Honoris Causa - the highest lifetime achievement a person can get when he/she achieves something for the good of the community and for the country.

I get to witness my first Honoris Causa today, August 19, 2010, while manning the audio at the Center for Performing Arts in the University of San Jose-Recoletos located in Cor. P. Lopez and Magallanes Streets, Cebu City.

The recipient: Dr. Roberto “Bobby” Aboitiz.

He got his Doctor of Science in Business Management degree today. Attended by over 1,000 students and faculty staff of the university together with other delegates, kins, and family members. The event started at 4:05 in the afternoon and ended at 5:05 in the afternoon.

We had prepared for the event from Saturday last week until yesterday. We rehearsed for 2 days: Wednesday and Thursday for polishing and timings of the event. Though mistakes are inevitable, we still see it as a success. Dr. Aboitiz made us laugh, and he also made us understand that life is not that easy. You couldn’t imagine Dr. Aboitiz cleaning ships during his younger days while bearing the surname Aboitiz but look at him now, owning vast number of businesses and helping countless people.

What I learned from Dr. Aboitiz is his “bugsay” principle. He made us realize that each of us has his/her own bugsay. Bugsay is the Cebuano term for “to paddle.” We use the paddle to journey in life. Attitude forms the factor in paddling. We are held liable for who we are and what we decide in life. We accept that we are not perfect but it is not the perfect scapegoat to reason out not to perform well.

We use the paddle, we form the paddle, we perform the paddling of our lives.