Sir Noel

He made me revise my college practicum manuscript five times and, in the process, he taught me that perfection is an art not meant for the faint-hearted.

He tested the tenacity of my wit when I scored 40 over 100 -- already the highest in a class of 25 students -- in a long exam in English 10 (Technical Writing). “You’re supposed to produce a technical paper, not an entry to a literary writing contest,” he scribbled on my blue book, in red ink.  

He harnessed my capacity to think logically when he gave me a high grade in English 103 (Argumentative Writing). But because he expected more from me, he said: “Your grade could have been higher if it were not for the late submission of your two major papers.” He said he mulled over whether to give me a perfect grade. “But I have to be fair,” he said. He gave me a pat on the back and from there he taught me that talent was not enough if discipline was not part of the equation.

He was firm yet tender, strict but caring. Especially with me. After all, he was my college adviser and I was his first ever advisee in UP Los Baños under the BA Communication Arts program. If the campus were my home in college, he would be my father and I his first-born.

Meet my college adviser: Prof. Noel K. Torreta. And as I personally told him many times over in the past, part of what I have become now is because of him. He was never remiss in reminding me of my responsibilities as a college student. When I graduated and found my niche, I was never remiss in profusely showering him with my gratitude. 

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Last Thursday night, I found myself at the St. Therese Chapel in UPLB delivering my eulogy for Sir Noel. He was admitted in a hospital in Los Baños recently due to flu. He was discharged after a week but his blood sugar level shot up. When he complained that his legs were getting numb, his sisters brought him to a hospital in Quezon City. The doctors found he also had a heart problem. He was scheduled for some more tests. However, in the boon of his sleep last Monday morning in the hospital, he silently slipped away. He was 55. 

He was still a full-time professor when he passed away. He loved to teach because he knew that teaching comprised not just delivering the lessons in the classroom. He knew the art of satiating young minds by teaching knowledge with the belief that each of his students would become a thinking, kind-hearted human being.

He was named Noel because he was born on Christmas Day. He imbibed the jolly spirit of the season that when he laughed hard he seemed to give that perfect squint. And yes, he had that infectious laughter that was almost similar to the mirth of the bearded Ho-ho-ho Man.

He entered UPLB in 1974 as a college freshman. Los Baños had always been his home. He finished the Com Arts program in three and a half years, graduating cum laude. He became a college instructor at the Department of Humanities in 1977. He served as the chairman of the department for two terms, beginning 2001.

Professor Torreta (second from left) joined by friends and instructors from the Department of Humanities during the Loyalty Day 2011 parade in UP Los Baños. (From left) Prof. William Remollo, the author, Liberty Notarte, Lyn Tejada, Mary Cita Hufana and Daisy Diola.

Known by his initials NKT among Com Arts students, he was famous for giving challenging exams whether in major subjects, Comm 2, English 10 or Humanities 1. Sir Noel proved to me that the UPCAT, although it is considered one of the hardest college entrance exams, remained to be the easiest test one would take once one started to experience what long exams were like in the university. (Incidentally, Sir Noel was my proctor when I took up the UPCAT in 1987 at the Animal Science lecture hall of UPLB.)

At his wake, his loving sister Neri, the botanist in the Torreta family, lovingly recalled that her brother Noel received his first paycheck from the university in lump sum. His salary stayed only for a few minutes in his hands because he gave it all to his mother. It was the money used by his mother to pay in full a piece of property in a Los Baños subdivision that she acquired for the family. That act of generosity of Noel was to be the start of his personal tradition to be of service to his family always, in all ways. He embraced single-blessedness perhaps because he knew there was already so much love emanating from his home.

They say you would discover how loving and caring a person is by knowing his hobbies. Neri said her brother loved to paint when he was young. He also loved pets that he would always bring home dogs to their house to the point that inter-breeding would take place. He also loved plants. And his collection of classic and contemporary literature books was very comprehensive.

But always, always, his ultimate passion would be his family  his mother, his siblings, his pamangkins.

And of course, his UPLB family remained his passion, too, until he breathed his last.

The UPLB Com Arts Society, the organization where I belong in the university, will always be thankful to Sir Noel for being one of its charter members. He was one of the kind souls who left the Com Arts Soc the legacy that is now a 36-year-old home for Com Arts students who want “to foster a strong bond of friendship” as they discover more about their talents in writing, theater arts and speech communication.

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Sir Noel was one person who taught me about the beauty of gratitude. Because he imparted so much of his time and knowledge to me, I, in return, on my own volition, kept a thankful heart. Ours was a connection that started as a teacher-student relationship. Later on, even if I were still a student, it progressed to friendship. It was a connection I never lost track of. My heart and my mind always knew the way to Sir Noel’s place.

Even without him explaining to me, I understood that a simple “Thank you” goes a long way in the treasure trove of the instructors who have influenced us in our lives. Perhaps “Thank you” is the shortest and most meaningful speech one could ever say to one’s mentors. But this simple gesture will definitely warm their hearts forever.

They say it’s the student who truly creates his own grade in school. If that is the case, a sincere gratitude to his mentors is the long-lasting, final grade that will be invisibly reflected on the student’s class card. The transcript of records now becomes the transcript of gratitude.

 To Sir Noel, I keep a grateful heart. Happy crossover.

(For your new beginnings, please e-mail me at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com. You may want to follow me on Twitter @bum_tenorio. Have a blessed Sunday!)