friends, let us pray for the soul of lj's dad and strength for his family, especially strength ng mom niya.

lj's dad passed away last august 28, 2006 ng 5:05 pm. reason daw is heart attack though none of them saw him na inatake siya. it's just because his dad has heart problems na daw and maybe that's what the doctor said, na heart attack nga daw. what's sad is, unexpected kasi yung nangyari. no one in lj's family had the chance to talk to their dad minutes before he died. lj was in school pa nung nangyari. tinawagan na lang siya that's why he knew of the news.

before that happened, magkausap pa kami ni lj sa cell kasi we're supposed to meet each other sa gabi. i called him up ng mga 430 or 445 tapos happy happy pa siya telling me kung nasan na siya and all. then someone call waited sa kanya. i waited for a long time tapos sa tagal na-cancel na yung call naming dalawa. i called again to ask what happened bakit naputol. then he told me "si dad inatake, nasa heart center ngayon" so ako naman na-shock. i was thinking shempre di na matutuloy lakad namin sa gabi. i let 10 minutes pass muna before i called him up again. baka kasi kumakausap pa siya ng family member. then i called again. he said "wala na daw si dad" shoot mas lalo akong na-shock nun! i was thinking if susunod ba ko. after much deliberation, i decided to go. kasi lj needs me more than ever. i mean, he has always been there for me, time ko naman para bumawi.

when i reached their house, he was there sa labas waiting for me. paglapit ko sa kanya, there were no words, hug lang kagad. i felt his pain as i hugged him. after ilang seconds, he just said "wala na si dad.." sa sobrang wala naman akong masabe kasi kahit sakin di pa nagssink-in na wala na talaga si tito, nasabe ko na lang "ok lang yan, ganyan talaga.."

after that, we went inside their house na, there were many people, i guess mostly relatives and neighbors. i approached his mom and greeted her, then kissed her. her mom and i aren't close, takot nga ako sa mom niya eh. hehe. but at that moment, i felt a connection. i mean, sabi ni lj natural na suplada lang talaga mom niya but when i kissed her mom, she held my hand and she squeezed it. grabe mas lalo kong na-feel yung pain sa mom niya.

i spent the time with lj and his family from 9 pm to 4 pm the next day, di ako makaalis kasi parang as much as possible, i wanted to give support sa kanila, and i really really wanted to share what god wants to give his family, his plans and his will for them. god is so good that i had the opportunity to open that up kahit kay lj lang. when we saw his dad, lj told me that "bakit ganon? ang bata pa ni dad. magffifty-five pa lang siya. unexpected sobra eh. iniisip ko pa nga na makikita pa niya ko mag-graduate, at ikasal at magka-anak." he also told me that the night before he died daw, the doctors who offered a scholarship kay lj were in their house daw, talking with lj's parents. then his dad told the doctors that they're so proud to have an intelligent son like lj. tapos biglang the next day mawawala na dad niya. kaya naman when his dad died, lj told me na sobrang nanghihinayang daw siya kasi daw "profession" niya ay nursing and he'll be a doctor someday pero wala daw siyang nagawa. and nahihirapan siyang isipin that his dad struggled for his life but there was no one to help him. i just told him that he wasn't there naman when it happened, in fact no one saw him. and he wasn't a doctor or nurse yet. in the future he can save as many lives as he can. i'm sure his dad will be proud of his son. he might not save his own dad's life, pero he could save another dad's life. that moment i knew that god gave me the wisdom and right words to tell lj para ma-comfort siya. i told him that wag siyang manghihinayang kasi god has a purpose for letting this thing happen. we might not understand what his purpose is, we might even think na unfair yung nangyari, but god has a greater plan, one that we cannot comprehend but when his plan is completed, it would be just as grand as we ever thought it would be. it could even be greater.

i have never felt what it's like to lose a dad or a family member. kaya it was kind of hard for me to give comfort to lj, lalo na he has experienced more things compared sa akin. but by god's grace, he was able to help me give wisdom and strength para makausap si lj in a way that can comfort him.

i would be going back sa kanila later mayang gabi, and i really pray that his mom and his family are better now.

tito rainier, you've been a good husband to tita mel and a good dad to ate manay, ate shel, ate tata, tj and lj. i pray that even if you're gone, the legacy you left your family would remain so that in whatever they do, their acts would be to make them closer as a family and would make you even more proud. goodbye tito and god welcomes you now to his kingdom. :)