The Baguio weekend getaway

Deciding to make use of the long weekend last week, we all went to Baguio together with my brother's family. It was a last minute decision to go because of the rainy weather. So Friday, night, I was running all over the house preparing the things to bring for the long trip.

Saturday 6am, we were all dressed up & ready to leave. The kids were all excited to spend the weekend there with their cousins. Seeing that the weather is okay, we trekked Kennon Road to save on time. We aimed to be in Baguio by noon.

The house we rented was new with 3 rooms. Two rooms has 2 beds each and the big room has 4 beds. It has hot water ( a must!), TV, ref, stove & gas & kitchen utensils. It even had a small balcony. It was conveniently located near SM Baguio.

Going to Baguio is already a yearly thing for us and even if we've been through this place a lot of times already, it still never fails to bring wonderful memories to the family. It managed to retain the beauty of its nature. The only complaint I have is the seemingly worsening air pollution coming from the public utility vehicles.

But in the end, it was a good R & R for the whole family. I'm sure my kids enjoyed it as much as we did.

Roots

August 21 was a marked date for us to attend a family reunion on my side. A reunion wherein all six of us siblings are complete seldom happens. Much as we would like to, our geographical locations plus commitment at work hinders us to see each other more often. So, yesterday was really a special day for us.

Packed with our own contributions for a potluck lunch till dinner party, we all headed to my sister's house in Bulacan. Everyone enjoyed the sumptuous feast complete with desserts and a little booze. The little kids played contentedly with one another while the teenagers hanged out watching DVD's and playing guitar. The reunion transpired with a lot of laughter and reminiscing our childhood days and our own dear parents.

It was good to spend the whole day with them. We all updated each other what is going on in our lives, reliving the old jokes and injecting new ones. You could see the changes that transpired in the months that we last saw each other. I'm sure all of us aged physically, with all of them using already reading glasses except for me since I am the youngest or a wisp of white hair now being seen.

There is something about seeing your siblings grow old. And we all grasp its meaning as we remind one another especially our older brothers to keep fit and stay healthy. But most of all, it is the realization that we have to exert more effort to see each other more often because we can not be here forever.

But aside from the physical changes, one could sense a deeper transformation in everybody. What I mean by deeper change is when somebody comes to you and say, "Something's changed about you but I can't pinpoint exactly what it is." Perhaps the change I'm referring to is the change inside all of us.

But mind you, our relationship with one another is not picture perfect. We all had our share of misunderstandings, arguments, fights and cold treatment. Yet, as time passed and we have grown more matured, we have learned to be more forgiving and make allowances for each others shortcomings. Although all of us now have our own families, our childhood memories and our parents bind us together.

As we headed for home at around 9 pm, tired, sleepy but happy, I thanked my parents who patiently raised us and instilled to us that no matter what different paths we take and wherever we may be, we must not forget to come back to our roots.

Undoing that Needs to be Done

After days of continuous rain and classes being suspended, I took the time to catch up on sleep. Yes, that adorable and glorious sleep! The one thing that I dreaded when I was a kid is now a much coveted thing now that I'm an adult.

Going back to rain, the past weeks found the Christian community praying for rain because of the dry spell and seemingly imminent water shortage. Well, God did hear us because we did and still have rain. Funny thing is, God gave us rain but humans create floods.

Most parts of the city are flooded. Noticeably, the areas that were before flood-free are now experiencing flood. As I see parts of the cities affected by the non-stop rain, I can't help but heave a sigh of relief and at the same time sigh with resignation. Relief because we are fortunate that our place is not under water. Resignation because it seems there will never be a solution anymore to the city's drainage system.

Instilling discipline and educating each and every citizen is a must if we want a solution to this lingering flood problem. Residents near rivers or creeks should discard the bad habit of throwing garbage to the water. And I'm not singling out the ones living near rivers, even the regular guy or gal out there should cooperate.

Takes a lot of undoing if you would ask me.

School Trend

It's the week of the 1st quarterly exams for most of the schools here. Not only are the kids preparing but the parents as well. As I scanned the pages of the notebooks of my daughter for her pointers for review, I gulped at the length of coverage. Whew!

The school's curriculum nowadays is much more competitive than before. My daughter who is currently in Grade 3 comes home from school loaded with 4 to 5 assignments. It doesn't leave much time for her to relax after spending the whole day at school. No wonder kids are so stressed and pressured. Before, services of a tutor would be needed when the child is performing poorly academically but now, tutors are there even for kids who are doing well in their report card. But kids are very adaptive in nature. Their malleability enables them to adjust in any given situation.

It is definitely a whole new ballgame for this generation... of achieving and expecting more from our kids. It's either you go with the flow to keep up with the advances or be left behind.

Be Still

Sipping a cup of coffee early Sunday morning, I was able to appreciate the quietness of the house. In the stillness of things, one can even hear the ticking of the clock and the sound the air pump makes in our aquarium. Some people gets uneasy with a house being so quiet but in that exact moment, I found comfort in what the silence offered.

Maybe it's because our house is normally noisy with kids around. You see, our household starts early during weekdays getting everybody ready for school. Then the day is filled up with errands and work that needs to be done. Dinners are much busier with everybody trying to do their own stuff, asking the older kids to attend to their homework, helping the little ones with their personal needs and with the TV blaring in the living room.

Often, in the rush of doing things and trying to get things done, we forget that we need to be still, not to move and not to talk for a few minutes. It is in being quiet that you can only hear yourself and will be able to accomplish more.

So, my friend, just when things are beginning to get crazy and you're confused, try to BE STILL.

Why I Blog?

According to Wikipedia, " A blog provides commentary or news on a particular subject such as food, politics, or local news. Others function as a personal online diary." With this definition, anybody can make a blog! And why shouldn't you?

I came up with 8 reasons why I should write a blog. Feel free to come up with your own.

1. It is an avenue to express myself. A blog allows me to share my thoughts and feelings in the world wide web. This lets other people know what a regular person like me is thinking. The human element in it makes it more interesting.
2. It will unravel my creativity inside. Initially, I was skeptical about starting a blog thinking that I do not have enough imagination to write a series of posts. Well, after a few weeks of focusing on it, it became easier and easier. Blogging allowed me to discuss various topics and constant writing will fuel that ingenuity.
3. It will improve my writing skills. Writing daily expanded my word selection, sentence construction and so on. When I read my earlier articles or posts, I observed a marked improvement. Just like any other skill, writing takes practice.
4. It links me to the rest of the world. A blog bonds me to other people through the thoughts, comments or opinions that I share. When I read someone else's blog, I know that I am in connection with a human being and not some corporate website.
5. It makes me a considerate writer. Knowing that my articles can be read by anyone who has Internet access, it made me a bit more conscious with my writing being careful not to offend any race, religion or culture by the issues I discuss.
6. It makes me a considerate reader. Having a blog myself enabled me to be understanding and appreciative of other people's views, experiences & knowledge.
7. It keeps a record of events. Writing everyday about the things happening around me serves as a journal that I can read back anytime I want. It may not be significant to me at present but five years from now, I know I will relish reading my posts again.

Well, so far these are what I can think of. How about you? What's your personal reason for blogging? Let me know your thoughts on this.

Disappointment... should we be guilty?

Yesterday, I went malling with the kids. We did the usual thing of dining out and buying a few things for school. Teens passing by were sporting the latest mobile phones and Ipods together with their branded jeans and shoes. With this trend, I would not be surprised if my eldest son ditches his mobile phone and MP3. And when he does ask for a new phone and I say no, should I feel guilty?

Today's parents are so focused on giving the "best" for their children that they end up giving everything for fear of depriving their kids. But often, we confuse deprivation with disappointment. Yes, we disappoint them when they want something and we do not give it but we definitely do not deprive them.

They need to experience disappointment from time to time to prepare them for what lies ahead. It will equip them with the necessary emotional maturity needed in handling the "downs" of life. Even if you can afford to buy what they want, let them feel disappointment. Remember, not only are we raising kids but we are also raising future fathers and mothers of this nation.

Rude Drivers

Being the designated driver of my kids during school days, I can't help but shake my head in disbelief over the lack of discipline of our drivers. The usual scenario would be a two lane road becomes three which leaves one wondering what are the lane marks' for? You patiently inch way your though traffic when an arrogant driver would try to get ahead of you by putting his car bumper to bumper to your car. A public vehicle cuts you then suddenly stops in the middle of the road to load or unload passengers. Unbelievable!

When a car tries to squeeze his car in front of mine as I wait in the rush hour traffic, I can't help but be annoyed by this driver's inexcusable behavior. Does it mean that his time is more important than mine that he had to cut his way ahead of others? I don't think so. Being on the road does not give you the right to be rude and arrogant.

Driving by instinct rather than the Right of Way policy would make any foreigner give a quick no when asked if he would want to take the wheel. I believe that the this road discipline thing can only be resolved if the requirements in getting a driver's license would be more rigid. Hmm, I wonder when will this happen?

Topic Hunting

Imagine this. You start typing a few sentences then after that, a complete stop. Nothing follows. The harder you try to finish this, the more difficult it gets. I think every writer's fear is not having something to write about. I, for one, experiences this from time to time. Having days wherein I would feel that I could no longer squeeze any creative juices out of my mind is not new to me.

I observed that I would find it difficult to write when I am jaded by the day-to day events of living. When everything seems to be ordinary and nothing seems to be interesting. What could be worst than staring at your computer screen and nothing comes out? For bloggers like me, it is but essential to update one's blog regularly and doing this would require effort. So, I'd like to share some of the things that I do when hunting for a topic.

• Step out of the computer. This means diverting your energies by doing something else. It could be taking a walk, talking to a friend, playing with my kids or doing household chores.
• Ponder on the day's or coming events. Often, this could be a good kick start for a topic.
• Ask friends for ideas. You can't think of everything so you can seek suggestions from your friends as to what could be a good topic that to dwell on.
• Experience something new. Routine zaps out the creative juices that we have inside us. Now, I don't mean you have to go bungee jumping or skydiving for you to be able to write. Just try to step out of your comfort zone so as to encounter something new. It is through this occurence that one would be able to fertilize that creativity in us needed in writing.
• Read newspapers. This is a good way to know what's going on around you and writing your opinions about current events could be a start.
• Write your ideas. Sometimes, ideas can come to you when you least expect it. If this is the case, having a pen and notebook with you always will enable you to jot down your idea and not forget about it. You can then go back to it later when you are ready to write.
• Be sensitive to inspirations. Inspirations do not always come handed down in a silver platter. You just have to attune your senses to look for it and work with what you have.

Inadequate or so it seems...

"What have you accomplished so far?"

A simple question yet when given much thought is very hard to answer. An innocent question but when asked in the middle of an argument can hurt so much. In a flash, you will re-examine your life and in so doing, whatever accomplishments you may have achieved would make you feel inadequate.

I know it was not the intention of that person to make me feel insufficient. I was just taken aback by the tartness of the question. But what is the true measure of one's accomplishments? Is it through the grandiose of material things that one has acquired, or through the number of plaques you have on your wall or is it through the number of zeroes your bank account has or the number of organizations you are a member of or the wideness of your network activity?

Accomplishments or success can have various meaning depending on the person being asked. We all have taken different paths, different directions in our lives. Through the course of things, we have prioritized what is important to us at that time. For some it may be career, for others it may be further studies or building an empire or starting a family.

What is important is that you do not compare your achievements with someone else's unless you want to be miserable all your life. Just remember that this is your life and it is only you who will be accountable for it.

Simply put, "Life is what we make out of it."