It’s a generally-held idea that the only thing you can control is your mind and your reaction to situations and circumstances; that there is no use worrying over something that is beyond your control. And recognizing that, therefore, it is of no use to be affected negatively by external factors. That may be true, but…
Magpatuloy Ka Lamang
Makulimlim ang langit ‘Di tumitigil ang buhos ng ulan Pahinto-hinto ang mga sasakyan Umuusad ang orasan. Malamig na ang kapeng naiwan mo sa mesa Buti’t naubos naman ang pandesal na may mantikilya Walang oras magkwento sa hapag-kainan Lahat nagmamadali; Bakit? para ba ‘di maiwanan? Napapagod ka na ba? Nais mong saglit magpahinga? Maaari naman–tumigil saglit,…
Weaving Words
A fellow participant in a recent training for ASEAN diplomats asked me how long it took me to draft the “Thank You” message of the batch, which I delivered that afternoon during the closing ceremonies of our diplomatic training. I said, “15-20 minutes, around that time.” She was amazed and asked how I did it….
Paggunita sa Ika-37 Anibersaryo ng EDSA People Power Revolution
Bilang paggunita sa #EDSA37, nais kong ibahagi ang impromptu poem na ito na naisulat ko sa loob ng lima hanggang sampung minuto, dahil sa isang kaganapan noong ika-walo ng Nobyembre, pitong taon na ang nakakalipas. Naalala ko na nalungkot talaga ako noong araw na ‘yon dahil sa mga pangyayari at sa pagbalewala sa kasaysayan ng…
My Bangkok Trip (Jan. 2023)
I was in Bangkok for 5 days in January 2023. I felt that I needed some time off from work to rest my mind and just spend my days walking around the city where no one (except for two friends and colleagues from the Embassy) knows me. Here are my observations/notes: Bangkok Streetfood The streetfood…
Random Thoughts on Starting a Business
Two months ago, a colleague shared that they had started an apartment rental business. It’s going well. She and her husband get their monthly expenses from the business so their salary goes to their savings. We discussed some merits on having your own business, but we both agreed that it requires time, a bit of…
Happy New Year (2023)
Dearies, I would like to greet you all a blessed, peaceful and prosperous New Year! No lengthy post this time; just a reminder for us, as we start the new year to: Thank you to everyone and everything that became part of my 2022. It was an interesting year, with bumps, twists, and turns. But…
Kris Kringle
In my small team composed of mainly young professionals in their early 20s, the idea to exchange a small gift (with a certain price range) each week came up in November. So, everyone was given three codes, one for each week and we agreed to give the following gifts: 1st week of December – something…
Penultimate Month
November was not good to me. For some reasons, one unpleasant thing after another happened. A major project that I had been working on for over a month got postponed, then cancelled despite my efforts to make it push through. Then, three days after that, I had a major rift with my daughter who wanted…
Of Chalk, Presentations, Experiments and Lessons
At the end of a really busy workday today, my thoughts led me to my teachers who made me love learning and the quest for knowledge and skills. I’ve had numerous teachers from preschool to graduate school and until now, I still remember many of them with fondness, still chuckle at the funny classroom scenarios,…
Beyond Routes 