The Anchor of My Ship

I would be devoting this entry to the first man in my life, to the first man who taught me love, the first man who took my kisses and hugs away, the first man who saw me ran with wild abandon to this unpredictable world.

My father. My Papang.
 

"Nono" or "Bulano" as he is fondly called by his family and closest friends, my father is a tall, 51 years old man who at the age of 18, fell in love with our mother and gave us - his four biological children - the chance to experience life. He never finished High school but his means of providing for our family and for being a good father competes with and even surpass those who have PhDs. 

He reared us under a very disciplined environment. Back in the days when spanking was not yet considered child abuse, my father would subject us to unforgiving belt-slashing punishment in order for us to realize our mistakes and correct our bad manners. The disciplining proved to be useful as we grew older as it gave us the necessary pain tolerance while struggling to face life's challenges and in dealing with hardships. The disciplinarian character of our father helped us to become stronger and to become reliant in our own strengths. It did not just harden our characters and strengthen our spirits but  it also taught us to become good people whether in dealing with others or in dealing with ourselves.

As a father, he is usually quiet when it comes to our personal choices - college course, lovelife, etc. But he never missed to advise us to lead a good life and strive for more than what we are used to. He is always telling us to be better than what we can do on the average. My father sometimes has a strange way of telling this..sometimes, in a very calm voice..other times, in a very "challenging" manner. That's just he is. But he sure delivered his point well. Those advises were well taken by far. We ended better than what other people (I call them haters) thought we would be.

 

As a husband, my father is my mother's constant frenemy. Both of them can't stand each other when together but can't stand together apart. After we, their children, have outgrown our sibling quarrels, our parents became the cat and dog in the house.It's their daily dose of vitamins without which, both of them will find the day so damn boring. My father is not expressive to our mother (atleast when they are around us or around other people) but they are each other's best friends. My father is my mother's anchor and her constant strength in times of need. 

My father is my mother's errand boy and her personal driver, he is my mother's "muscle", he is my mother's protector. He may not be the best husband in the entire world, but he is perfect for my Mama. My mother gave her life up to be with my father at the age of 18 and they've been together for thirty-three (33) long years now so, my father must have been a good man for my mother to stick with him that long, don't you think? 

As a grandfather, he is completely different. When we were tiny, he won't hesitate to discipline us when he sees that we are being spoiled brats. But to his first apo, his granddaughter Zieanna, he is so soft as a marshmallow. He is so proud of his apo and always wants her to tell him "Papa Nono ko 'yan!". He wants his apo to completely own him!

My father is a kid lover. As proof, he decided to add a baby boy to our family whom he can play with and be a father to - Azing, our adopted brother. He loves this boy so much and his attention is with the kid now that all of us are grown up already and are living separately with them already.

 My father gave up his youth for us, his children. Along with my mother, he hurdled all the challenges in order to provide for us. He protected us against the harsh elements of this world, provided us with secure shelter and fed us. He was not able to protect us from some hardships but he is always there to support and guide us. His teachings and examples are inculcated in our minds and which serves as our guide to succeed in every endeavor we find ourselves into. He would lay his life for us. If we would ever face pain and if he would be given the choice to take away those pain from us, he would, without conditions and without hesitations.

I love my father so dearly. He is getting old and is now feeling sickly because of his stubbornness sometimes. I am living away from them now and I always ache for their presence. I wish that one day, I will be able to fulfill my dreams of becoming a lawyer and in effect, fulfill theirs.

If I have to live again, I would love to still be his daughter. If I have to choose my father again, I won't have anyone but him. We deserve him in this family and we can't thank God enough for his life. 

I am praying that he lives to be a hundred and more and witness all of us, his children live our lives the way he has prayed for to God.

You deserve nothing less from us than our complete devotion and unconditional love.

Happy Father's Day Papang. 

 “That was when the world wasn't so big and I could see everywhere. It was when my father was a hero and not a human.”

                                                                             ― Markus Zusak, I am the Messenger

I am on twitter: @kareenlacorte


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