The Golden Years

For some, it is very difficult having reached the age past one’s so-called youthful stage, although it doesn’t necessarily restrict the fact that old age is also a period of completion and fulfillment. Everyone is headed towards the same direction, where growing out a gray hair is just part of the process, the receding memory becomes more understandable much less amusing, and the circle closes in as we become children back again. The signs of aging are never unalarming as the children of their parents supposedly welcome a more considerate, thoughtful approach towards them, and, more often, have to yield to their own wishes.

I find it funny that I to have to write something about old age as an introduction. My mother just celebrated her 50th birthday a week ago, and my father his 51st last July. Ironically, I don’t want to tag them as an old, aged pair that has brought me to life. You can call me in denial all you want, because they are still young as I wish them as they are. I just love forgetting their age perhaps, and both of them still remain active in their endeavors, and still they can sing their favorite karaoke tunes. My mother loves The Carpenters, and my father just can sing anything including the contemporary, which makes us all children laugh out loud, not to our surprise, as he belts out the songs of our generation. He always tries hard to be on a par with us children, in a good way, especially now that he does email.

I just love the sight of them grow together. Their love story inspires their children even more. How many high school sweethearts ended up as husband and wife?

I am blessed to have not once seen them get into a real fight or throw a piece out of an argument, or a disagreement. They still manage to wave the white flag after talking it through.

True, they are imperfect beings, but their child is here thankful for everything. He will tell their story forever until his memory fails him.

Image: Cebu City, Philippines

A Taste of Temptation

One can only think of foolish, absurd things if he subconsciously or readily blanks himself out with the people who truly are concerned about him. Emptying the mind with flashes of family and friends, and filling it up with the conscious desire to jump to the unknown, but with a surefire fleeting little evil, dissolves his moral fiber (sounds familiar from the movie, The Girl Next Door?) into a figment of irreparable damage. If he could only hold on to the rope, then he would have already awarded himself with more than just a passing rate and saved himself from unpleasant repercussions.

Life is often like that -- a never-ending trial to endure and a hurdle of temptations. But time and again, on an obvious note, life is a choice you make.

Picture source credit: www.cornell.edu

Farewell to the Mother of Democracy

Her character and charisma made her an icon. She moved mountains and inspired not only a multitude of my countrymen but people around the world that witnessed that bloodless day. The People Power Revolution was the epitome of Filipino victory after more than two decades under a regime that was plagued with corruption and deprived Filipinos of their freedom. Truly, it was meant to eventuate for the world to aspire to a peaceful transition of power that change is possible with guns pointed down and with a strong faith in God.

My mother is telling me now a story when I was only a year and months old in Hilongos, Leyte. Corazon "Cory" Cojuangco-Aquino was there campaigning for her presidency as I was waving a yellow flaglet, a gesture of my littlest way of support. Everything seems a blur to me, but I am glad it transpired as history unfolded before my unadulterated eyes.

Now that she is laid to eternal rest beside her husband, Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr., I can't help but think what can we learn from all this. It seems that Filipinos have become coward ignoramuses in this long slumber, shrugging off the value of what was fought for in 1986 or just horribly disinterested or continually deceived by the greatest tricksters in politics. We need to stamp the very essence of it on our head, learn from it so we can move on progressively, and never let history repeat itself. We can't go on pretending we are OK when we are not, because we will never be when that day of fear and the unpleasant comes. Her demise, it appears, united the nation once again, which means how much of an influence she is. Bringing back the old times, deja vu.

Cory is love for the Philippines personified. Let's all give our fair share of love for the country. It doesn't have to be tantamount to that of a figure in history books, but, at least , to strive to be worth a Filipino. It is tempting to say that the Filipino fails to realize that the dream is not far from his reach if only he act now, and I do believe in every Filipino. I am hoping the struggle will soon be over.

Today, I bid farewell to you President Corazon Aquino, the mother of our democracy. We will be forever indebted to you. It was a job well done.

Translation of text on shirt: Daghang Salamat, President Cory Aquino... Paalam!!! (Thank you so much, President Cory Aquino... Farewell!!!)

Grow More Trees

The tree-planting activity sponsored by the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) and the Kantipla Ecosystems Enhancement and Protection (KEEP) Foundation kicked off last June 27. They are encouraging volunteers to join the tree-planting caravan every Saturday until September 26 at Sitio Kantipla, Barangay Tabunan, Cebu City. It's for a good cause -- giving back to Mother Nature what she has given us.

The team (me together with my officemates) arrived at the site mid-morning today. At least 2 other companies I know of joined us. Then when mid-day came, thousands of different tree species were planted already.

Thanks to PBSP and KEEP for the opportunity!

On the way back home, we were convincingly tired, starving, and, at the same time, charged up. We stopped by every time there was something worthy of our camera flashes. The day culminated with nothing less than evermore green around, and we had found a comfortable place to say that, at least, we were on top of the world.

The downpour never ceased to save everything electronic, but it guaranteed one thing, that the young trees that so finally met the earth will eventually heighten into sturdy giants, spread their roots far enough to support themselves and save humanity.

Up to the Boondocks

The playfulness of the world is an adult's jealous longing to journey back to the old times. As he kisses goodbye to the carefree joys of untapped and uncorrupted world, he is met with nothing but the absolute reality of the world -- complicated and never pure and simple anymore.

As we trekked to the mountains, packed with a purpose, a growing realization of the world came to being. To ascend, to rise against the sad reality, it is but fitting to look around to see what's so often go unnoticed. We're thinking macro, disregarding the other way around. Besides, living in the fastlane often interferes with comprehension of the world.

Everything has an important role to play and deserves recognition. The rocky road we traversed, the muddy brown clay sticking to the soles of my sneakers, the simplicity of the farmer folks' livelihood, the greenness of it all, and everything that breathes life compounded my appreciation of the world. Nothing can be so trivial after all. The naivety brought me back to the timeline untapped, uncorrupted, and so pure and simple.

"It is hard to stay mad, when there's so much beauty in the world," says Lester Burnham from the movie American Beauty. There is so much hope out there. We just have to learn to find it.

Images: Matalom, Leyte, Philippines