the sound of silence

a friend posted in facebook that she had the opportunity to have an amazing talk with her dad.

frankly, i sort of envy that.

you see my dad was a man of few words. his vocabulary range with us was sort of limited, more like syllables.

huh? u-huh. hmmm? yes. no.

men, real men didn't spare much. except when he was hanging out with his friends over beer and food and the conversation pretty much turns into cars, sexy girls, guns, big guns, even bigger guns, the campo, sugar (the sweet type, not the lady called "sugar"), and the club (he was a member of the lion's club).

in the few times he was able to complete his sentences, he taught us a number of values and lessons, foremost of which is being religious.

"nako... magdasal ka na at makakatikim ka ng sinturon!"

of course, that automatically translates to "eager anticipation".

"mag antay ka at pag dating sa bahay, mata mo lang walang latay!"

and as a complex individual, he also taught me the meaning of "irony".

"sige! maglaro ka dyan sa bubong, pag nahulog at nabalian ka, wag kang tatakbo takbo sa akin!!"

not to be outdone, my mom also taught me a number of things such as being flexible:

"ayan laro ka ng laro sa araw, tingnan mo ang dumi sa likod ng leeg mo?!?"

uh that sounded like a description for an extreme contortionist. my mom also taught me the meaning of "weather" every time she comes in the boy's bedroom:

"ano ba tong kwarto na to? talo pa si ruping! parang dinaanan ng bagyo!"

kidding aside, in dad's later years, he started to talk to us more like adults rather than kids that pestered him. then again, it was regular conversation that didn't really carry any meaning, more like acquaintances meeting over coffee and exchanging pleasantries.

towards the end of his days, he added to his collection of words and expanded his vocabulary.

he learned to say "I Love You."

that's the shortest and sweetest sentence i'd carry with me for the rest of my life.