What will you do if you were in my shoes?

I don’t know what it is about us Pinoys that makes us so incapable of waiting patiently in our spot. It happens all the time. Whether it’s at the airport, a movie theater, fast food restaurant, or traffic—we Pinoys always try to find ways to bypass the line and create our own line—so we can get ahead of everybody.

It happened to me recently, I was at the North station of MRT 3. I was about to buy tickets for us (Kyle, my Mom and I) as we’re going South bound. It was a weekend, so I wasn’t in a hurry. There was one person ahead of me who was transacting with the ticket seller. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a lady came near me (I was so sure she’s not a senior citizen yet)—and subtly positioned herself on the right side of the line, in between the man before me and myself. In my mind, “Wait a minute, is this lady about to sneak in the line?” I was struggling a little bit, kind of staring at her, waiting for the slightest move on her part that would indicate that she was indeed trying to pull a fast one. When the man who was ahead of me finished his transaction and left, this sneaky lady suddenly cut right in front of me (like the way they do in playing basketball) and she told the ticket seller she was heading somewhere south.

Blood rushed to my head, I was pissed. But for a second I debated with myself—“Do I let this rude person get away with it?” Or do I take the higher ground to let it go?” That split second felt like an eternity. I was telling myself, “In the whole scheme of things, allowing this person to go ahead will not affect my life. I am not in a hurry, anyway. She, on the other hand, might really be in a rush. Also, allowing her to go ahead might earn me brownie points in heaven. But darn it, I can’t seem to accept the fact that she’s pulling a fast one at—my expense! She should be taught a lesson. She can’t do this and expect to get away with it!

At the end of that nanosecond debate, I decided to just grin and bear it. Sweating the small stuff would only worsen the scenario. After all, I don’t want to fight with anyone. Even if my eyes rolled in surprise that I’m shutting my mouth for the first time.

I’m sure a lot of you does relate with my MRT 3 experience. You must have experienced a person cutting in front of you. And it pisses you off, right? Then you say, “Hay naku, mga Pinoy talaga!” As sad as it seems, though, I think we’re being a bit too unfair to ourselves. Pushing and shoving and trying to be the first in line is not exactly a Pinoy invention. One writer I know says it’s human nature. Sure, Westerners seem to be more disciplined when it comes to lining up. But they can be crazy too.

We could see on world news what kind of chaos happens in other countries. So really now, this knack of being impatient in lines is a universal thing. The animal nature in us tells us, “Go and get what you want—kill everyone who blocks your way.” But our conscience tells us, “Now, now behave. You have to act like a decent human being. Line up properly and wait for your turn.” So it’s a war that goes on your head and unfortunately, everyday we have to fight it. You could only shake your heads and go utter, Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

RESPECT

Any woman can be a mother, but it takes someone special to be a Mom. Any woman can beget children, but being a real friend to one’s children takes motherhood to the next level. It’s a journey worth undertaking; it’s an effort worth all the trouble. And for our children, what wouldn’t we undertake for their good?

Parents have to earn respect and deserve it. Children don’t hand that over on a silver platter. By sheer force of personality or muscle, they can compel obedience, but a grand canyon separates obedience by compulsion and heartfelt respect.

In Between Coffee and Books

Waking up to a delightfully chilly 17 degrees Celsius these mornings, it’s quite difficult for us to get up from bed. With this colder-than-usual-climate, it makes me want to grab a cup of my favorite Starbucks’ coffee and cuddle up for a good read with a book in hand.

Still, the colder-than-usual climate/weather due to the cold front that we are enjoying now is highly likely just a prelude to what is probably going to be hotter than usual summertime temperatures—when our bodies will literally be baking under the relentless and unforgiving sun. And also to a yet another devastating round of storms next year when the rainy season comes (heaven forbid, I hope not…) that will wash out our countryside with killer flash floods (please nothing like Ondoy).

I’m sorry if I’ve been somewhat paranoid for thinking about future disasters among all the other stuff I could’ve written here. It’s just that I have just received two new books to read this week, and I couldn’t help but recall what happened when super typhoon Ondoy unleashed its power against the entire Metro Manila where my treasured collection of paperbacks, bestsellers and hard bound books were all wet and filled with muds. I was left with no other choice but to trash them all. I guess as with all the other certified bookworms, I made some effort to save them. I dried them page by page with a hair blower. You may all laugh at me now for saying this, but yes, I cried for nights and I regret not being able to save my books in time. Since that fateful day, my love for reading has somewhat waned. It’s like I had lost my interest in books. I had stopped buying books. I’d only read e-books online or I’d drop by Powerbooks or Fully Booked branches every now and then to skim on books, but I no longer buy them.

You could imagine my delight when I had received two new books this week. I look forward to the day when I can buy myself a Kindle. Yes, I’d want an electronic gadget where I can download my favorite books, and read them whenever I want to without having to carry a lot. I do hope too that one day, my love for books will also come back. But for now, allow me to enjoy sipping my cup of hot coffee…

Johnsons Baby Shower Promo

When was the first time you used a Johnson's baby product? This was what the event's host, Ms. Tricia Chiongbian asked the guests composed of bloggers and media practitioners during the Johnson's Baby Shower promo launching held last November 3, 2010 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Makati . I personally can't answer that question since I know for a fact that my Mommy had used them on me for the longest time, perhaps since I was born. But Johnson's is already synonymous to baby care and it's time-tested, mommies and doctors-trusted products for over a hundred years. There's definitely no need for further introduction with their product.

Proven and tested by almost hundred years, Johnson's Baby products continue to pamper each baby, giving parents peace of mind knowing that they are all hypo-allergenic and won't harm baby's sensitive skin.

Nothing compares to the feeling of seeing your baby's firsts...as you look forward to stuff like being there during your baby's milestones and even seeing him on a 3D or 4D ultrasound. The excitement begins upon learnnig you're pregnant. You'd never stop guessing the baby's gender and even friends continue the guessing game until you're sure because the doctor tells you.

And Johnson's understands this. And in celebrating the joy of motherhood, Johnson's has a Baby Shower promo. It is giving every expectant mother a chance to be featured on Cinema One and make her dream baby shower come true. Amazing baby shower treats are in store for three lucky moms. All they have to do is "LIKE" Johnson's Baby World of Firsts on Facebook and fill up the nomination form. It's so easy to join! The mechanics and all the otherterms and conditions can be viewed on its Facebook page.

Lorenzo Labii, 8-months, gamingly smiled before my camera.




Fellow mommy blogger, Vix Parungao with one-year-old son, Jared.





The center table during the launching seemed like you're attending a baby shower.

With the event's host, Ms. Tricia Chiongbian

The Good news is you could also nominate yourself (if you're expecting) or a pregnant friend, if you want to surprise her, you may want to nominate her. If she wins, she'll be the happiest Mom in town. Aside from the baby shower, winners will also have 1 year supply of Johnson's baby products and Maternity photo as well as her baby's first photo shoot. So, Moms, what are you waiting for? JOIN NOW!

Relish Each Moment

Kyle with new found friend, Daniella Millare hanging out at Manila Cathedral.

When my nephew Kyle was four, he thought he’s a superhero. He thought he could fly and he had powers. It was refreshing to watch someone so innocent and untainted by the constraints of what we adults like to call “reality”.


We all started out like him, I suppose. All kids know they are powerful because they think magically. As children then, we felt invincible and sensed that the world revolved around us. We felt in command and why shouldn’t we? When we cried, felt hungry or dirtied ourselves, our beloved parents dropped everything to attend to us. We had no doubt we could control and manipulate the world.


Growing up, we were tamed by our elders. In place of our innate imagination and child-like wonder, we followed their dictates and allowed the world to come in and shape us. There was school, and all the other obligations foisted on us by our parents and society. Before we knew it, many of us had pretty much lost our childhood, our sense of awe at everything, our sense of power and our autonomy to be who we are.

With Kyle, I let him enjoy everything while he’s still young and full of dreams. I wish for Kyle to be a kid for as long as he can for there will be plenty of time to be an adult. Now that he’s 8, as I sit in quiet observation, I delight in watching him along with other kids enjoy the tender bubble of childhood, as they chat about games and their favorite cartoons, knowing fully well that in time, the bubble will burst and they will have bigger things not only to talk about, but to deal with; bigger dreams to weave and make happen. Then, I can only wish that they bring along with them all the good things they learn from home and school, from his Tita and Lola.

At certain points, Kyle would run to embrace me and Mommy—and cling to us, wanting every minute to be with us as he always does, and I ‘d feel all warm and fuzzy inside as I always do when that happens. We relish it as much as we can because we know that the way he hungers for our time, our company will not be the same forever. Time will come when we will be the one clinging to him, and love us dearly though he may, he will want to spread his wings and fly to his own dreams, have his own friends and live his own life.

But for now, allow me to spend quality time with him—he’s had his annual “Trick or treat” activities (something I’m quite fortunate to enjoy as well when I was young) and other kid activities. I believe such activities will help mold his character as he learns camaraderie while having fun. And it’s enough for me to see “that sense of wonder in his eyes”, and hearing him utter, “thank you, Atching” to know that he enjoyed and appreciated everything.