A Wonderful World

by Jonathan Aquino

  A Person’s True Measure

  I have always believed that the only true measure of a person’s worth is his character. His achievements should be lauded, but everything in his resume is external . If a person is inherently good, like Frodo Baggins, then he will overcome the temptations of his baser instincts. “But to look beyond the glory is the hardest part,” as Michael Bolton’s Hercules theme goes, “for a hero’s strength is measured by his heart…”

  Which Is Good and Which Is Bad?

  Some things are good by itself, like respect for elders. Some things are inherently bad, like child abuse.

  But most things in life are in the gray area in between. There is no clear dividing line.

  So we all play the Line Drawing Game, says Wayne Dyer, author of Your Erroneous Zones, the book that changed my life for the better forever.

  Example: The Godfather Don Vito Corleone rackets gambling and prostitution but draws the line on illegal drugs.

  This is part of human nature. That’s why some people donate to charity but cheat on their wives, why some politicians condemn birth control but steal taxpayers’ money.

  “People,” as George Michael sings in Kissing A Fool, “you can never change the way they feel, better let them do just what they will, for they will…”

  My General Trias Magical Mystery Tour

  I have a house in General Trias town in Cavite, about 30 kilometers south of Manila. I went to the Bro. Andrew Gonzalez Hall in La Salle Taft on November 21 by commute. Going home that night, the last bus trip to Tanza town left without me.

  So I took the bus to Dasmariñas and got down in SM Bacoor. Then took a BB bus, those colorful minibuses found only in Cavite, as it began to drizzle.

  The BB bus went through Binakayan, Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario towns. I super enjoyed that unexpected midnight tour; even a brief change of scenery refreshes my spirit. "

  This travelin' boy is only passing through..." (I love Paul Williams).

  In Tanza, I got on the last jeep trip to Trias, then caught the last tricycle trip to the subdivision. Got home safe before the overnight rain began. Thank God!

  Angels brought me here!

  Where Compassion Is A Crime

  A 13-year old boy shot his 16-year old male lover, then shot himself in the SM Pampanga mall last September in front of dozens of witnesses. It was a crime of passion, and the alleged third party is also a teenage boy.

  I have friends who go for same-sex relationships so the gay angle is not an issue to me. I make no judgments of any kind.

  But I find it sad because I believe that love is about letting go, because the one meant for you will find you, will return. I believe, as sure as God made yellow mangoes, that love always finds a way.

  One of the most depressing scenes I ever saw was its aftermath. One of the boys was still alive – and the security personnel and the kibitzers just stood by, taking souvenir photos.

  If somebody came to their rescue, he or she would have been arrested. The police declared that crime scenes should not be disturbed – even if the victims are still alive.

  In the Philippines, heroism is a crime.

  Weeks after the tragedy come the viral video of the young girl in China, a victim of hit-and-run. She lay in the street, dying, ignored by her fellowmen.

  They don’t want to get involved.

  Glorious Nightrise

  “I’ll just rest and refresh my soul at the bayside,” I texted my friend Bryan last week Wednesday, when he asked what I was up to.

  I told him I need to meditate “in solitude to find a way to achieve life balance,” to “shut off” the noisy world,” at least for a while.

  I went to Roxas Boulevard and I saw the just-inaugurated footbridge in front of the U.S. Embassy but my camera was acting up again. But I was able to capture a shot of the world-famous sunset in Manila Bay. Beautiful, isn’t it?

  Falcon In The Millennium

  Typhoon Falcon is lashing the country right now, in tandem with another low pressure area being monitored as possibly the next storm. It was raining hard when I had to go to work last night and the night before. Who’s afraid of flood? Here’s my post in Facebook Mobile: Perfect attendance. I go to work with extra shoes, shirts and socks. I’m like a stowaway

  The joke is that, when a mouse pees, Metro Manila will flood. This is true, but we city folks are compared to our countrymen in the south. Normally, water lilies are beneficial to aquatic life, but Cotabato and it adjacent towns were inundated when the Rio De Grande De Mindanao overflowed because water hyacinths blocked the mouth of the river

  I tried to send this to FB but I ran out of load. It’s from “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head,” theme from Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid with Robert Redford and Paul Newman:

  “I’m never gonna stop the rain by complaining, because I’m free! Nothing’s worrying me!”

  Nitpicker Nation

  President Noynoy Aquino was attacked by political enemies and chronic critics because of his low public rating from the latest Social Weather Station survey. The official Malacañang position is that the President’s focus is work and not media mileage. The administration was redeemed with the more positive results of the latest Pulse Asia poll.

  We Filipinos are so obsessed with ratings, and it seems we conduct elections just to see if poll surveys are right. It’s too early to judge the President’s performance –he’s been in office for only a year, for crying out loud! (Don’t cry out loud).

  The surveys can be seen as a gauge, a snapshot of the progress of his learning curve, and they should not equate to a school report card. That’s absurd

  Barbarians At The Gate

  I had to meet a friend at the Mall of Asia last week. The one thing that ruined that trip was the shuttle ride in front of Jac Liner in Buendia. The dispatchers are barbarians: they would bang the side of the jeepney-like cab, commanding the passengers to squeeze together, as if they are ordering their servants. It has always been like that. It would make a difference if those uncouth and obviously uneducated dispatchers of the MOA shuttles were taught proper manners when they were young, but now it’s too late. Since one cannot impart one does not know, their children would grow up like them.

  Taxi Chancing

  Just like today and the whole day yesterday, it also rained the entire Wednesday two weeks ago. Had to take a cab late at night. A couple of empty taxis swept by. The drivers probably thought I was a mugger. What a cute hooligan if that’s the case.

  I’m sorry for them though: they cannot tell if a passenger is their dream ride or their worst nightmare.

  Then again, appearances are deceiving.

  But then again, if you’re a lousy judge of character, then you will avoid the good and attract the goons.

  I got a ride finally, and as usual, I sat at the front and the driver and I were shooting the breeze as we swiftly cruised JP Rizal Avenue.

  What usually plays on my mind when I’m in a car is “Forever Blue” by Swing Out Sister. My good taxi driver was there when I need it, he even took a faster route, and he fully deserves the bonus as I gave him twice the meter price. The look on his face was priceless.

  Have We Forgotten Our Dying Veterans?

  Today April 9 we commemorate the Fall of Bataan, one of the most significant battles of World War II, when Filipino and American soldiers were defeated by the Japanese, tortured and suffered the infamous Death March in 1942.

  Today, the remaining living Filipino veterans – despite the mark of shame of having been denied what is due to them – remains steadfast to the democratic ideals which they have fought for, and for which their beloved comrades gave their last full measure of devotion.

  Let us take a moment of silence to honor the memories of the brave Filipino and American soldiers who suffered and died in Bataan.

  Why I Live The Way I Do

  I just read the coffee table book Malate: A Matter of Taste, a vividly exhilarating immersion
in the bohemian, wildly uncompromising culture of Malate; I’d feel at home there. I’ve taken Larry Cruz, the visionary restaurateur behind Café Adriatico, among others, as my role model as a budding entrepreneur and blogger – I want my (future) Internet shop and my Mac-inspired blog 2Rivers to bear the distinctive stamp of my personality. I love the night life!

  When Friends Make You Smile

  I was greatly amused when good friend of mine, K, who uses all sorts of bleaching soaps, proudly displayed to me his fair complexion. Reminds me another friend, J, who bragged his Blackberry–dual SIM, made in China

  What The (Polar-Shifting) World Needs Now

  The series of unfortunate events in Japan – the earthquake, the tsunami and the nuclear accident–are the not the punishments of a vindictive deity. But they have global repercussions. It heartens me to see various governments and NGOs, including our own, proactively assisting the thousands of families affected by these Non-Acts of God.

  In a world transformed by technology, in a planet in the verge of transition, we need human solidarity now more than ever.

  How Congress Could Save Our OFWs

  I fully agree with broadcaster Vic Lima’s suggestion that Congress should increase the budget of the Department of Foreign Affairs, specifically for repatriating overseas Filipino workers. I was tuned in, March 15, to Pasada Sais Trenta, the radio-TV political commentary show of Vic and Karen Davila.

  DFA Asst. Sec. Ed Malaya read the advisory – everybody within a 20 km. radius from Fukushima should flee the area. They also had a live caller from Bahrain, which is now under a state of emergency, in the throes of political chaos, in the brink of a revolution.

  We should get our countrymen out of there but the DFA doesn’t have the funds for it.

  But Congress does.

  What If You're Face To Face With Your Murderer?

  People take pictures all the time, especially during celebrations.

  But a father who was talking his family’s photo captured a most unexpected image–his killer pointing a gun at him.

  A split second, then the fatal shot.

  Reynaldo Dagsa, 38, a village councilman in Caloocan, was assassinated at the height of the New Year revelry in front of his wife, daughter and mother-in-law. The killer, Arnel Buenaflor, a car thief he had sent to jail, is in hiding, but the two look-outs, Michael Gonzales and Rommel Oliva, also caught on film, are now both detained by the police.

  Dagsa, trained by the Philippine Army, could have shot Buenaflor if he drew his own gun, but that would put his family in the line of fire.

  “He must have thought the assassin would hurt his family or his relative, or anybody in the area, so he did not do anything that would compromise our safety,” his wife Arlene told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. “He took the bullet instead.”

  In the first hour of 2011, at 12:30 a.m., Dagsa was declared dead at the Martinez Hospital.

  “I will miss my Papa,” cries his 10-year old daughter Reynalyn. “Who will take us and fetch us from school? Who will sing to me Lead Me Lord? That’s my father’s favorite.”

  What Attracts You To The Opposite (Or Same) Sex?

  Is It Sex?

  A Berlitz coach asked me today what attracts me to the opposite sex.

  I said, “Character.”

  What I find attractive in a woman is the confidence that comes from being comfortable with who she is.

  Character is what I look for, and that includes independence of mind and generosity of spirit.

  I don’t have time for people who are insecure and pretentious – they’re most critics and back-fighters anyway.

  I added that I don’t care about physical appearance. As long as she is has a beautiful soul, I don’t care if she looks like a horse.

  2Rivers Celebrates The New Golden Age of Filipino Movies

  We Filipinos love movies. It has become part of our lives like jaywalking and invited others to share our food while expecting them to refuse. A lot pf people have declared that the local film industry is dead, killed by the national mania for buying pirated DVDs.

  But this is the Philippines, where even ghosts get pensions.

  So we are all happy to say, loud and clear, that Filipino movies are alive, kicking and now showing! 2Rivers celebrates the resurgence of world class films we can all call our very own!

  Ruel Bayani’s No Other Woman is officially the highest grossing Filipino movie of all time. Wenn V. Deramas’ Praybeyt Benjamin looks like it has beaten the record.

  Even before that was parade of mainsteam blockbusters like Jerry Lopez Sineneng’s Way Back Home, Paul Soriano’s Thelma, Jose Javier Reyes’ Wedding Tayo (Wedding Hindi), Paul Soriano’s Journey Home, Jun Lana’s My Neighbor’s Wife, Marilou Diaz Abaya’s Ikaw Ang Pag-Ibig, Mark A. Reyes’s Tween Academy: Class of 2012 and Chris Martinez’s remake of Joey Gosengfiao’s Temptation Island.

  The box office hits of the 2011 Cinemalaya independent film festival were also shown in regular theaters, like Zombadings: Patayin Sa Syokot Si Remington directed by Jade Castro and Marlon Rivera’s Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank–the country's entry to the Oscar Awards.

  Also in the cinemas are the indie films such as ' Rakenrol from Quark Henares, Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me directed by Erick Salud, Noel D. Ferrer and Jerry Gracio based on the bestselling novel by Eros Atalia. One of my favorites is Alvin Yapan’s Sayaw Ng Daliwang Kaliwang Paa (The Dance of Two Left Feet)

  I hope they also show Every Other Time by Gino M. Santos and the other films of Cinemalaya.

  There was a great acclaim from the international press including the New York Times for veteran actor Joel Torre for the film Amigo directed by John Sayles.

  The film El Presidente, the comeback movie of Nora Aunor, is being filmed right now.

  Recently shown movies enjoyed commercial runs like Yuan Santiago’s Babang Luksa, Jerrold Tarog’s Aswang, Chris Reyes' Batang Ifugao and Yam Laranas’ The Road showing on November 30

  This is a new golden age and Mabuhay to Filipino movies!

  The Story of Huggybear

  I have always known that good things always come my way, and even the things that hurt me taught me lessons that made me a better person, someone I am proud to be – which perhaps explains why I have never been intimidated or envious of anyone.

  I always think positive, knowing that Like Attracts Like is the fundamental law of the universe, even years before I came across The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.

  “All this time, I’ve no regrets,” as Tiffany sings. “The sun still shines, the sun still sets; and the heart forgives, the heart forgets…”

  Here’s one of my most recent Twitter tweets that defines my semi-charmed kind of life: I am blessed with warm memories of the past, beautiful moments in my present, facing good times in the future.

  But wait, there’s more! Here’s my Facebook Mobile post Friday morning: Do not wait to do good things. Do good things and wait, and success, health and wealth will come.

  Chapter VI. 2010

  The First Miracle of 2010

  Kudos to the vigilant and dedicated men and women of Phivolcs for saving the lives of the 47,000 people who live near the Mayon Volcano when it erupted.

  Another good news is that volcanic activity is steadily declining, and the alert status has been downgraded to Level 3.

  Evacuees are now returning to their homes, assisting by 200 troops with 15 military trucks plus 10 new military vehicles from the South Korean government.

  But “The No Human Activity within the 6 kilometer radius PDZ [Permanent Danger Zone] is still in place,” says Capt. Razaleigh Bansawqan, spokesman of Task Force Mayon. That’s reassuring–better err on the side of caution.

  Birth Control Is Different From Abortion

  Priests got their “Calling” when they are young so they are (in theory) virgins.

  That perhaps explains why Fr. Nereo Odchimar, head of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, cannot distinguish between birth control and abort
ion. He wants to excommunicate the President because the government supports population education.

  That’s absurd! It’s about time that we tell people that poverty is not an excuse to make twelve babies and not send them to school, letting those kids roam the street sniffing glue and pestering pedestrians asking for money pretending to be hungry so they can buy more rugby. What do you think happens when they grow up?

  What's So Funny About Helping Students?

  All of us have seen elementary school kids forced to carry bulging schoolbags because they are required to bring all their books everyday.

  Good thing: Senator Lito Lapid proposed a bill that will alleviate this, supported by research on spinal problems caused by carrying heavy loads.

  Bad thing is: the person who appointed to be the Secretary of Education, Armin Luistro, laughed at the suggestion.

  I don’t think it is funny that we have an Education Secretary who thinks it is stupid to help students

  You Want To Legalize Jueteng?

  Legalizing jueteng is tantamount to declaring that we as a people would rather surrender and continue to do what we consider illegal because we do not have the political will. It shows that we have no guts.

  In Solidarity With Torture Victims

  Torture has no place in the civilized world. Countless men, women and, tragically, even children, have suffered, died and were buried in unknown graves, for reasons that Reason know to be false. Regimes that institute this abominable act as state policy pervert justice and degrade our collective humanity.