70 percent of a heart

The passing of The STAR’s original sports editor, boss Lito Tacujan, gave us pause. The OG of the sports section, Lito was erudite, firm, dedicated and a brilliant writer. He formed the parameters of this writer’s column with his advice and comments on our earliest pieces. He was a leader that everyone in the department looked up to. He didn’t mince words and was always sincere. He bridged the world where newspapers were king with the dawning of the electronic age. Funnily, for the longest time, I used to fax in my columns, not realizing that someone still needed to transcribe there, until boss Lito straightened me out. So I learned to email.

His passing is also a reminder of how things change, imperceptibly at first, then more and more noticeably. Two years ago, this writer received a sharp reminder of how temporal and temporary situations are. Over the years, we’ve mourned the loss of colleagues and friends, most painfully during the mind-numbing malaise of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When I first joined The STAR, I was the young guy, full of fire and brimstone, eager to make a change. But I was also unmindful of who got hurt in the process. I had yet to learn from Lito the value of separating the actions from the person, a concept I now teach in my own corporate team-building workshops. I did not pay as much attention to the crusty old guys who didn’t believe in television sports news. As I got older, my perspective gradually evolved. We all make decisions based on the information we have at a given time, unless we have our own wayward agenda.

Now that I’ve been with The STAR for over a quarter of a century, and in sports media for forty years, in many ways, I’ve become boss Lito. I try to teach these young whippersnappers what they’re meant to do, and more importantly, why. I stopped following trends and fads, and listened more to intent and purpose.

And when I was hospitalized in 2024, my only concern was the future of my children, my friends, our country, and sports. Who would be there to be the self-appointed guardian when things needed to be said? I also couldn’t imagine not being part of Philippine sports. I wondered who would remember me.

After my heart surgery, doctors said that my heart would never fully recover, and would peak at 35 percent function. By some miracle, that fist-sized muscle in my chest has held steady at 70 percent. I still have to remind myself to not stand up suddenly, and not lift heavy objects. I’ve become more thoughtful in my actions, choosing peace over confrontation.

I promised that I would take this 70 percent and still maintain the fire, integrity and principles that I once forgot came from my first boss here at The STAR. Thanks, boss Lito, for everything.