When Oyong saw me in the company of Lito that early afternoon of Sunday, the 17th of November, 2002, he instantly knew the purpose behind our unannounced visit. Eli Cruz, our classmate and his barrio mate, had been interviewed a week earlier, and being in the same company at Kephilco, he had been forewarned. Oyong knew that his life would, henceforth, be an open book for his classmates.
“Bulakbol ako,” was how he described his on-and-off stay in school. He was unable to finish first year at the Rizal High in Pasig and had to re-start anew as a freshman in SIC. That was how he became a member of the lucky batch ’64.
Following High School graduation, he enrolled at FEU for a mechanical engineering course but lasted for only one semester. He enrolled again as a freshman at the MLQ, same course, but his ‘barkada’ took priority and he stopped schooling. His father, worried about his future, as all parents do, urged him to finish a short course, and he took up Automotive at the Samson Institiute of Technology. This time, he finished the course in one year.
But what Oyong lack in academics, he, however, compensated in is work experiences.
“Kahit nuong nag-aaaral pa ako sa FEU, Operator-stitcher ng karton na ako sa Union Glass. Limang taon akong nagtrabaho duon. Naging Forklift Operator din ako sa Port Area bago nagkaroon ng trouble duon. “Union activities,” ‘ba? Para makaiwas sa gulo, pinauwi ako ng tatay ko. Pero tatlong buwan lamang ako sa bukid. Bumalik din ako sa Maynila at naging Heavy Equipment Operator naman ako sa F.F. Cruz’ Construction. Naging personal bodyguard din ako ni Candido Cruz. Pero yung karanasan ko sa Isabela kung saan nahulog iyong bulldozer na minamanerho ko at muntik ko nang ikiamatay ang nagpabago ng isip ko. Umuwi ako sa Malaya at nakuha naman akong Heavy Equipment Operator sa PPC (Philippine Petroleum Corporation). Naging Security Guard din ako sa PPC. Nuong 1974, ay pumasok naman akiong laborer sa Meralco at tumagal ako doon ng limang taon. Mula doon ay natransfer ako ng NPC (National Power Corporation) sa Malaya din bilang Mechanic. 18 years a ko sa NPC hanggang malipat ako sa Kepilco na isang Korean company. Sa ngayon ay First Class Mechanic na ang ‘item’ ko at okay naman…”
Oyong requested me not to divulge his monthly pay but it was definitely a sizeable enough for his large family. Their own two-room bungalow, erected in the late 80’s on a 300 sq. meter lot inherited from his parents, attests to his better-than-average income. A substantial portion of a twelve-hectare land in Malaya to be divided among his father’s co-heirs assures his children of something tangible to look for.
Oyong’s married life is a peaceful one, in contrast with his bachelor days when he had a live-in partner who worked as a nurse in FEU. A tough guy, Oyong even had a pretty club singer enliven his carefree days when the future looked to him irrelevant and devoid of excitement.
Until he met Edna Loja in a dance party in Makati. A native of Jaro, Iloilo, Edna was a beautician and her gentle nature and captivating ways so charmed Oyong, that, before long, they found themselves in a ‘live-in’ situation. She was a woman Oyong was proud to bring home and with encouragement of his parents, Oyong and Edna were married on September 16, 1970, first before a Justice of the Peace, and later in a church wedding at the Pililia Parish Church.
Their union produced five children, four of whom are already married. Virginia, the eldest, was followed by Christina, Eulogio, Jr., and Edgardo, in that order. His youngest, Gerry is still unmarried. Oyong, at the latest already has eight ‘apos”, and still counting.
The mention of their theme song, “Together Again…“, almost instantly cast a sad pall of silence to what originally was a lively interview. Lito beside me was silent as I, too, said nothing, out of respect for Oyong’s pain. It was still there; the unhealed hurt that respects no gender. Oyong simply stared at my Mongol pencil, as if by doing so would somehow ease the deep sorrow that visited the family last April 29, 2002, when Edna, at age 55, suffered a cardiac arrest and bid Oyong and his five children, her last goodbye!
Men ordinarily do not cry. When they do, it was always with the self-same assurance that their pain will remain private and hidden, even from their close relations. Edna’s passing certainly dealt a big blow to Oyong’s happy world. Lito and I felt it, even when, with a grateful smile, he saw us to our car while repeatedly assuring us of his active presence in our forthcoming 40th class reunion.
