The lives of those who fought

The words are still echoing inside my head as I remember how he used to read the publication inside the mess hall about 6 months ago. In one instant, he was gone.

Last night, a sad news enveloped the whole Corps of Cadets. Our previous Brigade Adjutant, who graduated last March, was one of the fatalities in the latest clash against the muslim rebels in Sulu. As we were trying to confirm the news, we realized, life slips that FAST.

It will seem that for most of us, we have embraced the reality of death. When asked about questions concerning this topic, we proudly say that everybody is bound to die, I would rather die fighting for my country. Such was the case of our upperclass, but in the real sense, when reality has settled, it is not as simple as dying. To say that its that simple is a mockery of the hope and spirit we invested in our training, the idealism that we have cultivated, and of course the perseverance we mustered.

When people read today's news, they will dismiss it as another of those usual occurence about rebels being engaged in a firefight with our armed forces. Today, as I try to read the news, I remember a voice whose command I used to heed when he begins his sonata of orders while we conduct our weekly parades. I try to remember how I used to give this person the salute that he truly deserves everytime our paths cross. I try to remember the idealism that we both shared and cultivated inside the very halls that I am now. In an instant all of those will just be memories, happy memories I suppose.

As the lyrics of one song we sing here in the Academy would put it:

"And when the taps shall sound for men

Banners drape my last remains

Let singing comrades bury me

To the echo of these strains"

Let us remember the lives of those who fought for this country. The job is hard but someone has to do it... Let's go ARMY

Random thoughts

A moment in time is a moment lost in eternity. A gasp of air is one chance at life. In a person's lifetime there are moments that would seem to be lost in an instant. Sometimes we take notice and sometimes we do not. How many chances do we get in a lifetime?

In my life there have been memories that keep on coming back. Memories that I wish to remember because for some reason I will not be able to get a taste of it again. Usually, these memories are either my firsts and my lasts. There are also times when we feel that we are into something that will not happen again. What I regret the most is not taking notice that such events will have a lasting impact on me. Have I known, I would have paid attention to every detail and savored it.

Perhaps we really do not know. I mean, if we live our life always looking for those moments then we would not be enjoying that moment enough for it to become a lasting memory. It can then be said that these memories only became such because of the simple reason that they are GONE. The question then is: Do we really have to wait for the time that it is gone?

Is value an end to a thing lost? Do we really know how valuable something is when it is still not list? Should we risk it?

These are random thoughts, insights that are borne of a stormy weather and a wondering heart. A thought that came from a longing heart wondering if the things that I value are those that really matter. Again... I will never know.

Lessons that are only learned by living it.

My head is already aching trying to digest all the ideas that I have been reading about Military Theorists for a paper that I will submit next week. Blogging is a cure

The past days can be described as both tiring and surprising. I have decided to start doing all the things that I have been neglecting for the past days. I am not yet done with my paper, then I have another paper for Friday plus the website for an event we will be hosting by October. I know I can cope up I just do not know how tired I will be.

The thing that keeps me excited now are events that I did not know was possible. One may have observed the overtures that I have been writing about some person wishing that she'll read it. Of course, that was wishful thinking. At the back of my mind, I was hoping for something that included more of an interaction rather than my constant imagination of things that may not come. I have come to the point of just letting it be and not worrying much about all the things that are happening with that stuff. If truth be told, I have become passive and just heeding the instances when I feel that I miss her. Of course, I can not really say that I miss her as in miss her. How can it be possible when I barely know her? But then I have to admit, that in as much as I try to deny things within me, the thought lingers and honestly, it feels good in my system. I really did not understand, I was just thinking that in some distant future I will, I was merely hoping... just as I always do.

I prayed hard, ignored the negative thoughts that came to me and went on. I was believing that it was a matter of trusting God for the good things. How do I write something that I do not wish to be revealed yet feel that I have to write it? Let me put it this way, in our life we find reasons that we do not understand. We cling to it and hope that in some distant future the time will come when it will make sense. Some give up, for my part I just did not know what else to do, so I continued to believe. Right now, I still cling to that belief, to that hope. In some distant future I know I will understand. Life is unfolding in my midst revealing to me valuable lessons that can only learned by living it.

Another Gawad Kalinga story

In the past four sundays, I have been going to the Gawad Kalinga site here in the province. It was the same place that I went to about October of last year (see this blog). This time though my involvement became more of wanting to get involved.

We have recently forged an informal alliance with other schools in supporting this Gawad Kalinga site and I am looking forward now to a fun filled year ahead of me working for the project. So what is it that I realized?

You see, for someone like me, who although had a rough time growing up emotionially and all the problems in the family, I did not have much experience in how is it to be poor. My family is not well-off but we definitely have food (good food at that) everytime we need it. To understand the state of my countrymen who are below the poverty line, I will have to get that from another experience not of my own. What is it that people like me will get from building houses and doing things that we've never done before?

As I was talking to the other people in the area earlier, I realized that more than just building the houses it is in fact a social responsibility. It is our role to be part in solving the problems of our countrymen and not criticize them because of their state. To give a person a house to live is not just providing him shelter, it is actually giving him back his dignity. Just imagine this, someone who has a place he calls home will not only want to keep it that way but will want to take advantage of that opportunity. By giving a person that spark of hope, we are telling them that life is not that bad after all and there is a way towards our dreams and the dreams of their children. More than the simple act of kindness that we were doing, it was a revelation to understand that in each person is that intangible chance of doing good and making great wonders out of it. It becomes an experience that allows a person to understand his role in the bigger context of a society that seeks to move itself forward. Looking back at the simple things that we do for others, it becomes a worthy investment that does not only get things done but moves the spirit of the people we touch. To understand that is to catch the true spirit of simply helping out.

In an e-mail I wrote to a friend earlier, I told her how my head is spinning with ideas of the things that can be done. For quite sometime, I find myself going into something that has found a special place in my heart, giving me a great way to do things that matter. In all this I am amazed, I am truly blessed...

Philippine Prison Reenacts Michael Jackson's

I know this has been so popular but I still want to post it for more people to see... This is unity in action