LETTERS FROM THE AGNO

March Fianza
Buddy Cenzon, 69; “sige ngaruden”

For a few times, I chanced upon Buddy in the announcer’s smoky booth at dzWT. To my surprise, what I had been hearing about the talent of the guy from our older colleagues was after all very true.

In a modulated baritone voice, he instantly translates and directly broadcasts in mixed Ilocano and Tagalog news items that are written in English. Ramon Dacawi and Eli Refuerzo repeated the same observations Thursday night before his cremation Friday.

With one hand on the copy of the news and the other holding up a cigarette, he airs with ease what his listeners are waiting for. Peanuts! Buddy was one of the guys in radio that many of us listened to because he knew his rules, always careful not to go out of the bounds of journalism. How I wish the younger generation of broadcasters follow his footsteps. He also pronounced his English well.

I came to know Ferdinand “Buddy” Cenzon, 69; past president of the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club as the baritone voice in the 7 o’clock morning news of dzWT “Dagiti Damdamag.” He was also the voice in the Highland Agricultural Devt Proj (HADP) and Highland Integrated Rural Devt Proj (HIRUDP) ads of the Dept of Agriculture.

In one of those nights we spent at the old Holy Week media camp across the Baguio Colleges Foundation (now UC), I remember him say “Haanak mapakale nu awan ti araramidek.” (I feel stressed out when doing nothing). Maybe that was why he was in the market in the morning before he met his maker at around noon?

A guy of so many talents, he played forward for the BCBC basketball team with Jorge Pawid, Sammy Guerzon and the other boys. After a basketball match, we wind up in a sing along bar where he and Sammy bet on who gets the highest score in singing the same song “My Way” by Frank Sinatra.

I last met the jolly good fellow with Bryan Aliping who treated us to dinner in his mansion at Upper Quarry two weeks ago. Not one among us suspected that there was something wrong with Buddy because the guy was looking good in his most desired maong fashion when he showed up that evening.

To me, it seemed like nothing changed in the person. He was one guy who showed no problems, or at least knew how to keep his worries away from being noticed by his friends who may be affected once they found out. He was always the same person that I knew everytime we met – always smiling, taking things in stride, and just talking about the happy times and the good things always.

Buddy said his cousin, the Bishop Carlito Cenzon asked him one time if he could pitch in even for just an hour at DzWT, the station where he used to be. But he told him that he can not go back that easy now because it was not that fast for him to have the feel of it. “Narigat ti agbwelo.”

That evening, he talked about press conferences that are now attended by mostly young or fresh mass communication or journalism graduates – that, aside from the interns or OJT and budding newsmen. By the look on his face, I knew that he enjoyed his time in broadcast media. He had his opinion column with the Vibrations local Sunday paper and hosted the weekly Vibrations Kapihan with Tita Naty (Fernandez). Those days, I think, were the glory days!

Tuesday, Feb24,2009 at around lunch time, the Great Editor summoned him to the Newsroom in the sky. I am not sure where heaven is because physically, I have never been there myself – or, it all depends on how we define it. What I choose to believe is what has been repeatedly said that relatives, close friends and colleagues who have gone ahead to the great beyond are reunited with the late comers.

And so, those of us who are left behind have no other choice but to move on. Certainly, that is what Buddy wants us to do. As for him, he is now reunited with his Creator, together with relatives, friends and colleagues the likes of Juan Tenorio, Sammy Guerzon, Willie Cacdac, Steve Hamada, Peppot Ilagan, Bembo Afable, Bagnos Cudiamat, Manny Salenga, to name a few. God bless them all.

I wish to share a story I learned from an encounter with a wise farmer during one of my visits to Viscaya. My new friend who was in his early 70s said goodnight when he saw that I was sleepy. Sensing that it is unsafe for him to walk a kilometer of unlit foot trail to his house in the middle of the ricefields, I offered him my flashlight. He declined the offer; instead he related to me a simple account of what he thinks about life.

He said, “I believe that Kabunian gave us life with a corresponding time frame. That is the reason why babies die at childbirth while others live to be a hundred years old. We encounter accidents or get sick but we survive because it is not our time to go. On the other hand, others look very healthy and strong but unexpectedly breathe their last, because their time frame has expired. Indeed, when the Father calls, no one can say no.”

I did not know how to react to what he just said except to say “sige ngaruden” and watched him disappear in the dark. – marchfianza777@yahoo.com