Christmas, Philanthropy & Politics

IT’S THE AFTERNOON AFTER and I think my laptop also went on a holiday break. I published this just a few more hours before Christmas Eve and because daughter Ghiselle and I were rushing to attend Mass with my sister Patty and her family at their subdivision’s chapel, I didn’t double check whether it was really published. Well, it didn’t … An illiterate always an illiterate … Ugh …

      Well, it still looks a lot like Christmas as I drive daughter Ghiselle to her meeting place with friends at McDonald’s Tandang Sora. They are spending the last days of 2013 in Coron to unwind and recharge before they go back to work early next year. She’ll be back to spend New Year’s Eve with her family – that’s me and my sister Maleck’s family; brother Abe might join us too.

      But it is summer weather and I sort of miss the early morning chill and the afternoon nippy air. It was perfect, however, for the fun and games we had in yesterday’s traditional family Christmas get-together.

 

      Anyway, for whatever it’s worth, I’m re-publishing my latest post – or to be more accurate publishing – because it was never published in the first place.

                           ______________________  

 
NOVEMBER WAS GONE too soon but in such a quick time, it changed a lot of people’s lives forever.

      I don’t mean just the survivors of monster typhoon Yolanda. I’m sure you and I have emerged different as a result of what has happened in the Visayan region. Not different in a big way but there is some change, so to speak.

      For starters, final plans for celebrating Christmas had to be either cancelled, tempered or refocused.

    We have likewise learned to be not simply sympathetic. Together with the rest of the world, we have gone up to the next level, translating our sympathy into concrete assistance and genuine aid. We have become a country of concerned citizens and not mere bystanders.

      The outpouring of love and support, notwithstanding, there is still too much to be done but, thank God, the survivors – including those in Bohol after that major quake; and in Zamboanga, after Nur Misuari’s nasty tantrum –are starting to move on and unwrap their gift of a new life. 

      News reports are heartwarming as they show these survivors welcoming the coming of Christmas. Damaged churches have failed to discourage them from attending the traditional Simbang Gabi as shown in these screen grabs from ABS-CBN’s Bandila taken in Palo, Leyte. Their faith unwavering, they say that “kahit medyo walang handa ngayon, ang mahalaga sama-sama kami ngayo’ng Pasko.”

      And then there’s this Christmas tree in a village in Tacloban [photo credit: AP and published in mb.com.ph] set up by residents as a sign that Yolanda won’t stop them from celebrating this season of seasons.

      This is encouraging because they have gone past the tag of disaster victims to real survivors, not allowing themselves to wallow in their grief as they look outside their evacuation centers and farther away from their tragic experience.

RIDICULOUS, UNBECOMING

    And then December came rushing in with so many things happening at the same time.

      In the aftermath of Janet Napoles showing up in the Senate, Senators Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Juan Ponce Enrile gave a sideshow that is ridiculous and totally unbecoming of the supposed-to-be respectable positions they hold.

      Miriam even dubbed it as the Clash of the Titans but it didn’t look like a clash. When Manong Johnny delivered his privilege speech, Miriam was not around due to a chronic fatigue syndrome and so she didn’t hear him call her a “cuckoo.”

    When it was her turn at the podium, Manong Johnny was seen playing in his tablet while she rants. In a bid to get his attention, she faces the grinning Manong Johnny and forms a cross with her index fingers. [Photos from ph.news.yahoo.com by NPPA/NPPA-NPPA]

      What a laugh but then again, these are people we call “honorable.” It’s weird that I find it amusing.

    At the end of the day, the self-proclaimed titans didn’t help any in shedding light to the Pork Barrel scam. They didn’t have the incredible strength which titans possess to set aside personal interests and differences and only managed an evasion collision.

    Happening simultaneously with this non-clash is a face-off between Kim Henares of the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) and boxing champ/TV-movie personality/congressman Manny Pacquiao.

      “Ang pera ko po ay hindi ko ninakaw at hindi po eto galing sa PDAF … galing eto sa mga bugbog, suntok, dugo at pawis na tiniis ko po sa itaas ng ring,” the Pacman emotes [photo is a screen grab from ANC] as the taxman, in perfect bad timing, freezes his bank accounts. 

      Guilty or not guilty, Manny goes where politicians do not fear to tread when caught in a corner. He insinuates that this is politically motivated.

      Thank God, the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has since intervened and gave a gag order to both parties.

      Continuing with the everyday political zarzuela  are Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez and DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) Secretary Mar Roxas who carry on with their tiff in public like a bickering married couple.

    Caught Mar saying this on ABS-CBN’s TV Patrol, “You have to understand, you are a Romualdez and the President is an Aquino.” Now, it doesn’t matter whether the rest was spliced or edited, this sentence is loaded enough.

      Affiliations – familial or political – are out of the question in this time of great rehabilitation and reconstruction. Government is faced with the challenge of helping people who practically lost everything regain their happiness and security. They don’t need this senseless exchange of words.

      Both Alfred and Mar should cut the dramatics and work together. That is the only way they can really help Tacloban City. In a photo recently posted by my daughters’ friend, Jovi Villanueva Binalla in her Facebook page, Bro. Eddie Villanueva is seen with other bishops and pastors upholding Alfred and wife, Tacloban City Councilor Cristina Romualdez, in prayer at the Tacloban City Hall.  With this, may the mayor be enlightened to forget family names and political alignments and focus on his constituents’ total welfare. 

      We hope somebody’s praying for Mar’s enlightenment as well. Or he – and Alfred, too – can read an article by Michael Spohr – “37 Things You’ll Regret When You’re Old” – published in www.buzzfeed.com. Number 20 says “Getting caught up in needless drama.”

      Guys drop it before it’s too late …

FUNNY, CRAZY

    Anyway, Master Showman German Moreno ushered in the Christmas month with his grand act of making CNN reporter Anderson Cooper the first non-Filipino in his Walk of Fame Philippines at Eastwood in Libis, Quezon City. [That’s me at the said Walk of Fame posing beside Coco Martin’s star in a photo taken by daughter Pee Ann in September last year.]

      Of course, he was teased, castigated, cajoled, oh common-ed and what the …’ed.

      In a story published in PEP.ph, he defends himself saying, “bago nila ako batikusin, tingnan muna nila yung nagawa nung tao sa bansa natin bago sila magsalita.”

    Well, we have too many local heroes more deserving. I wonder what was Mr. Cooper’s reaction.

    On the same day and on the same online site, a story breaks out about a slapping incident starring Anne Curtis and John Lloyd Cruz, among others. It actually happened about a couple of weeks earlier and all parties involved have kissed, made up and moved on.

    But haters will hate and bashers will bash. So they lapped up the piece of news and once more, had a field day exercising their “right” to say whatever they want as long as they are logged on to their Facebook or Twitter accounts or to their blogs. Never mind if the parties involved have conveniently put everything behind them.

    Anne was MOD’s cover girl in its October issue and I wrote the story. At that time, E!, an entertainment news channel on cable TV, has just launched the Anne Curtis: E! News Asia Special, an in-depth look into the real Anne as shared by some of her relatives and closest friends in the business. 

       Anne joins Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj, among others, in the list of celebrities who has been featured in the cable channel’s special.

      “It’s crazy, it’s amazing,” she almost shrieked during the launch. “I’m getting to experience life-changing moments that I never thought possible and I hope my life story will be entertaining and inspiring to others.”

    That slapping incident could pass for another life-changing moment but people who truly know her wouldn’t let it define her. I am not condoning what Anne did. It is not also fair to say that other celebrities have done worse. Nothing justifies her action that fateful night but as she has twitted: “I’m just like any other person that (who) makes mistakes in life … lesson learned.”

    Interestingly, Star Cinema has in the blueprint a movie teaming her up with – surprise! – John Lloyd Cruz.

     

      Talking about slapping, it does happen in real life and is not the monopoly of lady villains in a typical teleserye.

      This brings to mind an episode of Teddytorial aired a couple of months back on ANC that tackled slapping for a living. Teddy Locsin, Jr. specifically suggested this to politicians when they leave politics. He says, “What do you do after leaving politics? What are you good for? What does politics teach that is of any use to you or the world?”

      He cited a news story from CNN Travel which featured a person in Bangkok – Khemmikka Na Songkhla – who slaps breasts, buttocks and faces for a living.

      In conclusion, Mr. Locsin advised, “To inspire you to slap harder, may I humbly suggest you paint the face of the guy who beat you in the last election, or the face of the president who did not release your pork and cost you the last election, or the face of the TV newscaster who exposed what you did with your pork and cost you the last election.”

      Anyway, I got curious and when you get curious, you Google it. I learned that Khemikka is a 44-year old Bangkok beautician whose procedures she inherited from her grandmother which she has been practising for the past 20 years. According to odditycentral.com, she is the only one in the world who knows the secrets of breast, face and buttock slapping.

    And she’s legit because her techniques were approved by the Thai Health Ministry after conducting a six-month study on her and “acknowledged her technique as a viable alternative to plastic surgery.”

      [Photo by rastreadordenoticias.com shows her in one of her slapping sessions]

      Still on slapping, I remember a feature on Miriam in People Asia wherein she was asked by the magazine’s photographer, “Do you use your hands often, Senator?”

      Her answer was quick, the article revealed, and was given with a mischievous smile: “Yes, I slap people.”

GOOD, BAD

    With all these things happening, we are indeed sooooooo back to normal. Last month, we couldn’t think of or talk about anything else but Yolanda and her onslaught.

      I’m not sure if this is good or bad but a gun-cocking incident with the convoy of Makati City Mayor Junjun Binay is bad, really bad. Arrogance of people in power is dangerous to us ordinary citizens. This should be a warning to us voters to choose wisely in the next elections. But then again, we never learn …

    Worse is the shooting incident at the NAIA (Ninoy Aquino International Airport) Terminal 3 killing a mayor and three others without a CCTV to show for it. [Photo from mb.com.ph shows police operatives gathering evidence in the crime scene.] 

      And then there’s the sad discovery that funds of the Philippine National Red Cross have been mismanaged or misused with Red Cross Governor Rosa Rosal filing a complaint.

    Sadder is Vice President Jejomar Binay’s reaction to his son’s so-called detractors: “My son deserves respect.” Only if you respect rules and you do not let your security cock a gun …

      If I may digress, remember this Batman and Robin peg of the father-and-son tandem as they went around Makati in an amphibious vehicle to help stranded commuters and motorists during the habagat middle of this year? [Photo credit: dzmm.abs-cbn.com]

       But there is some good in the statement of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who encouraged the people of Tacloban City to “never despair … the UN is behind you, the world is behind you.”

      He was in town a couple of days ago to personally check on Yolanda’s survivors in Tacloban City. In a news report published in inquirer.net, he stressed that “we must not allow this to be another forgotten crisis.”

    He also told the children who welcomed him with Christmas songs to “hold on, we have come to help you.”

      The UN official was accompanied during his tour of the city by former Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, now presidential assistant for rehabilitation and recovery, among other government executives and those from the UN. [Photo credit: AP/AchmadIbrahim]

Talking about Ping, it is also good that President Noynoy chose him as the new rehab czar.

      “I want to do the job with flying colors. I want to do the best for the job,” he was quoted in news reports.

      Of course, P-Noy’s critics feel Ping is not the right choice because he is neither an engineer or architect. He’s more of a crimebuster, they say.

    My say is that he performs as expected of him and he doesn’t get distracted by money or lots of it.

CREATIVE, CUTE   

    Complementary to Ping’s work and that of government efforts is the private sector’s eagerness to continue helping.

      Philanthropy is indeed alive and the ultimate love of mankind as expressed through benevolent or charitable actions has never been more creative or cute.

      The magazine, Cosmopolitan, organized Hug A Hunk to benefit Yolanda’s survivors last November 30^th at the Bonifacio High Street Activity Center.

    PEP.ph reported that Marc Nelson said yes right away. He was quoted as saying, “It’s little bit of no-brainer. Just takes a little bit of our time, give out a few hugs, and hey, everyone feels better.”

      The athlete host is seen during the event in a photo taken by Nikko Tuazon and published in PEP.ph.

       And I’d like to share some fun moments with him during our shoot when we featured him and friend Rovilson Fernandez in MOD’s Male Section a couple of years ago. This was after they finished second in the Asian edition of The Amazing Race. With me are editorial assistant Jackie; and fashion stylist Zusette.

      And there’s just a lot of volunteerism going on as well. Going back to that article, “37 Things You’ll Regret When You’re Old,” Number 20 says, “Not volunteering enough.”

      Well, looks like many of us will not live with this regret and that includes a bunch of artists, led by photographer Alex Baluyut, who set up the Art Relief Mobile Kitchen. They initially operated at the Villamor Air Base and provided hot comfort food to those arriving at the base’s airport after leaving their towns or cities which Yolanda ravaged. They likewise fed other volunteers in the area as well as the soldiers assigned there. Photo (by AC Dimatatac of InterAksyon.com) shows Alex preparing the hot arroz caldo.

      Today, they have moved to where they are needed the most – at Ground Zero in Leyte. They have set up a new page on Facebook for this: https://www.facebook.com/artreliefmobilekitchen.

      In one of their latest posts in their Facebook page, Art Relief served food from the back of a van and visited one of the communities in Tacloban City for both brunch and dinner. This photo by Che Ma shows long lines as they give out about more 700 servings of adobo with rice. 

      From the simple idea of giving the ultimate relief to a hungry Pinoy – the hot and tasty arroz caldo – the group now prepares other Filipino comfort food that include adobo, daing na bangus, ginisang monggo and tinolang manok.     

    Volunteers have likewise increased to include students from culinary schools and other sectors of society.

    And there are more groups out there who are as creative in giving out help. Commercial establishments refuse to be left behind. The Ayala Triangle Gardens Lights & Sounds Show has made available donation boxes around the area to make it easy for people to drop their assistance in cash for Yolanda’s survivors. Showtime is every 30 minutes from 6pm to 9pm until January 5, 2014.

      Same thing with the Riverbanks Mall which has Donation Boxes at its entrance. Ongoing at this  Marikina City mall is Belenity, a competition on the best Belen or Nativity scene in diorama format. Most of the entries are inspired by lessons learned after Yolanda’s fury – like keeping the faith  despite the destruction of churches.  

      According to high school batchmate Fe Ureta of the Riverbanks Development Corporation, this is the first time they are holding such competition and winners will be awarded on December 30^th at the mall’s Ampitheater.

      Still at the said mall is The Spirit of Bethlehem, an exhibit of a private Belen collection mounted at the E-Com inside the mall compound. It features a miniature museum of more than a hundred Belens from all over the world. The exhibit is open from 8am to 5pm, Tuesdays to Sundays and will run until February 2, 2014.

    At the Power Plant Mall, a cookout was held – Cook Out to Help Out – on the first weekend of December to help rebuild Visayas through the Habitat for Humanity. Their tagline was “buy a burger, build a home."

     I’m not sure if there’s a repeat for this but if donuts appeal more to your palette, Krispy Kreme has Hope, an ongoing fund-raiser wherein a sizeable amount of sales goes to the Red Cross “to help rebuild lives.”

      And surely you have heard, attended or participated in many a fund-raising activity but we’re not about to declare an overload. There is so much more to be done, so much more people to be helped.

      Besides, it’s amazing how each and every one of us wants to be counted on.

CHILD-LIKE

    My high school batch at UST opted for a Kiddie Party at McDonald’s Centris. Inspired by that common adage that Christmas is for children, we decided to be kids all over again as there isn’t any rule that exempts child-like adults to have a party. And, of course, it was fun and we were a riot!

     

      We also had a special guest, a real angel and a Christmas miracle baby in the person of little Baby Elise, batchmate Ruby’s granddaughter. Both were pretty in pink. 

      We call her a miracle baby because she was born the size of Ruby’s palm or maybe even smaller. And look at her now, she turned one year old this month. 

      Of course, the event was highlighted with the spirit of giving. In lieu of the exchange gift, we asked each one to donate cash or an item for the survivors of Yolanda.

      Batchmate Yolly, who attended the high school gathering for the first time introduced herself saying her real name, Yolanda, is quite negative these days. She was quick to add, however, that Yolanda brought the best in everyone by helping out.

      Ruby volunteered that when she was born, there was also a strong typhoon named Lorna. “My real name is Ruby Lorna,” she revealed.

    No matter, these girls and the rest of the 23 who attended have cooked up a storm of a party and we were able to raise P10,000. And there’s more, other batchmates gave mats, blankets and toiletry items.

INSPIRING, UPLIFTING

    Number 17 of the “37 Things You’ll Regret When You’re Old” is “Not moving on fast enough.” 

      One inspiring story is about the Reo Brothers – Raymart, Ron, Reno and Ralph – of Tacloban City, who moved on fast enough. They performed on ABS-CBN’s Solidarity Concert two weeks ago at the Araneta Coliseum and I was able to catch the concert and their story on Channel 2’s Sunday’s Big Event.      They sang a medley of Beatles songs, notably Here Comes The Sun and they really sounded so good. The crowd even requested for one more song and they obliged with Hey Jude.

      As soon as they were called to the stage, I started to cry. I cried some more when one of them said, “sa lahat ng tumulong at sa mga patuloy na tumutulong, maraming salamat.” And my tears simply flowed when at the end of their performance, another one of them, shouted, “bangon Tacloban!”

      They were given a standing ovation.   Why not? These young men know that life doesn’t stop for anyone, much less wait for any person to recover from a heartache or disappointment. They also didn’t waste time and made the most of what they had at the moment – in their case, a guitar and a soaked business card.

    With their father, Reynaldo, the brothers decided to relocate in Manila and try their luck after Yolanda. Their decision paid off and bless the owner of the business card who willingly helped them out.

      But making all this possible are the brothers themselves and their father. May the rest of Yolanda’s survivors not only get help but start by helping themselves as well.

CHEESY, ROMANTIC

    “Melissa, you know I love you like a love song baby,” Jason rattles off his vows during his wedding to Melai Cantiveros on December 9^th in General Santos City. I saw that part on ABS-CBN’s TV Patrol and I laughed but he was so cute. [The following photo is from ABS-CBNnews.com]

      I laughed again when it was Melai’s turn saying, “right from the start, you were a thief, you stole my heart, and I, your willing victim.”

      At the risk of getting the ire of MelaSon fans, Melai used the right word for I think that in this relationship, she is really a victim. But, with no less than Kris Aquino and Manny Pacquiao as principal sponsors, I hope their union will be successful.

      In a photo posted on KrisTV’s Facebook page on December 19th, Kris Aquino and the rest of the Kris TV team holds a baby shower for the Jason and Melai. 

       And then there’s the love team of Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo whose fans have a Happy KathNiel Day every 26^th of every month. The number 26 represents the duo’s birthdays: Daniel, April 26^th while Kathryn, March of the same day. They will be seen Pagpag, an entry in the Metro Manila Film Festival (photo by Mark Atienza and published in www.philstar.com shows them during the Parade of Stars held the other day to usher in the filmfest).

      And here’s something true-to-life – a story published in inquirer.net about Houssam Hammoudi, a Canadian Muslim based in Montreal, and his girlfriend, Mary Grace Acojedo of Ormoc City in Leyte. Yolanda almost blew their blooming online love affair.

    As the story goes, the lovers lost contact and Grace was hospitalized after she was hurt during the monster typhoon. Houssam decided to come to the country and went through “jampacked airports and seaports” and made “his way through rubble and debris” just so he could reach Leyte and look for Grace.

      It has a happy ending as he finds her, moves her to a hospital in Cebu with better facilities because she would need to undergo surgery.  

    Talk about true love at a time of Yolanda.

      But the ultimate romantic relief for me is – cheesy as it may be – I’m sure you know it already – the ABS-CBN’s long-running morning soap Be Careful With My Heart. It is just so relate-able …

    Focus is not just on Ser Chief and Maya, who are now enjoying wedded bliss, but also the cornball relationship of Maya’s reconciling parents, Mang Arturo and Aling Teresita.

    Their episode depicting Christmas Day [the following are my screen grabs from the soap] was really touching. It reminded me of my own family – we exchange gifts and everybody participates, including the kasambahay. 

      I am excited for tomorrow’s usual grand family reunion. It will surely be fun.

                           ***

     The clock goes tick-tocking quietly as I cram to wrap our Christmas gifts and prepare the props for tomorrow’s fun and games. Sister Patty prepared a pabitin while I came up with a couple of parlor games, some of which are inspired by that Luis Manzano game show on ABS-CBN, Minute to Win It.

      It’s just a few hours before the birthday of Jesus Christ and all the four candles in the Advent Wreath have been lit (photo taken at St. Peter Parish along Commonwealth Avenue; the other one at the Our Lady of Angels Chapel at the Riverbanks Mall). I completed nine days attending Mass as my way of thanking the Heavenly Father for His blessings to me and my daughters as well as family and close friends.

       It will soon be over but for now, I am excited, I am thrilled for another grand reunion with my family tomorrow. I read this quote at the entrance of a shop in Trinoma and it is so right: Christmas is love with all the trimmings.

      In two hours, we go to my sister Patty’s house and hear Mass at their subdivision’s chapel and share a pizza-pasta Noche Buena. Brother Boyet whose family is based in Isabela is joining us later and I’m happy to see them after being absent in two Christmas reunions.

      May the entire Filipino nation really have a merry Christmas. As that song goes, let our hearts be light and (that) from now on, our troubles will be out of sight …

                            ______________________

      Christmas has been spent and, as expected, I had a blast with the family. Daughter Pee Ann joined us through Skype and missing her wasn’t so bad. She’ll be here next year anyway …

      The Christmas Eve mass was beautiful and I enjoyed singing Adeste Fidelis and Silent Night, among other carols, after the Communion and in ending the Mass. We also took pictures by the Belen with the Baby Jesus. Marcus and Amos, my brother Boyet’s youngest son, enjoyed posing beside it.

      And so December is running out of days and 2014 is about to start. I have the same message for the new year – may our hearts continue to be light. Let us welcome 2014 by leaving behind the heaviness and the tediousness we have experienced in 2013.

      It was a good year considering the fact that we survived it despite disasters, corruption in government, and street crimes.