Category Archives: Reflections

A Living Statement

I worked in an Italian company located in Saudi Arabia. All the experiences I’ve got there made me a better person. What I am now, and who am I now, somehow, are based on such experiences.

Not all experiences were good, or should I say, there were few experiences which I can consider good. Lots were really a terrible experience.

Dealing with other nationalities was really one of my struggles during my stay. Why? It was difficult. First, I’ve got to study their cultures, behaviors, and attitudes.

Some were patience, some were kind but lots were really bad ass.

Those who were given a chance to have a good position in the company, they acted as if they were untouchable. It seemed that their heads were disproportion with their bodies. They were so big headed individuals clothed with smelly-junkie rude personalities.

Second, I’ve got to mingle with them despite our differences. I was really struggling in this part since, I have to be really humble in order to reach out with them.

How can you relate to those guys who were acting as if they know everything where in fact they can even write a single correct sentence. YES! That’s true. They wrote an email as if they were just talking.

As a licensed English teacher who even passed in the comprehensive exam in Master of Arts in English Language Teaching, it was really hard for me to swallow the fact that was dealing with these people who can’t even use at least three fingers on the keyboard when they are using the computer.

I had a lot of fights, or should I say I had an ample of misunderstandings with them. But then again I managed to stand my grounds and expressed what I believe is true and correct based on the objective facts.

Lastly, I learned a lesson which is very beneficial to me who is working overseas. I worked now in a Spanish company, and I am trying to maintain a low-profile personality.

I don’t care if some colleagues would like to bully me or would try to impose themselves on me. What matters most is that, I for one believe, that I am not a fly by night employee.

Modesty aside, my higher education is more than enough to use as a barometer of my professional qualification. But my experiences in the Philippines and abroad would support my claim that I am now a better person.

Humble though I may seem, but my quality of work and my critical thinking would be a living statement of my own BEING.

Bakit may tinik ang rosas?

Ang tilamsik ng aking diwa kung bakit may tinik ang rosas.

Minsan may mga damdamin pala tayong kailangan na lang nating ikubli sa kaibuturan ng ating puso, sapagkat kung ating isisiwalat ang tunay na nararamdaman ay ikaw lang ang mawawalan…

Laging tatandaan, wala kang karapatang magmahal kung hindi ka handang masaktan…

Dapat marunong kang yumakap sa mga tinik na balakid sa wagas mong pag-ibig…makita mo lang siyang maligaya…

At sa Maykapal ito'y ipagpapasalamat mo na.

Anupat masasabi natin sa ating sarili kung anung ligaya ang malalasap at maidudulot ng pagmamahal, lalong lalo na kung minamahal ka din ng iyong nililiyag. Datapwat anung sarap ng tunay na pag-ibig, subalit hindi nito ginagarantiya na ang pag-ibig na wagas ay masusuklian din ng tulad ng ating pagmamahal.

Ang tunay na pagmamahal ay ang pagmamahal na hindi naghihintay ng anumang kapalit. Tumpak! masarap magmahal at mahalin, ngunit hindi lahat ng ating mamahalin ay nagmamahal din sa atin.

May mga malulungkot na pangyayari sa ating buhay na wala tayong magagawa kundi ang tanggapin ang masaklap na katotohanan na may mga minamahal tayo, subali’t hindi nila masuklian ang ibinibigay nating pagmamahal.

Nakakalungkot hindi ba?Pero dapat lamang natin itong tanggapin sapagkat may mga tao din na nagmahal sa atin subalit hindi din natin masuklian ang pagmamahal na ibinibigay nila sa atin. Kung ikaw ay tunay at wagas na nagmamahal, yung pagmamahal na yaon mismo ang dapat magpasaya sa’yo at hindi yung kapalit na hinihingi mo.

Ang pag-ibig na pinanday ng mga sakripisyo ay hindi matatawaran ang kapanatagan na iyong mararamdaman, ngunit, ang pagmamahal na ang dulot ay kaligayahan lang para sa sarili ay hungkag na pagmamahal at isang malaking kabalintunaan.

Samantala, kung sa pakiramdam natin ay sinusiklian naman ang ating pag-ibig ngunit sa tingin mo’y kulang, hindi tayo dapat malungkot, bagkus ay dagdagan pa ang pag-ibig, para kung sakaling kulang man ay tayo na mismo ang magpuno nang kakulangan na yaon.

Sa dahilang ang sukatan ng pag-ibig ay ang pag-big na walang sukat. Ang pag-ibig ay pagbibigay ng buong puso, buong-buo, walang agam agam, walang pag-iimbot, at walang kapalit.

Minsan akala natin ay hindi nasusuklian ang ating pag-ibig dahil hindi natin makamit ang ating minimithi, ngunit hindi natin naalintana na ang sakit ng ating pagkabigo ay yun na mismo ang kapalit na ating pag-ibig.

Lagi mong tandaan na hindi lahat na idudulot ng pag-ibig ay naayon sa ating kagustuhan. May mga bunga ito na mapait at masakit at hindi natin gusto kaya naman dapat lamang natin tanggapin ang katotohanan—ang sakit—ang pait.

Sa dahilang sa bawat sakit, sa bawat hapdi, sa bawat pait, sa bawat pighati, at sa bawat kirot—ay kaligayahan naman ang idinudulot.

Kaligayahan ng taong ating wagas na minamahal. Ang tanging kailangan lang ay ang pagtanggap—ang pagtanggap ng katotohanan—kahit masakit—kahit mapait—

Tulad nang isang napakagandang rosas…na sa ating pagpitas upang ito’y ihandog sa ating liyag, may mga pagkakataon na tayo’y matutusok ng kanyang matitilos na tinik.

Subalit hindi natin alintana ang sakit at kirot na maaring idulot ng sugat na dulot ng tinik. Bagkus ay buong giliw nating titiisin ang lahat ng sakit at pagkirot, sapagkat sa oras na iaabot na natin ang rosas, ay banayad na ngiti ang isinusikli ng ating minamahal.

Ang sambit ng mga negatibong tao ay sayang ang rosas dahil may tinik. Pero dapat sa pag ibig tayo ay positibo upang maintindihan natin at makita na napakaganda ng tinik dahil may rosas.

Para ding sa pag-ibig, na kahit anong hirap at sakit ng ating sitwasyon at pinagdaanan, masasambit pa din nating salamat sa pag-ibig, ako'y nagmamahal.

Bakit May Tinik ang Rosas?

What Makes a Student, a Student?

I wonder why students are always complaining about their studies…They always say that, there are lots of pressures…lots of assignments…projects…subjects…

My goodness, try to go back to the etymology of the word student. But wait!, I would prefer to use morphology, this is intended for those who are not familiar with etymology…(Etymology refers to the origin of the word while morphology refers to the root of the word, [salitang ugat].

In morphology, you may trace the root of the word “student” from its infinitive; to study. From the very word itself you can observe that as students you may legitimately call yourselves as students, if and only if you are studying your lessons in school…

This is very basic, isn’t it…no philosophical explanation is needed to prove this fact. If all your subjects…assignments…projects…and of course exams are stripped out from your “student-ness”, you can no longer be called yourselves as students.

The problem with you is therefore…the development of your habit…specifically your study habit… If you already possess that habit of studying, you will no longer experience pressures, in spite of ample stuffs to do.

No extra effort is needed when examination days come…

Now, call yourselves students and be responsible to accomplish your task, i.e., to study.

A Friend

Friend is someone who can sing your song in your heart when every time you forget the lyrics.

How can you really know that your friend is a true friend? It appears as an ordinary question of teens…right? But somehow, it is deeply related to us “twenteens” (now, thirteens) hehehe .

Friend is someone whom we can share our whole beings…our inmost thoughts…our memories and experiences… The laughters and tears also play an important role in any amicable relationship. But the question is? What makes friend a friend?

Whew! Philosophical isn’t it? It is really hard to find out a true friend…a friend who can understand you despite your individual differences…a friend who is always there with you even in the poignant pangs of grief in your life…

A friend who is sincere with you…who will appreciate you if you have done good things…A friend who will uplifts your heart when you are in trouble… a friend who will tell honestly if you are doing something wrong or if your act is against the moral principles… and a friend whom you can lean on…no matter what…without conditions…and a friend who keeps his/her promises…

A true friend won’t hurt you but sometimes, s/he may appear hurting you, if your friend is trying to help you and s/he touches your proud ego.

Apparently, s/he is hurting you, but in reality, s/he is just being true and real to you as your beloved friend. If s/he is always ready to listen to your repetitive stories which are seemingly burned like pirated CD’s/DVD’s, s/he is a true friend.

Hey pals I can be your friend whom you can trust. But if you are not yet satisfied with my friendship and If your mind tells you that you have not yet found your true friend, just visit Him for once, He is just waiting…waiting for your profound appreciation…

Then, He will help you for He is your friend… Jesus.

Gratitude

There are lots of people who are unemployed. In every job fair that I have attended to, there were thousands of people who were applying for a job to earn a livin. Life is really difficult isn’t it?

We really need to work hard so that we can survive in our daily living…But the thing is, when we are hired by a certain company and then we are performing our tasks, we oftentimes complain for a thousand-file of works in our table… We ask for a rest, right? And we are always looking forward for a holiday.

What an irony…Look! If we don’t have job…we will search high and low to look for it…We will even offer novenas on bended kness and ask for God’s providential care so that we could find one…But then again, when we got a job, we complain almost everyday…

Instead of giving thanks to the Almighty One for the job that He has given us, what we give in return are lots of complains…Have you ever imagined that you are still blessed for you have a job and then you earn a living…?

There are millions of people who are jobless…They even do unethical things just to sustain their lives. But here we are, every fifteenth and 30th of the month we received our salary. And still we complained? Oh my Lord! What kind of individuals are we?

Let’s give thanks to God and offer Him prayers and thanksgivings, for despite difficulties, pressures, critiques and struggles in our life, we still survive, and earn a living. As what St. Francis says and I quote, it is in giving that we receive…

Thus, Give thanks to God to Whom we owe all things that we have….Express our gratitude…a sincerest gratitude…and God will never let us down.

Gratitude is the memory of the heart, if the heart remembers, it always remembers in the spirit of gratitude.

A Simple Word

Scholars are fond of reading. They read lots of books about their own interests. Some people like fictions, others want non-fiction,s and there are also few who read philosophy.

You! My friend, what books do you read? In reading, we oftentimes encounter words which cannot be easily understood, some are bombastic while others are hypalothic . To decipher all these, we browse our best friends Webster’s and Merriam’s so that we can understand what we are reading.

However, there are still some words which are very hard to understand, for Webster’s and Merriam’s cannot give their definitions…the essence of the words…the “whattness”.

They simply give their description. When we say meaning or definition of words, it should be understood per se. “What makes this particular word, this particular word”.

The word definition for instance, we can understand this simply by looking to its etymology, from its Latin definire which means to enclose within limits. But the sad reality is that, we are simply trying to understand things through their descriptions, isn’t it?

Again, let’s go back to the basic, try to understand word as it is, and not simply by describing it. Morphology, of course, is of great help.

Nota Bene: I am not claiming that dictionaries are not reliable, because they are. I am just stressing that understanding the meaning of word through its etymology is essential. Or else you will just agree with the meaning of the word Filipina, in the New British Dictionary that says, a prostitute, or a woman who sells her body for pleasure…

Filipinos, I hope you comprehend!!!

The More You Hate…The More You Love

It takes time to forgive. Yes that’s true! It’s not that easy to forgive especially if the one who caused the pain is someone whom you really love…

But the thing is despite the fact that you really feel bad about what he has done, it does not follow that you hate that person, but rather you still love that person no matter what… The feelings or emotions are still there but they simply faded away…gradually…But the love itself still remains.

Try to reflect on this, it is true and tell me if I were wrong. If you really love, you always love no matter what…It is based on the infinity of love…a love that does not end.

Because if your love lost for someone, what you have felt is not real love. But rather a feeling of infatuation…or merely affection…that overflows from the deepest recesses of your heart.

The truth is…the more you claim that you hate someone…the more you love him/her. The more you hate…the more you love.

Unfathomable Love

I wonder why there are lots of individuals who claim that they fell in love when they first met. How come? Is it really possible?

Let’s find out…Man is capable of loving because of his intellect. It is from this intellect that he becomes rational, i.e., he can think, known, learn, love, give and forgive.

Most probably, the love that he felt, is not the real love that is manifested from the inmost self of every finite being, but rather simple infatuation…a feeling of mere gratification that overflows from his/her veins…but not the love per se.

Loving requires knowledge…knowledge on someone whom you know. Before loving someone you have to know that person, after this activity of the intellect, then love follows.

You can really claim that you love someone if you know that person. The absence of knowledge is the absence of love.

Now, after thorough assessing yourself and then you already know that person, and despite the negative qualities possessed by your “love”, and still you really feel that you are truly in love with him/her…that’s the right time to profess that your love is such real…a love that can be known but still…unfathomable.

Indefinable

Love is a four-letter word which has more than four billion different definitions which are based on the thousand-fold experiences of every single individual.

Indeed, lots of people attempted to find out the real meaning of love. Now, in trying to analyze this statement, let’s look back once again from the basics…In finding a meaning, we define it, right?

Thus we define what love is… Love is…blah…blah…blah and blah…In giving definition, we set a limit for that word for definire itself means to enclose within limits…if we will define love, we will simply enclose it within limits…if that is the case, it follows that we can define what love is.

Now, if you will simply define love you are putting a limitation on the essence of love, for love is indefinable, per se. Most probably, what you are doing is simply giving a mere description of love, but not giving it’s real definition for defining it would limit the essence or the “whatness” of love.

Thus, love itself has no definition. However, saying as such is already defining. Contradictory isn’t it?

Love, in a strict sense, is… indefinable.

Inspired By Hilera’s Define

Instant

What is patience? It is a virtue. That is the thought that most of the Catholic students learned in the school. Defining what patience is, is quite easy for them, it is very mechanical. But trying to understand the “whatness” of patience is hard to decipher.

Rev. Fr. Dominic Radecki, CMRI once said and I quote patience “is a virtue which helps us, for the love of God, to calmly bear our tribulations and preserve serenity amid the sufferings of life. Patience tempers sorrow and staves off excessive anger and complaining. Patience is the guardian of all the virtues, for there are obstacles to be encountered in any good work, and they can be overcome only by patience”.

It is obvious here that patience is a virtue, one of the cardinal virtues, which any Christians should possess. But how can people really acquire the virtue of patience, if everybody wants an instant access.

People nowadays desire to get what they want immediately. All the scientific investigations are used in order to speed up the natural process.

Everybody easily get tired of waiting. They don’t want to wait for so long. Human experiences tell us that people don’t want to wait.

As a matter of fact, many “instant” things are ever produced. Instant noodles, and instant coffee, in order to fill up the hungry stomach are there.

ATM’s are built to speed up banking transactions. Mobile phones and internets are the most common means of communication nowadays. One can easily send message to their loved ones using the said stuffs.

With all these realities, it appears that the humanity is very successful in trying to speed up everything and eventually avoided the agony of waiting. All that is said from above are just few things that one can see… people really want everything to be instant, so that in a glimpse of an eye, everything would be possible.

However, there is no such thing as instant. To be able to eat the instant noodles, and to drink the instant coffee, one should boil water first. One should wait for a few minute in sending the message through the SMS or through email.

In fact, in using computer, one has to wait in order for the computer to fully function, and so it says…loading, downloading, etc. In trying to get cash from the ATM, one should fall in line before s/he can take his/her turn.

There is no such thing as instant millionaire. Even the lotto bettors have to fall in line in buying their bets. They also need to wait. Be patient. That is the lesson.

There are many individuals who want to earn instant money, so they cut the trees for profit. And they never mind replacing them.

As a result, the city of the rich and famous was flooded. Indeed, there is no such thing as instant that the human beings can acquire. People must have a virtue of patience. Only the Absolute One can make it happen.

And here it was…instant flood.