[THIS ODE (PRESENTED IN A SERIES OF INSTALLMENTS) IS A SUMMARIZED VERSION OF DADDY MAX’S BIOGRAPHICAL BOOK ENTITLED FOREVER YOUNG: A WALK THROUGH THE LIFE OF MAXIMO PURISIMA YOUNG; IN CELEBRATION AND THANKSGIVING FOR HIS ELECTION THIS YEAR AS PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE TO KOREA VETERANS’ ASSOCIATION INC. (“PVAI”), A POSITION IN THE PVAI WHICH HAS BEEN TRADITIONALLY RESERVED (SINCE PVAI’S INCEPTION) TO PHILIPPINE MILITARY ACADEMY GRADUATES. DADDY MAX IS RECIPIENT OF THE SILVER STAR MEDAL CONFERRED ON HIM BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT BY REASON OF HIS HEROIC FEATS IN WORLD WAR 2. HE WAS ALSO CONFERRED THE GOLD CROSS MEDAL BY THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT AS HE EMERGED AS HERO AT THE BATTLE OF MIUDONG, THE FIRST BATTLE ENGAGED BY FILIPINO SOLDIERS IN FOREIGN SOIL DURING THE KOREAN WAR. ON JULY 27, 2016 THE SOUTH KOREAN GOVERNMENT CONFERRED UPON HIM THE HIGHEST ORDER OF THE TAEGEUK MERIT MEDAL IN RECOGNITION OF HIS HEROIC FEATS DURING THE KOREAN WAR IN BOTH THE BATTLES OF MIUDONG AND YULDONG. ]
We will now go back to Dad Max’s war EXPLOITS,
As I don’t want your mind to wander as well as your THOUGHTS…
Let’s get back to Dad Max’s colorful life STORY,
Read it all by heart, but please don’t be in a HURRY!
Following the surrender of the Japanese ARMY,
Peace then reigned as Dad Max reunited with his foster FAMILY;
And Dad Max topped a scholarship EXAMINATION,
To Fort Knox Armored Force School for further military EDUCATION!
But the other examinees who tried and FAILED,
Wrote a petition as though they have been JAILED;
They questioned the decision of sending Dad Max to Ft. Knox SCHOOL…
Even pictured Dad Max as some nincompoop and FOOL!
They wrote and pleaded that Dad Max was UNQUALIFIED,
Even deprecated his schooling, and they’re not SATISFIED…
They supplicated that a high school grad must be the one SENT,
They even said a college grad is better as choice for it has the better TALENT.
But the Filipino Colonel who was then IN CHARGE,
Summoned the petitioners and assigned a loyal SARGE;
To tell these examinees that the decision won’t be CHANGED,
But the examinees got unruly and some even went DERANGED!
And so the Colonel named MARCOS SOLIMAN was compelled to SPEAK,
And his speech was quite brief and even mischievously UNIQUE…
He told the bunch of unruly examinees massed in a large ROOM…
“Can’t understand why you college and high grads act like MORON!”
And so Dad Max flew to the UNITED STATES,
He got further education, sort of raising his STAKES;
It was at the Armored Force School in Louisville, KENTUCKY;
Mastered an armored tank’s operation and got a glimpse of the GOLD DEPOSITORY!
