"CHRISTMAS IS..."

     "When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy."  Take Christmas, for example.  This event is generally an important occasion for most families in the Philippines.  It is a time for reunions, gift-giving, and feasts.  Christmas is a time of giving-an antidote to human selfishness.  God exemplified genuine giving when He gave His son to die for the unworthy people on earth.  Such gift can never be paid!  Such is the message of the birth of Christ.  Giving is also a tangible expression of love.  When people share in making others happy through gift-giving without expecting anything in return, they develop benevolence and concern-a worthy investment.  Christmas is a time for reflection.

     This December, let us balance the pendulum of life by celebrating Christmas amidst merriness and laughter.  Laughter serves as a temporary break from the normal routine of work, competition, and stress.  It is an expression of accomplishment, survival, and belonging.  Laughter of accomplishment is necessary int he pursuit of meaning in family life.  Accomplishment is more of personal satisfaction in adding color to the overall portrait of human living.  Laughter of survival is an echo of the struggle between good and evil.  At Christmas, we either celebrate the blessings of life or the woes of a cruel society.  Running the race of existence demands not only stamina and determination but the attitude of joy in the sound of laughter.  Belonging can't be concealed at Christmas.  Finding our places amid people who accept and love us brings security.  After all, the year is not complete without passing through the festivity of Christmas.

     Christmas is too costly if we fail to accept forgiveness for our sins.  It is too costly if we refuse to accept the forgiveness of others.  Christmas is the time for peace and goodwill.  There is no room for bitterness at Christmas.  Christmas means giving up the stubborn attitudes.  It is a time to reexamine ourselves in the light of the Christ of Christmas and the Christ of the cross.  It is too costly if we do not manifest peace and goodwill to all.  As we come to the season of goodwill, as we use our means to share with our loved ones and friends, let's remember the real cost of Christmas.  It is only in this that we will find true meaning in our giving and true joy in all our celebrations.

     Christmas brings hope and good cheer.  Christmas is a time to love.  It's a season when people forget about the evil done against them.  The essence of Christmas to sojourn in our hearts is the best thing about Christmas.  The spirit of giving, understanding, unconditional love, selflessness, and forgiveness should dwell in our celebration of Christ's birth.  These virtues should inspire us not just during the season but all year round.  The good thing about Christmas indeed is the tranquility that comes with forgiveness and acceptance.  It's an opportunity for us to love, without counting the cost, by letting go of our own selfish and vested interests.  As time that we extended ourselves to others and give as much as we could, and thus it's the time that we also receive so much.  We feel happy because we know that we did something good and made someone else happy.  Feeling good-and doing-what Christmas is all about-remind us of who we truly are, deep down inside.  There's beauty in each one, and it shines most brightly during Christmas.    

"Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities"

      I am just a person who is human, down to earth enjoying life, whatever God blesses me with.  Enjoying life for me is just normal.  I think I have to work with people.  The common denominator of everything can't be money, and it should not be money.  Equal rights and opportunities is a huge piece for me.  You have to believe it's possible and believe in yourself.  Because after you've decided what you want, you have to believe it's possible, and possible for you, not just for other people.  Something as curious as the monarchy won't survive unless you take account of people's rights and opportunities in equality.  After all, if people don't want it, they won't have it.

     Most people struggle with life balance simple because they haven't paid the price to decide what is really important to them is their rights and opportunities as human beings.  Not everybody is perfect, and I don't think we should be looking for perfect people.  People who grow rich almost always improve their life.  More people want to have friends with them.  That's just the way human beings work now.  Money is power with them.  Power is an aphrodisiac.  Money did not make me happy.  But it definitely improved my life.  The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained to liberation from the self.  My passionate sense of equal rights and equal opportunities has always contrasted oddly with my pronounced lack of need for direct contact with other human beings and human communities.

     I think this feeling that I have for people and the importance of behaving in a way which is respectful to people of all colors, shapes, sizes and religions goes back a very long way, possibly to my mother and father in very early stages of childhood.  We must respect each others right to choose a collective destiny, and the opportunity to develop the legal and political rights for indigenous and non-indigenous peoples so that we may enjoy the rights to maintain our culture, our heritage and our land, as a united country.  The true essence of reconciliation is more than making friends with non-indigenous people.  One that respects the land and the heritage of its indigenous peoples and provides justice and equity for all.  I think reconciliation is about changing the structures that govern us and trying to influence opinion leaders in whatever way we can.         

"AKO AY HANDA (Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Preparedness)"

    

     

     Life is a constant battle for survival.  More than anything, this mutilated yet desert-defying tree teaches us faith and hope.  Faith that in the midst of a disaster, we can fight back and win.  And hope that as we struggle for existence, we live in accord with harmony of nature.  The web of life is as fascinating as it is intricate, as beautiful and orderly as the breaking and closing of a new day.

     Most countries have adopted various measures to safeguard environmental quality and conserve their natural resources while, at the same time, promoting the economic well-being of their people.  And in my own little way, I'm doing my share in enlightening others-the Filipino youth-on environmental concepts, processes and principles on the basis of which they can make decisions both now and in the future.  There might be some harmful effects of such a change in the earth's climate.  Possible consequences are: Thermal expansion of ocean waters and melting of glaciers may bring about a gradual rise in sea level.  This in turn will cause flooding of coastal areas, something which will greatly affect the Philippines because of its archipelagic nature and the fact that majority of our people live in coastal communities, receding coastlines may include marginal lands devoted to agriculture, in which cause the flooding of coastal areas may also mean less food production, higher temperature of the air will cause greater evaporation from the earth's surface-this will mean drier soils and lower productivity of the land.

     Weather moves from one place to another.  No doubt you've noticed that weather can change dramatically overnight.  One day is hot, humid, and drizzling, and next day is clear and dry.  It feels as if the air has changed.  In fact, the air has changed.  One large body of air has replaced another.  The air that surrounds Earth does more than provide oxygen for us to breathe.  It acts like a blanket that helps keep Earth warm.  Some scientists think that the air is getting warmer.  They think Earth's climate may change.

     In addition, each person can plant a tree.  A single tree may not do much, but it will help, especially if many people each plant one.  I hope that, as you read through this, you will pick up values such as the following which are relevant to the concepts of environmental integrity and conservation: respect for life, simple living and an economy which is not wasteful, "Member of the crew" rather than "passenger of the ship" attitude toward environmental sanitation and utilization of natural resources and gratitude for the lavish gifts of nature.