" ABAD "

I want to share about everything about my Dad. For me he was the best Dad. His name is Abraham and fondly called "Abad" by his siblings and friends. According to my uncle(his brother), he got married at the age of 42. He's a father of five siblings and I am the eldest. He is serious, intelligent, talented and most of all a protective Dad. When I was still in the Elemetary grade he taught me how to save money. At that time my Dad and Mom sells snacks at the school canteen. One day, I am craving to eat egg chocolate by Serg's products and but don't have the money because we are disciplined not to bring money in school.  I cried and my Dad saw me and asked me why I cried. I told him that I want to eat egg chocolate. Instead of buying chocolate, my Dad started to tell me the value of money and shared to me his experiences when he was young also.  I was relieved and stopped crying . In the evening I saw my Dad cooking with a milky substance. It was a coconut milk extraction and he cooked it until golden brown. Amazed at my young age of  9 , I had learned that he is making coconut candy out of it. He prepared  a Japanese paper of different colors like  blue, yellow, and red . He cut it into small rectangular shape and used as a wrapper for those coconut candies like the size of a white rabbit. It was beautifully done and he told me to sell those coconut candies in school so that I can have he money. I sold worth P 5.00 pesos and my  Dad gave me an empty Johnson's baby powder used as a piggy bank. I was terribly happy and was so excited and enthusiastic selling those coconut candies so that my mini piggy bank  would be full . Through this I learned  how to value money from my own effort and of course from my Dad. That's my Dad as a businessman.

In my school days he always helped me in preparing my school projects especially in Mathematics and Science until in my secondary grade. My Dad is full of talent and he take things seriously. He do not have vices and his hobbies include planting of fruit trees and taming animals. in his free time he listened to radio commentary by his favorite commentator. He was a hero when  I was in Grade 4 because  I have difficulty in going down the tree. I was so curious in climbing the Calamansi tree, a tree that belongs to the family of pomelo or lemon. It has plenty of  thorns on its trunk and branches and I climbed up just for curiosity and I was so attracted with the small orange ripe fruits on its branches. I was effortless when my Mom suddenly called my name and afraid of being scolded I hurriedly jumped down and my right foot landed on a broken bottle of coca cola. When my Dad heard me crying , he ran to me and carried me inside the house.  My Dad applied medications on my wounded foot .

When I was in College , I left my family because I was a working scholar . I miss my Dad because he always made me feel comfortable and important. He's fond of making salad , a mixture of ripe papaya, young coconuts, and star apple mixed with milk.  Everytime I am having a summer vacation , he then offered salad, and other fruits from his fruit trees.  When I graduated , my Dad was old enough and he stopped working. He just stayed at home until I heard that he got sick. He was diagnosed of having a skin cancer-terminal stage.  I almost couldn't believe it because it doesn't shows. Until I went home and saw him very pale and his hands was shaking . He can hardly sit because ha has this "boil" in between his anus and sex organ.  I just learned that it was cancerous and specialized doctors has nothing to do with it until he was partially in bed, weak. Even if he's in bed he still can manage to wake up early and cooked our food. I sometimes saw him sitting in a small chair  made of wood, with the height just enough to touch the ground. He was collecting dried leaves with the use of barbecue stick and burnt it. My father was very patient even if he was struggling in pain. I can still say that he is the best.  He is a good provider, an educator, a talented businessman and a hero to all of us siblings.  He died 16 years ago and his love for us remains in our heart. He is always remembered every March 16 and 23, his birthday and death respectively. That's my father, my Dad, my hero.