Thursday, July 26, 2007 @ 8:00 AM

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1. In your few weeks of stay in De La Salle, can you identify one area of concern that affects the quality of life in your school?
An area of concern that affects the quality of life here at De La Salle is that of religion. DLSU-M is a Christian school, specifically a Catholic school. Non-Catholic organizations are not allowed to be official school organizations, and those who are not Christians feel forced learning some things that are against their beliefs in subjects like TREDONE. Even if it says that it respects other beliefs, these believers feel oppressed to stand for themselves.

2. What is your proposed solution to this problem?
La Salle is a Christian school, but it should be more open-minded since it allows students of other religions to enter it. Religion classes should not be centered around Catholic beliefs and practices, rather, they should be open to other beliefs as well. The current curriculum in religious education, TREDONE, is supposed to be aimed at this goal (understanding and knowing other religions/ quest for fullness of life), but that does not seem the case as of now.

3. As an active citizen in De La Salle, what do you commit yourself to do so that this school would become an ideal school?
As an active citizen in De La Salle, I commit myself to be more open to other beliefs and to respect their believers as well. At the same time, I, as a Christian, will continue growing in my faith and show others what God can do through me, that they may be influenced to do and act what is right.

Labels: Module 10

Thursday, July 19, 2007 @ 8:00 AM

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“People usually have the notion that leaving the Philippines is an indirect way of saying that ‘I am not proud to be a Filipino’. It is okay to leave the country to broaden your horizon, what is important is that you never forget to come back”, my fourth year Filipino teacher once told us in class. Those words have always stuck with me ever since she first mentioned them. For me, those words are the epitome of a good, or rather, great Filipino citizen.

Being a real Filipino citizen is not all about patronizing Filipino products and being fluent in our vernacular. Sure, those are some of the ways to learn more about culture, but remember; being a true Filipino goes beyond that. You cannot blame a Filipino for buying something imported because it is more cost-effective compared to the Filipino brand. You cannot blame a Filipino if they were born and raised in a foreign way. These are not the person’s fault, because that is how he is supporting himself and how he is raised. He is just being practical. The more important thing is that he tries to do all he can to learn more about our beloved country.

In school, Filipino and History teachers only teach a brief background of pre-Hispanic Philippines. Yes, they talk about the datus, barangays and tribe system, but they overlook the culture of our ancestors for our ancestors point-of-view. We base our history from our colonizers’ point-of-view. We have much pre-Hispanic literature talking about our history and culture waiting to be told by our elders who will soon leave this world, but only few people bother to take a look at these things. A good Filipino will go beyond the common knowledge of Filipino history textbooks and venture into ancient tribal literature to gain more knowledge about his Mother Land.

I know a lot of self-proclaimed nationalistic Filipinos who say that they will never leave the Philippines because they love Her too much. They are too idealistic, to the point that they will put their country first before themselves. Let’s be practical. The Philippines is a third world country, and it cannot sustain the living of every Filipino citizen. How can you help your country if you cannot help yourself first? It is through helping ourselves that we can change our community and eventually, our country.

I admire the people who pushed for the dual-citizenship policy. Yes, they may have left and eventually became a citizen of another country, but they had always yearned to come back home. Those people behind the policy are exemplary Filipino citizens. They might be in the other corner of the world, far away from the Philippines, but She was always in their heart and mind. Their legal papers stated that they are not already of Filipino citizenry, but in their heart and in their mind, they are still Filipinos. I am glad that they took a leap of faith to show their love for our country through this manner.

Discipline, respect, values, culture, hospitality, are some of the many values that one needs in order to be a good Filipino citizen, but the for me, most important of these is loyalty. Loyalty does not have to be physical. Being a Filipino is more than just saying that you are proud to be one. You need try crossing the limits to be a Filipino sa isip, sa salita at sa gawa. A true Filipino never fails to do their best in trying to learn the sacrifices of our heroes, from pre-Lapu-lapu to post-Macliing times, because a good Filipino citizen lies within the heart, mind and soul of an individual.

Labels: Module 9

Thursday, July 12, 2007 @ 8:00 AM

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for a bigger view, click the picture above

Labels: Module 8

Thursday, July 5, 2007 @ 2:43 AM

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The PERSEF session today affirmed to me my beliefs in career, interests and personality. In “career”, I strongly agree with number 3 of the “Career Planning Questionnaire”. It is true that in finding a career, interests, skills, values and needs of oneself should be judged carefully in order for one to be happy with his career. It does not mean that when you like a job and have skill in it will you be happy with it, because more than interests, skills and values, one has to also pay attention to his needs. It is not wrong to be idealistic, but you also need to be aware of reality and what it awaits you. There are people who say that you should choose a job because you love it, but often times they fail to consider the “needs” aspect. In the world we live in, we need to know how to survive. Yes, we must choose a job that fits our personality and interests, but we should balance reality and idealism so that we will be content with our work. You might need to sometimes sacrifice a bit of one aspect for another, because that is reality, and you have to face it as it is.

Given a career I want to pursue, I will still choose this course (Manufacturing Engineering and Management with Specialization in Biomedical Engineering) because it fits me and the society we have today. I cannot imagine myself being purely in science, business, math or arts, rather, I prefer the mix of all. I also like working on long-term projects like research because it gives me a sense of fulfillment to be able to contribute to something that helps mankind. Aside from this course, I also want to be a part-time church person. I do not know if I was largely influenced by my father, but I want to see people inspired and growing with God. For me, choosing a career does not necessarily mean having only one “job”, because not all of one’s needs can be satisfied by one (“job”).

I understand that choosing a career is like love, you need to use both your heart (passion) and mind (reason) so that you will be happy. Also, you should never forget that aside from choosing a career yourself, you should also let God guide you in your path. We exist on earth because of Him, so I believe that I should give glory to the Lord in everything I do.

Labels: Module 7