Mr. Willie Revillame humiliates Game Show contestant kid

During the March 12, 2011 episode of Willie Revillame’s Willing Willie, he featured a 6-year old contestant in his game show and publicly humiliated his innocence by having him macho dance again and again during the show.

College – Every High School Senior’s Problem

When we were young, our parents and relatives would often ask us what we were going to be when we grow up. We oftentimes say doctor, lawyer, teacher; you know the common ones being taught to us by our parents or of what we saw. However, as we grow up, we slowly learn of how difficult particular subjects are and our decisions change because of various factors that influence an individual’s thinking.

The 7th RAY Summit Experience

The Recollect Augustinian Youth Summit (RAYS) is a youth gathering of the many Recollect parishes and schools of the Philippines in one venue – the Casiciaco Recollect Seminary (CaReS). In RAYS, one experiences the life of being a seminarian, yet mixed with fun activities and presentations prepared by the seminarians. Together with Portia Ubarra, Christian John Resaba, Anna Mareine Alisaca and Kelvin Ruel Novabos and under the supervision of Mrs. Maria Zita Tomaroy and Fr. Jay Parilla, I joined the 7th RAY Summit.

In the course of the summit, you’ll see different people from different walks of life. When describing the summit, one would imagine endless prayers and novenas because of its dedication to holiness. Actually, it’s not really all that. The seminarians made it to a point that the delegates would truly appreciate the beauty and the essence of the praise and worship. Same goes with the priests who truly jammed with us and gave us comedic, but reflective homilies. With the chilly breeze of Baguio, one may surely want to fall asleep, but it’s easy not to because of the fun that one experiences as he participates in the activities. Because of the seclusion of the venue and the breezy atmosphere, one can encounter God at its finest. They really made it to a point wherein the youth can really relate much to the Lord.

RAYS had a soul-angel grouping. Each seminarian (angel) is assigned to one or two particular delegates (souls). They will be together during the entire run of the summit. The angels would accommodate their souls if ever they needed anything. You’d be lucky if you get paired up with your pais*. Though, the bonding is much felt during the Lucernarium wherein each finds comfort within the other after an intimate encounter with God in the silence of hearts.

They also had talks lined up from various speakers which included priests and a representative from Kerygma Magazine. When I think about talks and seminars, usually it would mean a Sleeping Contest Borefest! This time, they really did it differently and I couldn’t even blink to miss anything. The speakers really know how to work out a crowd. They educated the youth with their conviction, and they let the youth realize the power of Love and the letting go of material things. After that, there is the group sharing wherein each one is assigned to a particular group for the reflection based on what the talk was about. Initially, I began to feel weird about sharing certain things with a bunch of strangers. However, there was that feel of belonging and acceptance. As such, one can never really feel lonely.

You can always have fun in youth gatherings like RAYS. In RAYS, they have the Youth Festival wherein everyone enjoys the animations prepared, and anyone can take center stage and dance at their hearts’ end. They even have games prepared like the Amazing Race and the Sportsfest. Surely, I never did even feel hungry since we had three complete meals and two snacks a day. We also got a city tour in Baguio – visiting sites like the Philippine Military Academy, the Mansion, Burnham Park, etc.

RAYS is also an event wherein you get to see the priests have fun and jam with the youth as well. Guys might probably be inspired to enter the seminary and give priesthood a try.

Take it from me. RAY Summit is surely an experience I can never really forget. Probably a highlight in my highschool life. I hope during the 8th RAY Summit, many of our Josenians would join. The more, the merrier. If you wanna get closer to God and yet have as much fun, then this is it. Join the Recollect Augustinian Youth Summit, and see yourself change.

*pais – short for paisano, meaning kababayan

Say OK to K-12?

The K-12 Education Plan is spearheaded by President Benigno Aquino III which is part of his Educational Reform Program. Of the implementation, he believes that adding more years in the Basic Education Curriculum, could help the Philippines establish a globally competitive education while solving the problem of unemployment. To simply put short, the K-12 Educational Plan is basically adding an additional year in both elementary and high school. K-12 meaning Kindergarten to the 12th Grade.

A New Year Marks a New Beginning

Each and every person in the world anticipates the New Year. They’re all up on New Year’s eve waiting for the clock to strike 12 and when it does, you’ll gets colorful  fireworks up in the sky, bells ringing, and frypans smashing. There are certainly a number of reasons why people anticipate badly the New Year. However, there’s one common denominator for all – regardless of your race, religion and conditions. It signifies a new beginning.

The Effects of Education Deprivation in the Filipino Youth

In a third-world country such as the Philippines, Filipinos need highly-educated leaders to efficiently manage the deteriorating and not to mention, the discriminated country that it is today. Seeing the current situation and the failure of the present generation to remedy the problem, there is a demand and a big challenge to the next generation who would in turn be the ones to manage this pitiful country. However, current statistics show that a large percentage of the youth, nowadays, don’t even go to school and oftentimes, just go and beg at the streets. In other cases, they don’t pursue college, or highschool or even discontinue elementary.

We can’t rely on statistical data on the percentage of enrolled youth in both  public and private schools to falsify the claim that many of the youth are still studying. In some cases, these children are enrolled, but don’t go to school for the fact that sometimes their parents persuade them to work so as to feed the family. If the youth are not educated properly, then what will be the future of this country? You see, if dumb people are going to this country, then there’s a higher chance that the country would experience the worst and opportunistic foreigners will take matters into their own hands.

Unbeknown to everyone, Filipinos are afraid of the intellectuals. It is evident on the latest presidential elections when millions of people opted for the inferior in intellect Joseph Estrada rather than Harvard graduate Gilberto Teodoro. It was most probably the effect of the Marcos regime. That regime may have traumatized millions of Filipinos. Although remember that it was during Marcos’ time wherein we experienced an equal peso-dollar exchange rate. One peso was equivalent to one US Dollar at that time. But all those good things that Marcos did were overshadowed by his infamous declaration of Martial Law. Then we have Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The alleged corrupt president. She was also intelligent proof of that is having obtained a doctorate degree in Economics. Well, she was merely fixing the treacherous mess that the previous president “Joseph Estrada” had made.

Take a look at former President Joseph Estrada. He was included in Foreign Policy‘s list of five former head of states/governments who neither made “a positive difference in the world”, or “fade away into obscurity.” Estrada was a dropout and he was notorious for his corrupt ways – most particularly in the Jose Velarde account due to jueteng. See the effects if an ignorant leader was to be put in charge? Now, would you want another Erap Estrada to rule this country? If you do, all I can assure you is this: It will be the end of the Philippines.

What’s important for every individual in the progression of their lives and of the nation is education. Without education, we live by ignorance. Continue to show ignorance and people will laugh and ultimately utilize it to their advantage and much to your disadvantage. If the youth are endlessly deprived of their right to education then rest assured, when they grow up, they’ll end up as slaves to foreign investors.

Let’s also take into consideration that the quality of education is not that high in the Philippines and the years of study are fewer compared to other countries. If the adults still deprive our youth of the right to education, then the youth might as well have learned nothing vital to the improvement of our country.

Let’s rebuild this country. Let’s learn from the mistakes of the past. Educate the Filipino Youth. This is the demand of the time. Do not deprive them of such opportunity. Sooner or later, you’ll regret it if you do. This is for a better community and for a better country.

Ann Ward wins America’s Next Top Model, Cycle 15

Ann Ward

Ann Ward, the 6’2″ student who has amazed the judges since week one and has had five consecutive first call-outs and a total of six first call-outs achieving an America’s Next Top Model record, has won America’s Next Top Model Cycle 15. Ann triumphed over the more experienced Chelsey to become America’s Next Top Model.

The Absurd 6/55 Lotto Jackpot

The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office’s (PCSO) 6/55 Lotto jackpot has ballooned to an estimated total of 740 million pesos. It’s amazing how Filipinos gamble to get the jackpot. Who wouldn’t want that amount of money? Even a million pesos is already enough. Some would even settle with a hundred thousand pesos. Here’s the catch though. Taking into consideration the present condition of the nation which is poverty and hardship, why would PCSO still allow that amount of money as a jackpot prize?

Students with 7′s and Suspensions – Ineligible for Honors

In a particular school, students who have experienced having a grade in the line of 7 during their third and fourth year and have experienced receiving a suspension from the school discipline officer are already disqualified from receiving honors during their graduation rites/commencement exercises. That is a rule in a particular university. Perhaps, in other schools as well.

A Piece of Peace

Corrupt government officials, polluted waters, police forces accepting bribes from criminals, and children smoking cigarettes and sniffing drugs. Now tell me, how can a 15-year-old teenager like me be able to make peace come alive in my world? It’s very simple. I divide my peace into four pieces. Each piece is given to each essential being in our span of existence.

The first piece of peace I give to is for the young – the innocent children who are most influenced by the environment for they are on the verge of building up their personality. It is hard to undo the mistakes of the past. Thus, we focus more on the future. I, as a Catechist, enjoy teaching children stories of God and His awesome wonders and at the same time teaching them good morals. I try as much as possible to rid of them the negative things they have acquired whether vocal or actual. I firmly believe that we should educate the young whilst they’re still innocent for they will bring the principles we taught until they grow up and mature. We should influence the young as much as possible. He who influences the thoughts of his times, influences all the times that follow.

The second piece, I give to the adults – the parents, professionals, workers, teachers and the like. I have to establish peace with them. Why? First of all, I commend some of them for being good role models and teaching me and the other kids the right values and proper conduct. For some adults who have been exhibiting all the wrong things in life publicly,  I thank you for showing me what not to be when I grow up. However, not all children or teenagers are like me. Some may view your actions as something worth emulating. This is not actually a word of condemnation for adults, but a thought worth reflecting: Adults should be role models. You are the ones who are responsible for the formation of characters of each young individual. May you form their characters as something worth exemplifying. We don’t want to end up with the same problems in the years to come.

The third piece that I give to is for the people of my generation – the teenagers who are going to be adults in a couple of years time. I, as a concerned teenager who is also a part of this generation, am also concerned of the outcome when we take our part in the soon-to-be vacated offices which we will take over. Accompanied with the large responsibilities that we will inherit, it is important that we are at peace so we would be able to work in unison. With unity, we are able to achieve many things harmoniously and successfully and that we could withstand each single problem that would come in our lives with utmost pride and concern.

The fourth and final piece I give to is for myself. Well, you might be thinking that this is pure selfishness, but actually it’s not. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. It is important for me to have a piece for the reason that it actually helps me avoid near temptations of sin. Peace in myself gives me the thought that all these happenings are a part of God’s plan not only for me, but also for others as well.  A great example would be that instead of being envious of others’ success, I become proud for that particular person. It gives me the idea that I’m not the only child of God, but He too has other children that perhaps, are more deserving of their success. It also gives me at least a tiny speck of hope amidst trials and problematic circumstances – to continue fighting and persevering for my goals.

By giving these four pieces of peace, I am able to complete the greatest puzzle of life. By influencing one person at a time from the different sectors, my influence reaches to other people as well from whom I have influenced; thus, causing a chain reaction. In that way, I am able to achieve peace in my world. With hard work and prayer, I, together with God and everybody else, will be able to have a peaceful world that would last for all eternity.

Now, won’t you accept this piece of peace?