I am Mamaw
Bringing out the best, one roar at a time
Friday, May 25, 2012
Monday, July 25, 2011
Knowing Yourself
A very beautiful talk if I say so myself as it inspires us to look within ourselves and using this newly found understanding, unlock our potential in what we do in our everyday lives. I wish I had the same kind of self reflection and awareness that she has. Maybe someday, but for now, all I can do for myself is to understand.
May your searching be fruitful and inspiring for others. :)
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
What will you try?
Tuesday, July 05, 2011
In The Company of Actors
So I'm in the company of actors. A group of people who will go make a name for themselves someday. Although I'm cut from a different cloth, I still share the same passion as them. The world is their stage. And although the road may be hard for them; hey, helping them make the journey smooth is my job to begin with. And it's a job I would gladly do.
GOODLUCK TO ALL YOU GUYS!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Ignorance isn't bliss
3bully
verbDefinition of BULLY
Monday, June 13, 2011
A Fun Little Story
Saturday, May 07, 2011
What historical time period would you most like to visit?
steam punk...errrr...is that a time period?
if it isn't...i wish it were! :))
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
What accomplishment are you most proud of?
To be able to influence a person's life for the better, either during workshops or otherwise.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Happiness to the Unlearned
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
The Joy Rise Dissected
It started in the once awesome hangout known as the barracks. Whenever we hung out there, my friends and I more often than not begin to reminisce on anything that involves our childhood (Cartoons, music, toys, food, etc.) Since Gnossis (their computer) was there, we would load up songs from the depths of nostalgia and wallow in the memories these songs brought us in the past. For some reason, the music turned to Techno. Then all the cheezy techno music of my grade school and high school days came flooding back in.
One song that eventually came up was this song called "Let The Joy Rise (Thunderpuss 2000 club mix)" by Abigail, and yes, that is the actual title. This song was ALWAYS coupled with another favorite "Happy" by the Squareheads. They ALWAYS get played one after the other during those times. they were sort of the highlight songs of the night or something.
And so, while I was with friends at the barracks, I told the story of how in all techno songs, there is a climax part where the song just prompts the crowd to go their wildest. "Let The Joy Rise" had that moment down! And as I demonstrated how people would act while at this peak, the alternating hands toward the sky action while looking up, soon became known as The Joy Rise to my friends.
So you know where it came from..but that is just the first part of this long epic tale!
FAST FORWARD..
I was planning my 90's themed birthday dinner. So I downloaded 90's songs including the famous Joy Rise. When I searched (more like hunted) a downloadable copy, I came across a Youtube video of the song with lyrics.
Reading the lyrics and understanding it struck a chord in me. Behind the flashy techno beat and very very catchy tune lies a message that resonates with me. It's knowing a way to lift yourself up. It's keeping the smile, keeping the happiness, keeping the joy rising. And ever since that time I re-read the lyrics, I've always tried to make the the joy rise every time. It may seem like I'm just being a party animal whenever I'm with my friends, and looking at it, it may seem so. But the difference, for me anyway, is that whenever I do "let the joy rise" I know, for that moment, for that night, for that meeting, I gave them a reason to smile and be happy. And when life throws you shitty stuff left and right, reasons to smile start to come few and far between one another.
Again, It's knowing a way to lift yourself and go beyond that by lifting up other people. That's why I Joy Rise on every occasion. It's a chance for me to help people stop dwelling and start rising. And seeing my friends happy is what lifts me up, so it serves me a double purpose as well.
So the Joy Rise started out as a joke, then it turned into a philosophy. My dream is for it to be a movement because can you imagine people joy rising other people?!
That's something I most probably would like to see. :)
Smile guys! You can do it!
Monday, April 11, 2011
A Point in Leadership
Friday, April 08, 2011
Time to be a HERO
Friday, April 01, 2011
As I Write This...
This bunch of people are the kind of people that go to parties to forget their worries (sometimes, facing them). They miss each other even though they see each other every so often (with a few exceptions). They are there where the music hits hardest, rocking to tunes and singing along as if fate has brought them together. Worries and bad vibes have no place within this bunch of people. They are having a good time, some in excess for those who could not make it, and some, to bring themselves up from whatever pits they were before. As the bass hits, and the guitar strings vibrate, I know these bunch of people are shouting, raising their drinks and cheering themselves on, sometimes to the detriment of onlookers, but who cares? They see each meeting as fate, each shout in unison as rare experiences.
Now, you might think that these bunch of people are all that, but I tell you their not. Just as an amazing set ends, so does silences and low points enter. These people also have their burdens to carry outside their partying. Some may be heavier than others, but after the music dies down, they return to their game faces. They walk their paths in solitude, but they are never alone.
As I write this, a bunch of people are out in Makati, smiling and joy rising. And you are wondering why I'm not part of it. But I am. Of course I can't hear the banging of the drums or shredding of the guitar or even see the wave of hands going up and down as they cheer for awesome music. I'm there whenever they smile, and believe me, I know they are smiling right now. The thing with this group of people is you don't need to be there, to be with them. When a group of people like them get together, they bring everyone. So I know I'm with them. They brought me there. They are making me jump with them, making me sing until my lungs explode. To this end, this bunch of people will always amaze me.
By now you must be wondering who these bunch of people are. Some of you may even have guessed it already: friends. Everyone has them. I, for one, feel especially lucky for these bunch of people I call friends because even though I'm here at home, typing away about them, they are partying and letting the joy rise for everyone. Sometimes I wonder what I did to have this privilege of belonging to this group. Funnily enough, whenever I do bunch up with them, I always forget why I asked that question in the first place.
What to write when you can't move
I'm no medical expert, so I'm not sure how accurate I explained the condition. But I just drew from my countless research and experiences of it. Right now, my right knee and right foot are the battlegrounds. Simply speaking, I cannot use my right leg right now. So here I am typing away.
Whenever I get an attack, I feel like everything I did to prevent it was for naught. Uric acid, you see, is a very normal substance in the body. Exercise too strenuously, you excrete it. Don't exercise, it just builds up. Anything with protein, uric acid is excreted. So basically, whatever I do, I build up the acid. I tried eating right, I tried exercising regularly. But every so often, I get an attack. It's terribly hard to try and maintain something when you don't know when it's going to appear. Like for instance, this time it started with a discomfort on my said knee. DISCOMFORT. I played frisbee last weekend and my body ached bad. I thought that was part of it. Next morning, voila, gone right leg motor skills. And by the way, the swelling stays for at least a week.
So because of this deficiency, I have missed meetings, meet ups with dear friends, and just walking outside. There is NO cure for this deficiency. But sometimes you have to roll with the punches. I have accepted this a long time ago. The longest interval between attacks for me was a year and two months. I was and still am proud of that achievement. I still plan on beating that record after this attack subsides. I just keep setting my goals farther, you know because I believe I can reach an interval of two years, or three years even. Life is never too heavy to hang up your gloves. There's always the next round. And when that bell rings, when whatever that's attacking you slows its momentum, you got to go for it! Don't let up, because you never know when that opportunity will arise again.
Whether it's a disease, a person, or a future unknown, everyone has something pulling them down. You going to give up? Not me because when this swelling subsides, when I hear the next round go DING! I'm coming in hard and I'm aiming far! And when I look beside me, I want to see you guys alongside me, pushing further and going farther, leaving some acid or whatever it is that's pulling you down behind.
So I have gout. It got me this round, there's always next round.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
If you had a day to volunteer, where would you volunteer?
If I had to volunteer...
I would volunteer for an NGO, especially the one called YouthAid Philippines! :)
or I would volunteer to teach underprivileged children. Always loved doing that.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Life as we know it
So whether you're still riding the life's wave, or just starting to aim life at a certain direction, or even standing on where life already took you, appreciate it. There is beauty there. There is happiness there. Life is intrinsically positive, so should you. :)
Life is where you aim it.
Are you ready? Ok, aim...go! Ride life with a smile. I'll be catching you all on the flipside. :)
Thursday, March 24, 2011
What time does to the forgotten
Negativity was never my strongest suit, but here I go!
Due to recent events, both inside and outside of my circles of influence, I realized that there is a lot of depressing and dismal things going around that it can drive any person to the brink of hopelessness. I can't say I blame them. No matter how a person like me says that everything will be alright, I know that in some cases, it doesn't. Most of the time, it gets REALLY harder. So as time continues, we tend to forget that there is that proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. After all, when you're so deep in the dark, that light seems too faint to grasp.
So people get stuck. They join in being forgotten like the light they once had. They hide themselves in their routines, their plastic smiles, their once bright memories. Sometimes people just choose to hide in the dark alone.
but the thing is...YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Everyone is finding their way through the dark. The light is not at the end of the tunnel, in my opinion, it's in finding a hand to hold on to in this darkness. It's feeling warmth in this cold. It's never forgetting the hands you have held on to. So find solace in the hands that you hold. It is in solitude, rather than being alone, that you see better in the dark.
So in these dark times, we can help each other be each other's light. It will be difficult, and like I said, it's going to get worse before it actually lightens up but we have each other. Always remember that you have people willing to hold your hand. People who remember you before the darkness. And that, my friend, makes all the difference.
showCARE.shareLOVE.alwaysSMILE.
It'll make the darkness that much brighter.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Dusting it off
Monday, November 08, 2010
what's your biggest priority now?
Work. Making something out of myself. That's it. I really want to find that thing that'll make me say the "Do something you're passionate about..." speech and people WILL believe me out of the sheer contentment in my eyes.
I have a few friends who already found it. I'm happy for them. Now it's my turn. :)
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Rolling With The Changes
"If you do average great, then your dreams can become a reality."
Then it struck me. No matter how menial or normal a person's job may be, there is still room for idealism and greatness. I may not have the job of my dreams, but I plan to make it my greatest work yet. And as changes like this new opportunity keep rolling along, I keep thinking to myself that maybe the fates are starting to move my dreams closer to my grasp after all.
To all who have work, Be GREAT in it! It isn't necessarily what you wanted, but keep in mind that every little triumph in that workplace makes it worthwhile! :)
Thank you IPC! Glad to be aboard! :)
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Change Doesn't Have An Age Limit
But for ourselves, bringing our voice to the people that matter is a difficult, if not entirely impossible, endeavor. We lose something as we go through the gears and cogs of our society and end up "growing out" of this idealism. Then we see other people, more youthful than ourselves, thinking, or perhaps, regretting that we didn't do as much as we wanted with that enthusiasm that we had before. But all is not lost.
We teach our youth to dream BIG and live LARGE. We should create the world to cater to that humongous freedom we gave them. Believe in yourselves and in what you can do. It is not to late to talk to the people that matter and tell them you got some ideas you want to share. How can we give our children idealism when we ourselves do not possess it. Age is not a hindrance to positive change whether you're 12 or you're 60. Every person has an idea to make this place we are living in better. Listen to them and maybe, just maybe, that idea might just save this world.
To end, I give you a video I saw at Facebook. It's of Severn Suzuki, a then 12 year old girl talking to the dignitaries of states of the UN during the year 1992. Listen to her and you might find out that what she was clamoring for 18 years ago, is more or less similar to what we are clamoring for now.
Be agents of positive change everyone!!! :)
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
Being Part of A Change
Here is a brief rundown of what happened to me during the conference!
Day 1 aka The "I-don't-know-why-I'm-here" Day
- I went to AIM not knowing what to expect (but I read our primer and our programs so I hope I explained it correctly to anyone who asked)
- The Opening speech of Sec. Robredo was really good. It was a good way to start the conference as a whole
- I met a few people even before the program began: An NGO worker in Cagayan I think, and a representative of the AFP.
- AFP people are apparently very talkative
- The first activity was a world cafe. I was bunched up with a handful of people which names I forget
- We took turns talking about the leadership programs that we do and our most fulfilling moment during our work (cheesy)
- Among them were a particular group called Lubid (i think) which excels in outdoor leadership training seminars
- On second round of world cafe, the table I ended up in was more serious (due to the fact that most of them were old people..joke)
- They had a discussion (or should I say debate) on what leadership actually is
- After the world cafe, we had lunch
- It was a 3-person forum on leadership
- Oberta (i think) is the program head of AYLC
- A person who does a leadership/legislation academic practicum for muslims in Mindanao
- A commissioner of the NYC (National Youth Congress)
- During this time, I met with people in OUR sector that cater to OUR market
- Representatives of Ateneo Office of Student Affairs
- A company called asia21, which excels in providing mentorship of various fields
- Team Energy of AIM who seem interested in collaborating a more solid leadership program
- Jo-ar, A representative of the PMA
- Pam Banawa, a representative of the Comission on Youth of the Archdiocese of Novaliches also might be in need of a leadership program that caters to the spirituality of the youth
- She was my blockmate in College
- End of Day 1
- Had small group discussions on the major issues of leadership development of the country
- Youth group had three major areas of concern
- Identity - What is a FILIPINO kind of leadership?
- Organization - Frameworks and Marketability
- Sustainability - Continuous development after programs
- I was chosen to be one of the representatives of the youth sector at the overall plenary discussion of the different sectors
- I was nervous
- But they laughed at my jokes
- People said good job daw after our presentation
- I'm Happy
Mamaw Geek Movie Trailer of the Week
This is a movie trailer for Zack Snyder's (300, Watchmen) ORIGINAL concept movie entitled Sucker Punch. As far as original concept movies go, they have had a good track record so far. From Avatar (NOT THE M.Nightmare one), to Inception, and now to this. I feel really stoked and excited about it. And here's why:
- It's about girls in an asylum who want to escape (this is the basic premise I think)
- Girls turn into dancers in a brothel who wield guns of many varieties (and I learned they also sing and dance in the movie)
- Some girls wear japanese school girl outfits who wield samurai swords to fight armored japanese troll giants wielding gatling guns
- Robots/mecha suit girls that fight off a DRAGON and neo-nazis and their technology
- A LOT MORE
Sunday, August 01, 2010
Weird Topics of Late
bakit ka torpe?
Wow. straight to the point! hahaha!
I'll give you a straight answer then: I'm a really shy person. (I can hear the wehhhhhhhhhhhhhhs na). No really, I find it hard to confront people and say what I feel (even if it's not the romantic kind). If you would hang out with me, you'd know I joke around a lot (and some might think I'm doing well in the girls department because of it), but that's only because that's what I do to keep myself...for lack of a better term...interesting.
But the truth is I'm not all that outspoken. I always have moments where I stop and distance myself from a group. I don't know why I do it, maybe I have a knack of knowing when I know nobody's paying attention to me. And yes, I do make friends easily, but to actually say my intentions to girl I like? hahaha, asa. Again, that's my curse, I'm trying to rectify it, but I'm not there yet.
And if you think because I'm scared of rejection and whatnot, I actually welcome it because I know before facing that kind of pain, I'll have to go through happiness with "her".
So cut me some slack, I'm getting there. :)
Saturday, July 31, 2010
when do you cry?
Only when things get REALLY unbearable for me. Like unbearable anger, pain, sadness, etc. I don't usually show it to other people, but I did have my moments.
On the lighter side, I do cry during scenes of unbearable emotion (i.e when mufasa died in lion king haha). Even some romantic teen comedies make me cry.
I'm a very...uhhh...empathic person i guess, I get swayed by strong emotions easily. :P
Monday, July 26, 2010
M.Nightmares
http://www.cracked.com/funny-5806-the-last-airbender-movie/
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Lemme Show You How It's Done
He joined last year's season but couldn't continue because he was invited by the American Ballet Company. He is a REALLY good ballet dancer, no exaggeration. But when he joined again this season, He had to do a routine with Twitch, a REALLY good hiphop dancer. You guessed it, it was a Hiphop routine choreographed by none other than NappyTabs, A REALLY good pair of choreographers. So what do you get when you put together a REALLY good ballet dancer, a REALLY good hiphop dancer, and REALLY good choreographers?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SAy_wEsXKg&feature=related
MAMAW! Alex Wong, ikaw na.
Of Absences and Beaches
First off, CEBU. I spent a total of TWO (2) days there and I liked what I experienced. It felt a little like Manila at times (uhhhh..Hi SM and AYALA) but overall, I like what Cebu offered me during my stay. My family and I stayed at Tambuli Resort East Wing. (http://www.tambuli.com/accomoeast.htm) The Resort was nice enough: they offered decent rooms, WIFI!!!, free breakfast, a pool, and a beach front. For a family on a budget, it's a great resort ALTHOUGH, transportation between resorts can be EXPENSIVE! Just a fair warning.
Then there was the second resort we went to:
Shangri-la Mactan (http://www.shangri-la.com/en/property/cebu/mactanresort). Ang MAMAW nung place! Really awesome resort design, awesome staff and amenities (the service is so good, there is someone literally greeting you a good day EVERY 5 yards or so...I counted :p). Although the pools and beach fronts are supposedly exclusive for hotel guests, as my friend would say, "just pretend that you belong."
LANDSCAPING WIN!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Music to make your heart stand and your troubles leave
But one band in particular stood out. Maybe because it has been a while since I got to watch them perform. But after months of not seeing them, One Walks Away is as electrifying as ever! (and I'm not talking about the electrocuting that was happening that night haha :p) It's good to see them back in their game. And to think, they went on a break because some members of the band were fathers-to-be! haha! MAMAW talaga! If these guys start doing regular gigs again, you guys owe it to yourselves to catch them.
To give you a taste of their awesomeness..here is a video from their "acoustic phase" back when they were called streamline. This is an original by them entitled Leave. Hope you enjoy the song (or appreciate what the song talks about hahaha)! :)
*To all aspiring musicians out there, just continue to play, no matter what!
Thursday, July 08, 2010
Smile!
A simple smile can turn around anyone's day for the better. A smile from people you smile to can actually guarantee it. That smile they gave you can make them more up beat for work that day, or make them forget about a problem and help them focus more on what's at hand. It's an imprint that you make, although not permanent, that will change the course of that day for them. I try to do that all the time. Letting someone take your spot in the elevator while smiling at them. These are actions that people shrug off at the end of day, but what they remember is that the day was different. You made it different. It's not a lasting change, but hey, it's something to be proud of.
Being the best at what you do is one thing, helping people be the best at what they do is another. To end, here is a video that I find really inspiring. Get a group of friends and try it out! Enjoy! :)