When I Fell In Love

By -
This document comes with no disclaimers, apologies or motives. It is short but from the heart, and I hope you, bayani, find writing about your land a bit more comfortable, positive and oriented to what exists between elections.

I came to Pinas in 2005, uneducated about the culture and unaware of anything other than the desire for my partner at the time. While that faded rather quickly, my interest in the country never did. Fortunately I was able to grab hold of it and manifest a reality some may never truly appreciate. Fast forward to 2010, wherein I recognize that my love of Filipinas is really just a distraction from my ultimate goals. I have transplanted and redirected my desires. While I still have many pinay friends, and adore each and every one of them as the interesting creatures they are, my interest in Pinas no longer lies in my love for them.. I just love this country. I behold the natural beauty of Bohol and weep for the sturgid streets of Cavite; I gaze upon the golden shores of Calicoan and wonder how did Marikina go so wrong...

In 2011, as we near the end, I appreciate more the phrase "Ang buhay ng tao'y gulong ang kahambing. Sa ibabaw ngayon, bukas sa ilalim" often overstated to emphasize the Pinoy mentality of daily survival. In the constant change of life here, one can retain nothing but pride at times and yet, I love this country. I love it for its recognizance of sheer stupidity, for it teaches our youths what not to do in the future. If we instruct them wisely, they will evolve into leaders this nation needs so desperately. Within them lie a future not yet inscribed, let us take each one of them..let us take the physical beauty of Bohol, Guimaras, Suquijor, Banaue, Batanes, Coron, Camotes, and Calicoan and transform it into a lyrical prowess that demands their attention. My work here, presently, is to inspire the people, the youth who watch demented teleserye programming and listen to elders voices of hopelessness.. to take this natural beauty and make it a demonstrative and tangible reality. Pinas should not have concession in its affairs, but rather a state of urgency.. but also one infused with positive means.

Your potential is vast, your people many.. please realize the gains and squander not as other nations have, to their demise. Your Chocolate Hills cry out for freedom just as the children of Pasig cry for kwarta. Sagada praises the sun which sets on Zamboanga, and curses the sands of Saudi Arabia where so many balikbayans reside...fear not, for the future is yours if you reach it with intent, with mercy upon those who disavow anything other than what the Cojuangcos want them to believe..they are your kababayan, they belong in this future, they are incoherent to reason and duty, but not to love...Ilocano to Ilonggo, Kapampangan to Waray, each has their role in this grand finale to 400+ years of aggression, greed, and subserviance.

I believe in Bayanihan and I believe that the seeds of today, lay among the thorns of yesteryear. For I love this country...

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular this week

The sound of a #Tagalog convo: 'like chickens and hens cackling in unison'

By -
Image
While I'm not sure the language should totally go the way Latin did, one can't deny the limited use of Tagalog. As it is now, a sentence can't be done without two or three borrowed words in English which makes it redundant in academia. Somehow you gotta address the technical jargon but there really is no equivalent to it in Tagalog so the English term just ends up jammed in between the local vernacular. Nevermind the fact that reading Tagalog online is cringey no matter who wrote it. Add the fact that it just doesn't sound pleasing to the ear. Normal conversation with Tagalog is like chickens and hens cackling in unison to the uninitiated. It's the peasants' language through and through. ------------ This is a GRP Featured Comment. Join the discussion! http://getrealphilippines.com/blog/2014/06/kudos-to-the-commission-on-higher-education-ched-for-finally-junking-tagalog/comment-page-1/#comment-544143
Read more

Poor people in the Philippines seem to prefer poverty over aspiring to be not poor

By -
Image
Sadly, a MAJORITY of the poor people here are bad people. That is WHY they are poor. They disrespect others, they disrespect themselves, and they disrespect God’s creation. Exactly how do they think they’ll be rewarded for that? If you genuinely had empathy, you would be able to get inside their heads and understand why they do these things, and perhaps know how to fix it. However, you are confusing “empathy” with “sympathy”. I have yet to meet a poor person who actually WANTS to do the things necessary to escape poverty. The funny thing is, everyone can see that I’m more successful than they are. They think this is because I’m “rich”. I’m sure a lot of them are full of jealousy (as benign0 describes) and sit around thinking “ha, it’s not fair, that foreigner is so rich and I’m so poor. I guess it’s OK if I steal his stuff”. Which they do. Regularly. I grew up poor. I know how it feels to be hungry, all the time, every day. I decided I didn’t like feeling like that. I’m successf
Read more

Filipinos "nice" but lacking in common sense -- IT business manager

By -
Image
As someone whom invested heavily in the Philippines managing an IT company, I view your assumptions as narrow minded. I’ve given hundreds of Pinoys IQ tests as part of the selection process, the vast majority of these IT graduates ( the cream of the crap ) performed dismally. After two years operating we decided to close up and retain Singaporean Chinese staff and Brazilians. One staff member does the work of approximately 10 Pinoys. The biggest issue was a sheer lack of common sense, they can do black and white but seldom grey. Higher order thinking skills and abstract reasoning skills seemed to me missing, as they would perhaps with someone diagnosed with mild Asperger syndrome. As people I found them nice, but rarely kind. Big difference there, anyone can smile. ---------------------- This is a GRP Featured Comment. Join the discussion !
Read more