This Sunday, as we celebrate Father’s Day, I want to extend my heartfelt wishes to all fathers — may your day be filled with love and appreciation. I also want to pay tribute to my late father, Roger Rionda, who passed away in March of last year in Florida. Much of what I share here comes from the eulogy I delivered during his funeral mass in Kissimmee, Florida in April of last year.

I know little about my father’s early life, but what I do know speaks volumes about his strength and character. He was born in Tondo, Manila in July 1939 and grew up in Gagalangin, the same neighborhood where I spent my early years before leaving for the United States 39 years ago. The youngest of four, he was raised by his father, Emiliano, an accountant and his mother Catalina, a devoted homemaker.

At just six years old, near the end of World War II, he witnessed Manila burn and fled with his family to safety. Life tested him early. He lost his mother at fourteen, and within a year his father married his late mother’s best friend. Left in the care of his sisters, he learned to be independent quickly and carried that self-sufficiency throughout his life.

Yet, what set my father apart was his remarkable intelligence. He had street smarts, but also an innate intellectual brilliance. He excelled academically, ranking at the top of his class at Florentino Torres High School in Gagalangin and stood out as a student leader, representing his school in various conventions.

At the University of the Philippines, he took up chemical engineering, demonstrating not only a talent for numbers but also for words. His mastery of Tagalog was exceptional, best showcased in his brilliant translation of Rudyard Kipling’s poem, If.

This poem, used in the initiation rites of the Upsilon Sigma Phi, is memorized word for word by every neophyte seeking to join the fraternity. My father joined Upsilon Sigma Phi in 1958, and I followed in his footsteps, becoming a member in 1983. His translation remains a lasting legacy that immortalized his name within the fraternity.

While my father never built a long-term career in chemical engineering, he found his place in the United States, working for the water authority of Fairfax County, Virginia until his retirement.

But beyond a career aspiration, my father’s goals were simple but deeply meaningful — he wanted to be a devoted husband to my mother, Zynia, his wife of 59 years, a dedicated provider for his three children, ensuring that we all received a good education and lived fruitful lives. He was a loving and generous grandfather to his three grandchildren — my sons Nathan and Matthew and my niece Mikaela. His grandchildren all adored him.

My father led a humble yet rich life. He never sought wealth nor material possessions — he simply wanted enough to live by. Though he didn’t chase grand ambitions, he traveled the world with my mother. The legacy he built is measured not in financial terms, but in the priceless memories he and my mother created together with our family, because in the end, true wealth is found not in numbers, but in moments that live forever in our hearts.

If I may be permitted, I would love to share my father’s Tagalog translation of Kipling’s If — a tribute to his enduring wisdom and artistry.

KUNG

Kung ang kaguluhan ng isipan

At paninisi ng iba’y iyong nauunawaan,

Kung sa kabila ng paninindigan

Handang pakinggan ang kaibang katuwiran,

Kung may pagpaparaya at walang kainipan,

Sa tukso’y sanay, laban sa kasinungalingan,

Kasuklaman ma’y timpi at panatag ang kalooban,

Maginoong tumindig, walang hangin sa katawan.

Kung ang pangarap — walang kababalaghan,

Kung ang pagiisip — hindi gamit sa kasamaan,

Kung kayang harapin ang tagumpay at kasawian,

At tatayong makisig na parang walang anuman,

Kung kayang tiisin paglait ng panuntunan,

Sukdulang hamakin nang iba’t pagtawanan,

At sakaling mabuwag ang mga pinaghirapan,

Muling iipuni’t itatayo luma man ang kasangkapan.

Kung ang salaping hinamig at pinanalunan

Ay dagling ipagsasapalaran sa isang hagisan,

At matalo, puhuna’y kukunin at muling uumpisahan

Na buo ang dibdib at walang alinlangan;

Kung puso, ugat at galamay na laon sa katandaan

Ay pilt pinasisigla upang buhay ay habaan,

Magpakatatag sa gitna nang hapis at kasawian

At sundin ang simbuyo: “Kalooban ay tatagan!”

Kung masa’y kahalubilo taglay ang bait at karangalan,

Kasama ma’y mga maykapangyarihan walang kayabangan,

Kung mga katunggali’t kapangkat ay patas na tuturingan,

Kung kabutihan ng madla ay sapat na gagampanan;

Kung ang bawa’t sandali ng buhay ay gagamitan

Nang sipag at tiyaga upang adhikain ay makamtan,

Karapat dapat ka sa mga biyaya nitong mundong kinagisnan,

At higit sa lahat — lalaki ka — kapuripuri ng angkan!