On a recent out of town trip, I found myself deep in conversation with a friend. The topic on the table was family and so I proceeded to discuss my own; starting off with my Pop, Mom, until the topic of grandparents was brought up. As I began to tell her about my Nonno, I realized something.
I have known my Nonno all my life, I have heard the stories about him from my Mom and Titas and though he may be an ordinary part of my life, it dawned on me that he is no ordinary man.
Growing up, I always knew he was a great Nonno; warm, caring, funny and sweet while his life outside of his "Nonno duties" was always something separate, something I only knew of. Now, I am increasingly amazed at all he has accomplished and achieved in his life - apart from a beautiful family of 13 children, 30+ grandchildren and 5 great grandkids; he has created a name to be proud of and associated with.
The Google result: Integrity.
Curious to know more about his reputation in the outside world, I googled his name. Most of the search results that came up were in association to CCBP but there was one other link that caught my attention. It was a previously published article, which I think, was in relation to Father's Day many years ago. In it were quotations from several notable people talking about the most valuable lessons they have learned from their fathers. I caught my tito David's name and the quote he contributed to the article was this: "Integrity, integrity and integrity."
My Nonno is a man of many things and integrity is certainly one of them. His rise to the top of the corporate ladder can be contributed to this and of course, the fact that he is a very intelligent man. My mom has told me a number of times how honest, loyal and hard working my Nonno was all throughout his career and still is, even now in his retirement. Throughout the course of his life, not once did he compromise his name and his family's reputation for wealth and power.
Integrity is defined as: "adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty". To think of my Nonno as a man who imbibes all these characteristics seems unrealistic to you, I know. But meet him, talk to him and you'll see that if there's anyone who personifies integrity he would be the one.
Movie star looks.
Another thing you might find to be interesting about my Nonno is the fact that he is a very handsome man. As I was looking at photos of him in his 20's I thought to myself, “why didn’t Nonno become a matinee idol?” Haha.
My mom once told me that one of the reasons why my Nonna (who is also strikingly beautiful by the way) married him is because she knew he could give her "cute kids". I don't know if this is true, but it made me laugh anyway.
Here is proof of what a good looking man he is:
Guapo, right?
A "People's President".
My Nonno's career in Coca-Cola began as a Sales Manager (or Representative), which meant, he was the guy who sat up front with the truck driver making deliveries. Not a very glamorous job, but one he did quite well until the day "Corporate Desk Job" came knocking. I don't know the exact details of his career though it is one story I would love to find out, but I have heard that he is one of the most beloved Presidents, aside from being the first and last Filipino President for CCBP.
So beloved in fact, that when he retired CCBP sold him his company car for a whopping total of…. P1.00. If that’s not love then I don’t know what is.
The Ultimate Golf Nut.
I think my Nonno’s list of priorities go like this: 1. God, 2. Family, 3. Career and 4. Golf. Yes, my Nonno is an avid golf nut. I remember when I was younger he would always make time on the weekends for his golf. We even had a few of our family Christmas lunches at Manila Golf! He is one of the few people I know who loves watching golf tournaments on TV and as a former promo producer for a sports channel, I can honestly say that golf tournaments were the most boring plugs I ever had to make. But for some reason unknown to me, he absolutely loves it.
To me, that says something about his character. Golf is about precision and a whole lot of patience. Imbibing these characteristics can make a person wise, strong and unwavering. I do not think he learned to become such a man because of golf, but rather, that his passion for golf reflected the kind of man that he was… a wise, strong man with an unwavering constitution.
The Librarian.
I remember when I was in high school during summer break, my Nonno called me up and offered me a summer job: to organize his library. He paid me P500 to go to his house and arrange his books according to these genres: fiction and non-fiction and the books in each genre were to be arranged alphabetically by author’s name. Now you would think it to be a tedious odd job but on the contrary, I enjoyed browsing through his collection of spy fiction and war stories. Oh how he loves reading about history and the life stories of important men who have made an impression on the world! That summer, I learned that my Nonno was not only wise, but intellectual as well.
I think this is why he still keeps his mind so sharp, even now that he just turned 87. As an inheritor of the “reader gene” I can only hope to still be as sharp and quick-witted as he is when I reach that age. To me, he is as important and impressionable as those men he loves to read about.
So, who is he?
To sum it all up, he is this: wisdom, intellect, integrity and heart rolled into a handsome 5'2 package. He is extraordinary, a "King" of a man and more importantly, my Nonno.
