8.
Maj. Eriberto MISA
BIOGRAPHY: Director - Bureau of Prisons 1935-1949
As a young lieutenant, E.B. Misa was first assigned to a Manobo village in the wilderness of Davao called Monkayo. He took his young bride there right after they were married. It took them 3 weeks by horseback to arrive at their new post from Davao City.
Lucia Misa was the first Christian woman to set foot on Monkayo. Being a “white” woman and being taller than most men (she was 5’71/2” ), she was a sensation with the Manobos!
Llilli was conceived in Monkayo.
Eventually, E.B. Misa ended up in Zamboanga City where Llilli, Titang, Chaling and George were born. When Llilli was around 5 years old, while his yaya was in the market, a juramentado attacked the market crowd. Along with many victims, his yaya was killed. Responding constabulary men fired several shots at the amok, but he managed to escape. The bloodstains led them to a house, but no one wanted to enter it. E.B. Misa arrived and entered the house with 2 constables behind him. The bloodstains led them to an open manhole in the ceiling of the house. The constables wanted to shoot up the whole ceiling, but E.B. Misa just told them to stand down, to have a cigarette and watch the manhole. He waited for 30 minutes as he hoped the blood flow he had seen would do the job for them. Then he calmly poked his head in the ceiling to see the amok still alive but unable to swing his kris to cut off Misa’s head. He was running out of blood.
As a constabulary officer, he would have regular US army non-com and enlisted men under him. Part of his patrol route was a town in Sabah, Philippines at that time called Jesselton. It is now Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. He retired from the PC in 1920, pushing his rank up to Major. He went to Cebu to run a business – the Cebu Bus Company which he set up with the relatives of his wife from Dumaguete: the Longa family from Bais. The Bus company did not do well. Maj. Misa’s former commanding officer, General Santos (for whom the City of Dadiangas is named) suggested he take the civil service exam and apply for the Assistant Superintendent post at San Ramon penal colony in Zamboanga. It was back to Zamboanga for the growing family. Soon Bert and Nena were born.
per Robby Misa 7/7/2005
MARRIAGE: May 12, 1914
9. Lucia ERQUIAGA
I KNOW LOLA FINISHED FROM PHIL. NORMAL SCHOOL & SHE WAS A TEACHER
WHEN SHE MARRIED LOLO. SHE WAS ALSO USED TO ROUGHING IT (THEY SAY). BECAUSE
OF HER LOVE FOR LOLO, SHE FOLLOWED HIM TO THE BUNDOKS WHERE PEOPLE HAVE
NEVER SEEN A "FOREIGN-LOOKING", & BEAUTIFUL WOMAN.....SABI NG MOMMY KO!
NOW, I ALSO FOUND OUT THAT SHE HAD A BEAUTIFUL SINGING VOICE &
THAT SHE WAS PART OF THE CHOIR IN THE CHURCH SHE HELPED PUT UP IN IWAHIG PENAL
COLONY. SHE ALSO SET UP A TUBERCULOSIS CAMP NEAR THE SEA FOR THE PRISONER,
THEY SAY IT IS NOW A TOWN & THEY CALL IT SANTA LUCIA, AFTER HER.
Carrie dV. Torres 3/28/1999
PRAYING IS NOT THE EASIEST THING IN THE WORLD - Joaquin E. Misa - 2/1/06
I am reminded of what is said about St. Benedict. He once crossed a field, riding a horse. When he came upon a farmer, he struck up a conversation with him about life in general. The farmer said that life in the farm is indeed hard, he had to work from sunrise to sunset unlike some monks who only pray and do no work and afford to ride a splendid horse. St. Benedict then said if you think that praying is so easy he would give him his horse if he can pray the Our Father without distraction. The farmer readily agreed and began to recite the prayer but when he got to “give us this day” he stopped and asked “does the saddle go with the horse?”
I have always been distracted during prayer and can easily empathize with the farmer in the story. But following the advise of those wise in the practice of prayer to persevere even if often distracted I have tried and tried again almost daily despite the many distractions and my inability to complete my prayers.
One morning as I began once again my own attempt at prayer, I suddenly had a clear vision of a room painted all white with a hospital bed in the middle and a window by the foot of the bed. On the far side of the bed was Papa and the patient on the bed was Mama. On the near side of the bed was a little boy about four (4) whom I recognized as myself. I heard my father say, “y que voy a hacer con este pequeño?” She answered, “no te preocupes, le quidare de ariba”. At that point the vision vanished, like the fade out in the movies. This experience shook every fiber of my being and produced a copious stream of tears.
Then I realized that it was February 17th. The date when Mama died many years ago. Mama had been suffering from a severe case of malaria. Doctors wanted her to take the prescribed quinine which at that time, 1931, was the only known cure for malaria. It was also wrongly thought to be an abortive. She refused to take the quinine because she was six months pregnant and did not want to lose the baby she was carrying. The priests who were her friends came to her bedside and advised her that if she took the quinine and she loses the baby, it was no sin for her because the quinine was taken to cure the malaria not to cause the abortion. This was the principle of double effect, they said. Her reply to all of them was simple. She did not want to do anything that would possibly harm her baby. Papa had many times tried his best to change her mind but true to her strong character and firm belief that babies who die without baptism did not go to heaven but only stayed in limbo, she would not change her mind.
When I recounted the vision to Nena, she confirmed that the room occupied by Mama was as I had seen it, with the window at the foot of the bed.
The appeal to her by Papa in my vision was probably his last attempt to change her mind. Since then it was established that quinine was not an abortive and the church has clarified that babies who die without Baptism do not get consigned to limbo. What a great pity.
As expected she passed away quietly. It was February 17, 1931 upon her instructions the doctors performed a caesarian section immediately after she breathed her last and the priest who was standing by promptly baptized the baby with the name Mama had chosen in honor of her mother, Carmen and if a boy, Carmelo. The boy Carmelo lived only a few hours before he joined her in the Lord’s embrace.
After that vision I began to review the events in my life in which I saw the active intercession of one who gave her life for her baby. Surely, the prayers of a martyr could not be easily ignored by the Father.
14.
Simeon ALPARCE