by Ricardo F. Lo, Philippine Star

On Sunday, Alice Dixson is leaving after more than three weeks here, purposely to sort out the papers of the family home which she and her mother are selling.

“I just realized how painful it is to sell a house you grew up in,” said Alice who has been based these past few years in Vancouver with husband Ronnie Miranda. “Our house holds precious memories,” added Alice, tears welling in her eyes. “It has been regularly renovated through the years and, in fact, we have converted the place into a three-door apartment. But still, the memories are there. Part of me doesn’t want to let go of the house because it feels like discarding those beautiful memories but we really have no choice.”

With her siblings also now residing abroad, Alice came home to help her widowed mother dispose of the property after Alice’s American father died last January. Alice’s mother is migrating to the US.

“My father was a sailor, he loved the sea,” said Alice, “so, as per his last wish, we scattered his ashes in the Manila Bay. But to please our mom, we also buried the urn with some of the ashes in the cemetery.”

So does it mean goodbye to showbiz for Alice (who was last seen in as a “guest” in the Vic Sotto Metro Filmfest starrer Enteng Kabisote and, before that, in a GMA teleserye)?

Not really. The good news is that Alice might be back in a few weeks to finalize negotiations for a movie. After Funfare came out with an item about her recent homecoming, Alice got an offer for a soap from ABS-CBN.

“But then,” said Alice, “tempting though the offer was, I had to say no because that would have made me stay longer. You see, I have to attend to important matters in Vancouver.”

Life as Mrs. Ronnie Miranda is hardly boring as what some people might suspect.

“Do I miss showbiz?” Alice asked. “If you mean the tsismis and the intrigues, my answer is no. But if you mean the acting part, my answer is yes.”

Before flying back to Canada, Alice will first proceed to Florida and learn from her sister the tricks of a business she plans to put up in Vancouver.

“I’m also helping my sister run her real-estate there,” said Alice.