I learned tonight, while surfing, that my old friend Diego Quejada has been deceased for a year now. Ours was a strange companionship: we were Teen Theater group mates, along with Lutgardo Labad and Maryo de los Reyes, at Cecile Guidote Alvarez's Philippine Educational Theater Association in the summer of 1968; after I graduated from high school. I even recall that stage actor Lino Brocka, who was not yet a movie director at the time, had a crush on him at the time. We parted ways when I was at university; two years later Saint Paul cross-enrollees informed me that he was one of their favorite instructors in college.

Diego, Gardy, and Maryo were seminarians at Our Lady of Guadalupe when I first net them. Diego went on to pursue theological studies at Maryhurst Seminary in Baguio City, after which he became academic dean at the Inter-Congregational Theological Center. He did not, however, become a priest. Many years later, I was not surprised to have him as my teacher in thesis, research, and quantitative measures class during my final year at Maryhill School of Theology. He attended both my public lecture and my thesis defense.

I thought that he was one of those people who would live forever. Alas, I was unable to say goodbye.

I wish him well on his continued journey.