September is almost over. And we just celebrated my sister's birthday for three days:

1.) Gala sa gateway. We're supposed to watch movie at Shang, pero di natuloy.
2.) Attend ng Feast and Sunday house celebration.
3.) Jollibee (pero di ako kasama)

this made my day...^^

The song "Kanlungan" is playing right now. And it never fails to stir in snippets of my happy yesterday.(The days you know that will never ever happen again.)

I'm not saying that I'll never be happy again tomorrow or the next month or in the far future.

In fact, I'm contentedly happy these days. As my present mantra goes like this:

Masaya na ko sa mga panahong ito. lahat ng kailangan ko ay nandito na: Pamilya, mga kaibigan, sweldo sa ATM, crush at pangarap.

Though these things may fail sometimes, still, being contented with what you have brings happiness.

And, back to my initial proposition, sadness hits you when you remember people who had been part of your life for a very short time and you know will never be again by your side because you are not only divided by oceans and mountains, but divided by years as well. The same laughter and happiness won't strike you again. You can never laugh and cry about the very same things. Some other humorous things might be there to meet you, but the old ones, they're gone forever, etched in your memory.

But how many memories can our 150-pound noggin handle?

In the next few years, I'll surely remember the happiness I feel right now, but will I still remember then the memories I have right now? Will they be overwritten?  Like the messages in your inbox?

The technology will fail us. We can't rely on twitter, or skype or even emails to continuously communicate with yesterday, hoping to hold on to the future. So the tangible and written reminders, I will keep.

very very strawvery. I won't forget that.


I hope.

So my daily verse now goes:

Masaya na ko sa mga panahong ito. lahat ng kailangan ko ay nandito na: Pamilya, mga kaibigan, sweldo sa ATM, crush, pangarap, at mga ala-ala.

Loneliness

A re-post from Ala Paredes's blog: ala's dos. I have the same thoughts too, and I'm just mesmerized how she managed to brilliantly put her mind into words. ^^

Spent the day in the city today and the I feel that the heaviness hanging over me loosened its choke hold a little. It helped that I was with one of my dearest friends in the world who is always such a kind, loving, accepting presence, and who makes me laugh over silly things.
Being alone too often is not good for people who easily fall into melancholy like me. It has been my disposition since birth. I’ve learned to accept it as a quirk of my character and it’s something I don’t take too seriously. Moods come and go.
But things can get out of hand.
Everyday, I do my freelance work in my house alone. I wake up to a quiet house. I eat lunch alone. At 3 PM, I go for my coffee break alone. I cook and eat dinner alone listening to the ticking of the clock. On Sundays I go out for my special Sunday lunch, alone.
I’m awake 6 hours earlier than the only person I live with. By the time he wakes up, I’m either out doing afternoon errands, or he needs to rush to work. By the time he gets home I’m asleep.
The only human voices I actually hear are the telemarketers trying to sell me carpet shampoos or solar energy or whatever.
Thing with loneliness is that it’s easy to reverse its effects when ingested in small doses. Call your friend. Go on Facebook. Send a text message.
But in large doses, it can really grind away at you. Dark thoughts prey on you. Small fears become big, paralyzing fears. You nit-pick. You doubt yourself at every turn. You become disoriented. Your self confidence starts eroding away. It becomes pretty easy to feel that there is no human warmth in your life. Only Twitter and Facebook and all the other silly things we use to numb ourselves and feel like we’re all close even though we never have real conversations.
Dramatic much? It happens when you’re alone all the time, and are predisposed to melancholy.
I’ve become dull, and overly serious, and my sense of humor doesn’t come out to play very often. I don’t laugh very often. Joy comes only occasionally, and in a faint drizzle. What do you laugh about when you’re alone all the time? And when you do start laughing when you’re alone, it means you’ve finally gone crazy.
Not good for my mental health. Maybe the isolated life of a freelancer isn’t for me. Or maybe I’ve been carrying around big questions and now that I’m alone all the time, I can no longer ignore them.

of Noel Cabangon and other matters...

September 20, as  Agriculture Usec. Bernadette Puyat said, is truly a landmark in the history of the Department.

That day, which seemed a normal day to other government offices, private companies, commuters and passersby(except for those celebrating their birthdays etc..)--was the day the DA Hymn was launched, and the event was graced by no other than the song's composer and lyricist, and a well-known activist--Noel Cabangon.

Incidentally, he formed Buklod, an activist folk-rock group, in the same year I was born. The group, composed of Noel Cabangon himself, Rom Dongeto, and Rene Boncocan, was always present in rallies and performed various songs that stirred the hearts of protesters. He even cited that it was a contradicting scene that he was performing inside a government agnecy, while years ago he was just in front of the Department of Agrarian Reform, perfroming activist songs such as the Bamboo-remake "Tatsulok" which had been a theme song of many activist groups during the last two decades.

I actually got introduced to his art when I heard his first commercially-released song "Kanlungan" during my highschool. It's cool for somebody like Noel Cabangon, a true-blue artist and patriot, to create something that will be part of the history. I just hoped he performed "Tatsulok" and "Kanlungan" that day, but "Mabuting Pilipino" and "Kahit Maputi na ang Buhok Ko" were not bad choices as well.

Here goes the lyrics of DA Hymn:

Si Goma ay napadaan

Napadaan si Goma. At kami'y napangiti. Click.

Waiting

Still, waiting overdue is unexciting.

You see, no matter how you think about a situation, unless you do something about it, nothing will change.

Act. Now. On your dreams. And other stuff you have to face.

Poems from my childhood

IF I KNEW YOU
Anonymous

If I knew you and you knew me,
If both of us could clearly see,
And with an inner sight divine,
The meaning of your heart and mine,
I'm sure that we would differ less,
And clasp our hands in friendliness;
Our thoughts would pleasantly agree,
If I knew you and you knew me.


LITTLE BY LITTLE
Anonymous

“Little by little,” an acorn said,
As it slowly sank in its mossy bed,
“I am improving every day,
Hidden deep in the earth away.”
Little by little, each day it grew;
Little by little, it sipped the dew;
Downward it sent out a thread-like root;
Up in the air sprung a tiny shoot.
Day after day, and year after year,
Little by little the leaves appear;
And the slender branches spread far and wide,
Till the mighty oak is the forest’s pride.

Far down in the depths of the dark blue sea,
An insect train work ceaselessly.
Grain by grain, they are building well,
Each one alone in its little cell.
Moment by moment, and day by day,
Never stopping to rest or to play,
Rocks upon rocks, they are rearing high,
Till the top looks out on the sunny sky.
The gentle wind and the balmy air,
Little by little, bring verdure there;
Till the summer sunbeams gayly smile
On the buds and the flowers of the coral isle.

“Little by little,” said a thoughtful boy,
“Moment by moment, I’ll well employ,
Learning a little every day,
And not spending all my time in play.
And still this rule in my mind shall dwell,
Whatever I do, I will do it well.
“Little by little, I’ll learn to know
The treasured wisdom of long ago;
And one of these days, perhaps, we’ll see
That the world will be the better for me”;
And do you not think that this simple plan
Made him a wise and useful man?


(Some of the parts in Little by Little are not included in my High School text book. I never knew the poem has these lines.)

These poems are so great...♥

Hey Christmas, are you coming soon?

Today’s the first day of September and every body’s gushing cuz Christmas is coming.

It’s normal that even on rainy days like these, when the first day of the –ber months has arrived, people will automatically disregard the weather condition and take time to breathe the air that is Christmas.

You’ll suddenly hear Christmas songs and TV segments will start featuring anything about Christmas—from decors, gift selection and preparation, food for parties and all sort of things related to “tis season to be jolly”.

Christmas’s core meaning for me is love. What else can it be? And with love there is forgiveness, care, patience, and every good thing you can think of—even chocolate.

Aside from the reminder that Christmas season has started today, many things are making me smile too, even though my face is attacked by nasty and swollen pimples these past few weeks.

I might have troubled heart from time to time, but I just can’t help but smile whenever good things associated with Christmas come by.

MerrY CHristMas!