He, too, might need a muse.
