Love affair at M/V Doulos and Books

The M/V Doulos. A bookstore on a ship or a shi on a bookstore? I don’t know. I am not that interested about that matter. But I admit that I was excited during the visit to the M/V Doulos. Doulos means ‘servant’ and indeed it has visited a lot of countries and entertained a lot of people from all over the world. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to visit the Doulos for it would only visit once. Days before the visit, I didn’t mind wasn’t even excited about the trip. It was already on the day of the trip that I got excited because I realized that we were going to be on a jeepney on our way there. I belonged to the 2nd jeepney where Sir Elmer was the “guardian”. On our way there, the jeepney was filled with laughter and songs. It was really a funny sight. Upon reaching the port, everyone lined up eagerly waiting for their turn to board the ship. We were grouped to 25’s. just as we entered the ship, the crew already showed us their hospitality and flashed big smiles. For book lovers, the ship was haven (for boy lovers too!). It contained a lot of books, coloring books, bible, children’s books, and self-help books. Books on geography, about animals and Christian books. There are too many to mention. During our stay there there, a very funny incident happen. It was already 30 minutes since we boarded the ship and I was already getting boared (because I am certainly not a bookworm). So I went out of the bookstore and decided to buy ice cream. After a few minutes, I decided to get back inside the bookstore. To my surprise, the guard stopped me. And there posted was a sign saying “No Re-Entry”. And now I know that was the reason why why those who went outside were grumbling. But anyways, after a few tries, we were allowed to enter. All those who were stucked outside were asked to go down again and line-up. We were led to an audio-visual room (AVR for short). And there was Felipe. The handsome young fellow. He acquainted us with the ship (somehow). He conducted games and tried our knowledge about the ship. U.P wasn’t the only school there; there was also the Asian Learning Center. It was also really fun there. After that ‘Felipe’ thing we decided to go home. We waited for almost an hour for our jeepney because the driver fell asleep. We arrived in school almost 5:00 pm but we had a great time.

It’s DEATH!

Everyone is afraid of dying. It’s just like that although we all know that its always gonna come our way. But the question is when? Where? How?

When I was a kid I never thought of death. I never thought what death was. How it came. And who experience death. As I grow up, I already attended funerals. And the answers came one by one. And now thinking of death paralyzes me. I thought “What if I die today, tomorrow, next week or maybe next year?” “What if someone I love dies?” or “What if we already know when that love one dies?” “What should I do?”

I am not complaining about death. I know that someday I will also die but what hurts me most is that it comes unexpectedly. To the person closest to me I know that this is a borrowed life and that we don’t have the final say on who’s gonna live or who’s gonna die, we don’t know who’s gonna be happy or who’s gonno tear his clothes and put aches on his head because of grief. But the truth hurts, death is just around the corner. I can attest to that.

The past three weeks have been very difficult for me and my family. We just found out that my grandfather has been diagnosed for liver cancer. And with that, the doctor says that days can be counted. He could only live for 6 months. When my parents told me that, I was shocked. I couldn’t say a word. I kept on crying and crying. I don’t know what to do. He, of all people, diagnosed with liver cancer? I couldn’t believe it. I thought my grandfather was strong, he is a black belter in various martial arts. He was the one who thought us how to defend ourselves. He is the head of the clan. I just couldn’t understand why it should be like that. But how I realized that it’s better this way because now, we spend more time with him. We showed him how much we care. How much we loved him. But another problem is, we haven’t told him of this situation yet. But I think he already knows it. He is not stupid. He knows what kind of medicine he takes. It’s for liver cancer. I think he doesn’t wonder why we always take him to the doctor. We bought him each and every kind of fruit. Like I said, we spend more time with him. He has visitors always. And I think that’s what keeps him occupied. Now it doesn’t matter if he is in a bad mood or not. We don’t care. We always show him that we are always there for him. That we will always be a family. Indeed this is the saddest moment of my life.

Plight of Nature

We, the Earth people are very lucky. So lucky in fact we do not even know the extent of our luck. We are lucky to be able to set foot on the only planet hospitable to us. The sun gives us light and warmth. It is also the key material to photosynthesis. It gives us solar energy. But sometimes too much of it is bad, Ultraviolet rays are harmful; we need something to protect us from Ultraviolet rays. Lo and behold! God created the ozone layer. God also made the oceans, the hydrosphere in general. We need water in our daily lives. Water to drink, cook, take a bath, water the plants & clean. We need water for laundry. We also need the ocean for may other things. The ocean is a source of wealth, minerals, fresh water, gold, jewelry, fertilizers, building products, energy resources, and most of all…FOOD!!! God also created the tress for our shelter. It protects us from flashfloods. One time, I looked at our garden and saw the butterflies, the bees and the flowers. Oh, what a wonderful sight. The butterflies and flowers reminded me of my dreams, my hopes. It made me realize that if only I try, I could reach my goals and please my family. But when I looked closely and I saw the weeds. They are competing with the plant for nourishment. There are so many weeds, and I realize that it represents the people. The population of earth is fast growing. The people are becoming abusive. But of course we, people don’t know this. We are developing technologies for a more comfortable life. It is not bad especially because it’s for the welfare of the people. But along with that comes a string of problems. One of the problems brought about by industrialization is GLOBAL WARMING. It is brought about by greenhouse gases, commonly Carbon Dioxide (CO2). We are the major sources of Carbon Dioxide. Global Warming has very dangerous effects. The heat can cause the Polar Regions to melt. Because of the melted ice, a lot of countries will go down. This can kill a lot of people. Properties will be destroyed. Livelihoods ended and a lot of lives taken. The sad thing is only a few people know this and a few countries aware. And awareness is not the same with doing something or taking action. The Philippines is one of the most aware when it comes to this matter. But only a few groups are taking action. And another sad thing is the government ignores this matter, when in fact they should have been the first in line to battle GLOBAL WARMING.
People, let’s wake up and do something. Let’s do something before the Earth gets destroyed. It’s our planet. It’s our responsibility.