Mervyn Leones's golden heart

MERVYN LEONES—pride of Legaspi City, distinguished alumnus of St. Agnes High School, internist-extraordinaire—celebrates his birthday today. I'm writing about him because he will be thrilled at the attention; he is very easy to please. In the photo above, we see him overseeing the consultant rounds at the Pay Wards (this was halfway through residency, I think, and he had mustered enough bravado to do just that). He looks intensely at us, making sure we all pay attention to the details—and we do, save for Roland Angeles, who looks at the camera anyway.

The best things I know about Merv:

He is my OPD partner, and he's so good with patients he always gets live crabs as pasalubong. He has them cooked at a nearby store, and he invites us when the crustaceans, marinated in butter and salt, are ready for the munching. His patients love him.

He plays excellent badminton. His drop shots are precise, and he makes me chase the shuttlecock all over the court.

He has great handwriting. He can never be faulted for not having mastered cursive writing.

He has a big heart, full of compassion and passion. He is like the Dane Sacdalan of our batch—his declaration, to which we all heartily agree.



He has the brain of a genius. He tops our monthly exams regularly. We call him a "Topper-ware."

He will treat me to lunch because of this tribute.

Happy birthday, dear Mervyn!