Every February, You'll Be My Valentine.

Ah! Love is totally in the air! Sabi nga nila, ang Valentine's day daw ay para lang sa mga nagmamahalan. ANO DAW?? Excuse me. 22 years (Pati infancy years isasali?) na akong walang girlfriend pero I can say that Valentine's Day would stay on my list as one of my most anticipated events of the year.

Araw ng mga puso - iyan ang Tagalized version ng Valentine's day. Ang lalim no? Parang ang gandang pakinggan at ang sarap sa tenga. Sadly, this music to our ears are often masked by different actions that make the whole idea of the event in complete disarray with what really is the true meaning of Valentine's Day.

What exactly am I driving at? Yung iba kasi diyan, ang inaantay na araw ay Valentine's Day para maka-score sa mga girlfriends nila. Yung iba, ginagawang araw ng modus operandi ang Valentine's Day para mangikil at mandaya ng couples. Last year, it was in this season that free condoms were given to couples para makapag-promote ng Family Planning at safe sex. WTH right?

I think it's all about how time flies so fast and how we evolve so quickly. Masyado na tayong in pace with what has been happening with the world that we improvise too much. I mean, improvisation during events isn't bad. It becomes bad when you mask the event with too much improvising. I hate to say this, but, masyado na tayong maraming alam. I think it's time we went back to the basics.

Our Grandma would tell us, "Noong kapanahunan namin, hindi uso yang ligawan sa tec tec na yan (tec = text), pati yang Pesbuk (Facebook) na yan, ano ba yan?? Iyang Lolo niyo, inaakyat pa ko niyan sa Papa ko para lang ako bigyan ng bulaklak!" And then we would answer, "Lolaaaaa, noon pa yun! Iba na ngayon, HIGH TECH!"

Look at that. Baluktot na pangangatwiran. Sumagot ka na nga nang pabalang, mali pa yung sinagot mo. Your Grandma was right about what she said. Facebook and SMS courtships would probably kill the essence of courtship per se. It diminishes ounces of respect and admiration you once have for the person you court. Boys, advice lang, wag sa text, wag sa Facebook. Walang sincerity diyan e. Kahit ilang beses ka pa mag-I Love You Baby Mwah Mwah! diyan, wa-epek kasi hindi mo naman siya nakikita o nakakasama. Kung ako sayo, makinig ka sa Lola mong nanermon sayo once in your life about your Lolo courting her, making akyat to their house and giving her flowers. Corny? Try mo lang. Kesa magkandahilo-hilo ka maghanap ng picture ng rose sa Google at isend sa kanya sa Facebook. Tssss.

Sana, isaisip natin na ang Valentine's Day ay hindi araw para umiskor. Hindi siya araw para mamigay ng libreng condoms. Hindi siya araw para magtaas ng presyo. Hindi siya araw para magcheck in sa motel. At lalong hindi siya araw para magluksa ang mga single.

Let me finish this entry with two pieces of advice:

FOR BF/GF's:
Don't take each other for granted. Love each other everyday as if you're at your courting stage. And please, for the guys, stop thinking about scoring on your girls. It's unhealthy in a relationship to think about it.

FOR MARRIED COUPLES:
If you have kids, share Valentine's Day with them. Let them feel the love! After all, love isn't always about two people sharing it. It's about having the heart to give it to everyone! :)

FOR SINGLES:
Mga pare at mare, wag kayong mag-alala! I might sound like a broken record, but the time will surely come for your prince and princesses to come into your life. Don't fret! Ako nga oh, 22 years old na, wala parin. But still, I feel the love every year!



Let us remember that LOVE is best experienced by a sincere and generous heart. Like food, it is best enjoyed when shared. Like a car, it is best driven when you have company. And like LIFE, it is best offered first and foremost to its equal, GOD.


HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY EVERYONE! :)

It Ain't the End of the World!

It's New Year's Day, which pretty much marks the start of 2012 for our good old calendar. The year that was made so much fuss, not only in our country, but also in the world. I can only re-imagine how much has happened in the course of 2011 - earthquakes, fires, deaths, and so much more.

This brought me back to 2010's end, when people would post statuses on Facebook saying "please be good to me, 2011. much love. HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!". I would also see status posts saying "2011 was full of shit, i hope 2012 would be better." And look what the year brought us...

I think New Year is not about having all the good things in life. We should learn that in starting anew, we first deal with struggles, face adversities, and experience defeats. It is in these contexts that we become stronger persons every year, and we become more and more contented with what we have, no matter how small or how big it is. It's also not about the New Year being good to you. It's a year - a series of months where you get to live one day at a time. It does not owe any goodness to you - YOU should be good to it all throughout, for you to feel that 2012 has been so light or so exciting for you. Getting a job, winning something, having a girlfriend or a boyfriend - they're all part of the year, but it is not the year's doing, it is yours'.

We are our own year.

I guess what I'm saying is that the New Year should be faced by a realistic mind, not by an idealistic one. I'm not destroying dreams here, but I'm trying to put things in perspective for everyone. Let's all accept that 2012 will still be a year of imperfections - there will still be some glitches here and there, but hey, there's nothing to it to a person who's equipped with everything right?

The Mayan calendar might have told us that this will be our last year on earth, that this will be the end of everything, but we say that we have a greater God who can even make them doubt their calendar. Heck, Mayan even has the word "may" on it. It has doubt written all over its name.

Two-Zero-One-Two. You can't really tell what it holds for all of us. But one thing is for sure - with a positive, enthusiastic mind, we will be able to get over all obstacles this year has prepared for us. With God on our side, and with perseverance and hope, I'm sure we'll end all speculations and live through every day of 2012 as if it was a party! :)



HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells!

Christmas will always be the most important feast day of the year. It marks the birth of our savior, Jesus Christ - whom we refer to as the "reason for the season". We always hear our parish priests during our Christmas Masses say that we should focus more on the thought of Christmas rather than the superficiality of it - but are we really digging deep in doing so?

See, we have been so engrossed with making Christmas the most grandiose occasion of our year. I noticed, that when September starts, sales would usually be announced here and there, and bargains would pile up almost every mall store. People rushing here and there just to look for gifts for their loved ones, seeking for the best they can find. Mothers rushing to the grocery stores to get their needs for the much awaited holiday feasts.

As much as possible, we would like our Christmases to be beautiful, grand, and abundant. It's not a sin for us to want it to be that way for our families, but please, let us not be obsessed with such ideas. Remember that the season is not about such - it is about more! If you would just stop and consider the simpler pleasures of the season, you will find that it is more rewarding because it is in being simple that we become one in celebrating with Mary, Joseph, and the infant Jesus as they celebrate the first Christmas in the most simple way.

Just try and stop - breathe the cool Christmas air, feel it rush into your hair, face, and body; give time to look at the starry Christmas night, wonder at its beauty - as it take you back to the time when the Christmas was celebrated. Listen to Christmas songs - savor their meanings and indulge in the happiness of their tunes. Sit, stare, feel, and share. The true meaning of Christmas lies in the simplest of things, not in how we make things extravagant. One thing more - sharing. We share because we mean it, not because we need to. We give because it comes loosely from our hearts, we do not give with heavy ones. It is in sharing that we complete the spirit of Christmas because with Simplicity, it becomes in triad with Love, and this triumvirate can make you feel the most Merry Christmas ever.

The first Christmas was celebrated like this:

http://www.revelationillustrated.com/

I think what is important is that we become aware of the more important things about the season - that we are celebrating it with the people we love the most, that we have celebrated it well, and that we have offered it to our birthday boy. :)












Christmas should not always focus about the gifts, feasts, or anything superficial. It should focus on that on child who was born in a manger one night, with nothing but his family with him. He is our Messiah. That should be enough for us to feel the most expensive, merry, and happy Christmas ever! :)

The Home in Me

"Nursing is really, really hard."

You'd probably hear that from the mouths of every student nurse, staff nurse, and nurse volunteer if you'd ask them how the course Nursing treated them, or how being a Nurse feels like for them.

We live in a society where undermining exists among peers. Where there is deep competition among Universities, offering so much for their prospective students - and for those who are in? They tend to instill competition within the University by means of "who's got the hardest course?".

People tend to stereotype. We are in a world of the stereotypical, where the superior will always want to be superior, and those who are inferior to him will always be inferior and shall have no chance of becoming better. Nursing has become one of those targets of stereotypes.

Being a Nurse, it becomes insulting at first, when you come to think of it. You know that you are dealing with life, you know that these people underestimating you and your profession would one day seek for your help when they are lying in that hospital bed, coughing, feeling so bad, with an IV inserted on the dorsum of their hands. Of course, as compassionate as ever, we should care for them, for we have duties to uphold, and we have an oath to our profession, and to God.

Nursing was never really my fad. It was never my first choice. I saw myself as a doctor, primarily. It was my dream profession ever since. I would wear fake stets and write pretend prescriptions for my parents and look serious for it. I never imagined myself typing this blog entry because of Nursing. I must admit, at first, I saw nurses as subordinates to doctors - followers of those who know better. I shifted from Education to Nursing to take up Medicine- just to finish this course, then off to Med School!, I thought. But never did I imagine that this would start something deep in me.

My first year in Nursing was fine. I had a few bumps in my own road, but I was able to get through all of it. It was not until my second year that I realized the true meaning of the profession. I was opened to a lot, and I mean, A LOT. The superficiality of Nursing - the subjects, professors, schedules, and uniform, were thrown out of the window. It was time to mature and face something more realistic. My third year and fourth year were more of discoveries and reflections, they opened my eyes that there's more to Nursing than what the people think. It got me loving the profession more, without removing my eyes from being a doctor.

I guess people should know better than to tag Nursing as a profession with "so much money attached to it" because money can't buy their lives, if you get what I mean.

Enough of my ranting. I shall relinquish any negativity by blabbering why I love Nursing.

Well, for starters, WE SAVE LIVES, BABY! 'Nuff said.

Oh, don't get me started with the books. My goodness, I love the jargons! It's like we're so intelligent when we give health teaching to our families and they're like:

(taken from http://www.google.com.ph)

In all seriousness, we become so enriched by all the terms given to us by the profession and it feels so empowering and light to share it to people and later, finding out that it helped them a lot. :)

Aside from the cool jargons, we get to feel the real deal as we go on duties during our years as students! I get it that in some countries, they wait until they're in fourth year just to enter a certain hospital. But in our country, we get the feel of the whole experience as early as the second year, so, YAY FOR THAT! :)

Other than the hospital experience, uhm, is it just me or do the coolest people enroll in Nursing? Well, at least I can say that in my case because I know the best people in the world! Seriously. It's like all-stars in our University everyday!

Lastly, you gotta love Nursing because it gives you gratitude. The feeling that everything is a "Thank You". A patient who can't talk, smiling back at you. An geriatric (elderly) patient holding your hand after you have given him/her morning care. A pregnant mother crying after seeing her child for the first time. A child hugging you after her discharge. A mother saying "it's really good to have you here" after a tough medication session with a child. A dying cancer patient saying "Thank you..." after you have taken her vital signs. 

Simple pleasures, yes. But for us Nurses, it's more than that. It's gives us the thought that, at the end of the day, those stereotypes about our profession are cancelled. Those insults are thrown out of the window. 

At the end of the day, we are Nurses. We save lives. We don't care about how much we get for saving lives. OUR BEST SALARY IS SEEING YOU ALIVE AND WELL. :)

Jerome Christian L. Pelaez, Registered Nurse

Eh Mainit Kasi Sa Pilipinas

Center of Attention na naman si Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Buti sana kung Center of Excellence siya nung administrasyon niya. Bali-balita nanaman ang balak na pag-alis ni GMA dahil may sakit siya sa spine at balak niyang magpagamot sa isang ospital sa Singapore. Sosyal diba?

Ang dami dami nang problema nang Pilipinas, dadagdag pa siya sa listahan ng mga problema. A perfect example of "If you're not part of the solution, then you're one the problems." Tapos, eto naman ang mga kritiko, pasok nang pasok na akala mo isang malaking pintuan lang ang isyung ito. Nandyan ang mga die-hard supporters ni GMA, na walang sawang nagtatanggol sa ale. Kesyo malala daw ang lagay, kailangang umalis na, ginigipit daw ng administrasyon, etsetera, etsetera! Andyan din ang mga oportunistang kalaban ng administrasyon, na tila hindi na naka-get over sa pagkatalo noong eleksyon at panay ang tirada sa present administration, or the opposition in the current roster of politicians, who seemingly find pleasure in contradicting everything that the administration offers or proposes.

Bilang isang nurse, siyempre hindi ko maiaalis na maawa kay GMA sa kanyang kundisyon dahil sinumpaan namin sa aming propesyon na aalagaan namin kahit sino, kahit anuman ang karamdaman nila. But enough of the profession, I'm here to do some work. Haha!

Kadalasan, nagiging isang factor ng pagbagsak ng isang bansa at administrasyon ang kawalan ng tiwala ng mga tao sa mga lider nito at sa mga pulitiko na binoto nila sa lokal na sektor. Ang mali lang sa atin, konting taas lang ng kung anong presyo diyan, konting kalam lang ng sikmura, may magra-rally na. We should keep in mind that the current administration just inherited whatever the previous administration left for them. Hindi ako gumagawa ng excuse para kay PNoy. Ang akin lang, hindi kasi dapat natin ginagawang habit at lifestyle ang pagra-rally dahil lang sa may napatalsik na tayong dalawang presidente dulot nito. 

May isa pa akong concern, ang walang puknat na tirada ng mga tao, lalong lalo na ng mga aktibista, at ibang partido sa administrasyon. Lahat isinisisi sa presidente. Makikita mo kasi sa plakard ng mga nagrarally, PNOY RESIGN o PNOY BULOK or something related to that. Hindi man lang nila alam that there are branches of the government handling whatever their grievances are. HINDI LAHAT ISISISI MO SA PRESIDENTE. Tao tayo, may free will, may obligasyon, may paninindigan, may tungkulin. Siguro kung ginagawa mo yang mga yan nang maayos, may karapatan kang magreklamo. Pero sa nakikita ko, HINDI EH. 

Bakit ko nasabi?


Tingnan mo ang kapaligiran mo. Sa tingin mo ba yang pagtatapon mo ng basura sa mga ilog, estero, at sa kung saan man ay nakakatulong sa pag-unlad natin bilang isang bansa? Sa tingin mo ba, iyang pagdura mo sa kalye ay tatak ng pagiging isang mabuting mamamayan? Sa palagay mo, sa pagtawid mo sa maling tawiran, kahit alam mong may karatulang nakalagay na "BAWAL TUMAWID. NAKAMAMATAY", nakakabawas ka ba sa suliranin ng bayan? HINDI. 


Pilipino. Pilipino ang problema. Bukod sa walang humpay na korupsyon na akala ko nung una ay pangunahing sanhi ng ating paghihirap, tayo pala ang gumagawa ng sarili nating mga problema. Huwag nating maliitin ang mga problemang binanggit ko. These small problems would eventually lead to bigger dilemmas. 


Trabaho? Yan ang ihaharap mo sa aking "napakalaking problema" kaya tayong nagkakandahirap hirap ngayon? Eh kung itigil mo kaya ang pangungulit mo sa misis mo gabi-gabi nang mabawasan yang binabayaran mo? Harsh. Pero yan ang katotohanang pinakikita ko sa lahat. Nakapanood ako ng isang documentary about Malnutrition sa Camarines Sur. Ang sabi ng namamahala sa Health Center, hindi pa daw nakakarating sa kanila ang tulong na galing sa lokal na gobyerno. Pero habang nagsasalita siya, the camera focused on the featured family, having 4 children - each even not half the age of the other. Sinunod-sunod naman ni mister si misis. 


It's always not about how the government works. The country's progress lies in the hands of collaborative efforts between the government and its constituents. Kung hindi tayo kikilos nang maayos, malamang, hindi rin makakakilos nang maayos ang gobyerno. 


Sana wag tayong petiks. Kilos kilos din tayo. Kasi tayo din ang magbe-benefit if we'd realize these things. Let's help the government lift us up to great heights, not put them down by doing what we're doing right now. We're like spoiled children. We can't always have temper tantrums and get what we want by doing these tantrums. Dapat matuto tayong gumawa ng sarili nating ikauunlad, at sa paggawa ng mga bagay na ito, natutulungan natin ang gobyernong mapaunlad ang bansa. 


Peace out! :)

Love

The title spoke powerfully enough for the whole article. Yes, it’s another one of those “love” articles or blog entries, as modern journalists would call them. What is it about love that stirs everyone up? Is it the sensation of being in its trap? Or is it the rush that you feel when you’re with the one you adore?

Well, for starters, I cannot say that I am entitled to make this entry. I mean, I’m not in a relationship right now, but I can pretty much say that I’m getting into that feeling of falling in love. So, how do you describe this overrated, yet plain notion? Sometimes, I get it from people that they deem love as something that’s very exciting. They transfer the attention from the feeling, acknowledging it at first, to the person - and that’s very healthy, I think, for a relationship. At least, you get to acknowledge the feeling, savor its sensation, and at the same time, give the proper attention to the person you love. I mean, if this is not the best, I don’t know what is.

Some people, however, perceive love as something temporary, something tangible, something that you feel when you are given something you can hold or touch. They have this notion that when you love a person, you should materially satisfy him/her the best way you can. And sometimes, material satisfaction can also mean the satisfaction of being able to release the tensions arising from the inner walls of your body- although this can come in context of love itself. Some people will just shower you with what I’d like to call “Material Love” just to prove that he or she is really into you or he or she really loves you. For me, it’s okay, as long as the feeling is at least as strong. Now, as for you, you don’t accept things because it signifies love, you accept them because IT FEELS LIKE IT HAS LOVE WRAPPED IN IT, and when you open it, you don’t see some ring, necklace, or bracelet - you see the person and how he or she had put effort in giving you that gift. You see the LOVE - not the PRICE, not the GLITZ, not the GLAM, but the LOVE.

Being in love is like being in a trance. You tend to get lost in moments and you don’t seem to have control of them. You get engulfed in a series of scenarios where you picture yourself with the person you love in a number of situations. Sounds cheesy? Yes it is, but don’t get too excited about the idea. In being in love, you should learn how to balance and buffer the feeling with something else, and make sure that the other party WILL know soon. For me, the best way to buffer this feeling of entrancement is to internalize. It kinda gets everything together if things get messy because, trust me, being in love is not really a bed of roses, but it’s not a bed of nails, either. You just have to learn how to weigh your odds and see where you really stand.

There are a lot of rooms for virtues in Love. There are rooms for perseverance, trust, patience, kindness, and respect. But remember that it’s not always easy, as there’s also room for hurt, misery, and rejection. You cannot deny that these can be present in love, because these can make us stronger persons in the future. All we have to do is to handle each attribute carefully and properly.

We may not always find the perfect equation for the perfect relationship, or we may not always find the perfect way to please the ones we care about, but we must remember to have a steady heart, a fervent soul, and an open mind in order to successfully traverse the road that we call LOVE. :)

Ang Tunay Na Lalake, Bow.

(photo courtesy of http://www.cocaseattle.org/marathon/art/smith.htm)

Bakit ba ang dami daming nagpopost sa Twitter at Facebook ng mga katagang “Ang tunay na lalaki, (insert condition here)”. Nakakatawa at minsan nga, may twitter at fan page pa sila, at huwag ka, MAY TUMBLR SITE PA! Haha.

Minsan, maiisip mo, ano o sino nga ba ang tunay na lalaki? May batayan ba tayo para dito? Kung mayroon man, may halaga ba ang mga batayang ito para matimbang mo ang halaga ng iyong pagkatao bilang isang lalaki?

Para sa akin, BS lahat yan. Siguro labels lang yang pagkakaroon ng batayan o standards ng pagiging lalaki. Ang lalaki ay lalaki. Lalabas at lalabas ang nature namin or talagang nature na namin ang nakikita ninyo everyday.

Nakakatawang makita ang mga post tulad ng “Ang tunay na lalaki, hindi camwhore, lalong lalo nang hindi nagpa-pout habang kumukuha ng picture.” siguro pagbibigyan ko yung hindi nagpa-pout, pero yung pagiging camwhore - may ibang term kasing maayos para diyan - siguro mahilig lang kumuha ng picture. Natural sa isang tao ang kumuha ng litrato ng sarili niya - lalo na sa Facebook account niya. Kung ang isang lalaki ay may Facebook account, malamang, matagal na niyang gamit yun. At kung marami man siyang pictures, probably it accumulated from all the years of Facebook usage. And kung mahilig man kumuha ng pictures, aba bakit naman? It’s but normal for us to take pictures, and normal people take pictures, no matter how many pictures they are. Matakot ka kung may Facebook account yan, at walang litrato yan - siguro hindi yan normal.

Ang akin lang, bilang isang lalaki, sa tingin ko, unnecessary na yung mga ganitong bagay. Alam na siguro namin kung ano at paano kami gagalaw bilang mga lalaki dahil innate na sa amin ang mga characteristics na gusto ninyong makita sa amin. Minsan, mao-offend ka din, dahil hindi ka naman kung sino para mag-set ng mga standards na yan para sundin at mahiya pa ang mga lalaki kung mabasa pa at magdalawang isip sa kanyang pagkalalaki kung makita niya kung ano ang tunay na lalaki based on what the site said. OHMAYGULAY!

Basta para sakin ito na lang, “Ang tunay na lalaki, hindi tuma-tantsa, humuhusga, o nagtitimbang ng pagkalalaki. Ang tunay na lalaki, isinasabuhay ang tunay niyang pagkatao, at isinasabuhay ito para sa mga mahal niya.”

Point made. Peace y’all! :)