...looking into this kaleidoscope world...

As I continue on this journey...looking for the better part of me...
Here is where I stand...
On the Political and Social Issues Affecting the world today...

[ HOME ] [ ISSUES ] [ REFLECTIONS ] [ ALTER-EGO ] [ ARCHIVES ]

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Take Not the Road Less Traveled...

some thougths of vianney @ 03:46 am

I just came across this message again, and I just want to post it. This is the speech of a 16 year old Summa Cum Laude, from UP Diliman. Yah you read it right, 16 years old! And her course Applied Physics! I think I only have about 15 units of Physics from college, and it's not very easy!

I just love her message, it's a call for us to pave the way and make our future....to be UNBOUND.

I'm no UP Diliman alumni,( well I almost was...but I chose Mapua over UPD, no regrets...hehe...my life could've been better if I chose UPD, but like I always say, it's the people that I met along the way, the experiences I had that made all my decisions before worth it :) ) but she just makes me proud to be a Filipino (and almost UPD graduate - hehe) :)

Just read on message...it's really nice.

Source : http://www.upd.edu.ph/%7Eupdinfo/Pagtatapos07/mikispch.htm
Podcast : http://dilc.upd.edu.ph//blojsom_resources/meta/dilcpod/UNIV_fudolig.mp3

Take not the road less traveled

Mikaela Irene Fudolig � BS Physics
Speech at the Commencement Exercises, UPD
April 22, 2007

One of the things that strike me as being very "UP Diliman" is the way UPD students can't seem to stay on the pavement. From every street corner that bounds an unpaved piece of land, one will espy a narrow trail that cuts the corner, or leads from it. Every lawn around the buildings sports at least one of these paths, starting from a point nearest to the IKOT stop and ending at the nearest entry to the building. The trails are beaten on the grass by many pairs of feet wanting to save a fraction of a meter of traveling, no matter that doing so will exact some cost to the shoes, or, to the ubiquitous slippers, especially when the trails are new.

What do these paths say about us, UP students?

One could say that the UP student is enamored with Mathematics and Pythagoras, hence these triangles formed by the pavement and the path. Many among you would disagree.

Others could say that the UP student is naturally countercultural. And the refusal to use the pavement is just one of the myriads of ways to show his defiance of the order of things. This time, many would agree.

Still, others will say that the UP student is the model of today's youth: they want everything easier, faster, now. The walkable paths appeal to them because they get to their destination faster, and presumably, with less effort. Now that is only partly true, and totally unfair.

These trails weren't always walkable. No doubt they started as patches of grass, perhaps overgrown. Those who first walked them must have soiled their shoes, stubbed their toes, or had insects biting their legs, all in the immovable belief that the nearest distance between two points is a straight line. They might even have seen snakes cross their paths. But the soiled footwear, sore toes, and itchy legs started to conquer the grass. Other people, seeing the yet faint trail, followed. And as more and more walked the path, the grass gave in and stopped growing altogether, making the path more and more visible, more and more walkable.

The persistence of the paths pays tribute to those UP students who walked them first � the pioneers of the unbeaten tracks: the defiant and curious few who refuse the familiar and comfortable; the out-of-the-box thinkers who solve problems instead of fretting about them; the brave who dare do things differently, and open new opportunities to those who follow.

They say how one behaved in the past would determine how he behaves in the future. And as we leave the University, temporarily or for good, let us call on the pioneering, defiant, and brave spirit that built the paths to guide us in this next phase of our life.

We have been warned time and again. Our new world that they call "adulthood" is one that's full of compromises, where success is determined more by the ability to belong than by the ability to think, where it is much easier to do as everyone else does. Daily we are bombarded with so much news of despair about the state of our nation, and the apparent, perverse sense of satisfaction our politicians get from vilifying our state of affairs. It is fashionable to migrate to other countries to work in deceptively high-paying jobs like nursing and teaching, forgetting that even at their favored work destinations, nurses and teachers are some of the lowest paid professionals. The lure of high and immediate monetary benefits in some low-end outsourcing jobs has drawn even some of the brightest UP students away from both industry and university teaching to which they would have been better suited.

Like the sidewalks and pavement, these paths are the easiest to take.

But, like the sidewalks and pavement, these paths take longer to traverse, just as individual successes do not always make for national progress. The unceasing critic could get elected, but not get the job done. The immigrant could get his visa, but disappear from our brainpower pool. The highly paid employee would be underutilized for his skills, and pine to get the job he truly wants, but is now out of his reach. And the country, and we, are poorer because of these.

Today, the nation needs brave, defiant pioneers to reverse our nation's slide to despair. Today, we must call upon the spirit that beat the tracks. Today, we must present an alternative way of doing things.

Do NOT just take courage, for courage is not enough. Instead, be BRAVE! It will take bravery to go against popular wisdom, against the clich�d expectations of family and friends. It will take bravery to gamble your future by staying in the country and try to make a prosperous life here. It might help if for a start, we try to see why our Korean friends are flocking to our country. Why, as many of us line up for immigrant visas in various embassies, they get themselves naturalized and settle here. Do they know something we don't?

Do NOT just be strong in your convictions, for strength is not enough. Instead, DEFY the pressure to lead a comfortable, but middling life. Let us lead this country from the despair of mediocrity. Let us not seek to do well, but strive to EXCEL in everything that we do. This, so others will see us as a nation of brains of the highest quality, not just of brawn that could be had for cheap.

Take NOT the road less traveled. Rather, MAKE new roads, BLAZE new trails, FIND new routes to your dreams. Unlike the track-beaters in campus who see where they're going, we may not know how far we can go. But if we are brave, defiant searchers of excellence, we will go far. Explore possibilities, that others may get a similar chance. I have tried it myself. And I'm speaking to you now.

But talk is cheap, they say. And so I put my money where my mouth is. Today, I place myself in the service of the University, if it will have me. I would like to teach, to share knowledge, and perhaps to be an example to new UP students in thinking and striving beyond the limits of the possible. This may only be a small disturbance in the grass. But I hope you'll come with me, and trample a new path.

Good evening, everyone.

Make a comment Permalink

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

It's time everyone flies *sigh* My rantings on CB

some thougths of vianney @ 02:13 am

I've been keeping an email draft on my yahoo email, in response to Cebu Pacific for their failure to refund my ticket. They said it would take 60 days. Lo and behold, it's been more than 60 days! In fact, it's been 120 days...and I'm really really pissed! I'm jut holding out on lashing on them...

Yet another one of their showing of their really poor customer service Click here for Jeng's own account. Yes, It keeps on piling up!. I forgave them for not answering my phone calls, delaying my flight one to many times...but this tops it off on my Why Cebu Pacific Pisses Me Off list. It's not even that I totally cancelled my flight for that day, I just moved it to an earlier time. So instead of rescheduling my flight, I cancelled my old flight and booked a new one. Then I thought it would save me almost Php1000, and the CSR specifically said, my money would be credited back in 60 days. Darn! What calendar are they using?! They're not even giving me a freakin' explanation on the cause of the delay! I even have to follow up on my first letter 3 times before they replied that they said they'll be forwarding it to their Accounts department.

Yes, it's because of them I got to go to other places in the Philippines, because of their budget fares, so I should be thankful? NOT REALLY!!! We have to get rid of that mentality! We can't always settle for anything less than what we deserved. It's not because they're good at one part that they have to be bad at the others...Their budget fares doesn't mean that they have to sacrifice the quality of their service! How can we move forward? How can our country move forward if this is the mentality of the people? Thinking that they can get away with it.

I'm still not sending my email. It's not really bad and impolite...but I'm giving them until the end of the week, if not I'll be happy to send them my email. Here's the email that I wrote :

Hi,

I'm really not pleased by the way this situation is being handled. It's been 4 months since I asked for a refund on my ticket. And I still haven't received my refund. It was made clear to me that when I opted to cancel the ticket and buy a new one instead of rebooking it, that it would take 60 days to be processed. It's more than 60 days and I'm not sure what the problem is. I'm being patient and understanding about this situation, but it's been too long, and I'm not given an explanation so I really don't have anything to hold on to. Following up on this should not be my responsibility, because I really don't think that I even need to follow up on this. It should have been taken care of 60 days ago.

Thanks

Hehe...it might be mean...I'm a certified Meanie, aren't I? Hehe...it really just irks me, big time! Thinking that they can always get away with it!

And this is also why one by one, our neighboring countries are getting way ahead of us...

Make a comment Permalink

Monday, May 14, 2007

I Vote...(not)

some thougths of vianney @ 08:03 am

Today is Philippines' Local Government & Senatorial Election.

I won't be able to exercise my right to vote...but on the other hand, do I really want to vote this time?

Since I am onsite for about 5 months now, I am not fully aware of the (colorful) personalities who are vying for the different positions today, as well as their capabilities and platform. And the fact that I am out of the country made it even more impossible for me to vote. (Not really aware of the absentee voting thingy as well.)
I don't watch the news when I am back home, so why should I watch it now? (I refrain from watching, hearing or reading it, because I don't want to disturb the world that I am in. (Yah I live in my own world haha!) I don't want to be depressed. It's not that I don't care; I just want to care about the ones that really matter. Anyways, most of the stuff in the news are JUNK! So I really have to screen/filter out the information getting into my brain. It has it's limits, you know? Hehe. So why fill up my brain with these so called 'junk'? It's bad enough that I work right? *wink* haha! kidding! What I mean is....(haha) I have to use my brain when working...a huge chunk of it, so there's no space left for unnecessary things.:p)

Oh well, all I know is that actors, boxers, family members of ex-politicians are running, aside from the familiar faces that we've seen for probably far far too long in the office, are still running.
Some are running to destroy the current administration, some are running because they think they are right, some are running for their personal vendetta and agenda, some are running because people wanted them to run - even if their capabilities for running an office is truly questionable, although...there are some, there are a few, there are a handful, who are running because they really have something honest to give, they really care for the country, they really want to serve <- and this some are the ones that I failed to identify.

Our city's Mayoral election would be fun *sarcasm*. An actor who is not really from our city versus a dynasty who contradicts everything the Administration wants. So who should I vote for? You guessed it right...NOBODY!!! They say between two 'evils' choose the lesser one...

Sad as I am that I cannot vote, but I feel that it is better that I do not vote than to vote for the sake of voting, or vote just because...
It's bad enough that there are a lot of people out there doing that, and there are some votes can be bought.
If I remember correctly, the last time I voted there are a few lines I left blank! (I crossed it out or put NONE so that they can't pencil in any other name there. haha). I think one of which is on the top most of the paper.

I pray for our country, this election. I pray that no matter what the result is, it would be a peaceful one.

The wrong people may be elected, the right ones might also be put into office, but whoever they are, the truth of the matter is, it is not the government that makes or breaks a country, it is the people that makes or breaks a country. If our hope relies on changing the government in order to change the country, then we are hanging our hopes up in mid air, it would definitely fall. Our Hope should lie where God is, and that is in the hearts of the people. Change must come within us. And if we have Him in our hearts, then there is Hope...

Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that I disrespect our government and it's leaders. It's not that...I am just not relying on them to build my future. It's not that I don't trust them (yeah, it could be that...hehe) but there's just something bigger than them.

Being away from my country, even for a short time made me open my eyes more on what is lacking in our system, with our people. If I would just compare and compare, I would end up crying and wonder, why doesn't this happen to my country, but then again, looking at the people....there...I have my answer. I'm not a perfect Filipino. I'm not the quintessence of what a model citizen is, but I am trying my best to do my part.

Make a comment Permalink

Monday, July 24, 2006

S.O.N.A.

some thougths of vianney @ 11:05 pm

Today the president delivered her State of the Nation Address...somehow I wasn't interested in knowing how she sees the state of our nation nowadays...because i know that most of it..we're not even half true.

But still...I know i will read about this speech....what she said, what she should and shouldn't have said....and by then I'll be informed...but for now...I wouldn't want this clogging my brain...not just yet...:p

Make a comment Permalink

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Show me the monkey...

some thougths of vianney @ 08:09 pm

National Geographic is showing a documentary about their so-called origin of man....which they believed to be the apes!

I never believed that theory then...and never will I believe that ever!

If that's where they came from, then I would not like to be associated with their species. I am created by God...My roots are from Adam and Eve....not some ape.

Make a comment Permalink

This page is best viewed on a 1024x768 or 1152x864 screen

HOME | ISSUES | REFLECTIONS | ALTER-EGO | ARCHIVES

FRIENDS

LINKS

Philippines Best of Blogs