A Tribute to Eleazar Alburo Moreno (1928-1986)

Pastor, educator, musician, sportsman, outdoorsman, comedian are some of the many titles that allude to Eleazar Alburo Moreno. He was also the father of Noah - this writer.

Dodo - as he was fondly called by his kin, was the second in a brood of 8 by poor fisherfolk parents who thrived solely on what they could catch in the sea. So to be able to get a college degree he had to work his way through school to attain his highest career point as President of Mountain View College.

Physique-wise he was a fine-tuned rumbling engine. In the last decade of his life he would start the day at 3 AM on board his outrigger canoe, fishing in the predawn darkness a good distance from the Northern Mindanao coastline. His usual catch of about a bucket of fish was a coveted gift among his neighbors. The next stops in his daily routine were a game of tennis, office work and visiting church-related projects, another game of tennis at 5 PM and then a round of badminton, table tennis or bowling would cap the day's activities.

Apparently he knew the formula for a happy and healthy life, and making people happy with his presence came naturally to him. He sure was the epitome of a well balanced life.

Dodo could have enjoyed more of this if only he lived past the age of retirement, but an Aedes Aegypti mosquito unintentionally cut his run short, and at the ripe age of 58 he literally bled to death from Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever.

Fast forward 30 years and his son, now 60, reaches the mandatory retirement age at Yanhee International Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. The challenge to do something epic in honor of his dad coupled with the unfinished business of trying to please him to make up for the mischievous years of a rebellious youth looms in his mind. 

At this point there was only one thing that would bring closure to a once strained father-son relationship, and that was to spend a year doing what his dad would have wanted to do if only he had the chance to live longer. So upon reaching the 6th decade of his life Noah set out to pay honor and respect to his long gone progenitor in a year-long marathon of activities.

This one's for you dad!

April - scuba diving in Koh Mak island, Thailand. The sea was your turf dad. You knew by heart what was under the waves. We went diving together along the coast of Lanao del Norte when we were collecting marine life for the aquariums at home and the hospital. You taught me what was edible, what was difficult to catch and what was better left alone.

 June - Cave diving in Hundred Islands, Philippines. You were a very good swimmer and diver, dad. A fisherman with a swimming instructor certificate from the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila, you had the grace and fluidity that mimicked the dolphins in the water.

May 2016 - January 2017 Cycling: 
- solo cross-country cycling Bangkok, Thailand to Siem Reap, Cambodia = 400 km, done in 3 days. Dad, you had the knack for testing the limits of your body and I know you would have also enjoyed cycling through these countries. 

- solo long distance cycling through the Big Sur (Highway 1) and other picturesque roads in the states of California, Virginia and Florida, Thailand and the Philippines for a total of 1,366.2 kilometers/848.9 miles.

The memory of my first bicycle at 8 years old is still fresh in my mind, Dad. You came home from a trip to Manila and it was raining very hard at about 7 in the evening. You told me that you had a present for me and sis Ethel, but that I would have to fetch it myself at the administration building, which was quite a distance from the Jamandre village where we lived. You said that it was too heavy to carry and that I may have to ride it on the way home. I knew in that instance that you got me a bike and I ran like mad in the dark with the rain beating down. The sleek and shiny brand new red bike got wet and muddied. If not, I could have kept it beside me on my bed that night. In those days, to own a bike in Bukidnon, one had to buy it in Manila and I know that it cost you a fortune to get one each for Ethel and me.

I know that I have to honor you dad for being thoughtful about getting a bicycle for me at that age. In retrospect, I can see that it was the best treatment for my ADHD (undiagnosed - since this entity was not yet discovered back then). 

December - fishing: I left this for last dad, because this is your passion. I know you could spend hours by yourself in a spot out in the sea with the 300+ hooks that you had in one long line. 

Deep-sea fishing was your real sport dad. We tried our luck at it in Clearwater, Florida, and we didn't come home empty-handed.

You have gone from our lives for 30 years now dad. It may have been too soon for you to go, but not too soon to be handed your reward by the giver of life himself - the Almighty God. We miss you like we miss mom, but you are always with us in thought and in spirit.

I hope you enjoyed this tribute dad.

.....

Noah would like to profusely express his thanks to the following for their direct participation in the realization of this tribute:

Arven and Marie Fe Somoso
Alice, Mafel and Rommel Cobangbang
Marilyn and Tagore Calma
Howard, Harold, Hardin, Mervyn and Geronima Joyce
Benjamin, Ethel, Aya/Bryan/Iya, Benny, Benjiro and Elaine Bibay
Jo Ann, Jaypea, Nok, JJ, Kukie and Kailee

...and above all to Jesus Christ for the gift of life and health.