Hugs, Val

Dear You,

IT'S OK NOT TO BE OK.

I know you're hurting. I know how difficult this thing is for you. You may think that you've made wrong decisions AGAIN. You may feel stupid for letting "history repeat itself", but hey, cliche as it may sound, but everything happens for a reason. The purpose of all these things will be revealed to you as soon as YOU ARE READY to see it. Right now, just, EMBRACE THE EMOTION. Feel it. Let your heart be broken. Nothing wrong with that. It happens. Soon, after all the pain, you'll realize HOW HAPPY BEING HAPPY IS. Don't try to cover up the pain, the more you do, the more it becomes eager to show itself. Let it be. 

I know you have worries. I know you have been thinking too much. I won't tell you to stop worrying coz I know it's hard to do. But, I'll tell you what, you don't have control over everything, but YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER SOME THINGS. So why not focus on those, and work them out? If you keep on thinking how they could get through, you yourself would not get through. Let them see things with their own eyes. Let them work on the things they have control over, just as you should work on yours. Just trust that they can do it; that's all they need. That's all you can do for them.

I know you're sad. I know how much you want to cry, and I know that you don't understand why those tears just won't come out. Relax. Maybe not now, maybe not yet. Maybe your heart can still handle it. Isn't that a good news? You've always been a crybaby, but look at you now, no tears. You're handling things well. You're handling things with grace. 

You're doing great, don't worry.



Hugs,
Val

Checkmate!

Winning a chess game requires unique or perhaps old but tested strategies in playing the game. The objective - winning - must be clear to the player, and he must understand the different pieces on the board; what each represents, and what each can and cannot do. One has to be mindful of not just his own moves, but of the moves of the opponent. It's either you win by reacting to the moves of the opponent, or by making the opponent react to your moves. But whatever you do in a game, you keep in mind your own strategy.

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Just like playing chess (or any other game perhaps) a socmar campaign's success would rely greatly on the strategies used. Thus, formulating the strategy to be used would mean thorough analysis, planning, analysis, planning, analysis and planning. In doing so, all aspects of the campaign would be looked into - purpose, target market, objective and SMART goals, barriers and benefits, 4Ps, budget, monitoring and evaluation. Whew! Long list, huh? But of course! Socmar aims to change the society. It aims to achieve development. So it needs a careful planning and implementation. If well-thought, though, this may beat the social problems (opponents) and finally win the game. Ooops! Checkmate! ;)

Because We're All Different

Know your audience - this is what we, speech comm majors, had always kept in mind whenever we had to deliver a speech or present a performance. Something that I consider parallel with one aspect of socmar planning. If public speaking and performance have the audience, then marketing has the market. The target market would always be important in any marketing strategy. Knowing how to identify and segment them would be very helpful as we try to formulate our goals and objectives, and the entire campaign as well. Knowing who to benefit from the campaign would keep us focused and aligned with all other aspects of the plan.

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But more than just identifying, I believe that a socmar plan also requires understanding of the target market. Just like in speeches, it's not just identify the audience, but KNOW the audience. The market has several characteristics, individual and group behaviors that might affect the entire socmar campaign. For instance, certain age groups may have different reactions towards a certain campaign (teens reacting on anti-smoking campaign negatively). Keeping this in mind would help us know what to expect from our market.

.......................
Our group have by the way come up with a name - THE Press. Makes sense with our DEPRESSION awareness campaign. ;) So far, the group has been working on the background of the campaign, formulating its objectives and goals.

Overwhelmed

We have come to that part where we have to apply what we have been learning so far - in our own social marketing campaign. And as I started reading the materials for module 4, I was overwhelmed on the things that have to be done for a socmar plan. :| 

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I just don't consider myself good in planning. I feel that I do something better when it's impromptu. :D But stuff like this COULD NOT be done in one sitting.; COULD NOT be implemented overnight. A thorough and careful planning should be done before a such campaign gets implemented. And so the task begins..................................................

Sooooo social

Correct me if I'm wrong, but these days, when you say SOCIAL, most probably you would think of these......

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But there's more to SOCIAL than just social MEDIA or social NETWORKING, and that's SOCIAL MARKETING. Yet, only few probably knows about it. Perhaps, some would even think that it's marketing on social networking sites,  like the growing number of products available on Facebook and Multiply. 

This social marketing thing may be a new concept to some, but it has been around for so many years already. DF 3 has made this concept clearer to me. People still remains to be the very core of this concept. Social marketing happens because there are certain issues that we want to address. Issues that involve us, people, the society. Everyday, everywhere we go, anywhere we look at, we see so many issues that we people face. But we remain looking at this issues and have learned to live with them, and by them. Socmar wants to change this; it wants to us to change and be the change we need to achieve a better life. But this is not as simple as it may sound. Socmar requires a framework, a plan carefully thought of before it is implemented. And more than that, it requires a heart for doing so.

.................
Our group has started working on the topic we have voted for - depression. In our first chat meeting, we shared several articles and studies on depression. We also discussed the different concepts that we would be dealing on, primarily the causes, symptoms, signs of depression, and the different ways to seek help.

Comm for De.... what?

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So we want to be involved. Fine. Actually, we HAVE to be involved. After all, this development thing is for US. So who else should work for it, right? But here's the thing. How many of us actually gets involved with a total knowledge, understanding and awareness of what we are getting involved in? Of what all these are for? Of what we are doing?

Just like the text on the picture, where some parents would want to get involved in the development, and, well, life of their children (of course!), yet, sometimes they don't really understand what they are doing (Oooops! Sorry parents!), community participants in C4D sometimes don't understand what all these are for, and what all these are. Why? Because we Filipinos are fond of this so called mob mentality. Yeah, I may sound too negative, but I just wanna point this one out. We go with where the majority goes. We want what the majority wants. Even if we don't like it, even if we don't understand it. Just look at the rallies and protests happening around. You'll see kids holding placards of protests, which they can't even read. (Well, yeah, they are most probably paid protesters, like claques, but still, the point is, they don't understand what they are in to) You'll see people tweeting R.I.P. Rowan Atkinson just because it's 'trending'. And so on..

Communication for development requires community involvement - it requires people who are directly affected to be part of the problem solving. More than just going with where everyone else goes, it requires these people to understand their situation, look for possible solutions to their problems, have a voice to speak them out, and collaborate with others to be able to help the entire community. Sadly, there are still some people who just say yes to what the majority says yes to. OR they just follow what the higher authorities say. THIS SHOULD NOT BE THE CASE. The people involved should have a total understanding of their situation and the things they can do to change it. Involvement requires individual and collaborative decisions. If not, then C4D would be pointless.

The World in Our Hands

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WE are in a never-ending quest for a better life... for all of US.

What basically sums up my most important learning in Module 1 is the function of we and us in grammar - We and Us are FIRST PERSON, PLURAL pronouns. We DOES the action; Us RECEIVES it. 

1. First Person


Social problems occur because we, humans, see them as problems. We are the FIRST PERSONS to know about it, we are the first ones to see it. Whatever does not satisfy us pushes us to change it. As we strive to change our current situation, it is still us, who first look for the solution, and not anyone else. It is us who knows best what to do about it, because we are part of it. To identify a social problem means to feel that there is something disturbing about it. We don't just listen to others saying that there's something wrong; WE feel that there IS something wrong, so we strive to make it better.


2. PLURAL


A society is not just about one person; it consists of MANY people as its members. Development would not be possible if only one person wants it, or if only one person works for it. One is not enough to move a mountain built by many. A problem would not be solved by only one mind thinking, and one pair of hands working. Change would not happen if we would rely to few people to do the change. 


3. DOES and RECEIVES the action


No one will do the work much better than the people directly involved in the problem. WE are the ones to act about the things that we deem needed to be changed, after all, it's for US. Whatever good or bad that we do, the endpoint would be us.

...........
In the near future (yes!) I would take part in (and hopefully initiate) a social marketing/ social mobilization program. I am currently in the academe, and any educational issue is really close to my heart. Keeping in mind the importance of the "we", I would have a clear analysis of my audience first, and I would see to it that I get them involved in the program, making them realize that the better life they had always been longing for, lies in their own hands.

Roses,Liliums and more

A normal, initial reaction of a girl who receives a bouquet of flowers is to be giddy, excited to know the Prince Charming who gave it, and just, well, be happy. 


Another item in the checklist that tells me, I’M NOT NORMAL.

After the break, my student broke into our class (he had his break for 30 mins and came in while I was already discussing) from the rear of the classroom, walked towards me, and handed me a bouquet of flowers. Pink roses and white liliums in purple wrap. I was at the height of my disgust, telling my students how disappointed I was of their behavior, and the mood of the class turned differently. I felt like I was I high school teenager at the middle of my class being teased by my classmates. Well, it's almost the same, except that I was the teacher in that class, and those teasing me were my students. I asked my student several questions: What's that for? Who gave it to you? (translated in my head: What the hell is that? Who on Earth gave it to you?-they may sound mean,but really,if I were not in front of my class,I would have said that)


My women's instinct switched on immediately. It's him. I know it's him.


It wasn't plain instinct though. It had logic in it. The student who brought the flowers to me has the same surname, almost the same personality, and a lot of resemblance with my former student (so I really think they're brothers), who is a very close friend of "him".


And my logic and instinct were both.........................right. I received a text message from "him" immediately after my class. "Hi. Nareceive mo yung flowers?" Confirmed!


BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!


I received another text message from my little sister: "Ate may flower dito sa bahay may nagpapabigay sayo.." "Yung _________ na student mo ang nagdala,walang sinabi kung kanino galing.." (And this student also happens to be a friend of "him".) True enough, another bouquet of flowers (a larger one) welcomed me home. Peach,pink and red roses with a big white lilium at the center, in pink wrap. My initial reaction: "What the???"

I wasn't giddy,I didn't feel any excitement. I wasn't that eager to know where it came from. I don't know. Really, I'm just not normal. Or maybe I am. The thing is, this "him" happens to be someone I really don't like. Not that I hate "him", I just don't like "him". And I don't like" him" for no reason,of course. (I'm mean,but I'm not that mean to actually 'broadcast' the reasons and incidents that made me dislike "him",so I'll keep it that way: I have reasons,and I mean,really,GOOD reasons). 

And one more thing. We just moved in to our new house last Saturday, but the flowers reached our new home. I felt like I was being stalked (yeah,right,I may not be a celebrity to 'deserve' a stalker but how on Earth did he reach our new house??) I was having mixed thoughts and emotions,until I couldn't contain them all that I suddenly felt blunt. Nothing. Then afterwards came back to my vigorous self as if nothing unusual happened on that day.


................................
The flowers were vibrant in colors, attractive, and refreshing to look at. Pink roses and white liliums in purple wrap. Peach,pink and red roses with a big white lilium at the center, in pink wrap.

The Graduates

On a typical Saturday morning, as my mom turned on the T.V. and with nothing really interesting to watch on ABS-CBN, she tuned in to Cinema One. THAT always wakes me up on a Saturday morning (I sleep on the couch) and because I couldn't go back to sleep anymore, I,well, spent the first few hours of my day on a movie released years before I came to Earth -- The Graduates.

Very timely indeed, it's March! The movie starred the stars of 80's. A graduation ceremony opens it and a class reunion sets the ending -- and what's in between? Of course the "what happened to who after graduation".

- Snooky, a rich, and intelligent young lady, ended up planning to put up a business with her boyfriend, Gabby, a rich kid who got everything he wanted, who by the way once tried to go illegal with smuggled guns. 

- Lani put up her own restaurant, supposedly with her best friend Dina, whose dad was accused of estafa. 

- Selling all kinds of good to anyone, Gina ended up marrying a doctor to whom she 'sold herself' and had a good life.

- Ronnie stayed in his talyer fixing cars, and breaking them to claim money from the insurance company where Orestes worked as a clerk, and earned more from his under the table commissions.

-Joel, the simple guy, by the end of the year received an award  for a successful project on peace as an executive assistant of their barangay.

- Though highly qualified with her diploma, Maricel settled on baby sitting, left with no choice because no company would hire her.

- And the leadership awardee, William, refused to work abroad and work under foreign companies with the belief that Filipinos should not be 'colonized' again, and spent his year working for their University's annual.

...................

A new batch of graduates, thousands of them,will be there marching (or have marched already) with a little fear perhaps but full of hope for their future. But really, "what will happen to who" after graduation?

My fellow instructor asked me once,"What would you feel if you see your former student, who finished a 4-year course, selling stuff on the street?" I immediately said, "At least, he has a job, and he's not a bum." And when I actually saw a former student (he's my student in Philippine literature) on the street selling bananas, I wondered, what happened to his degree? Was he able to use it in any way? Or is it just that there are very little opportunities for him? So what was the 4-years (or more) of being in school for? What was his diploma for? (Has my subject Philippine literature helped him in any way?) Was it his teachers to blame? The university? The government? Him? ..........And more questions in mind..and I guess I have even more questions for those who were left unemployed after graduation.

A quarterly data of the government statistics office reported that there are 2.92 million unemployed Filipinos in the country, and this rate is among the highest jobless rates in Southeast Asia. And 17.8% of these are college graduates.

Yes, these are just statistics, but this is an alarming fact. If those who finished college cannot have a job, what more are those who didn't even reach high school? Or should it be, do you really have to have a college degree to land into a job? Is the 4-year college program an enough training to make us prepared for the future? Or should we be just thrown into the ocean and choose right then and there whether to get drowned or learn how to swim?

After receiving their diplomas, these graduates will have to go face this what they call "real world". A lot may not be fully aware that it's harsh out there. That their diplomas are NOT enough weapons to fight the "battle" of survival in this brutally sweet world. Their dream bubble of a "good life ahead because you've got a college degree" might suddenly be poked right in front of them. Reality check.

There's nothing wrong about being idealistic, but one cannot escape the reality, so they should strike a balance between the two. No one knows after all. They might go big time, or maybe not. They might go illegal, or maybe not. And they might probably be part of that increasing percentage of college graduates who are jobless, or, maybe not.

For now, let them march their way to receiving their hard-earned (or maybe not) diplomas. Congratulations, Batch 2012! :)

Cue: Aida March

Lumayo Ka Nga Sa Akin

I remember writing a paper as a final requirement for my PanPil 17 (Panitikang Pilipino at Kulturang Popular) class about Bob Ong, being a 'pop culture'. By then, he had written I think four books (ABNKKBSNPLAKo, Bakit Baliktad Magbasa ang mga Pilipino, Ang Paboritong Libro ni Hudas,Alamat ng Gubat). Then it was followed by more books, and just before 2011 ended, he (she?they?) released the 9th Bob Ong book, Lumayo Ka Nga Sa Akin. And as usual, I took time to read it.

The cover looks like a typical Precious Hearts Romances pocket book. And it would surely be thought to be one, except for the picture of the 'couple' with the guy with big muscles and the girl which looks like a typical Filipino aswang.

And I guess the cover itself almost says it all. It is a book, basically about Bob Ong's presentation of the 'reality' on Philippine TV and film industry, presented in three major themes: action (with comedy and fantasy), horror, and romance. The book is divided into these three parts:

action, horror, romance

I can't give a detailed description of what's inside this book. Bottomline of it is that, the Philippine media (primarily TV and movie) have already become too commercialized, to the point that they have lost the essence of a good TV or movie or song or book material. Everything is based on profit, based on popularity. They make the viewers stupid and shallow with the kind of material and acting they provide, yet the viewers love it. It also discusses the Philippine materials (film, songs, TV shows, books, etc) as a copycat from Hollywood, giving it a Filipino touch, but still remains a copycat. Yes, we've got really good artists - directors, script writers, writers, graphic designers, actors and actresses, film makers, song writers, musicians, singers - yet most of them are not appreciated, or not even given the chance to be appreciated as the "big" names overshadow them. Quoting Bob Ong:

"Nawawalan ng silbi ang magagaling na artista dahil napupunta ang mga trabaho sa mga star na may pinakamaraming fans! Pinapatay ng komersyalismo ang sining na siya ring dapat bumubuhay sa mga negosyante at ordinaryong tao sa industriya natin!"

Another good point discussed in the book is the less readers produced by this generation. Because of computers, internet, TV and other forms of popular media, only few people (particularly young Filipinos) spend time to read. And I mean, read a good book, and read a book written by local authors. There might be a pretty good number of readers still, but they read the foreign. Thus, Philippine literature might be dying...

"Bayani pa rin ba si Rizal kung walang nagbabasa ng Noli Me Tangere? Panitikan pa rin ba ang mga papel na may sulat kung walang taong magbabasa nito?"

The entirety of the book might be seen as trying to reflect on what is happening in the Philippine art. But looking at the smallest details of every line delivered by every character (the book is written as a script), one will see all other issues that hunt the Filipino people, and the Philippines as a whole. Full of wit and satire, this book is a wake up call for everyone. But at the end of the day, we ask ourselves, "What do we do now?"

She's a mistress,now what?

The death of Congressman Iggy Arroyo has become a headline for the past few weeks in and out of the country. But more than his death, more than his affiliation to the former president and first gentleman, and more than his being a person, the drama between his common law wife, Grace Ibuna and his legal wife, Aleli Arroyo has really been the "talk of the town", specially on Twitter:

Yeah, I know these tweets I collected are all (almost all) against Ms. Grace Ibuna. I wanna say that I have nothing against them, but, I just can't help but feel really bad about how easily we people judge others just by what we see on TV, or hear from other people, or read on the news. For some reasons, all these hurt me. I am not in any way related to the Ibuna's. But I am a daughter of a "Grace Ibuna". I am a daughter of a mistress.


......
And now I wonder how much pain my mom had to go through on my Dad's death. Now I wonder how many "tweets" of hatred my mom received all the time she was with my dad. I wonder how she faced, or maybe is still facing all the judgements. And I wonder how she feels now about the Grace-Aleli issue.


We never talked about her being a mistress. Well, we never talked about it seriously. I mean, we joke about it. We make fun of the things we had to go through as illegitimate kids. Like when we say that we're more beautiful than our 'other' siblings so it's ok. Or that my mom was still my dad's master even if she was just a mistress. And stuff like that. Sometimes, I want to take courage to ask her how she really feels about the issue. About her being a mistress. About us being illegitimate children. About this society which has been judging her and putting her down just because she fell in love with a married man. I can never take courage to do that, we might just both break down and cry a bucket of tears.


It has never been an issue for me, or the rest of the family (at least not that I know). I just really can't help it but feel bad (or maybe feel mad) at those who explicitly say things without thinking how much they could hurt a Grace Ibuna, my mom, a mistress.


......
I don't know the two "wives" in any way except for those things the media show about them. I have my own judgements and biases as well. I respect those opinions of others. But the sad reality is, this country's "freedom of expression" is almost always abused.


And the Grace-Aleli drama continues...

The Prince

Chapter 17 of Niccolo Machiavelli's book, The Prince poses the question "Is it better to be loved or to be feared?". Of course, there should be a balance of the two, if possible. But reality check, it's just so difficult to actually be loved and feared at the same time, with the right amount of love and right amount of fear to receive. I encountered Michiavelli and The Prince in my SocSci II class in college and I didn't think then that this question will be of importance to me now. I tried to give myself an answer when one of my students asked me once, "Ma'am bakit po hindi kayo maging mahigpit?" I gave her the safest answer I could give, a smile. :) But afterwards I tried to reflect on her question and it led me to the question in The Prince.

On my first year of teaching, I was still adjusting, adapting to the totally different world I entered. teaching more or less 50 Filipino college students per class is not the same as teaching one to two Korean elementary and high school teenagers at a time; and teaching in a classroom set up in a university in the province is not the same as teaching in a bedroom or living room in a comfortable house in Manila. I learned to be patient because of my Korean students. I learned to be lenient as well. And both, I applied in my classroom. I guess I was trying to be as nice as possible to my students trying to give them a friendly and comfortable environment when I'm around. Besides, we were almost of the same ages (I was just 20 then) so i couldn't really be as strict as most professors were. Late papers, it's okay. Absences, it's okay. 2nd chance, okay. 3rd chance, okay. 4th chance, okay. Nth chance. Ugh, okay. My students and I were like friends, brothers, sisters, family. We cracked jokes around, we made fun of each other, they told me their problems. We were very comfortable with each other. I was sooo lenient because of this kind of relationship we had. I loved them, and they loved me I guess.

But they did not fear me, I know.

I never got mad in class. When they're too noisy, I just keep quiet and when they had finished talking I just smiled and continued the discussion. When they submitted late papers, "Hmmm. Next time,ha." And even for the nth time, I still give them that reaction, then accept their papers afterwards. I just couldn't say NO.

The question of my student had a follow-up: "Ma'am, bakit po hindi kayo maging mahigpit? Para po kasing di na kayo sinusunod ng mga studyante nyo." THAT really bothered me.

Am I really too lenient that my students think that they can do anything they want because they know I won't get mad at them? Are they setting aside my requirements and doing other subjects' first because they know I will understand them and accept late submissions? Am I being too nice, and being loved to the point that my students are being very comfortable already? Am I happy and satisfied  being loved ... but not feared at all?

The following year I tried something else. The first few Yes's I tried to avoid giving out broke my heart. The first few NOs I had to say weren't as strongly said as I wanted them to be. But I had to be firm. I had to be strict. I had to be feared. So I tried to be firm with all the NOs I had to give.

Now I give considerate NOs, a lot of them. I still give a second chance, but not a third (unless of course the student deserves it). I still accept late papers, only if the reason is valid and acceptable, and HONEST, but just once. I still keep quiet when they are very noisy, but with a look saying, "Mag-ingay lang kayo,ewan ko lang kung magugustuhan nyo ang mangyayari (I don't mean anything on than,it's just the facial expression. Hehe)". I still smile, but still say NO.

Of course I don't say no for nothing. It's like choosing between pathos and logos, then trying to focus on the logos (specially that I'm a girl, and I tend to be too emotional at times; I couldn't be strict before because I always felt pity). Now I think my students think I'm strict. but I would want to think that I am considerably strict. They know the consequences of their actions. No paper, no grade. No exam because of laziness to look for their schedule, no special exam for them. Absent for unacceptable reason, grade deduction. Lame excuses - a big NO. Somehow, I am "feared". And it pays off. Because they submit their papers on time after the first warning, because now they exert effort to check their schedules for major exams, and inform me prior the exam for any conflicts, because they don't exceed to the maximum number of allowable absences, because they say sorry after I say no. It pays off because I know, I see, that THEY LEARN.

To be feared doesn't mean my students will face me with shaking knees and sweating palms, or sweating everything. It's just an enough amount of fear, with enough amount of love, which I think led to enough amount of respect, and I am really happy with that.

It's okay to feel stupid

I feel stupid, and it sucks!

I don't know what's with this day, but for sure, it's not really good. I started this day feeling excited for the activity I prepared for my students. Some were cooperative, and some (as expected) were not. I hate it when they look at you and show you a face as if saying, "And what do you expect us to do, follow you?"

Then the discussion. You really cannot force your students to speak up if they really don't want to. No matter how much you try to motivate them, (or maybe it really isn't enough?) if they choose to keep silent, they will keep silent. To the point that they won't give any single answer for your question. Darn! My question was simple: What do you mean by the term 'overview', from the words over and view? I tried to give some clue, some hint just to give them an idea of what I was talking about. A little example of the "overlooking" where you can have a view of the whole Nasugbu. Still, no answer. I felt stupid in front of them trying to give them some hint and trying to make them speak, when all I could see on their faces were expressions of boredom, and just being passive, as if saying, "whatever!" I soooo hate it.

Of course, that was just me, that was just the way I interpreted it. Maybe I just really wanted to please them. Maybe I just really wanted them to learn, but I can't help them because they're not helping themselves. It's frustrating. These kids think that they cannot do it. They think that they are not good enough to the point that they get tired of trying.

At the end of the day, I know that I should take it as a challenge. A challenge to become a better teacher maybe? A challenge to help them learn, and help them raise their level of self confidence a little bit higher, at least to that level when they can speak up in class.

Tatak TIBAK

TIBAK - Tibak is a play on the Filipino word, aktibista (activist), and generally refers to activists and street parliamentarians. (http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Tibak:_University_of_the_Philippines_Activists)

Activism, I believe, is not what most people think it is. When we, UP students try to express our thoughts and opinions on matters that are socially related, or even in simple discussions and we try to defend some points that we think are right, we are almost always quoted as “tibak”, with matching line, “taga-UP ka nga, aktibistang aktibista,eh”. If you come to think of it, it’s kinda offensive for us UP students, or UP people that we are called activists just because we came from UP. Yes, we are activists, but not the activists that they think we are. There is a misconception that activism is just about going out on the street, marching to Mendiola or Malacañang, holding placards and shouting their complains against the government. I remember when I was in first year college, one of my professors, (Philosophy 11), who admitted that he was a “hard-core” activist (who joined rallies every now and then), told us that if we want this country to be better, (just like what most “raliyista” want), we should study well. He told us that instead of going out on rallies, we should just give focus on our studies. In that way, according to him, we were already helping the country to be better. I could never forget that.

After that day, I thought I wanted to be an activist. I started being more vigilant and more socially-aware and concern. I shared my opinions and stand on issues in and out the campus. I started gaining information on matters that concern not only our university but the entire country as well. I started reading materials about society. I started having a “say” on what’s happening. I started to be critical. I started to be an activist. I never went out on rallies though. I never shouted on streets. I never held placards. I never marched to Mendiola or Malacañang. What I did was I finished my studies. I worked to earn money for my studies. I performed on streets. I delivered speeches in class. I shared opinions on my advocacy on quality education. I graduated without distinction but I still graduated without failing any subject. I was an activist in my own way.

Now I am teaching in a University. I am still an advocate of quality education. I try my best to give my students the best of me. I give them whatever I am capable of giving just to ensure that they get the kind of education I believe they should have for them to succeed in life. I fight against hunger, poverty, illiteracy. So I teach. I am an activist.

The term “tibak” now has a deeper sense to me.  It’s simply, generally about fighting for what you believe is right, in any way you can. It’s about being aware of what’s happening around you and doing something to solve it and not just complaining about it. Those prominent and ordinary people who go out on streets to express their protest against the government are activists. Students who study very hard to help their families afterwards are activists. Reporters and media men who give their time and risk their lives just to deliver the news accurately are activists. Doctors and medical practitioners who dedicate themselves to ensuring good health to the Filipino people are activists. Agriculturists who spend their days ensuring the quality and quantity of food supply for the country are activists. Janitors who clean the surroundings are activists. People who give alms to street children are activists. Those who turn off the light when not used to conserve energy are activists. We, in one way or another, are all activists.

BLOGGING

I was really not into writing, though I had always wanted to write. I was in elementary when I first tried to write. I got inspired by my sister, who used to write poems, and was always part of the school paper. I was into feature writing. Well, at least, I tried. Until high school, I would always join the School Press Conference, thinking that I might have the potential in writing. But I never won. I won several times in copyreading, not in feature writing, or even news writing. Then I thought, maybe I really didn't have the talent. I just forgot about it.

Then came blogging. The term has become soooooo memorable to me. I was in first year college when I first heard of the word "blogging". It was during my midterm exam in PanPil 17 (Panitikan ng Pilipinas at Kuturang Popular). The question was simple: Bakit popular ang blogging? Wapak! I didn't even know what blogging was. I got a grade of 5 in that exam. Sad.

I tried to discover what blogging really was. And tried to find the answer to that question. Bakit nga ba siya kulturang popular? Blogs on Friendster became a trend. I would always read blogs of my friends, or even those I didn't know. I loved reading their writings, absorbing their thoughts, feeling what they were feeling - sadness, anger, stress, happiness. I appreciated their writings, getting envy of those who wrote well, really well. I stopped reading their blogs when I started to become busy of some personal matters. It had been years. And now, there are so many blogging sites you can choose from. Friendster is not the trend anymore. Nor is it Multiply. Social networking sites have become more and more popular. Blogging has even become a source of income. Then i started to read blogs again. I started to follow my friend, Robert Go's blogs. I love reading his entries. He is well-opinionated. He always has something to say, regarding what is happening around, whether it be a small or a big issue. Joicee's blog on the other hand, is something more personal. It's not about what's happening around, but what's happening to her. She writes about her feelings, on matters close to her heart. Now I'm reading Ms.Superbianca's blog, learning more about her. Like Joicee, she also writes about how she feels about people, about her life, about the people dear to her. These three blogs are actually the same - talking about something close to their hearts. Robert might be writing about his opinions on current issues in our country, Joice and Ms. Bianca might be talking about their family,friends,and selves. But the three of them are all talking about the same thing -- whatever they feel inside.

Now I think I've got the answer to that question which made me fail my first major exam in UP. Blogging is popular, simply because it talks about life. It talks about one's life, but touches other people's lives. It talks about stress, sadness, mourning, grief, joy, bliss, happiness. It talks about failure and success. It talks about what's happening in the world, in the country, in a community, in an individual. It talks about us.

So here I am, trying to write again. It's been months since I started to have my own blog (http://cha9876.wordpress.com/) it may not be as public as others'. It may not be as often read as others'. But it contains myself, and whatever's inside me. And with that, I will continue writing. =)