I am Lemuel, the eldest of three siblings. I am the son of a farmer. I grew up in poverty, on the farm, in sweat and mud. When I was young, I knew how hard life was and how simple our family was. My father, Delfin, never finished his education. All he could do was plant rice, plant rice, and hope for the rain. Despite this, I consider him the bravest and strongest person.
When I was young, I was often teased. As they say, “I am the son of a farmer”, I always sweated and smelled of the sun when I went to school. I was not like my classmates who had clean shoes and new clothes. Sometimes, I was even made fun of because I carried an old bag that my mother had just sewn. But I endured everything. The only thing I had in my hand were the words my father repeated over and over again.
“Son, we are poor, but that doesn’t mean you have to stay there. Study. Be patient. One day, I won’t see you fighting like your mother and I did.”
So I persevered. While others slept, I studied by the light of a gas lamp. While my classmates ate delicious baguettes, I patiently ate stewed sweet potatoes or bananas. And while others complained about the poverty of the toka, I counted the hours I had to help in the field before I could serve and study.
Many years passed. The day of my college graduation arrived, a day I had long dreamed of not for me, but for my father and mother. I wanted them to see that all their sacrifices had not been in vain.
But that day, I am ashamed to admit that I was nervous. Among so many parents dressed in clothes and suits, with cars and beautiful shoes, my father arrived, barefoot. Not because he wanted to, but because he was used to it. He was used to the ground, he was used to the mud. In fact, he didn’t have the right shoes to wear. All he had with him was his thin body, a faded polo shirt, and a smile full of pride.
I saw the people. Some were teaching, some were whispering, some were shaking their heads and some were laughing at him. I felt ashamed. I felt the pain piercing my heart. “Why did he go like that?” whispered one of my classmates.
I wanted to hide. I wanted to get angry. But I stopped myself.
The moment came, the most important part. One by one, the names of the students who would receive their diplomas were called. The surroundings were silent. Until I heard my name.
“Lemuel Santos, Summa Cum Laude.”
The entire hall applauded. I stood up while shaking and then looked at my father. There I saw his eyes filled with tears. The people who had been laughing before looked at him, and now they were also clapping. Suddenly the jokes stopped. The naked farmer they were looking at and insulting was the father of a Summa Cum Laude.
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Amidst the applause, I thought. “This is not just my win. This is the victory of my father and my father. The victory of all the sweat and effort he poured out just so I could study.”
As I went up to the stage, I couldn’t hold back my tears. And when I held the diploma, I immediately looked down and looked for my father. In the crowd, he was still the most important of all.
After the ceremony, I went up to him. I hugged him tightly and whispered.
“Dad, I wouldn’t have gotten this if it weren’t for you. Thank you.”
He just smiled, wiped the tears from my cheeks, and his answer was.
“Son, it’s enough for me to see you standing there. The diploma you hold is the shoe I never got. That’s an achievement greater than anything I own.”It is not clothes, shoes, or wealth that measure a person’s true worth. Sometimes, what others laugh at is the reason for the greatest inspiration and success. The sacrifices of our parents, no matter how simple, can be the foundation of our dreams. And above all, the love of a father, even if he is barefoot, is greater than any praise and honor in the world.