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    Paul Lee endures being away from pregnant wife to serve flag and country

    Team Pilipinas gunner makes sacrifice
    Sep 16, 2018
    Paul Lee has had to miss spending time with his pregnant wife, Rubie, for the past two months.
    PHOTO: jerome ascaƱo

    PAUL Lee is making the ultimate sacrifice as he had to be away from home and his pregnant wife in fulfilling his duties with Team Pilipinas.

    For the past two months now, Lee seldom found himself by the side of wife Rubie as he had to bid time playing for the national team in two successive major tournaments – the 18th Asian Games and the FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

    And it couldn’t have come at a crucial stretch when the Magnolia Pambansang Manok hotshot officially becomes a father almost a month from now.

    Good thing, Rubie has ever been supportive and understanding.

    “The best thing here is yung wife ko marunong maki-cooperate. Kaya doon pa lang gumagaan na yung pakiramdam ko,” said Lee as he tried to quickly get home shortly after Team Pilipinas concluded its final practice Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum before facing Qatar 24 hours later at the end of the qualifiers’ fourth window.

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      Lee also pointed out that it was not only him who’s been sacrificing a lot for flag and country.

      “Hindi lang naman ako ang nag-sacrifice, lahat nang nandito ngayon nag-sakripisyo. So we have to deal with that,” he said.

      Lee stressed Rubie, who is set to give birth on October 20, has learned to accept his job as a player even when they were still not married.

      “Ever since naman basta about sa basketball, kahit alaganing oras pa yan,” said Lee. “We talked about this even before kahit noong hindi pa kami mag-asawa. Yun lang ang maganda, na-settle namin ng maayos ang lahat.”

      Lee had been away for more than two weeks as part of the national team that competed and placed fifth in the Asiad held in Jakarta.

      And shortly upon arriving from the Indonesian capital, he immediately buckled down to work with the rest of the nationals as they prepare for their games against Iran and Qatar for the World Cup qualifiers.

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      He was almost a week away too, when the team travelled and played in Iran, a stint that had the entire delegation enduring a 12-hour layover at Dubai as its flight back to Manila had been delayed due to typhoon Ompong.

      Lee couldn’t help but be worried for his wife at times while he’s outside of the country.

      “Siyempre may worry, kasi anytime puwedeng lumabas yung bata,” said the guard out of University of the East. “Sabi ko lang huwag siyang masyadong malikot at magalaw.”

      With his national team duty provisionally over after the Qatar game, Lee can now attend to the care of his wife, who’s now entering the crucial stage of her pregnancy.

      “Yung crucial part kasi talaga yung 8th month, kaya yun ang binabantayan namin,” said Lee, obviously referring to the stage when a quarter of the brain growth happens in the last month of pregnancy.

      Paul and Rubie are expecting a baby girl for their first child.

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      Paul Lee has had to miss spending time with his pregnant wife, Rubie, for the past two months.
      PHOTO: jerome ascaƱo
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