In a Race that Matters

                               "DEAR JESSE" (A Tribute to a Great Bicolano) Baby face why did you leave so  fast? Against our wish, our flags, half mast On August 18, 2012 time grinded to a halt On a cloudless day we were wrenched apart.                               Like a weary eagle on a flight to her nest You were on your way home, seeking rest Beloved wife and daughters, rare gems in mind Oh, what solace, what comfort, in their embrace you'd find. Naga, " ang maogmang lugar, " the cheerful place Is stricken with grief, flooded in tears Oh, the beacon of hope, our one big pride Has laid down the torch and crossed the great divide. Like a candle whose light is snuffed out Like a pilgrim without direction Like a cub, maimed and abandoned We lost a pillar of hope,  what desperation! The Son of man, once bloodied, lifeless on a tree Took the hand of a man  whose plane plunged to the sea

On August 18,2012, at around 5pm, a Piper Seneca plane bearing four people-two on the pilot seats, two as passengers- caught trouble while airborne in the cloudless sky of Masbate and moments later, nosedived at lightning speed to the still waters below, like an eagle headshot by a sniper's bullet.  It was one of those rare tragedies that make us shake our head. Only that, on that fateful afternoon, when the sun was poised to retreat to its sanctuary, such tragedy would wrack a nation already beaten by natural calamities. Most importantly, it would stun typhoon-ravaged Bicolandia from whence came one of the men on board the ill-fated plane, whose only desire was to rush to the embrace of his wife and daughters. It was to be a happy, private homecoming. It ended up into national mourning. Our  Jesse Robredo, secretary of DILG and former Mayor of Naga City,  one pride of Bicol believed to be poised for greatness, has fallen. My Bicolano heart  is pierced with inexplicable grief