Bacolod 2010

My Lakbayan grade is C-!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!
Created by Eugene Villar.

My wife and I had an unforgettable time alone at Bacolod. She initially hated the idea of going there, thinking there was nothing to see and do other than attend the wedding of my friend. After dining on the best chicken inasal at the Manukan, buying a mask and looking at furniture at the ANP Showroom, attending the beautiful wedding ceremony, dining on the best lechon and dessert during the reception, exploring the grand old houses of Silay, having a great conversation with the irrepressible Ramon Hofilena and seeing his impressive art collection, and then capping the weekend off with an overnight stay at the Punta Balata beach - I am sure the trip will now be part of our fondest memories. Besides, I also upgraded my Lakbayan score from D to C-!

A History of Britain

I have just completed all the episodes of A History of Britain by Simon Schama. And only a few days ago, I completed watching eleven episodes of the series Churchill’s Bodyguard. I have found my personal hero in Churchill. He is the embodiment of my mission: to speak, to lead, to inspire.

They don't make leaders like Winston Churchill anymore. Impetuous, passionate, courageous, and tempestuous, he was conscious of his place in history, and strove hard to fulfill his destiny. He was a force of nature. He was the obstinate war leader of Great Britain when Nazi Germany pounded London ceaselessly with bombs. He won the war with courage, conviction, and, more importantly for a debater like me, the power of his words.

They don't make leaders that speak like Churchill anymore. It was he who said he had nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. It was he who spoke of their time fighting for freedom as an era the British would remember as their finest hour. Churchill's words did not win the war by themselves. But they steeled the British nation and the world to fight back with grim determination in the face of an almost unstoppable Nazi war machine.

Churchill not only made history, he often read and wrote about it. He was as much the chronicler as he was the hero. He even won a Nobel Prize for Literature for his speeches and histories. This relationship to history is one more reason I wish to emulate him. Only destiny can tell whether anything I accomplish will be worth writing about for posterity. But there is nothing stopping me from learning more and writing about our past and how it offers lessons for our future. Our nation is at a crossroads. We are on the cusp of greatness if only we are willing to seize it. Understanding how we came to this point will help point the way to our own finest hour.

Things I Learned Before I was Born

Since my mother-in-law reappeared in my wife’s life as a born again Christian, she has given me several books on Christian spirituality. So dutiful son-in-law that I was, I began reading books I would not have been caught dead touching back when I was an atheist. Gracia Yumol’s short work Things I Learned Before I was Born was the sort of short, but sincere testimonial that gave me the jolt of inspiration and perspective I was looking for. Its three lessons were simple, but nevertheless true.

Losing is gaining. Indeed, I have learned a lot from life because I have lost a lot. I lost a competition I prepared hard for, but emerged tougher and wiser relative to my age. I lost in love for a moment, becoming embittered in the process, but I won again, realizing how painful love could be, but that it was still all worth it. I lost my chance at graduating with honors, and having a long bachelor life, but I gained the work ethic, focus, and determination of a young father who wanted his children to be proud of him.

Less is more. My quest for financial freedom sometimes blurs into a never ending race for more material things. I remain almost Puritan in my guilt with buying anything for myself, but I should guard against becoming too attached with worldly pleasures. It is good to savor the fine things in life, but I must always remember they are fleeting and illusory. They do not make us truly happy.

Love is the answer. This is the greatest cliche of all. Need I say more?

The Elephant Vanishes

Three weeks ago, I craved for McDonald's cheeseburgers so intensely I remembered the short story "The Second Bakery Attack" in Haruki Murakami's collection The Elephant Vanishes. To me, initially, it was the funny story of a couple who were so hungry for bread they held up a McDonald's store in the middle of the night. My wife later explained to me it was a metaphor for something missing in their marriage, a hunger pang so deep it could no longer be satiated. I do not know if was typically being insensitive, but since I was not aware of any such profound issue in our marriage, I went ahead and dragged my wife and my kids to the mall where I did not have to attack McDonald's to get my fill of cheeseburgers.

The other story I liked was "On Seeing the 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning" because it perfectly captured a perfect moment that never was. I used to think perfect moments are movie cliches, but I have had several perfect myself - seeing my son for the first time, sensing I was giving a moving speech, falling in love with my wife, and others too mushy to mention. Murakami, by keeping the moment from taking place, succeeds in illuminating how perfect and rare it is.

Zen and the Art of Motorcyle Maintenance

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is Robert Pirsig’s semi autobiographical account of his journey across America on a motorcycle together with his son. Along the way, he expounds on his ideas about motorcycle maintenance, his attempt to bridge the gap between the romantic and the classical approach through the concept of Quality, and his thoughts on sanity.

I doubt I will ever go mad like Robert because of an intractable intellectual conundrum. I am no longer as enamored with purely intellectual quests as I was once was when I used to dream of becoming a scholar. I no longer seek immortality through an original idea. I am more interested in making a profound impact in the lives of the people closest to me: my family, my friends, and the people I lead. If a great moment is thrust upon me by destiny, I will seize it. But if it never comes, and I have made the people I love happy, I will die a happy man.

But I seek to be like him in his appreciation of the here and the now. His careful attention to detail, his mindfulness as he takes one patient step at a time to fix his motorcycle, and his appreciation for the precision of tiny machine parts are all manifestations of his ability to focus on what he is doing at that very moment – meditation, in other words. The long journey on the motorcycle, where one is simultaneously with a traveling companion yet at the same time solitary in the experience of moving against the wind, and where the consciousness of nature is visceral and unmediated by a car window that looks like a television, is also one big meditation.

Millionaire Meditation

I still cannot believe I downloaded this book by Paul Farrell for free. The Internet has been the best response to those who say there is nothing in life that is free. Farrell used to be a highly stressed and highly paid investment banker before he walked away and pursued his true passion - writing. The book is a compendium of nearly every type of activity that can be considered as meditation - running, martial arts, writing, painting, acting - anything at all that allows one to lose oneself and be one with the moment.

Farrell agrees that meditation is one of the best ways to reduce stress and live a full, wakeful life, but argues that traditional sitting meditation may not work for everyone. Indeed, even for someone like me who has read several books on meditation and Buddhism, it is still a challenge to concentrate and watch my thoughts while meditating. Farrell gives countless examples of active meditation where any activity, provided one is focusing on what one is doing at that moment and nothing else, can serve as a path to enlightenment.

I like Farrell's approach. He shows true compassion for the predicament of millions of individuals who feel trapped in the relentless pace of corporate life. He does not tell us to run away and live in a monastery. He gives us hope that we can see our work for what it is and be happy. Reading his book has itself been a great meditation for me.

Multiple Intelligences

As a parent of two small boys, I am concerned about the intellectual development of my children. My wife and I are both academically intelligent, having first met as members of the debate club of the premier university in the Philippines. Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences has become so popular it is almost taken for granted that verbal and mathematical intelligence do not constitute the full range of human intellectual capacity. It may have been revolutionary when it was first published, but today, like many parents, I find it normal to want to raise multidimensional children able to think logically, but also to express themselves creatively.

Multiple Intelligences is a an assessment of the status of the theory 25 years after it was first expounded. Parts of the book, especially those detailing the mechanics of pedagogy, were not particularly interesting for me, but the first few chapters, which critiques the limited approach provided by IQ tests, pave the way for a broader and deeper understanding of human faculties. As someone who has read about and seen the success of people with low verbal and mathematical intelligence, this really sounds like common sense. It also reminds me to be open minded about the talents of my children. They may not turn out be as good as me when it comes to standard IQ tests, but might turn out be geniuses in the arts or in sports. Ultimately, I think, MI engenders a more tolerant and inclusive attitude to talent, providing more opportunities for growth and recognition to those who would otherwise have been branded as not being smart enough by narrow measurements of intelligence.

Essential Foucault

When I was in college, postmodernism was the religion of many social science majors, and Michel Foucault was their patron saint. So many students were dropping words like discourse, metanarrative, and contingency. I had the sense so many were enamored with postmodern ideas without really understanding what modernity was and why it was worth reacting against. I had always felt uneasy with ethical relativism and anti-foundationalist thought especially if it was unclear to the interlocutors what exactly constituted the foundation.

Here I am, a middle manager in a global company working in the outsourcing industry and spending my lunch break reviewing a book on philosophy. I will not claim I have mastered the foundations: there is still so much to read with so little time. Reading Foucault did make me more wary about Enlightenment ideas of inevitable progress and understand how particular ways of thinking are likely to be determined by history rather than necessary consequences of progress.

Still, I keep the skeptical attitude of a conservative. Foucault has contributed to a richer historical understanding of punishment, sexuality, and knowledge, but I will reserve judgment about the value of postmodern thought. It is yet unclear to me whether shaking the foundations of thought has done much to increase our wisdom.

Difficultes du francais

J'essaie d'enseigner le francais a mon fils meme si j'ai a peine l'occasion pour l'utiliser. Lisant ce livre m'a permis d'augmenter ma connaissance des nuances du grammaire francais, mais il faut le parler pour le maitriser. C'est une belle langue, le francais, mais il fault la discipline pour assurer que je parle, je lis, et j'ecris la langue. Je pense quelquefois que c'est a cause de ce manque de pratique que mon fils ne parle pas encore. Il a deja 3 ans et six mois mais il refuse de repondre a nos questions ni en francais ni en anglais. Ce qui m'inquiete de plus, c'est qu’il recitait l’alphabet, il contait jusqu’au cinquante, et il connaissait beaucoup de mots francais il y a un an. Mais, maintenant, il ne parle plus.

J’ai peur qu’il ait un handicap mental. J’espere que ce n’est juste un retard de developpement . Je continuerai a observer ce mois-ci, et si sa condition reste le meme, nous allons consulter le medecin. Je viens de lire que faire partie d’une famille multilangue n’est pas une cause de retard. C’est bien possible que c'est normal. Alors, je lui parlerai en francais mais je ne le forcerai pas de repondre car cela n’ajoutera q’au stress qu’il se sente. Ce critique du livre de Jean-Michel Robert est devenu une conte des difficultes d'etre un parent.

Millionaire Mind

Thomas Stanley's Millionaire Mind validates many of the lessons I have learned from Richard Kiyosaki. Stanley's research shows the wealthy do not buy a lot of doodads. They usually have their shoes resoled instead of buying new ones. They buy houses in good neighborhoods near good schools, but they do not usually buy them brand new.

Rejection of conspicuous consumption is also consistent with Stanley's finding that most millionaires marry spouses with old fashioned family values, and prefer to spend time playing with grandchildren instead of shopping during their leisure time.

One useful nugget for me was that millionaires are not fans of do it yourself repair work at home. I have always said to my wife that the opportunity cost of fixing the toilet was not worth the time lost for reading the newspaper. Besides, I have botched replacing the faucet several times I really should leave it to the professional. Anyway, my wife remains unconvinced despite Stanley's book.

The most important point is perhaps the most trite. Millionaires focus on their strengths. By doing what they love most in ways that earn money, then getting rich does not have to be so hard after all.

Norwegian Wood

If some were disappointed because Haruki Murakami's Norwegian Wood was a straight love story, rather than his usual surreal, and fantastic novels, then I have to disagree. It was straight and it was real because no contortion of the imagination was needed to make the reader understand the story of Toru who fell in love, suffered a painful loss, and finally came of age.

Toru's first love was Naoko, the girlfriend of his best friend who committed suicide. Naoko was the beautiful, but fragile love, the idealized love he could never really attain. This love, along with Toru's innocence, died with Naoko.

Midori, on the other hand, was the pedestrian love that just grew over time. She was the love Toru could grow old with. Finally, Toru's experience with Reiko was the tender, uncomplicated act of making love, one that seemed to be a natural offshoot of friendship, with friendly love taken to its logical end.

Toru's experiences were not the same as mine, but that I felt his loss, his pain, and his happiness, only attests to Murakami's deep understanding of our common human predicament.

Dr Strangelove

I finally watched this film by Stanley Kubrick today after attempting to watch Singing in the Rain with a badly scratched DVD.

Dr Strangelove perfectly captures the absurdity and the farcical nature of American hysteria and paranoia during the Cold War. I can only imagine what it was like to fear total annihilation. Some constructed bomb shelters at home while schools taught children bomb drills, but, there was ultimately nothing that could be done in the event of a nuclear war. And it is this assurance of destruction that kept the heads in Washington and Moscow rational enough not to shoot first.

George Scott was brilliant. His portrayal of a jingoistic, Commie-hating general was hilarious. I now wonder whether my image of the irrepressible Patton was really Patton or George Scott himself. I just realized this now after reading Wikipedia, but Peter Sellers also gave an outstanding performance by acting as the President, Col Mandrake, and Dr Strangelove himself.

All in all, this was a great film to start the weekend. It allowed me to have a better understanding of the spirit of the times during the Cold War while giving me a several great reasons to laugh.

Places That Scare You

I have long felt a sense of spiritual emptiness. I tend to worry a lot despite having read many Western self help books. I finally realized the trouble was with the mind and my lack of mastery over it.

Reading a book on three minute meditations introduced me to the mechanics of watching my thoughts. Finally, after dismissing my wife's books on spirituality, I gave a chance to Pema Chodron's Places That Scare You. I am deeply grateful I did for it gave me an entirely new worldview, and a greater appreciation for the teachings of Buddha.

When Shakespeare calls the world a stage, and in Macbeth laments life as a poor player full of sound and fury signifying nothing, there is a sense of resignation at the troubles of life. Chodron, however, presents a more compassionate, and accepting view of life: "It is possible to go through the drama of our lives without believing so earnestly in the character that we play."

We have lost perspective. Ego leads us to believe that each of us is so important that life's challenges are specifically designed to torment us. We forget there are so many other people like us who suffer and who probably suffer even more. We have lost our ability to laugh at the absurd things that happen in life. As Chodron says, "We prefer the selfish cocoon of ego when we can have the freedom of a butterfly."

Philosophy of Hegel

This book edited by Carl Friedrick is a collection of Hegel's most important works such as Phenomenology of Spirit, Science of Logic, Philosophy of Right, and others. This is perhaps the toughest work of philosophy I have read, taking me about three months to complete. Six months later, I can hardly remember the key points other than those I remember from my college political philosophy classes.

The Hegelian theme that most resonates with my outlook is the idea that the Spirit animates history. Zeitgeist, or the spirit of the time, is an idea I agree with. There was a spirit of freedom and democracy when the Berlin Wall crumbled. There was a spirit of fear and insecurity as the World Trade Center towers fell. There is now a spirit of risk aversion and wait and see as Wall Street collapsed in 2008. And now, in the Philippines, there seems to be a spirit of change, hope, and renewal after the election of a new President with moral integrity. This spirit not only influences history and culture, but thought itself: "Philosophy is its own time raised to the level of thought."

All this may seem like the metaphysical crap that Kant sought to dismiss. But I am now so far removed from my skeptical, rationalist past that I feel I understand the Spirit even if I cannot defend it rationally. Perhaps this is another instance of synthesis where the rationalist critique of dogmatic metaphysics does not end in the absolute triumph of rationality, but the emergence of a deeper, wider understanding of reality.

100 Best Worldwide Vacations to Enrich Your Life

This book by Pam Grout, traveler and advocate of living big, inspired me to go on vacations that make me feel more alive. My dream vacation in the book is the round the world journey to the wonders of the world such as the Pyramids at Giza, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, and the Himalayas while accompanied by top notch scholars on these places. I hope to make this trip before I am too old to climb the pyramids.

I have been trying to change the way I go on vacations by moving beyond seeing tourist sites and having my picture taken. Pam Grout inspires the traveler to learn and to experience. In my recent trip to Baguio, I spent some time hiking, rappelling, learning how to ride a horse, dining on Cordillera food, learning about Cordillera culture, and having my portrait done. This trip was so much more enriching as a result than my five previous trips to Baguio where I spent most of time jostling with other tourists while buying cheap souvenirs at places such Minesview and Burnham Park.

This is just a first step though. I would like to be really immersed in the culture of the place I am visiting. Instead of having my face sketched, perhaps I should do the sketching next time. Instead of simply eating, I should learn to cook local food. And instead of squeezing so many activities in four days, I should learn the art of doing nothing for two weeks.

Peaks and Valleys

It is half a year since I read this book by Spencer Johnson and I can no longer remember any profound insight. All I know is it contained advice about how to achieve success in life, but I also remember that I already knew most of what it said. The message is given in the form of a story of a man who moves from the valley to the peak and learns about the ups and downs of life.

Since the story is mostly an exercise in stating trite life lessons, the main value of the book is as a reminder to be patient and appreciate the journey instead of simply waiting for the next peak, or complaining about the current valley.

From the valley of my quarter life crisis, when I struggled to complete my degree, juggled three different jobs, and became a young father, I look back and see several peaks, each higher than the one before without any really deep valleys in between. It's good to appreciate how far I have come as I scale the next peak ahead of me.

Lakbayan Grade

My Lakbayan grade is D!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!
Created by Eugene Villar.

Nakakahiya ang grade ko. Marami pa kong dapat lakbayin sa sarili kong bayan. Kagagaling lang namin sa Baguio. Boracay naman susunod. =)

Lonely Planet Philippines

It's hard to believe I have not posted anything in six months. I transferred to a new role as manager of a team in a critical situation so it is only now, after turning around the team, that I find some time to reflect on my readings. The "critsit" has taken it's toll on my reading: I only finished six books in the past six months whereas I completed twenty for the same amount of time last year.

Anyway, I am writing about Lonely Planet Philippines, a book I have always wanted to buy because I really wanted to explore the country. I was completely pleased with it: I read it from cover to cover. I now use it as a checklist for traveling. I'm raring to buy a car so I can take my family on road trips to nearby provinces, but we still have other priorities.

I did use the book to explore Manila and see the city with fresh eyes. My wife was not to keen on seeing places she already saw during her grade school field trip so I went to Fort Santiago alone. It was the first time I entered the fort. I saw facsimiles of Rizal's books and sculptures in the Rizal Shrine. I meditated on his sacrifice as I peered into the replica of his cell. I went up the ramparts of the fort and looked across the Pasig River. I sat there proud to be free, but sad that, a century since the Revolution, many remain as poor as they were when the Spaniards ruled.

I admire Rizal as the greatest Filipino. I see his sacrifice as a call to leadership. Our people deserve no less.