A story that has never been told

“Ely, you’re a workaholic!” Everytime I heard that line, I swelled with pride within, hid it beneath a shy smile, and muttered, “Aw shucks, maybe just a little. But thank you anyway…” I loved being workaholic ! And I loved it when others told me I was one! At a time when the word “multi-tasking” wasn’t invented yet, I was already an avid practitioner. I became an Officer in different reasons (I lost count somewhere along the way), Officer of an aggressive organization. Add to that my passion as a script writer and director- volunteer student here and even out of town- and you’ll get an idea of the kind of insane lifestyle I lived. But I was proud of that busy, albeit harassed, schedule. I didn’t (and couldn’t) walk or run from meeting to meeting. I had to rush, and zoom, and dash, and wisk, and jet, and zip, and race, and torpedo my way! In other words, I didn’t have time to live. Well one day, I just realized I was doing it all wrong. Because no...

Isang klase ng pampublikong sasakyan na bunga ng modernong teknolohiya. Kung nakasakay kana rito, ano kayang maiisip mo? Ako, nasubukan ko na ng maraming beses bilang isang estudyante na umiiwas sa masikip na daloy ng trapiko na maaaring maging dahilan ng pagkahuli sa klase. Aaminin ko, nung una bilib ako. Maaaring hindi airconditioned, masikip, hindi maganda ang amoy; pero malaking tipid sa oras at higit sa lahat maganda ang view ng mga gusaling madadaanan. Ngunit kung titignang mabuti, lagpas sa mga skyscraper na nagdedekora sa kamaynilaan ay may iba ka pang makikita na ikababago ng iyong opinion. Dahil sa kabila ng modernong teknolohiya na ginagastusan ng publiko at pamahalaan, ay wala ka nang ibang makikita kung hindi ang bubungan ng squatter na kinakalawang at pinapanatili lamang ng isang gulong. Ito ba ang kahulugan ng kaunlaran? Ang araw- araw na pagsampal ng katotohanan na sa likod ng lahat ng maganda ay parating may kaakibat na kapangitan.. =(

“Women are born for three reasons – to stay single, to get married or to enter a convent. Those who stay single just can’t make up their minds or are not attracted to a lifetime commitment. Those who enter a convent make easy access to God. Those who get married are meant to take care of babies and to attend to the needs of their husbands. In short, they are entitled to become caring mothers and faithful wives. Once a woman ties the knot, she carries the responsibility of making a whole, complete family.” Broken marriages seem to be normal nowadays. It is no big deal to get separated from a husband or wife in the spark of a second. Like a piece of cake, marriage annulments are processed so easily. No wonder there is an increasing number of broken homes where children are fated to face emotional crises. It’s no surprise adolescents become delinquent and misguided as they find temporary comfort in the tempting lure of technology and wrong choice of friends. It’s so hard to fathom why ma...

My father isn't the expressive, sentimental type. He isn't the hugging. "I love you" kind of guy. But I recall that, as a young girl, he showed his love to me the only way he knew best. He spent enormous time with me. We'd jog together every night, walk to a pizza joint on weekends and simply talk. (Actually, I'd do all the talking and he'd do the listening.) My father.. Was my bestfriend. A few months ago, Dad was trying to fix a light bulb in our garage standing on a chair for greater reach, he lost his balance and went crashing down. His head hit the concrete floor, and immediately, blood spurted out like water from an open faucet. Because of the impact, there was like a dripping faucet inside his brain as well. Blood clots started to appear in his X-rays and began to experience paralysis in his body. Even after brain surgery, he lost his language ability because of a new blood clot; found even deeper than the others-too deep for another s...

One of the things I will miss most is the days when you spend with me… Everything seems so special, everyday, the last thing I would do before leaving the house was to say goodbye to you, and the first thing I'd do when I arrived was to greet you. I would always make "paalam" before leaving and you always ask if I had money for the day and wished me to take care. When I got home from school each day, I would enter your room and say hello. Even though you’re tired, you always asked how my day went… Sigh...I can't seem to watch basketball now Lolo; it reminds me of you and I get so sad. I'll never forget that, whether it's PBA, UAAP, NBA, PBL, or NCA, you just loved the game. Thanks for letting me watch with you the game we both loved. I specifically enjoyed cheering for Celtics with you! I love it on how you'd analyze the game. You would have made a great commentator on TV! I also loved how you'd just tell me to get what ever I wanted to eat while watch...

We’re all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone who’s compatible with our weirdness, and then we join up with them and fall with mutual weirdness and call it LOVE                                                                                                                                  ...