The LaSallianWe Filipinos are sensitive people. However we try to disagree, a very influential part of our culture is our inherited compliance to implicit, unnamed rules. Think about it – isn’t utang na loob an unwritten law? Nonetheless, to even think of not conforming to it produces drastic consequences in the form of sama ng loob…
Cream does not always rise to the top. In certain cases and specific situations, the material that floats above the rest is of little value and unimportant. Every once in awhile, we experience this media phenomenon wherein no matter what direction we look, we find ourselves staring at the same story. This happens in both…
“So, ano na plano mo after graduation?” asked my grandpa across the dinner table, and immediately the room turned to listen to a confident answer as to what brilliant plans their eventual graduate had for that “bright” future. Like clockwork, from all those times this question had been presented to me, I mutter with a…
A habitual early riser, a Chinese-Waray matriarch, a forever octogenarian, she is none other than my tai ma, or my paternal grandmother’s (ama’s) mother. Normally, in the Chinese family structure, a tai ma is a name reserved for one’s paternal grandfather’s (angkong’s) mother. However, I did not get to meet my angkong’s mother, so the…
The unspoken rule in keeping cultured: choose indie — or at least, the lesser known. For example, between the mainstream theater and local film festivals, the latter is the obvious choice. And it is with good reason — art here thrives in small and exclusive spaces like competitions, exhibits, and holes-in-the-walls. I held on to…
“The more you rush, the more you are delayed” this native Moroccan proverb haunts me whenever I’m engulfed with fast decision making. With the rush of a decision, comes the punishment of its consequences. These challenges present themselves at the most awkward circumstances and surviving the given due to certain decisions has been the spotlight…
Last year, I had the privilege of attending an advanced screening of Brillante Mendoza’s Captive, a film about the 2001 Abu Sayyaf kidnapping in Palawan. The event happened in the hospitality of his home, complete with food and drinks, entirely free of charge. After the film, despite being in the middle of shooting his next…
The night breeze softly sends its unnerving caress. Nagging whispers aggravate the storm of my hazy consciousness. As I look down at the pavement, the scorned shadows etched on the ground were staring back, silently nodding heads in approval. Tonight, the ghosts of those who have gone clam up to this soul losing direction. Recalling…
“With great power, comes great responsibility” – this cliché yet profound quote came out of the pages of one of Marvel’s most influential comic books, The Amazing Spiderman. The adjective “Amazing” would not have been fixed before his name for fifty years if it weren’t true. These words come into play when talking about the…
My car kisses the curb of a not too familiar street. Something catches my attention. My eyes drop to the space between the driver’s chair and the center console. A black hole of coins and receipts of things I don’t remember buying. This driver reaches into the space and pulls. A black Blackberry. It is…