The World Is Yours to Conquer

One of the greatest obligations parents have towards their children is giving them a good education.  My wife and I produced four and we are proud to say that half of our obligation to our children is now complete. To some people, it would seem like we have accomplished what we ought to do rearing four children.  However, I believe that graduation from college is not the end of our obligations.  The true test will have to wait until they become parents themselves and what they would become in the future.

Today marks a very important day in our lives as parents with our youngest having finished college.  Not only that.  On his own volition, he applied for a job at the Philippine Airlines and got accepted.  We don't exactly know what it is he is going to do at the company but he has his eyes on being a flight attendant eventually. Neither my wife nor I have interfered with our children's choices.  All we want is for them is to finish their studies, get a stable job and live life happily.

With all our children employed and working, we can rest assured that they will be okay come what may as they will be self-sufficient. While I know we will come to their beck and call at anytime they may need our help, we know that they will persevere.  We think we reared them to be independent as early as grammar school. WE never pampered them. We never even helped them with their assignments once they reached puberty. 

AS I have said to his older siblings, I say this again to our youngest, Coby.  The world is at your feet and life will be good to you if you treat it right.  Always strive to be happy.  This cannot be had with material riches (although it will make life easier) or extreme want for anything worldly.  Often, this too much wanting only turns to greed.  What you have to do is to live honestly and simply while aspiring only for the best.  Aim high and keep trying until you get what you want.  Be proud with your accomplishments sans the arrogance.  Make sure that every task you set out to do is accomplished well.  Always have a clear head and keep your feet planted on the ground.  

At any rate, we congratulate you for a job well done.  We love you very much. 

Rite of Passage

The house is not even halfway finished. I am excited as to how it would appear. In the meantime, we have to content ourselves with an even smaller apartment while the renovation is ongoing.

Last weekend, the school's annual Father and Son camping took place at Light Bridge Hotel and Resort at Taal, Batangas. As usual, it was fun. The camps of each patrol are well-kept and well-maintained. I had to, together with two more teachers, judge the best patrol camp and they were pretty impressive. We had to look at three items, viz., tentage, gadgets and orderliness. The food was sufficient and tasty. The games were funny and very creative. For example, they played a volleyball game with a twist. We covered the net and neither team could see the other.

The "sessions" with the dads were wonderful. I also had to be a judge during the campfire, which to me was the highlight of the activity. The patrols had to compose their own song, yell and cheer. The fathers are really getting into it. They even brought instruments, computer and a mixed-media projector. The campfire is getting better and better.

The Father and Son has been the brainchild of my "ninong" (godfather), Moie Lozada, who stood as principal sponsor when the wife and I got married. There is no other man who can lead this activity like he does. The problem is he has retired. It's a good thing that he can still join us and take charge of the activities.

I used to bring my sons on these camping trips but now that they are all grown-up, they don't seem to be interested anymore. Nevertheless, we sure had a lot of fun. I had fun. Even wrote a poem about it in 2004, I think, when we camped at Mt. Makiling:


Rites of Passage

I have camped on
these grounds when
I was young,
braved the thick forest
to test if I
could be a man.

Leaves relentlessly fall
raining down on my tent
weave a golden mat on the dirt
just like it did before.

Insects stubbornly
invade the silence
unfazed by the dark night
or the snores from
other fathers
tending their sons.

Inside my tent
two growing boys
saturated with play
innocently asleep
carelessly sprawled
on the sleeping bag.

How I envy the trees
defying the wind outside
with each offspring
a success,
they stand
sturdy and proud.

I come back
to camp on these grounds
once more
to test if I
can be a father
to these youthful boys.

rolly

School sanctions

This is one post I didn't want to post but I have read somewhere that if one wants to become a writer, one should be honest if one wants to be effective in this field. Just look at the very famous writers. They were sincere with their writings and they shared what was to be shared. Now, I do not have any intentions of becoming a famous writer, but since I am doing this journal of some sorts for my children, and their children's children, I might as well do it right.

I did not want to post this because it involves my youngest son. You see, I had to suspend him for two days for a misdemeanor that he did in school. He was caught by his math teacher talking to a seatmate while a test was going on. Our handbook clearly states that talking during in a test shall be misconstrued as cheating. So, as soon as the violation report was given to me, I signed it and implemented it according to the handbook. I have told my children before I accepted this position that once they have been complained of any ill-doing, there won't be any investigation anymore but has to be addressed and be giving its full sanction. Tough job but I have to do it.

This leads me to another point. A teacher came to me once to say that a student has copied another student's assignment. The teacher was in a dilemma as to what offense has been committed. Should it be cheating? The handbook says cheating is committed during an exam. Should it be plagiarism? No, because it was not a project or a research paper the student was claiming as his own. It was an assignment. You see, assignments are done at home and the child can seek help anywhere it can be had. For me, an assignment's purpose is to aid the understanding of a lesson. Whether it be as a prelude to the lesson so that the following day, the student would have an idea of what is going to be tackled in class or it could be a review of some sorts or an exercise that was supposedly learned in class. At any rate, it is not similar to a test which aims to evaluate one's understanding of a particular lesson.

Sometimes, I do not go for the traditional way of thinking. As eccentric as it may sound, I sometimes go for different ways to handle a specific problem. It is not uncommon for me to get into trouble, mind you. But that's who I am. Anyway, considering the circumstances, I told the teacher that if it was I who was in that predicament, what I would do was to call the parent just to inform that such a thing happened, give the child a zero for the assignment and give him a similar homework (which was not to be graded anymore) if only to make him understand the concept being taught by that particular assignment. Probably a harder one since I would be working on the premise that the lesson to be learned has indeed been learned already. To my mind, this is a better sanction than issuing a violation and following the traditional sanctions prescribed by the handbook. After all, the end product should be a lesson learned from the endeavor.

Unfortunately, the teacher followed a different route. Oh well, it was by the book, so no problem. What would you have done? Was my idea so far-fetched?

Father and Son camp

Every February, me and my boys look forward to one event the school undertakes. The reason it's just me and the boys who are excited over this event is because it's an exclusively "men only" activity. It's an activity that is full of games, adventure, endurance and survival tests, explorations, skills and team building and, most importantly, lots of fun! Yes, this is the activity we call "Father and Son Camp."

The activity is anchored on scouting principles and so is replete with knot tying, water and land games, nature tripping (sometimes having to take a bath in improvised toilets and yes, that also may include "kybo", the scout's term for egesting body wastes), and many more that can be participated in by both the father and the son. Understandably, the biggest benefit of all is the bonding that happens between father and son/s and the camaraderie that is built between the campers. You see, we always divide the participants into different patrols. The patrols are very impressive this year. They now have incorporated galleries showcasing trophies and medals garnered from past years, tools, a segregated waste disposal, an altar, and a clinic.

This year, we went to Blueroze Farms and wildlife in Lodlod, Lipa City. It's a big coconut plantation with lots of space, a swimming pool, a maze and assorted animals like ostriches, wild boars, different species of fowls, turtles, an eagle, and a tweny or thirty foot python. We thought we would be in for a spectacle when the caretaker threw a live chicken on the python but the python didn't eat the whole time we watching. I swear I must've waited for hours with my heart pounding like crazy everytime the snake moved but it didn't happen. I even went back in the middle of the night but prey and hunter were both sleeping. The following day, I came back but the chicken was already gone.

This camping was a revelation to me. The good news is that I get to bond with my children for free because I am a member of the staff who assists the legendary founder of the FS camp, Mr. Moses Lozada, the thing is we couldn't join any of the games. The revelation is that I got to see how close the brothers are. While I can see that my two girls are very very close, I haven't the idea that these two would be just as close. Whereever Mickey went, Coby would tag behind. I even caught up with them where Coby sat silently alongside his brother who was drawing a composition in his sketch pad, making suggestions here and there. That made me borrow another sketchpad (he brought two) and sit down with them and practice sketching, too.

Another revelation is how Mickey is turning out to be responsible. He took the lead in putting up and striking down the igloo tent (thanks to my compare, Redjie Jimenez who owns it) and fixing our things inside. As always, lessons in life is learned in all the experiences we encounter and I'm glad I had done this again with my two boys.

Fourteen years hence!

Coby

Today is my youngest son's birthday. Fourteen years ago, at this time, my wife was huffing and puffing air out of her system. Coby is, she believes, the hardest of them all. It was a breach birth (or whatever is the term used for that kind of birth). The doctors were baffled because though they felt the baby to be round, it didn't feel like the head. They ran xrays and found out its the butt that's going out first.

Coby, young as he is, is trying to find his place in the sun. Like his siblings, he's independent and has a mind of his own. He's more into sports. He did try the violin and even gave a recital but because his kuya is deep into it already, I believe he wants to something else. Sports! That's what preoccupies him. He plays basketball constantly and trained in swimming. You should see him do the breaststroke. While all the children in my family swim, he swims the longest and the fastest.

One of the amusing stories I tell about him is that episode where he had a crush while he was in Grade 5. First, he asked his mom to buy him Ferrero Roche chocolates. The big one! This made his sisters quip, "Naku Coby, tama na ang chocnut no!" All this happening behind my back. Then Christmas time, he asked his mom again to buy him a teddy bear. When my wife picked up a small one, he refused and picked a bigger one and a lot more expensive. His mother gave in. My wife secretly showed it to me and whispered, "your son is becoming to be a man now, look!" And then shows me the teddy bear. Now comes the eve of the school's Christmas party. I went to the gifts section of the house and pretended i didn't know a thing. I picked up the teddy bear (now wrapped) and asked, "Ma, who's gift is this?" Coby ran to his mother inside the kitchen and giggling, blaming his mom for not keeping the gift.
Then, he went out and guiltily pointed at Kim. "That's for Kim from her secret admirer!" Kim looked at Coby and said, "You want me to tell the truth?" I was already laughing at this time.

Dinner time, Nitz, my wife, forgot all about it and reminded the children about the gifts they're bringing to school for friends. She goes, "Fix your bags early and put the gifts inside them so that you won't forget anything tomorrow." And the clincher, "Coby, have you put the your teddy bear in your bag?" At that, I shouted, "GOTCHA!!!" Coby was so red in the face.

The following day, I spoke to Coby man to man. "How did you decide you wanted to give her a teddy?" Then he answered, "She asked for it." I said, "Wow! She must be your girlfriend already, no?" He smiled and said, "No, I'm just starting to court her."

Funny no?

Happy Birthday Coby! We all love you very much!

Rite of Passage!

mickey 

Coby 

Father and Sons 

It has always been said that the children are nothing but the parents all over again, only better. Here are pictures of my two boys. Mickey is the artist. He plays the violin. Been doing that since he was in grade three. He is a member of the school's symphony orchestra and one of the quartet who plays in concerts and school activities. As a visual artist, he paints using all sort of medium and is a member of deviant art. You can view his works here. Coby, on the other hand, is the youngest of the brood of four. He is the athlete among the lot. He belongs to the training team in swimming in school and plays basketball well. The last one is yours truly, when I was about their age. Can you see the resemblance? i have written a poem which I would like to share here. This was written right after the three of us had gone home after a three day camping trip to Makiling during the school's Father and Son camp. This has been published online. You'll find it here Hope you enjoy the pictures and the poem as well. Here goes:

Rites of Passage

I have camped on
these grounds when
I was young,
braved the thick forest
to test if I
could be a man.

Leaves relentlessly fall
raining down on my tent
weave a golden mat on the dirt
just like it did before.

Insects stubbornly
invade the silence
unfazed by the dark night
or the snores from
other fathers
tending their sons.

Inside my tent
two growing boys
saturated with play
innocently asleep
carelessly sprawled
on the sleeping bag.

How I envy the trees
defying the wind outside
with each offspring
a success,
they stand
sturdy and proud.

I come back
to camp on these grounds
once more
to test if I
can be a father
to these youthful boys.