Daddy Gorio

I was very lucky to have experienced the joy of having a grandfather.  I can't help but miss the old times my sisters and I spent at our province during weekends and vacations.  Our daddy always made it a point that we enjoy our stay there and also taught us a lot of things about life in general.  He used to provide for us our abong-abong (make shift tents) where me and my sisters play bahay-bahayan.  Early mornings, he taught us to pick up the fallen leaves and branches from the trees and gathering them underneath the tall mango tree to burn.  Another times, he taught us how to take care of our  pets and prepare for their meals.  He instilled in us the love of animals and nature.  Maybe, he unconsciously taught us also the value of reading.  He reads Bannawag-the Ilocano magazine which I grew up seeing it always at my daddy's house.  Infact, I also read and enjoyed the stories published. All the things we did with him were all seen as happy moments.  He sometimes lost his temper but we knew how to stay away from his way once he lost it.  The good thing about his "muryot" episodes was that it passes quickly.  Once finished lashing out his sermons, he became silent and soon he is pacified again.  He had the habit of ending all his sermons with the syllable "si or C", which my sister Tetet, would tease him, "daddy, ag-D kayo metten ah, kannayon la nga C" (daddy, say D, this time, you just always say C).  Yes, my sister Tetet had a special bonding with daddy.  She was the favorite since she knew how to deal with him.  She was the one who patiently cleaned the tough nails of daddy, pulled his uban (white hair) and slept by his side at night.  

Today is the birthday of my dear daddy.  Wherever you are now, I know you are at peace and happy.  I pray that you are happy seeing what your grandchildren has become.  I regret that my dear daughter didn't have anymore the chance to see you.  But you live in us daddy, someday when she's old enough to understand, she'll know you through my stories about you. I promise to impart to her all the lessons I learned from you.  Happy birthday daddy, we love you.