"Carbon Copy"

Growing up, I heard those two words a lot. Especially whenever people would see me with my Dad.

It always perplexed me since I thought my Dad and I looked completely different from one another.

As a kid, I'd spend time looking at myself in the mirror trying to find similarities between Dad and me. But as much as I'd wince and squint my eyes, I'd always come up with the conclusion that we weren't similar in any way.

Despite this personal observation, it seemed like everyone else had a dissenting opinion. In school, during parties, whenever we had family reunions, whenever I attended Dad's office events in San Miguel Corporation - everyone would say the same thing.

"Ed, carbon copy mo talaga si Lester."

Fast forward to a few decades later. I found myself working at San Miguel Corporation, and working with the same people who Dad worked with. In my team, there were 3 people who used to report directly to Dad as well: Senen, Miniong and Willie. I felt weird working with folks who used to be my Dad's staff. But it must've felt more weird for the 3 of them.

In fact, it was so weird that my first week in the company was mostly spent hearing them say: "Tignan mo nga naman, dati, 'yung Daddy mo ang boss namin. Ngayon, ikaw naman." 

As I worked closely with them, another insight surfaced. Apparently, I didn't just look like my Dad, we also have the same demeanor.

"Ka-ugali mo din pala si Edgar," Senen once said.

Now that I found a bit off putting. Fine, we might look alike, and that's a function of genetics. Being alike in terms of personality and attitude, now that's a totally different thing.

My Dad and I are polar opposites when it comes to personality. He's stern and I'm smiley. He's quiet and I'm talkative. He's serious and I'm carefree. He likes leather shoes and I'm more the sneaker type of guy. 

Candace, my former colleague in HKG, captured this thought in a sentence. Once, she ran into Dad and me in Causeway Bay. After introducing her to Dad, she pulled me aside and said: "Your Dad looks like the serious, scary version of you."

So, how can two totally different people be carbon copies of each other?

As the adage goes, with age comes wisdom. And during the past few years - 3 of which spent living alone - I realized more and more what people meant when they say "carbon copy."

After growing a mustache, I realized that I do look like my Dad. We have the same face shape, the same bushy eyebrows, and at certain points in time, we even have the same hairstyle. There were times that I'd look in the mirror in the morning and feel like I was looking at Dad. Seriously.

More than just looking alike, Dad and I really do have a lot of similarities in our personalities. We have the same penchant for shopping, (so that's where I got that from,) the same temper, the same generosity, the same love for family and siblings, the same interest in travel, and a host of other things that made me realize how I became who I am, and how big of an influence Dad has been on me.

Even without me knowing it.

Growing up, I heard the words "carbon copy" a lot whenever they'd describe my Dad and me.

And now that I've finally grown up (not completely, but I'm getting there,) I realized that we really are.

Happy Father's Day, Dad! (And carbon copy.)