Manuel-Bahul: Tatay - the old bridge

EVERY March 10, we commemorate the University of Baguio’s Founder’s Day – the birthday of the man we call Tatay in the UB community, Fernando Gonzaga Bautista. This year, we moved much of the activities to March 13, a Saturday, to allow more participation from employees and students.

In his homily during the Eucharistic celebration in honor of Tatay, Fr. Estefanos Chandra emphasized the many qualities of Tatay that accounted for his success in life. I like best the part where he related the story of two bridges – an old bridge alongside a new bridge. He had wondered why the engineer did not demolish the old bridge. Then in his meditation, he realized that perhaps the old bridge was there to give the young bridge a lesson.

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Being old doesn’t stop one or something from being useful. In the case of the bridge story, the old bridge has withstood the test of time having spent a good part of its life serving its purpose. Thus it is in a much better position to guide the young bridge. And among us mortals, we often hear about the wisdom in grey hair.

I guess that is why we keep commemorating Tatay’s life even years after he has passed away. We are trying to learn from the life of our founder.

Tatay has proven that anything is possible. By the power of his vision, Tatay broke free from the slums of Tondo to find his second home and his success here in the City of Pines. Indeed, our vision, or lack of it, spells the difference in our future.

Literally, Tatay had nothing but he did not make this as an excuse to wallow in his fate of what could have been an eternal poverty. Instead, he made the choice not to let poverty define his entire life. He chose to succeed. And with that choice, he knew he needs to work hard for it. His hard work paid off. His school grew beyond what he could have imagined. Today, UB stands as a formidable institution in this part of the country.

What’s worth noting about Tatay is how he remained humble and even closer to God despite his success. His lifestyle did not change tremendously even if he could obviously afford the many luxuries money can buy. Instead, he continued to live the simple life he was accustomed to. He never stopped working; in fact, he was hands-on in running UB. Even in his advanced age, Tatay continued to walk around the campus checking on things that needed attention, monitoring cleanliness, and simply to engage in small talk with his employees. He also remained faithful in his lay duties at the Baguio Cathedral.

Most importantly, Tatay did not keep his blessings to himself. In UB’s more than 60 years of existence, countless poor but deserving youth have become recipients of Tatay’s generosity and assistance. Tatay wanted to empower the poor by providing them the opportunity to study, find their niche, and become valuable members of the community. Up to this day, the student assistantship program of UB has in its fold hundreds of students studying for free.

The life story of Tatay makes me realize that many of us are in even better position to succeed in life. We have the advantage of technology that makes life a whole lot better and convenient. The question is - do we have the vision, the strength of character, and the diligence of the old bridge?