On this first day of the new year, I wish you… good health happiness peace success love May you have an amazing 2025 with… new books to read new knowledge and skills to learn new friends to make and old friends to keep new places to visit and old places to rediscover new heights to…
Author: Emi_F
A diplomat, former educator, student of life, lover of nature, literature, art and music, believer of shared humanity
Yearend thoughts
I woke up at 7am today and realized that it’s the second to the last day of the current year. Looking outside the bedroom window and the partially opened door to the balcony, I saw the leaves of plants and trees still wet from the rain at dawn. The sky and surroundings too looked fresh,…
Christmas 2024
It’s 3:55am and sleep is elusive. This is not too good for my plan to attend the 8AM Christmas mass. But let’s see. It is still raining, has been raining for over 12 hours now–a lazy, continuous rain that started in the early afternoon as the delivery man bringing some boxes of muffins that I…
Meandering Thoughts
I feel that one of the saddening moments of life is when a person suddenly loses interest and enthusiasm in things that previously made one happy or fulfilled. Like Veronika in Paulo Coelho’s literary world or in a lesser extent, John in “Brave New World” by Alduous Huxley, or Equality 7-2521 in “Anthem” (I like…
Sunday
Early morning calm The freshness of the leaves and the dewdrops The smell of brewed coffee Hot pandesal from the bakery (How delicious the scent!) Singers from the 70s to 90s crooning in the background Your mom or lola/lolo puttering in the kitchen (How nice is fried rice with danggit and atsara!) A few scribble…
Behind the Scenes of the Baguio Conference
I attended a conference in Baguio recently, where I was the keynote speaker on 24 October 2024. My topic was on the Internationalization of Higher Education. I appreciate this invitation from the Philippine International Friendship and Understanding Association (PIFUA) to the 5th International Conference-Training for International Students, Student Leaders, and Advisers (ICTISSLA), which gave me…
Two (2) Weeks of FSO Life
Lately, I’ve been writing about life in general, my reflections, my musings, so I thought of adding another entry to the FSO topic. What goes on at work? Definitely, it’s not your typical 8-5 job, especially in a dynamic office such as ours, the DFA – Office of Cultural Diplomacy. Allow me to share with…
Noise isn’t cool
The world is noisier than it should be. Is it because people want to drown their thoughts and reflections through sights and sounds? Does it calm them? Last Sunday, I accompanied my daughter to the PITX bus terminal. The din, shuffling of feet, barkers’ shouts now and then, these are normal. But playing very loud…
Adulting 101
After years of renting, I finally got a townhouse in 2020 and my family moved in there in 2021, a few months before I returned from my Paris foreign assignment. I felt relieved to finally get a place in Manila that we could call our own and where my mom could have her mini garden…
Sabado
Limang minuto makalipas ang ika-sampu ng gabi, naglalakad ako nang matulin sa EDSA, galing Shaw papuntang Ortigas. Paano kasi, wala na palang byahe ang MRT paSouth; North na lang daw sabi ng guard. Hinintay ko munang makabili ng ticket ang kasabay ko paNorth, sinigurado sa guard ang impormasyon, at nagpasyang lakarin papunta sa EDSA Carousel…
Beyond Routes 