"A wise woman who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day she met another traveler who was hungry, and the wise woman opened her bag to share her food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone and asked the woman to give it to him. She did so without hesitation. The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the stone was worth enough to give him security for a lifetime. But a few days later he came back to return the stone to the wise woman.
'I've been thinking,' he said, 'I know how valuable the stone is, but I give it back in the hope that you can give me something even more precious. Give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone"
From an unknown author
Friday
Monday
misty eyes
I am a movie buff and the last time my eyes got misty because of a movie was when I watched Ang Lee's "Joy Luck Club" over ten years ago. And now that experience have been repeated courtesy of "My Sister's Keeper".
My eyes got misty during a poignant scene when the Dad was looking at her cancer-stricken daughter as she went down the stairs to meet her date, who is waiting and who is also cancer-stricken, in their living room. It's the look that he gave to Kate, her daughter, that did me in = )
It is a look that melted all the cancer away. It seems that for the first time in a long time, he saw his daughter as his baby that's already a young woman and not as his daughter who has cancer. You see, Kate have been struggling with the situation since she was five and this night was prom night. The whole family have lived with cancer for over a decade by now. And that magical look, for me, melted all the cancer away...
For me, "My Sister's Keeper" is simply a family story because all families struggles with life and become beautiful by these struggles.
Lord, you are God yesterday. You are God today. You are God tomorrow. You are God for all eternity.
My eyes got misty during a poignant scene when the Dad was looking at her cancer-stricken daughter as she went down the stairs to meet her date, who is waiting and who is also cancer-stricken, in their living room. It's the look that he gave to Kate, her daughter, that did me in = )
It is a look that melted all the cancer away. It seems that for the first time in a long time, he saw his daughter as his baby that's already a young woman and not as his daughter who has cancer. You see, Kate have been struggling with the situation since she was five and this night was prom night. The whole family have lived with cancer for over a decade by now. And that magical look, for me, melted all the cancer away...
For me, "My Sister's Keeper" is simply a family story because all families struggles with life and become beautiful by these struggles.
Lord, you are God yesterday. You are God today. You are God tomorrow. You are God for all eternity.
Friday
from eternity
"It is important that we are good at what we do.
But it is more important to be a good person."
But it is more important to be a good person."
Monday
Last Supper No. 3
Cinemalaya 2009.
This is my second time. And I enjoyed the second time experience much better. I was with Beb, Alvin, Tin and of course, our thespian actor-friend Jojit Lorenzo.
The film that we watched was Last Supper #3. Bottom line, it was one of the funnier Filipino situation comedy films I have ever watched. And on top of that, it seriously showed a slice of the state of the justice system in the Philippines in a very funny and intelligent Filipino way.
I was laughing my heart out. Beb, even was ashamed of me as I belted out my noisy and boisterous laughter = )
To those who read this blog, go to CCP and watch the films. The films are not your usual plate of Filipino films that talks about poverty, homosexuality and the ever present tale of young love.
There's a future for Philippine films after all.
Diversity is key.
This is my second time. And I enjoyed the second time experience much better. I was with Beb, Alvin, Tin and of course, our thespian actor-friend Jojit Lorenzo.
The film that we watched was Last Supper #3. Bottom line, it was one of the funnier Filipino situation comedy films I have ever watched. And on top of that, it seriously showed a slice of the state of the justice system in the Philippines in a very funny and intelligent Filipino way.
I was laughing my heart out. Beb, even was ashamed of me as I belted out my noisy and boisterous laughter = )
To those who read this blog, go to CCP and watch the films. The films are not your usual plate of Filipino films that talks about poverty, homosexuality and the ever present tale of young love.
There's a future for Philippine films after all.
Diversity is key.
Friday
the history of the word "greenbelt"
No. It was not the business acumen of the Ayalas that brought the word to world. They were also inspired by foreign minds. The British to be exact.
In real estate, the priciest place to do business in is either Tokyo or London. And what has these two places have in common? Industrial strength. True for Japanese and a memory for the British = ) But they do have a common denominator and this is absolute fact - a well documented and long lineage of kings, queens and emperors.
It is because of this culture and country characteristic that made real estate prices near the monarchs go to the roof. Greenbelt was first coined in London. The home of the most media-celebrated monarchs.
You see, in economics, when policy limits an access to a resource or puts a high barrier like "You have to be royalty to use the land near where the monarchs lives", the prices of those land shoots up. Exponentially. Why? Apparently, the whole world still puts a premium and value on the fact and on the prestige of living near the kings and queens even if their days all gone. Or it is simply good business to maintain the prices received at the height of the monarchy even up to now = )
This fact is explained in classic economic literature.
So, what has that got to do with the Philippines?
Well, I bumped into a news about a South Korean provincial government, South Jeolla Province, that leased 95,000 hectares of land on Occidental Mindoro for 25 years that started last April 2009. Why did they do this? Apparently, the South Koreans do not have enough land in their country to viably produce 10,000 tonnes of corn-feeds so they went to our ever hospitable shores and set up shop here. Please, do not get me wrong. I am all for helping our neighbors.
My point is that something has changed in our environment, both figuratively and literally.
You see, our lands, no, our soil is very rich. Yet, we, Filipinos, do not see it. Why do I say that? Well, we sell or leased our farmlands for cheap. The whole country has encouraged the young Filipinos to take on college programs like BS Agriculture by offering it for free. But do we see a rise of enrollment on these programs? No. Why? Because we do not see that our "oil" and "gold" is in our soil. Period.
I just hope, and pray, that our provincial agricultural experts hold their line when it comes to sustainable farming and enforce or create laws appropriate to the care of our nutrient-rich lands.
Our lands are truly fit for kings and queens. For the Maharlikas. Ever wonder what were the reasons why our Malay ancestors made home here when they first arrived in balangays long ago? Our Malay ancestors are sophisticated navigators. To navigate seas, one has to understand science. And when they saw what they saw, they knew our land is indeed the Pearl of the Orient.
My point, if the Japanese and English can bring their land prices up taking the "monarchy route", what needs to be done to properly price our lands, our soil when it is of strategic importance for food stability of our, and currently, more prosperous neighbor nation?
You see, here's the thing - land area is a finite resource. You do not grow them in trees = )
"... why think like mere men?"
In real estate, the priciest place to do business in is either Tokyo or London. And what has these two places have in common? Industrial strength. True for Japanese and a memory for the British = ) But they do have a common denominator and this is absolute fact - a well documented and long lineage of kings, queens and emperors.
It is because of this culture and country characteristic that made real estate prices near the monarchs go to the roof. Greenbelt was first coined in London. The home of the most media-celebrated monarchs.
You see, in economics, when policy limits an access to a resource or puts a high barrier like "You have to be royalty to use the land near where the monarchs lives", the prices of those land shoots up. Exponentially. Why? Apparently, the whole world still puts a premium and value on the fact and on the prestige of living near the kings and queens even if their days all gone. Or it is simply good business to maintain the prices received at the height of the monarchy even up to now = )
This fact is explained in classic economic literature.
So, what has that got to do with the Philippines?
Well, I bumped into a news about a South Korean provincial government, South Jeolla Province, that leased 95,000 hectares of land on Occidental Mindoro for 25 years that started last April 2009. Why did they do this? Apparently, the South Koreans do not have enough land in their country to viably produce 10,000 tonnes of corn-feeds so they went to our ever hospitable shores and set up shop here. Please, do not get me wrong. I am all for helping our neighbors.
My point is that something has changed in our environment, both figuratively and literally.
You see, our lands, no, our soil is very rich. Yet, we, Filipinos, do not see it. Why do I say that? Well, we sell or leased our farmlands for cheap. The whole country has encouraged the young Filipinos to take on college programs like BS Agriculture by offering it for free. But do we see a rise of enrollment on these programs? No. Why? Because we do not see that our "oil" and "gold" is in our soil. Period.
I just hope, and pray, that our provincial agricultural experts hold their line when it comes to sustainable farming and enforce or create laws appropriate to the care of our nutrient-rich lands.
Our lands are truly fit for kings and queens. For the Maharlikas. Ever wonder what were the reasons why our Malay ancestors made home here when they first arrived in balangays long ago? Our Malay ancestors are sophisticated navigators. To navigate seas, one has to understand science. And when they saw what they saw, they knew our land is indeed the Pearl of the Orient.
My point, if the Japanese and English can bring their land prices up taking the "monarchy route", what needs to be done to properly price our lands, our soil when it is of strategic importance for food stability of our, and currently, more prosperous neighbor nation?
You see, here's the thing - land area is a finite resource. You do not grow them in trees = )
"... why think like mere men?"
Thursday
twisted virtues
Is rape justifiable in any situation?
What if after raping someone, the criminal killed the raped victim.
Does that make the act of raping the victim right altogether?
When wrong has been done, doing another wrong does not make the prior wrong right.
If you really want to straighten things out, repent and do what is right.
Here's the thing...
Only few people will repent and change their ways.
That's why those who repent will not have the generic life most people have.
Choose!
It is really that simple.
But by simple, it does not mean it is easy = )
"... why think like mere men?"
What if after raping someone, the criminal killed the raped victim.
Does that make the act of raping the victim right altogether?
When wrong has been done, doing another wrong does not make the prior wrong right.
If you really want to straighten things out, repent and do what is right.
Here's the thing...
Only few people will repent and change their ways.
That's why those who repent will not have the generic life most people have.
Choose!
It is really that simple.
But by simple, it does not mean it is easy = )
"... why think like mere men?"
audience's take on the practice of management
For a person that lives and breathes "management" and believes and extols the nobility of the role, it is quite unnerving when someone expresses what I can surmise as someone on the receiving end of a bad management practice.
Essentially, the actor of that particular management practice only embraces the school of thought that management exist to "make work productive" and left the other half of "make workers achieving", out in the cold and in the rain = ).
I have this hypothesis that one of the reasons why we are where we are right now, in terms of economic growth, it is because someone like Peter Drucker was patient enough to observe, articulate and wrote the practice of management after the 2nd World War.
I firmly believe that for an organization to evolved further, it has to change how it manages the expression of its purpose and the mission to the world.
The Management of an organization, not the person who holds the position but the collective expression of talented individuals, must evolve with the changing environment as it express its purpose and mission out to the outside world.
"... why think like mere men?"
I firmly believe that for an organization to evolved further, it has to change how it manages the expression of its purpose and the mission to the world.
The Management of an organization, not the person who holds the position but the collective expression of talented individuals, must evolve with the changing environment as it express its purpose and mission out to the outside world.
"... why think like mere men?"
Monday
a day with the cancer fighters
I was privileged to facilitate a vision-mission workshop for the Philippine Society of Medical Oncologists, PSMO, last Saturday. This society of Filipino doctors is called upon to battle against the scourge called "cancer".
I felt joy when they re-worded their vision and included a component on the integration of a multi-disciplinary approach for the optimal care of the Filipino cancer-patient.
You see, statistically, cancer is projected to become the number one killer of Filipinos by 2013-2015. To me, that means something must be twitched on how we currently and collectively handle cancer. It will be higher than heart issues and infectious disease by then. The usual explanation for the rise is our lifestyle, our environment and genetics.
Our current poster boys are the dearly departed Rudy Fernandez and Francis Magalona. At the end of the day, I have to utter a prayer for there's so much to be done.
PSMO, as an organization, has to evolved just like any organization. I firmly believe they can because they want to. But this will mean being open and being a student again. I hope and pray they see the beauty of a science called management. I hope, some of them gets an MBA = )
Personally, cancer is really wielding its head in the Philippines.
The worst part of it, cancer grows in small amounts in all our bodies. Yes, we, yes you and me, all have cancer cells presently lurking in our bodies. The reason why we do not have cancer, as currently defined, is that the number of cancer cells are efficiently handled by our immune system. But once our immune system breaks, then, our life will suddenly have a different and heightened awareness of something bigger, eternal. God. Some cancers can not be detected by current instrumentation until it is too late for cure. Only care.
My Lord and my God, please heal the hearts of our oncologists. May they not be jaded by death. May death be human still and not a statistic, a number. May they not forget to see the human face of Filipino cancer-patients, their families and their part and role in it. Remind and reassure them that they are brilliant minds and that they are steadfast people. Don't let them give up and become nurses in foreign lands. Please Lord, open their hearts, their minds and stir them, or stir only one, to act and to lead in solving this situation in ways that's totally unimaginable that the world can only attribute it to You.
Lord, I have heard of your wonders and of your miracles. I have experience them in the past. My prayer is that You renew it again today. Tonight. Right at this very moment. Lord, you know my pain. You know me. You know us. You are God yesterday. You are God today. You are God tomorrow. And I invoke the name you gave me, God is his answer. Please answer my prayer.
You are God Almighty, my Healer. Our Healer.
I felt joy when they re-worded their vision and included a component on the integration of a multi-disciplinary approach for the optimal care of the Filipino cancer-patient.
You see, statistically, cancer is projected to become the number one killer of Filipinos by 2013-2015. To me, that means something must be twitched on how we currently and collectively handle cancer. It will be higher than heart issues and infectious disease by then. The usual explanation for the rise is our lifestyle, our environment and genetics.
Our current poster boys are the dearly departed Rudy Fernandez and Francis Magalona. At the end of the day, I have to utter a prayer for there's so much to be done.
PSMO, as an organization, has to evolved just like any organization. I firmly believe they can because they want to. But this will mean being open and being a student again. I hope and pray they see the beauty of a science called management. I hope, some of them gets an MBA = )
Personally, cancer is really wielding its head in the Philippines.
The worst part of it, cancer grows in small amounts in all our bodies. Yes, we, yes you and me, all have cancer cells presently lurking in our bodies. The reason why we do not have cancer, as currently defined, is that the number of cancer cells are efficiently handled by our immune system. But once our immune system breaks, then, our life will suddenly have a different and heightened awareness of something bigger, eternal. God. Some cancers can not be detected by current instrumentation until it is too late for cure. Only care.
My Lord and my God, please heal the hearts of our oncologists. May they not be jaded by death. May death be human still and not a statistic, a number. May they not forget to see the human face of Filipino cancer-patients, their families and their part and role in it. Remind and reassure them that they are brilliant minds and that they are steadfast people. Don't let them give up and become nurses in foreign lands. Please Lord, open their hearts, their minds and stir them, or stir only one, to act and to lead in solving this situation in ways that's totally unimaginable that the world can only attribute it to You.
Lord, I have heard of your wonders and of your miracles. I have experience them in the past. My prayer is that You renew it again today. Tonight. Right at this very moment. Lord, you know my pain. You know me. You know us. You are God yesterday. You are God today. You are God tomorrow. And I invoke the name you gave me, God is his answer. Please answer my prayer.
You are God Almighty, my Healer. Our Healer.
Thursday
Failure is an event. Never a person! 2.0
This term, I personally inserted, for the first time, an "introspection device" at our quizzes. If you honestly and truly saw who you are and what the environment gives, then it is a matter of knowing "what to do?" and "how to do it?".
These two are different things. Even if our "what to do" is the right call, but if we did not complement it with the appropriate "how to do it?", then, it is still a learning experience.
I know it is painful when that happens. I have my share of that too. And here's the thing, all is not lost. We may never be able to change the past but we can definitely create a different future. Wallow in the pain and get the most out of it then move on!
To those whose name will not be here - failure is an event; never a person!
To the following people, I hope what you got is not only a grade but an added knowledge of who you are when the whole system made an effort to be as transparent, honest, fair and the feedback is immediate.
OK
Anne
Nang
Dei
Xela
Superkid
Fufu
Pink
Pigie
Secret
Jeff
Kuki
Angelica
Christine
Uyan, Aaron James B.
CA
Mamoy
Lucky
It was a privilege to be part of your journey. I hope you learned from our class as much as I have learned from it.
God speed.
"... why think like mere men?"
These two are different things. Even if our "what to do" is the right call, but if we did not complement it with the appropriate "how to do it?", then, it is still a learning experience.
I know it is painful when that happens. I have my share of that too. And here's the thing, all is not lost. We may never be able to change the past but we can definitely create a different future. Wallow in the pain and get the most out of it then move on!
To those whose name will not be here - failure is an event; never a person!
To the following people, I hope what you got is not only a grade but an added knowledge of who you are when the whole system made an effort to be as transparent, honest, fair and the feedback is immediate.
OK
Anne
Nang
Dei
Xela
Superkid
Fufu
Pink
Pigie
Secret
Jeff
Kuki
Angelica
Christine
Uyan, Aaron James B.
CA
Mamoy
Lucky
It was a privilege to be part of your journey. I hope you learned from our class as much as I have learned from it.
God speed.
"... why think like mere men?"
Wednesday
failure is an event never a person
Five did not make the cut.
Three ladies and two gentlemen.
To Mamoy and Lucky, you may rejoice = )
Will give a full account tomorrow.
Three ladies and two gentlemen.
To Mamoy and Lucky, you may rejoice = )
Will give a full account tomorrow.
Saturday
My first Christmas carol for 2009
It was actually last Saturday night, 28 June. I did not recognize it at first. I only realized it was a Christmas carol because I caught myself singing it = )
"Do you hear what I hear?"
How time really flies? Half of the year is over. And I am nearing another birthday = )
This year, as someone who has first hand knowledge of what it is to perform in front of a paying audience, I was saddened when Francis M moved on. And now, Michael Jackson.
Here's the thing I am the type of a person who really appreciate Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and the Beatles. I have, at least, two albums of these artists in my laptop's playlist. I guess, I am one of those who can appreciate the artist and the genius no matter what era they belong in.
But Michael was different.
I have danced to his songs on our street and on school programs when I was a little boy. Billie Jean, Beat it and Thriller was common staple for 5-8 year olds.
I did not know Michael as a genius, first, like I did with Frank, Elvis and the Beatles. I danced to his music first. And who could forget the MTV of Billie Jean with that floor lighting up as he step on them. How about the precisely choreographed fight scene of Beat it and of course the red jacket and the zombies of Thriller.
I only arrived at the conclusion that he was a genius because he won so many Grammys. Then, I found out that he was this boy who sang Ben = )
So much has been said about Michael Jackson, Jacko to the British, but one thing is certain. He is a genius. An icon. The ultimate performer. After him, everybody is a copycat. A far second. It was the same for the acts that followed Frank, Elvis and The Beatles.
Michael Jackson has to surface and bring the music to a different place. Neyo, Justin Timberlake, Usher and Chris Brown, watch their MTVs and their live performances and then see the live performance of Michael on youtube and you will see that these contemporary artists ripped a page off from Michael Jackson's book.
The sad tale of Michael Jackson is that "Michael Jackson the artist" grew so fast that the "Michael Jackson the human being" had to play catch up and we termed this act of catching up as eccentricities and sold billion worth of stories. True or not, it does not matter now. He is gone.
I will be playing his songs tonight in my room and I will be transported back to my childhood, a time when Michael Jackson was this man who glides on the stage, moonwalking...
How time really flies?
"Do you hear what I hear?"
"Do you hear what I hear?"
How time really flies? Half of the year is over. And I am nearing another birthday = )
This year, as someone who has first hand knowledge of what it is to perform in front of a paying audience, I was saddened when Francis M moved on. And now, Michael Jackson.
Here's the thing I am the type of a person who really appreciate Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and the Beatles. I have, at least, two albums of these artists in my laptop's playlist. I guess, I am one of those who can appreciate the artist and the genius no matter what era they belong in.
But Michael was different.
I have danced to his songs on our street and on school programs when I was a little boy. Billie Jean, Beat it and Thriller was common staple for 5-8 year olds.
I did not know Michael as a genius, first, like I did with Frank, Elvis and the Beatles. I danced to his music first. And who could forget the MTV of Billie Jean with that floor lighting up as he step on them. How about the precisely choreographed fight scene of Beat it and of course the red jacket and the zombies of Thriller.
I only arrived at the conclusion that he was a genius because he won so many Grammys. Then, I found out that he was this boy who sang Ben = )
So much has been said about Michael Jackson, Jacko to the British, but one thing is certain. He is a genius. An icon. The ultimate performer. After him, everybody is a copycat. A far second. It was the same for the acts that followed Frank, Elvis and The Beatles.
Michael Jackson has to surface and bring the music to a different place. Neyo, Justin Timberlake, Usher and Chris Brown, watch their MTVs and their live performances and then see the live performance of Michael on youtube and you will see that these contemporary artists ripped a page off from Michael Jackson's book.
The sad tale of Michael Jackson is that "Michael Jackson the artist" grew so fast that the "Michael Jackson the human being" had to play catch up and we termed this act of catching up as eccentricities and sold billion worth of stories. True or not, it does not matter now. He is gone.
I will be playing his songs tonight in my room and I will be transported back to my childhood, a time when Michael Jackson was this man who glides on the stage, moonwalking...
How time really flies?
"Do you hear what I hear?"
Friday
10 years after
The last corporate job I had was in the Information Technology industry. And it was also during this time when I was finishing my graduate thesis. Thus, I read and wrote a lot about this industry. It was really an education for me. I caught this industry at the height of its glamorous and voracious appetite of venture capitalist money and its eventual fundamental shift.
It was also around this time when Japan, represented by NTT-DoCoMo, was reaping the rewards of being the first to push towards a truly 3G technology for mobile phones. Their technology was called W-CDMA. The Americans and the Europeans played around with WAP for awhile but eventually abandoned it.
This was news at the turn of the millennium. Its "10 years after" moment is today.
Now the technology that was enjoyed by the Japanese, for a decade now, has been slowly creeping in the Philippine shores. Not that we are late. The caution is understandable. If it is a new technology, telecommunication businesses like Globe and Smart, must really play the wait and see card. They have to wait and see the maturity of the technology. After all, investment on it is not cheap = )
Then of course, you have Intel's WiFi and WiMax.
These technologies is hidden in the guises of Smart-Bro and Globe-Tattoo. And then of course, my own personal favorite application, Globe-Duo.
Connectivity is really in overdrive.
Now, if only we can only reap the benefits that these technologies offers. But that's another story. Calling on the Industrial Engineers and Engineering Managers of world. Time to dig in and look for ways = )
"... why think like mere men?"
It was also around this time when Japan, represented by NTT-DoCoMo, was reaping the rewards of being the first to push towards a truly 3G technology for mobile phones. Their technology was called W-CDMA. The Americans and the Europeans played around with WAP for awhile but eventually abandoned it.
This was news at the turn of the millennium. Its "10 years after" moment is today.
Now the technology that was enjoyed by the Japanese, for a decade now, has been slowly creeping in the Philippine shores. Not that we are late. The caution is understandable. If it is a new technology, telecommunication businesses like Globe and Smart, must really play the wait and see card. They have to wait and see the maturity of the technology. After all, investment on it is not cheap = )
Then of course, you have Intel's WiFi and WiMax.
These technologies is hidden in the guises of Smart-Bro and Globe-Tattoo. And then of course, my own personal favorite application, Globe-Duo.
Connectivity is really in overdrive.
Now, if only we can only reap the benefits that these technologies offers. But that's another story. Calling on the Industrial Engineers and Engineering Managers of world. Time to dig in and look for ways = )
"... why think like mere men?"
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