Conozco Pablo

Today (November 30) marks the birth anniversary of the known Filipino hero Andres Bonifacio. Many including me are used to hearing Bonifacio's name but never really got to deepen the appreciation and knowledge about him. There were controversies and unresolved issues regarding the motivation, personality and death of Bonifacio; but in this blogpost, the focus would rather be on the learnings we could possibly derive from the story of Bonifacio and how we could reflect on it when applied on our own respective lives. Family and friends first At the age of 14, Bonifacio needed to stop going to private school to support his five other siblings because both their parents died of illness in a duration of a year. Because of this, he earned a living for his family until his siblings had been regularly employed thereafter. On the other hand, by mere impression, Bonifacio treated Rizal as a friend or as an important person of the Filipino revolution. Motivated by this, Bonifacio with his c

Black Friday is an American tradition gaining more followership in Europe. It is a day when most stores offer big discounts on their products. Given that Oslo is an expensive city to live, it is definitely enticing to know that there is an opportunity to buy what we need and want at a less expensive price. Technically speaking, this is my third time in Norway when I got to know the concept behind Black Friday, but it is only this year I was able to appreciate this annual event. This has led me to be curious on how this Western tradition has evolved through the time. This is the focus of this blogpost. Firstly, there is an economic assumption that Black Friday marks the time when business establishments start to gain profits after several months on the red due to investments and recurring business-related expenses. It has been presumed that the accounting books have shifted from red deficits to black gains. Perhaps, this could explain why stores cold just sort of give away their mercha

Change is inevitable in this world but that same change is everyone trying to get rid, especially when the change could lead to something less or possibly worse. This is because everyone desires to control the most important aspects of one's life. However, this is not just possible at all times, given the complexity of life situations an individual could be into. It is may sound authoritative but there are several ways to stay in control in terms of emotions, unanticipated events or perhaps relationships. The focus of this blogpost is to identify the three potential measures to be in control and seeks to clarify the essence of maintining control in the examples to be discussed. Be vigilant for signs that mark changes are occuring b eyond expectations. There will always be deviations in the path but one must be certain when a deviation is acceptable or not. From there, an individual knows the difference between anticipated and the unexpected. It is then crucial for one to be awar

It is quite difficult to control one's feelings. There are several attempts to manipulate subjective emotions through scientific breakthroughs in pharmacology, but the challenge seems complex such that these medications are known to have a certain degree of effect but not efficient entirely and concretely. There are also inspirational authors and new age researchers that clarifies the importance of what we know on to how we feel, which is equally important on determining our actions and some say our life's direction. The connection between man's knowledge, feelings, actions and its future is widely discussed on topics concerning optimism and success. In fact, I was inspired to write about this because of what I knew from the book, The Secret. That book provides a sufficiently detailed approach and guide on how an individual can live in abundance. This blogpost maybe perceived a repeatition of what others have discussed, but I will try to present the relationship of these c

Having lived outside the Philippines for two years, I got to realize a lot of things from my own and other's experiences. Most have been tough and challenging, such that even friends and family members can not do something but watch and observe as the events unfold. However, on top of all these things, I could definitely pinpoint that for us, whose threat of being sent to the Philippines is present due to strict European immigration laws, the greatest learning perhaps lies on taking responsibility. Taking responsibility may sound like a cliché, but I will expound what does that really mean in the light of our unique experiences being OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) in Europe. This is the focus of this blogpost. Taking responsibility means making difficult decisions alone. This step is primarily the most difficult given that my Filipino culture dictates to do the opposite of trying to hear and follow advices given by others, especially my family. In this case, no matter how well

Juyen, my niece is having her tenth birthday today (November 11, 2015). Realizing that she is approaching the adolescence period, I am quite confident of what she could achieve, should she continue to be hardworking and determined on what she does. Though on very rare times, I help her on her math assignments; I can say I learn to appreciate more my family through my niece's experience and upbringing. Today, I am writing the ten things I learned from my former "frenemy". The objective of this blogpost is not to hail my niece as the best, but as an inspiration to all of us. However, this blogpost does not expect high expectations on my niece, but a confirmation no matter what happen we, especially I will support her no matter what it takes. So, here are ten reasons why Juyen has actually helped me rethink the direction of my life. 1. Think of those at present, rather than who might be temporarily absent. Now, both of Juyen's parents are working abroad. It is quite un

I have quite accepted since I was younger that life would never be fair, given what I see in the Philippine society. Corruption, which is a broad term to describe illegitimate use of power for private gain is rampant in all levels of the society. One would not have to go far or exert too much effort in finding some examples. My first experience of corruption has been in school. I myself became a victim of favoritism, and perhaps in one way or another learned to benefit from it as well. I thought it was just a natural mechanism to deal with competition and life in general. However, did I reap some advantages from this experience? This is the focus of this blogpost. My experience did not stop there. When I finished school, I was at disadvantageous stance when I realized corruption has another side, nepotism. Nepotism is simply the unfair practice of bestowing favoritism to family members or perhaps close family friends. I saw how one family to another attempted to secure job and positio