It’s 6am on a Saturday. I wake up several minutes before the alarm I set. I could hear the birds outside, happily heralding the new day. I breathe a prayer, thanking God for the weekend, for this free day, and for feeling well and comfortable. I pray for my family, my friends, my work colleagues….
The Palate Remembers
I had wanted to write this piece April, when the Filipino Food Month is celebrated. But due to the busy schedule, I only went as far as writing the title. So now, while I have time, and while I just finished an evening meeting and my mind is still very active and sleep is still…
Rivulet
It’s a mid afternoon on a Sunday. Rain’s falling. I close my eyes and I hear this ensemble of sounds all at once — the intermittent wind, the rustling of leaves, the pitter-patter on the roof, the plink on the wet pavement. It feels peaceful. I smile, full of gratitude for the weekend. I had…
To be a woman
It was Saturday night. I could hear inaudible conversations, some distant music, distant roar of car engines. The weekend vibe was in the air — light, carefree, unhurried. I had a free day and was not thinking of deadlines, at least not until Monday. But I was slumped on a gray rug in my restroom,…
Memorable Morocco
In February 2023, I had the wonderful opportunity to stay in Morocco for two (2) weeks for the International Diplomatic Training for Senior Diplomats from ASEAN Countries. It was a scholarship program that I applied for, and thankfully, I passed the qualifications, and became the sole representative from the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines…
09 Feb. 2026 Thoughts
This morning, after I cracked a native chicken’s egg in a mug of newly-boiled water, then added milk and sugar, I suddenly thought of my lolo. My lolo was a regular milk drinker, and his favorite brand was Nido. He also sometimes added a fresh egg to the milk, which gave the drink a creamier,…
Aphantasia
I was today years old when I learned that some people cannot see or access their mind’s eye, through a TED Talk by Alex Rosenthal, “Can you picture things in your mind? I can’t.” Oh my! I assumed that visualizing things was a natural ability that all people have. Imagining the rocket-ship that crash lands…
Reconnection
Last week, feeling nostalgic, I sent New Year greetings to my former batchmates in college one sunny-rainy afternoon in Fiji. It brought back memories of the time when we were wide-eyed, idealistic students taking up BA English Studies (Language) in the University of the Philippines-Diliman, where we immersed ourselves in language, literature, discourse analysis, and other matters…
Diplomatic Anecdote 5: Suva Surprise
On 18 December 2025, the 52nd anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Fiji, I left Manila to fly to Fiji, to join the landing team here. We had an important task: to establish a new Embassy of the Philippines in Fiji, which will cover Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, with Consular…
Beyond Routes 