One of the things that I’m afraid might happen one day is that I will lose interest in things that give me meaning or at least evoke some sense of happiness in me. That wouldn’t feel good, right? My society-perceived success (good education, stable job), my altruistic vision, my plans for the future (other than…
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Wandering in the Dreamworld
I am curious to know why we dream what we dream. Sometimes, dreams are pleasant; at times, they are scary, or tiring, or lonely. I’ve had so many dreams but I will share a few, starting with one that I wrote on my FB in 2022: ________________________________ Dream 1 (Jan. 8, 2022) I woke up…
Sunday Thoughts
In today’s evening mass, the priest asked this question as part of his homily: “If you do good things or if you are a good person, does that mean people will notice your goodness? Will they say “ang bait mo naman?” The priest replied, not always. You can be good with no ill intentions, but…
Diplomatic Anecdote 4: Behind the Scenes
A lot of actions in cultural diplomacy happen behind the scenes. Sure! What you see on camera are handshakes, toasts, smiles, poses, signed documents, signed agreements, well-designed venues, curated tablescapes, perfect exhibit setup. Behind these? Brainstorming, several alignment meetings, some disagreements maybe, several emails, constant exchange of messages in Messaging apps, several revision of drafts,…
Diplomatic Anecdote 3: Communication is essential.
Being a diplomat offers myriad of opportunities to represent the Embassy/Consulate and the country. I have been tasked to convey the country’s position in some conferences. The statements here were concise and vetted beforehand. I have represented the Ambassador in various events of the Filipino community where I was expected to deliver short inspiring speeches….
Sampung Tagubilin sa mga Kabataan (ni Gregoria de Jesus)
Kahapon ay isinagawa ng aming opisina, ang DFA Office of Cultural Diplomacy sa pakikipagtulungan sa Pelikulove, and unang lektyur sa Heritage Talks 2025, isang proyekto sa diplomasyang kultural, kung saan ay itinampok ang mahalagang papel ng kababaihan sa kasaysayan ng Pilipinas, bilang paggunita sa National Women’s Month. Binigyang pansin ang makulay ngunit masalimuot na buhay…
Happy New Year 2025!
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…
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…
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…
Pulse of Humanity
“I wanted to feel the pulse of humanity.” That’s what I replied to a colleague when she asked why I’m taking the jeepney after a particularly tiring day at work. Yeah, why not have a comfy ride, with cool temperature and soft music playing, and where you can recline your body and maybe doze off…
Beyond Routes 