What I Have to Say on SONA 2005

It's true that when you are out of the basketball court, that's when you actually see how the game goes and how it should be. Recently, President Arroyo just had her 2005 State Of the Nation Address and with everything that has been happening around the country, you cannot help but to have your own say on it.

This post is just made entirely out of my opinion, but ultimately comes from my heart. People may disagree on some of what I may say, so I am open for comments. But then again, it is free to say everything you want, especially about a country you love so much.

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You have a government -- indeed, you have a country -- that cares. Your life is held more dearly than international acclaim. And you have a president who is your friend...And I cannot apologize for being a protector of my people.

Yes, we have a government, a government which turned to be a business investment. Where majority of the people invest so much on candidacy for the risk of not doubling their investment back is very low. Where the chances of winning are greater than that of putting your quarter on a slot machine in Las Vegas. A government where the only thing that separates it from the world of showbizness is what is written on the occupation field of their resumes. I am not in the position to generalize the whole government on that. My point is that, the good ones either rarely get recognized, do not last, or get to be blamed for other people's mess.

A country that cares? Hmm... Speaking for myself and by the way my lifestyle is right now, I can say that I am getting the necessities. Having the ability to get most of what I want and everything that I need puts me in the position to say that I have a family that cares. I would have to see more in order to say that I owe it to my country. When I am home, I feel safe, and I feel like I live at a peaceful caring country. But right from the moment I go out of the house, I face the harsh reality of this country and realize that I am not safe. There are so many uncertainties. There is too much poverty in the Philippines and yet the country prioritizes it the least.

I was watching an episode of Wazzup Wazzup on TFC recently and I've noticed that all of the hosts have huge moles on their faces and I realized that they were trying to do their own version of the President's mole. For what reason? I am not sure. But personally, I felt bad, even insulted for the President. Too much democracy has been given and freedom of the press has becoming to be abuse of it. My relatives did not like the idea of the media insulting GMA as well especially that we all know for a fact that media must always stay unbiased. Despite all the insults, impersonations and caricatures, I believe that President Gloria deserves some credit for saying that she is not just a President, but a friend as well. All she has to do now is prove it.



As the leader of the nation, I say in behalf of the Filipino people to the world: we are strong and principled believers in democracy. Four generations of fighting Filipinos have ceaselessly struggled against totalitarians and terrorists, for our freedom, for the freedom of our people and the people of the world.

As a Filipino, I would want to say that I am not one of the Filipinos who strongly believe in democracy and its principles. I admire the way Filipinos fight for freedom and not be allowed to be oppressed. But sometimes, I feel like too much democracy is just too much for every Filipino to handle. Eversince I knew the definition of government, I knew that our government is democratic. Thinking now, I am starting to feel that democracy may not be the answer for this country. It seems that it is not being properly executed or rather, ineffective. As for me, I am up for changes. Even though I am not fully aware of what it is all about, I am open for a parliament system. People may say that it is to early for a charter change, but I would rather have an early charter change than a yearly president change.

Inflation is under control. The ordinary housewife has been buying her rice and fish at stable prices.

Maybe the President's definition of an ordinary housewife here is a wife who just sweeps his husband's credit card for groceries or maybe a housewife who sends his maid to market. I certainly disagree on this. Every single day, I hear everywhere from the AM radios to the sidewalk vendors nothing but price hikes. It's amazing that the dominio effect of oil price hike in the Philippines has not yet been inclued in the Guiness records.



This is a new day, with a new direction, and a renewed confidence in what we can achieve together.
I am determined to prove that this tremendous show of faith and confidence is well deserved.

Despite all the people against her, I still believe in Gloria. Even though I have disappointments at her administration, I still believe in Gloira. Cheated in the elections or not I still believe in Gloria. Because she is a woman of faith. Coming from the same high school, it was always a point there that we become women of faith and action, and nothing without passion. Faith has always been the drive that has been making me score goals. And through faith, nothing is impossible. Because nothing is impossible to those who believes. And if the President believes that through her faith, one can rule a nation, I will not stop believing in her.
For some, this country may be hopeless. But it is through each one of us that we can help this country. Even the greatest leaders of the Bible were opposed by many. And yet, what made them great leaders? It's that tremendous faith coming from God that was seen by their followers.



The place to start now is livelihood, for 10 million Filipinos.

Many Filipinos have been migrating to many different countries in search of a new hope. Even I myself is sometimes tempted to leave the country and start a new life. But there is only one thing that I keep telling to myself, the only one thing that is holding me on--I feel responsible for this country. I hope you feel the same way. The future of this country does not solely depend on the President, nor the other people that make up the government. It all depends on every single Filipino people. Everyone who gets the privilege of being called a Filipino has the right to prove that he is worth it to be a Filipino.

In or out of the country, let us not forget where we came from, and what our blood is composed of. Escaping out of the country does not necessarily make you a traitor. You can stil make the Philippines proud in your own way. And one must not forget our fellow Filipinos back in our country who are in great need, and would appreciate so much the smallest of things as blessings from God.

Doing great things is not a requirement. Doing something small multiplied by ten million Filipinos is greater than huge for this country. I'm not going to elaborate on the buy-your-own stuff like that. Entrepreneurship is not the key. It is patriotism and loyalty.

No one has a monopoly on right ideas. I am reaching out to all segments of society and all parties, be they with me or against me, to join me in those things that should be everyone's concern because they rise above politics to the level of patriotism.

Then came Gloria's last few words. What I believe the most important of all and all that has to be said:

The time for change is well past due.

This time, let me say, let's just do it!

Like in every heartbreak, change is not the answer, rather, moving on. Change should have been done during the time of the relationship. And now that it has become the past, things must just be set aside and move on. For our country, let's not so much emphasize on changes, and rather leave the past to history and let us make this generation make a history of its own. Stop protesting and waiting for the seat to be taken over by someone greater. The truth is, there can be no one great to sit on the Republic's thrown if none of us try to be good in our own way. If each one of us tries not to be a great leader and only does our own part in the society, a great leader would not be necessary. And no revolution would have to take place.

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!

***Special thanks to Philippine Daily Inquirer http://inq7.net for posting a copy of SONA 2005

***Pictures were taken from the Yahoo! images search engine. I am sorry to those who owned the pictures. There were so many of them that I forgot to cite the web addresses. I am very very sorry.

On Finding Your Soulmate

Most of us spend most of our early lifetime empty-handed, thinking that things such as destiny or soul-mate do not exist. Some even have given up on finding the perfect partner thinking that such things were just invented by humans to give an answer to the question on why they feel good when being with someone and leaving most of us, depressed.

As for me, I do believe in karma, in soul-mates, in finding your perfect partner, and in believing in this thing they call LOVE. Just as I was finally giving up on those types of crap, it only took one article for me to look something forward to in life.

As I was on my way to the U.S., I brought three magazines in order to fill up my time. And there I found one of my favorite Filpino authors, Jaime Licauco, writing a column on METRO magazine entitled, "How Do You Know He's Your Soulmate." It was quite convincing, as always, and I said to myself that I have to share this one.

First of all, let me tell you Mr. Licauco's concept of soulmates and my own concept as well.
For Jim, soulmates are two souls who have become so close together in a series of incarnations that they perfectly complement each other in their journey through a series of lives. In that timeless moment in between earthly incanations, they have promised each other to be together again in some propitious time in the future. And when they meet again on earth, they will surely recognize each other, for the soul never forgets.

You see, from this, we can say that true love is deeper than what the heart feels nor what the mind thinks. It's more of what the soul tells you, this ultimate unbreakeable force that just attracts two persons together and let them meet and make them feel like they've known each other for more than a lifetime. I guess the pick-up line "Have we met before?" isn't at all times lame. So maybe this is why you are wondering why some relationships work after a week-long courtship and some only last a week after a year-long courtship.

When you meet the "right type" of person for you, you will give up everything to be with that singular and perfect partner of yours. This fits perfectly the definition of soulmates...
The "right type" of person is not the same for everyone. Some girls dream of a tall, dark and handsome bachelor and they end up with a short fat geek with two kids on the side. Some guys get a model and trade them a for a plain homely type of girl. It's weird, but it simply says that every person has every perfect fit. Even every single ugly, even the meanest person in the world deserves to be loved.

Almost from the first moment they meet and gaze upon each other, their spirits rush together in joyful recognition, ignoring all convention and custom, all social rules of behavior, drawn by an inner knowing too overwhelming to be denied. Inexplicably, often without a word being spoken, they know that only through each other can they hope to find wholeness--only when they're together can they both be complete in every way.

Love birds must come in a pair in order to survive. People need soul-mates in order to find this fulfillment and contentment that they will never feel if they do not find each other. I guess this is why most marriages do not work out. Or that I could not blame Angelina Jolie for the Brad-Jen breakup. Or why my uncle and aunt hold hands while watching the news. Or why my 34-year-old cousin married a 23-year-old girl. Or why a Muslim marries a Christian. Or why a dog humps a cat (just kidding on this one!).

For Jimmy, there are five important characteristics of a soulmate encounter.

1. Irresistable Force.
2. Absolute certainty.
3. Relationship is total and complete at all levels of their being.
4. Absence of guilt.
5. Soul expanding.
   
   

I would love to elaborate on those five but right now, I have something to do and must end this post right away.

In conclusion, soulmate isn't necessarily a romantic relationship. It is a "noble and spiritual purpose" that in another person, you find growth. And no matter what you do, the whole universe conspires just for you to meet. Maybe not in this lifetime, but it's a guarantee that you will meet, and once you find each other, you find your own heaven, your own nirvana, your own peace of mind.

Photo taken from: http://www.progressiveartoriginals.com/borisoff/soulmates.htm

Getting my slice of maturity.

Finally, I found the lyrics of the song played on One Tree Hill. I do not know the title, so I went through some of the show's transcripts and jackpot! Here it goes:

I don't need to be anything other than a prison guard's son
I don't need to be anything other than a specialist's son
I don't have to be anyone other than a birth of two souls in one
Part of where I'm going is knowing where I'm coming from

I don't want to be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately
All I have to do is think of me and I have peace of mind
I'm tired of looking 'round rooms wondering what I gotta do
Or who I'm supposed to be
I don't want to be anything other than me

As I go through the lyrics, I guess every lost and confused teenager would relate to this song. Well generally, every person who is soul-searching would have this as part of their life's soundtrack.

I just added it on mine.

I'm thankful.
I don't have to be anyone other than a birth of two souls in
Part of where I'm going is knowing where I'm coming from

During the weekend, I went on a funeral hopping with my mom. We went to three different funerals on the same night. Three different people. One common denominator: All are fathers.

Funeral #1: The father who came home.
He served at the military. He rarely spent time with his kids, not only until he retired. He retired when his kids are already living with their families. For a short span of time, life was never really unfair enough not to give them enough time to spend time with each other and become really close during the last years of his life.

Funeral #2: The father who lived long enough.
He became a widow at the age of 42 and married again. Think love came a little too late? Think again. He died at the age of 94. He actually spent more than 50 years with his second wife. More than what he spent with his first.

Funeral #3: The father who went away for good.
He's an overseas contract worker. Since life in the Philippines is tough, he took a chance at another country. He left his wife and kids hoping for a better life for them not knowing that he would get a heart attack in Saudi Arabia and have his corpse stay in the fridge while his family suffers and grief for him for a month until his body arrives in Manila.

Reality: I'm more than lucky. I'm thankful to have such wonderful parents, still a complete pair and alive and kicking. God has given me this chance of knowing my father in a deeper sense more than what my brothers did. My father is the best father one could ever have. He only wants the best for me and no matter how much it sucks, I take it. I don't care. I have no regrets. Seeing both of my parents happy and proud of their daughter is a benefit over cost choice than what would I be if I've gotten my way. As long as they are living, I wouldn't do anything that wouldn't make them proud for I was once two souls that was made into one.


Steady lang.
I don't want to be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately
All I have to do is think of me and I have peace of mind
I'm tired of looking 'round rooms wondering what I gotta door who I'm supposed to be
I don't want to be anything other than me

Currently, I've mastered the art of being a couch-potato. I'm loving it.

I've gone through one of the hardest journeys so far of my life, reviewing for and actually taking the CPA board exams. (In the previous blog I wrote, I was just counting for the days, and now it has ended). It was tough in all aspects. I tried to avoid things and even people to actually remove all the negative energy that might affect me and tried to surround myself with the people that has done nothing but give me all the positive energy they can give. It worked. After 6 months of "labor days", reviewing at a coffeeshop for 14 hours (with chika minutes in between, a couple of CSI DVDs and the buffet meals from our parent sponsors), the huge amount of hairloss, spontaneous burst of tears, yang putarages na four-day exam na yan, weekly novenas, pilgrimiges and after this great wonderful experince with God, I passed the boards.

Okay, the bottomline is, after all the sweet and shit I've been through, I deserve a break. No pressures. Nobody telling me what to do.


So, what now?

Right now, everything's all about loving myself and who I am. I'm not rushing to go through the roads that I would have to take. Steady lang. I'm in a bit of a soul-searching, finding my own peace, leave me alone mode and I'm loving every breath of it. The outcome is pretty simple: I'm actually realizing what I really want, separating it from what makes me happy and narrowing it down to what I really need. What am I trying to say here? The fast few months have been this life-changing situation for me (AKA "The Turning Point").

• It is when I've realized that some things, no matter how you feel good, are actually bad for you.
• Make a deal with God. There are things that you should give up. We lways pray for something we want and we never thought to ourselves, "What if God is also asking something from us?"
• Be careful with the choices you make. They could kill you.
• Karma is strong and sensitive at times when you want something really bad.
• That some things have to be worked hard for. And that some, no matter how hard you work, aren't just for you.
• That nothing is impossible if you put your heart to it.
• And that prayer must always comes from the heart. And that it's a very powerful weapon.

A Glimpse on Ten Years From My Lifeline

This post is taken from my journal. I've decided to post this to make people realize how life can be just a bag of laughs and that the future is not something to be frightened about, but something to look forward to so that you have something to look back on to cheer you up and make you realize that you were once young.

Some lines were edited and some were ommited.

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Isn't it amazing, five years ago, you wondered what would life be like after five years and five years later you end up at this very moment, thinking about the same thought.

And now, I ask the very same question, What would my life be five years from now?

*Let me make a few predictions:

1. Married to the guy I literally had a dream on
2. At least with one kid (named Jude if he's a boy)
3. Residing here in my beloved Pilipinas country
4. Oprah must have responded to the letter that I am planning to write to her (what the letter is all about is top secret)
5. Gotten my MBA degree already
6. Gone to Paris already (Greece and Rio de Janeiro is part of a fifteen-year plan)
7. Still closely connected to Deth and Lara
8. Have my own closet room or at least a walk-in closet
9. After getting a kid, I only weigh 120 lbs. (you wish!)
10. Dad and mom still living healthy
11. Have a new cat named "Kitty" (Muning is still the man of the house)
12. Have a pomeranian named "Bling-Bling"

**Five years ago, I graduated high school and just entered college without any idea how deadly accounting would be. I've already met my first boyfriend it never became us until next year. Kuya Big was still living in the house with us and we've become close eversince I graduated. It was still Joey and PD, and Jeff and Diane. McDoggie was still alive and so are those cats my brother and I used to feed in his room. Lara and I aren't close yet, but she and Sonny are getting along pretty well. Our high school yearbook isn't out yet (ont until after 4 years). I'm starting to like this guy who I tried to avoid for a year. He would take a peek at our classroom door every history class. We'd have this huge misunderstanding and wouldn't talk to each other for the next two years. Five years ago I'm taking my quiz on ACTONEA and will eventually get a 2.5. I would pass the next two accounting subjects as well and would fail my qualiying exam.

***I opened at my LaSallian planner that I got on my Froshie year and found a letter that I've written when I was 18 and it read: "Do not open until you graduate." I forgot about this already and finding it again was like finding a treasure on a dumpsite. Here it goes...

Hey Kutz!

First of all, I would like to greet you my warmest congratulations for finally finishing college. Wow, grabe, imagine, soon you're gonna take your board exams...then compnies are gonna call you to be part of them. Wow...make big bucks!!! Grabe, all those hardwork from Ms. Godoy (Hopefully MRS. by now) has finally paid off.

I'm writing this at the night before your eighteenth birthday. I was so anxious, I already read the letter you made two years ago for your 18th birthday. I guess you're not getting any car for your debut. Well, can't blame your family for that. Tanggap lang ng tanggap! Shit happens. It's not your dad's fault. Yeah I know, I understand that.

I just hope that by this point you already have a boyfriend. Are you still uneasy with guys by now? I hope not. You were psyched when your blockmate Hardy called you yesterday to greet you Merry Christmas (All the way from BICOL!) HAHAHA!

[Last paragraph ommitted]

Love you,

Kristine.

This is so damn funny. And so damn makes sense.