Good health for family is Diaz’s birthday wish

CHICAGO, Illinois – Boxing is farthest from the mind of David Diaz on Friday the eve of his 32nd birthday (which falls on Sunday in the Philippines). In an interview, he shared his birthday wish: "Good health for my family." And what about beating his challenger Manny Pacquiao? "The health of family comes first," he said. Diaz will defending his WBC lightweight title against Pacquiao when they face each other on June 28 (June 29 in the Philippines) at the Mandalay Bay Resorts and Casino Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the meantime, Diaz revealed his plans for his birthday: "I will go to my parents’ house, just relax for a little bit, and have a little cooked meal and it is just about it." Family includes his wife, Tanya, and their two children, David, 3, and Elias, 1. "The celebration that we will have is not even for my birthday but for the high school graduation of my niece, Irene," the World Boxing Council lightweight champ said. After the celebration, Diaz will put on his thinking cap to draft a five-to-ten-minute remark that he will deliver Monday (Tuesday in the Philippines) as commencement speaker before the elementary graduates of his alma mater in this city – Carl Von Linne Elementary School. And what does he plan to tell the graduates? "To take life as it comes," he said. "It’s a big world out there, full of surprises. Stay in school and try to be the best you can be." Although it will be the first time that he is going to be a commencement speaker, Diaz did not sound nervous of the coming task. He said the invitation all started when he acted as "Principal For a Day" in the school early this year. "They asked me if I can come back there to speak to the graduates and I said yes, of course," Diaz said. "The first time in my life that I will also be speaking to my school teachers. Linne was a terrific school that I graduated from before attending high school. The teachers I had – some of whom are still there – were outstanding. I'm honored to be chosen to give the commencement speech and look forward to addressing the eighth grade graduates on Monday." As a kid, David liked going to school, saying: "I liked the atmosphere because I can run around the gym and play and I had so much fun. I was already having some boxing lessons then. And I had the best teachers." He attended the school, which was 10-minutes away from home, starting at the second grade and completed his eighth elementary grade with a C average. He did not enroll in college anymore as he got involved in the 1996 Olympics shortly after graduating from Schurz High School also in this city. - Joseph G. Lariosa GMANews.TV