... the compound of the Development Academy of the Philippines.
October 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
Launchings
I was a co-editor of this book.
Book launching of "ISIP" during the PSSP Conference (Nov 25, 2011) and 2nd Launching of "Dadaanin" in Bestsellers Bookstore (Nov 27, 2011).
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Memento mori: On turning 55
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| Performance artist near the Sacre Couer Basilica |
For my SJC Classmates...
Memento mori is a Latin phrase translated as "Remember your mortality", "Remember you must die" or "Remember you will die" It names a genre of artistic work which varies widely, but which all share the same purpose: to remind people of their own mortality.
Memento mori is a Latin phrase translated as "Remember your mortality", "Remember you must die" or "Remember you will die" It names a genre of artistic work which varies widely, but which all share the same purpose: to remind people of their own mortality.
As far as I'm concerned, the work of art that constantly reminds me of my mortality is the face and body I see in the full-length mirror daily. When I peer into my likeness, there is no doubt that I'm inching my way slowly into mortality. But there was a better way of convincing me that this was true.
Since the last few weeks after my birthday in September, I have been busy with my annual physical examination. The results have been trickling in, one by one, and my feelings remind me of my Little Girl Self anxiously waiting to open my gifts on Christmas eve.
When I did get to read all of the results, some of them were like gifts of Life. I have been monitoring the state of my organs and appendages related to nurturance and reproduction for almost a decade now. The initial signs of something gone awry in my system are still there but have at least not progressed to alarming proportions. Thank you, Lord!
But other vital organs have now signaled their need for attention and care from me. From a near-normal functioning for the last 54 years, I am suddenly confronted with all sorts of too highs and too lows in my medical records. And to my daily Senior multi-vitamins, I have reluctantly had to add a daily maintenance dose of Amlodipine besylate (In denial pa rin ako! So the murkier the association with the dreaded disease, the better). I have yet to show all of my results to the consultant at the UP Health Service who will render the final judgment on what still awaits me.
In the meantime, I am trying my darn best to eat healthy and struggling to establish a regular exercise routine. I am after all, "just" 55 and plan to live it up at least another 30 years. Much like the young man performing acrobatics on the lamp post, with my remaining years, I intend to share all that I am with the world, withstanding all the dangers that accompany it, and hopefully inspiring people my age to do the same!
When I did get to read all of the results, some of them were like gifts of Life. I have been monitoring the state of my organs and appendages related to nurturance and reproduction for almost a decade now. The initial signs of something gone awry in my system are still there but have at least not progressed to alarming proportions. Thank you, Lord!
But other vital organs have now signaled their need for attention and care from me. From a near-normal functioning for the last 54 years, I am suddenly confronted with all sorts of too highs and too lows in my medical records. And to my daily Senior multi-vitamins, I have reluctantly had to add a daily maintenance dose of Amlodipine besylate (In denial pa rin ako! So the murkier the association with the dreaded disease, the better). I have yet to show all of my results to the consultant at the UP Health Service who will render the final judgment on what still awaits me.
In the meantime, I am trying my darn best to eat healthy and struggling to establish a regular exercise routine. I am after all, "just" 55 and plan to live it up at least another 30 years. Much like the young man performing acrobatics on the lamp post, with my remaining years, I intend to share all that I am with the world, withstanding all the dangers that accompany it, and hopefully inspiring people my age to do the same!
Saturday, November 26, 2011
A script for yesterday's laughter
Scene 2: Conversation in the car in the evening
J: So, K, this is what Papa said this morning ... blah, blah, blah!
(Laughter from everyone)
T: E kasi naman, Bisaya ako. Pareho lang naman sa amin ang pronunciation nun kahit na magkaiba pa ang spelling! S-w-e-e-t-i-e ... swety at S-w-e-a-t-y ... swety pa rin! Hahaha!
(More laughter from everyone)
T: Besides, puede naman kasing gamitin both words to describe Kara, di ba? Especially when she puts off her showers for later in the day! Hahaha!
(K groans)
J: Sorry but this scene is going to end up in my blog.
(Laughter from everyone)
Friday, November 25, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Still incomplete
For my sister, Ling, who always provides me the biggest pieces in this evolving thing...
Many of us through life looking for that single, perfect person who will make us happy, make us whole. We go around looking vulnerable, showing the gaping hole in our hearts, thinking that someone special out there has the power to stop the bleeding. Maybe it will be a guru who will provide all the answers to our life questions. Or a soul-mate who will always be in sync with our thoughts and will rejoice in our shared idiosyncracies. Or the love of one's life who will feed our desires and provide the reasons for bliss and contentment. And of course, many of us, if not all, end up disappointed in this impossible quest.
In my fading years, I can say with utmost certainty that we can never rely on any one person to make us complete. Aside from holes in our heart and spirit which call for mending, parts of us were never with us to begin with. I think that one purpose of life is to find those missing pieces in our family, our friends, and maybe that one great love. Those who love us unconditionally, those who reject us, and those who can no longer be part of our lives - all of them have given us something to make us whole. The search for completion goes on all throughout our lives. The journey ends only when we, and no one else, decide that we are done.
Many of us through life looking for that single, perfect person who will make us happy, make us whole. We go around looking vulnerable, showing the gaping hole in our hearts, thinking that someone special out there has the power to stop the bleeding. Maybe it will be a guru who will provide all the answers to our life questions. Or a soul-mate who will always be in sync with our thoughts and will rejoice in our shared idiosyncracies. Or the love of one's life who will feed our desires and provide the reasons for bliss and contentment. And of course, many of us, if not all, end up disappointed in this impossible quest.
In my fading years, I can say with utmost certainty that we can never rely on any one person to make us complete. Aside from holes in our heart and spirit which call for mending, parts of us were never with us to begin with. I think that one purpose of life is to find those missing pieces in our family, our friends, and maybe that one great love. Those who love us unconditionally, those who reject us, and those who can no longer be part of our lives - all of them have given us something to make us whole. The search for completion goes on all throughout our lives. The journey ends only when we, and no one else, decide that we are done.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Heavenly music in Lucerne
The choir is singing the entrance hymn in a mass we attended in Lucerne, Switzerland.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Sa Ugoy ng Duyan
Sung by Jonathan Badon
Music and lyrics by Philippine National Artists Lucio San Pedro & Levi Celerio
This version is faithful to the original music and lyrics.
Noel Cabangon, Cookie Chua, Bukas Palad - Paghahandog
This song is one of my favorite mass songs. This version is utterly soul-stirring!
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Paris 3: Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur Basilica
The Sacré-Cœur Basilica was designed by Paul Abadie. Construction began in 1875 and was finished in 1914. It was consecrated after the end of World War I in 1919.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Hongkong in September 2011
From Paris, the 3 of us got off at Hongkong (Para, mama!) for 3 days just to break our long trip. Tito planed in from Manila to meet us. We didn't do anything new except for the Avenue of the Stars. Fun!
Where in the world is Liechstenstein?
The Principality of Liechtenstein (Listeni/ˈlɪktənstaɪn/ lik-tən-styn) is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over 160 square kilometres (62 sq mi), and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. Liechtenstein has the second highest gross domestic product per person in the world and has the world's lowest external debt.
Liechtenstein is the smallest yet the richest (by measure of GDP per capita) German-speaking country in the world and the only country to lie entirely within the Alps. It is the only predominantly German-speaking country not to share a common border with Germany and the only predominantly German-speaking nation to have a monarch. It is known as a principality as it is a constitutional monarchy headed by a prince. The country has a strong financial sector located in the capital, Vaduz, and has been identified as a tax haven.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Castel Gandolfo, Italy
Castel Gandolfo (Italian pronunciation: [kaˈstɛl ɡanˈdɔlfo],[1] Latin: Castrum Gandulphi, colloquially Castello in the Castelli Romani dialects) is a small Italian town or comune in Lazio that occupies a height overlooking Lake Albano about 15 miles south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills. It is best known as the summer residence of the Pope.
The resort community includes almost the whole coastline of Lake Albano that is surrounded by many summer residences, villas and cottages built during the seventeenth century.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Thursday, September 15, 2011
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