My father passed away earlier this year. His death had been something that I knew was forthcoming, but had never truly been prepared for. He had been mostly immobile since the pandemic struck, not just because of his bad hip, but because he could no longer drive properly.

Before 2020 and throughout my youth, my dad loved his cars. He was fortunate enough to be able to replace his daily driver every four years thanks to his company’s car plan. No, he wasn’t a stereotypical car guy (I never saw him change a tire, get his hands dirty to do engine work, or wash one from front to back), but he liked what car ownership stood for: independence, freedom, and success.

As I rummaged through his stuff after his cremation, I came across a Mitsubishi price list from August 2002. We featured said list on VISOR’s Facebook page to share how car prices have changed in two decades. True enough, people reacted to how a top-of-the-line Galant went for just a little over P1.1 million, while others reacted to how the L300 is still around.

What we didn’t expect was how the business card of the agent, Dick Albao, would capture the attention of no other than his son Chris, who wrote us:

“Hi, VISOR! This is my dad’s price list waaaaaaaay back when he was an agent in [Mitsubishi] Quezon Avenue. Can I get in touch with the sender? Would love to have the hard copy of this as memorabilia for him.”

Dick’s name wasn’t even fully visible in our post; just half of the letters were captured on frame. But that was enough to do the job. In a matter of days, I was chatting with Chris. He explained that the price list would be an awesome birthday gift for his dad. To think I was ready to chuck the 20-year-old printout into the rubbish bin. The phrase “another man’s trash is another man’s treasure” has never rung truer.

Not long after our chat, Chris arranged to pick up the price list. The next time I saw those two pieces of paper, he’d had them framed. In this post of his (see top photo), we can see Dick grinning happily, like he had traveled back to a simpler era—where one could drive home a fully specced Lancer for only P810,000.

While cars are primarily made to transport, there are times when they can also transcend. In this particular instance, Chris and his dad now share a connection with myself and my late father despite having never crossed paths in the past. It’s a tangent that took more than 20 years to intersect, and however geeky (or cheesy) that may sound, there’s no denying that the circumstances are awesome.

The Albaos’ price list may have been filled with car prices, but now it is officially and genuinely priceless. Cheers from the Mendozas!