September 25, 1974

I went to Pampanga last Wednesday - to the same house my grandparents lived in, the same house I grew up as a kid, and the same house that my aunt still lives in. While there, I got to browse through stacks of old photographs. My grandmother was a schoolteacher and there were class pictures from as far back as 1950. I realize that her grade school pupils are now senior citizens.

There was also my father's copy of "Cardinal & Gold", Mapua's official college yearbook. He earned his engineering degree from there, staying longer that the usual five years. Lola said that there was a time when he wouldn't attend classes because he'd just play chess the whole day at the bleachers. My grandparents pulled him out until he promised them to take his studies more seriously. But chess, you know? What a way to slack of on your studies. Not drugs, not alcohol. Chess. In a way, that was so characteristic of Papa.

The hairstyles and the horn-rimmed glasses of the students are so 1960s. And of course, there weren't any IT courses then yet. And it was the former President Marcos who wrote the congratulatory message. Anyway, I browsed through the pages until I reached the Mechanical Engineering department. And right near the end part of it (alphabetical, naturally) was my father's picture and below it - very austere - was his name, hometown, and a membership of his course's org. Nothing else. But I would've been more surprised if he joined other extra-curricular activities. He was a very reserved person. Kept a low-profile and never cared much for other people's company. Which explains the fascination for quiet and analytical games like chess.

An important find of that day were my parents' wedding pictures. They had their civil wedding in Surigao in 1974. My mother's side of the family were from Aglipayan Church, my father's - Roman Catholic. Thus, the civil ceremony. But they had the other trimmings of a traditional wedding in the reception.

Looking through those pictures were difficult, yes, but I wanted to keep that happy memory of my parents with me. So I slid a picture off the album and inserted it into the book I carry around in my backpack. Aptly, the book is "Migrations to Solitude" given to me by Jayjay. He gave it to me because I seriously considered resigning to a quiet life in service. I like being alone and I find being around a lot of people very uncomfortable. I guess I take after my dad in that way.

Sadly though, I never really got very proficient in chess.