If I were to die... (Simple Clean Version)

Death is perhaps the most appalling subject I could ever discuss with anyone.   Still, I believe that it is also the most attractive topic I could ever pick to dissert.  Why is death so repulsively beautiful?  That is something I keep wondering myself.   I assume that at one point in time all of you have thought about death  in various ways and yet came down with the same dreadful conclusion - we all die.   It's a sad truth we have to take.  And no matter how indifferent we may seem about the fact, we still do worry and wonder.

Death in plain and simple words - the cessation of all the cells that supports an organism's life force.  How complicated is that?  Six feet under the ground, we'll all be rotting away to join the lifestream once again.  Same as our ancestors that came and lived before us on this bountiful earth.  That is how I thought of death before I turned fourteen.  Easy peasy really.  It's by the book and well supported by science.

All of that changed in an instant...

My bestfriend Melanie Avila died in January 11, 2005.  (If you are a close friend of mine, you probably know about this fact.) I have, in truth, adapted quite healthily in coming into terms about her death. Although, at the other side of the truth, I have not quite forgotten everything about her death.  Adaptation is not forgetting.  It is acceptance.    In a span of seven years, I slowly learned to accept the painful truth - she is gone.  But there never was a day that I wouldn't think about her.  I always do.

Just wanted to share a magnificent artwork about life and death I found on 9gag

When death falls near you or your loved ones, you'll perceive it differently.  At the age of fourteen, I learned about it.  Isn't that a reality check too early?  Heck no!  Think about a 9 year old boy who has seen his mother close to dying two times in a freak accident.  Now that is a wake up call to mortality too early.  That same boy, believe it or not, came up to the World Vision booth and picked a child to sponsor.  In turn for the ordeal, he has developed empathy and compassion at such an early age.  That is something only a person who has met and/or glanced death before their eyes can understand.  

So if I were to die, and die very young, I would like to bring with me memories of happiness.  That in every smile I give, I touch a heart with sincerity.  That in every word I mouth, I bless a soul with kindness.  That in every action I do, I move a person into action.  Life is short, I have learned.  I don't want to waste my time in nonsense.  I don't want to wait in a corner and mutter endless excuses.  I will do, not brood.  If I were to die, and die very young, I would like for my friends to talk not only of good things about me but as well as my faults.  For I am not a god, I am human and err I do.  I am nice to the point of bad but I am not perfect.  I am not a messiah who will save humanity - I am just plain Akemi.  Same as everyone else.  If I were to die,  and die very young, I do not want any awards of any kind.  I have always thought of that as silly.  You can't take that to your grave nor can you proudly say you have earned it.  If I were to die, and die very young, I'd like to apologize to those I have left.  I can imagine how hard it would be for you guys.  Especially for my two little sisters whom I love dearly.

Lastly, if I were to die...I would like to be remembered.  Just that.


And no I don't want to be sent away with words of a love song :)

Do we still sing Paraiso?

It has been two decades since Ryan Cayabyab has written the song, "Paraiso" and today it still stands as controversial as it was when it first came out in the 90's.  As the song continued to ring truth around the world, the people have yet to find and utilize the hope they have long been searching for amidst the trash.  Last year, I had a chance to volunteer for Aspiring Citizens for Community Empowerment (ACCE) for a short while and although the head of the organization told us that Smokey Mountain has changed a lot from what it was before, you can visibly tell that it's still far off from actually improving.  Some houses have been built with concrete but had cardboards inside as mats and a thin blanket for windows and doors. That is for only a little part of the place. If you go further, you will see houses built with thin plywood on top of trash. The supply of water is also scarce - only certain parts have it.  They deliver it via a long hose duct taped together to reach the place.  Guess what the hose travels to?  Yes, garbage. People there get sick from diarrhea and typhoid.  These are all preventable diseases really and yet the Filipinos there get infected and much worse yet, they die.

During the interview with a local household there, the Japanese students and I found out that a family survives with only five hundred pesos (Php 500.00) a week at maximum.  That is around seventy - one pesos (Php 71.00) a day. With the current minimum food requirements attainable at a doubled price of a hundred and seventy-two pesos (Php 172.00), I think it is very apt to say that they barely "eat".   And for that amount, the government expects five members of the family to eat the following meals for a day:

BREAKFAST

An egg plus rice 

Coffee with milk

LUNCH

Mongo with malunggay

Latundan Banana

Rice

MERIENDA

Pandesal

DINNER 

Tulingan fish

Boiled Kangkong

Rice

Then what of those who live of with lesser income?  Must they rely on picked up food from the trash?  Or must they only offer their children noodles and rice for breakfast until dinner?  Must they continue to think that everything with a "Sangkap Pinoy" seal is healthy enough for them to eat everyday?

Supplements are good but not enough to keep people healthy

What's more shocking to me is, the government is actually using this food bundle price to measure the poverty rate.  "It was never our intention na pababain ang poverty incidence.  Siguro dapat lang ma-stress na ginawa lang tong refinement so that we can more accurately identify the poor.", Jessamyn Encarnacion, the Director of Social Statistics Office stated in a news interview with GMA.

Seriously?  They got away with it for almost ten years?

Really?  How low can oligarchs go?  There are so many dimensions to scale poverty and they only choose this?  Saddening.  Truly saddening.  Having worked at public hospitals during my time there as an occupational therapy intern, I met with the sad truth that poor people are getting poorer.   There even used to be a "free" classification for those who can't afford being treated at hospitals but now, there is none because of the millions of pesos cut from health.  On top of that, the government can boldly tell people not to worry as they suck their brains dry from the budget cut on education as well.  The government is raising a generation of people to be dumb enough not to question them with their corrupt ways.  And by being ignorant, we, in turn, are raising them as well!  

The news about food bundle for 2011

Apathy is what keeps us from reaching paraiso.  In twenty years, everything has changed and it had turned for the worse.  I don't mean to put the blame on anyone but in all sense, we make ourselves.  We did it to ourselves - the past generation and the present alike.  Keeping track and just watching isn't making a difference at all.  It just makes you part of the problem too.  And in all honesty,  for the past few months that I've been staying here in Canada, I am saddened by the mindset of those who have fled from the Philippines.  Not that I can blame them though, most of them had really tough lives when you hear them out.   But it's heartbreaking when you hear how they just plan to live off their lives peacefully here because the condition in the Philippines is really bad.  You always hear them talk about how bad it is there, how lucky that you're here and things like, "wala na tayo magagawa".  Coming from the mouth of a fellow Filipino tsk tsk tsk!    Yes, we are the lucky few who did get here!  Yes, we are the Filipinos who have more power than those back home!  Yes, we can do something!  

YES!!!

YES!!!

YES!!!

I'm sick and tired of people who say NO!  If we truly care about the land we were born in, we would look back.  And we will act now!  A later or an "I'll think about it" is a chance for things to turn for the worse.  And although poverty is far off from disappearing, together, we can start the change.  Together, we can make a difference.

Don't let the next decade sing "Paraiso" still.  

For the next generation, let us make a stand today.

Make a difference, change a life

I just got my recent job as a fundraiser for World Vision.  They called me up for a group interview where I have met similar people like me who advocate children's rights.   It was my first group interview and I really didn't know what to do but I guess my intuition as an occupational therapist guided me through it.  I just thought that since this was called a "group" interview, they might look for someone who can blend well with the group.  Not one who outshines others but someone who brings out everyone's potentials.  I most certainly did not expect for them to call me, really.  I mean, the people I've met and worked with during the interview were amazing!  They had incredible conversation skills unlike me who stuttered a lot.  I was really really awkward!  But I thought, heck!  I'll just do my best next time.  And I did get much comfortable answering questions afterwards. At that point, I just wanted them to know me as plain as day so, I was really honest and upfront with my answers.  When I got back home, they had already called to give me the good news.  \\(@^0^@)//

So, all of the fundraisers were called for training on October 31st - Halloween.   We got to meet our own team and the other teams who are stationed to malls in different places in British Columbia.  Hundreds of us were interviewed but only around sixty (60) people were there.  Woah!  That's when I realized the gravity of the competition during the interview.  Talk about delayed reaction.  I don't even know if I can even say it was a "delayed reaction".  It was too far off.  Anyway, I had a lot of fun during the training.  I can proudly say that our team had the coolest name ever!!!

GRINCH BUSTERS

We'll make your heart grow three sizes!

Making a difference one child at a time

Two days into the job and I'm doing good.  Getting as much feedback as I can and trying out all the techniques Team Leader Kirsten has told me.  It was awesome!  I've had great conversations with people and I'm getting more comfortable with doing the "Pitch" although, I still am having a problem with my words.  Dang you Brodmann's Area 44 and 45!  Can't get my words right.  I'm probably going to have to work on reinforcing appropriate responses to train my flexibility in communication.  Getting comfortable with the language one step at a time.  Although, I am getting a lot of feedback from co-fundraisers and random people I've talked to that I don't sound new at all.   I tell them that sometimes when I speak Filipino for a great deal and if I hear Filipino accent, I do catch that pretty fast.  On another note, I don't let it get to my head much and just do my best with every stop I make.  After all, it's not about how good you speak or the money you get from this job.  It's about getting these kids a Christmas to look forward to.  A day when they can readily go to school and not have to pick trash for a living.  Evenings when they can actually sleep with food in their bellies.  It's about changing their lives with just a dollar a day.  It's about acting now to be the difference in this apathetic world.  I may not be ridding the world of poverty today but planting altruistic seeds in people's hearts is already starting a movement.  A movement that perhaps can lead us to a world closer to a dream.

Ate Korina and me at the booth with our little angels \\(@^0^@)//

Team Leader Kirsten with me yey!  Thanks for Chris who took the picture  (@^-^@)

I feel really honored.  Being chosen gave me more confidence.  You'll really never know what will happen if you've never tried.  And you know what? Just believing in yourself accounts to a lot.  Hoping to spread my passion to every people I meet and make them part of the change.  

Can vending machines take over Earth?

Let me tell you the first time I saw a vending machine, it was one of the most profound moments of my life.  Laugh if you want but yes, I was fascinated by it.  No kidding.  Everytime I see one, I can't help but check my pockets for change. Heck! I even like the Skytrain and Bus ticket vending machine. So, being the meticulous memory jogger that I am, I tried to trace back my love for vending machines.  It was from that old Coca- Cola commercial in the Philippines!  The one where a boy was trying to buy a coke from the vending machine.  It goes like this:

Man: First time mo?

Boy: Mag-coke?  Di ah.

Unfortunately, I tried to find the video on youtube but it wasn't there.  It wasn't anywhere!  What a pity.  It's such a nice commercial.  I hope someone uploads it.  But here, I stumbled upon a great commercial by Coke.  



Totally unrelated to vending machines but it got stuck in my mind so I thought I'd just post it.

So...anyway, I kind of understand  now why Dr. Doofenshmirtz (from Disney's Phineas and Ferb) collects coins just in case vending machines become a dominant race.  Because here in North America, they do have a lot of vending machines.  A variety of them in fact. Chips, canned drinks, hot drinks, gum, chocolate, gummy bears, jelly beans, DVDs, magazines..you name it!   And, hear this!  Most of them give...*drum roll*...CHANGE!!!  Woah...how high tech is that?  Back home, you need to have the exact amount of coins or paper money to get the merchandise in the machine.  Expect no change for your money if you give extra.   

Do you collect coins?  Just in case...

Vending machines become a dominant race hahaha

Weird lyrics but now, I guess I don't find it so weird.  And speaking of weird, I've tried to search for the most unique vending machine I can find over the internet too.  Woah!  You wouldn't believe that most of them really do exist or have existed at one point in time.    Guess where most of them are found.  Yep, if you're thinking about sailor costumes and anime, you're absolutely right.  Some weird s*** happens and it's in Japan - no biggie.  Check these out:

Start of world domination maybe?

If you want more spice added to your ordinary dose of sugar from Coke, well, how about getting it from a walking and talking robot?  I don't know if it'll be the one to hand the cola but how cool would it be just to approach that thing and get your drink in the middle of the street, right?

Pet beetles on the go, anyone?

Apparently, if you suddenly have to get beetles and can't find an open store for that, here is a machine that'll gladly dispense them for you at a very low cost.  Probably for kids who still play with dung beetles.

One fresh 9-inch pizza please!

I don't know where this is but it really does pique my interest.  How fresh would the pizza be if it would come out in just under 5 minutes?

Oh my gosh!  Just realized that I needed gold.

Gold on the go!  When you need gold and need gold really fast.  Germany has probably the richest people if they needed gold on the go.  Nowadays, only the world leaders handled the country's gold right?  That's why paper money was disseminated among the people.  Can't really imagine where they would need gold.

Sailor costume please!

Well, I really can't explain what this is for but uh...you get the picture.

Used panties, you say.  Yeah, we got it.

Fetish to the max!  Woah...this is the weirdest vending machine ever!  Who would want panties that were used, really?  (Aside from those who are...you know.)  This is just plain sick and weird.  Can't imagine my own undies there.  It's a good thing that they have banned these in early 90's.  Although, the fact that this thing was brought to life is a very curious incident indeed.

From Heron of Alexandria to the modern day inventors who update these wonderful machines, I thank you with all my heart.  I'm curious on the future of the machines and how one day they will serve us more than they have now.  Vending machines are wonderful inventions that truly help our daily life be more accessible and efficient.

Lastly, a picture of mama and that vending machine from the library that I have yet to use