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Desiderata

If you graduate from San Beda High School, there's a great chance that you know this poem by heart (maybe not the words, but definitely the essence).This is one of the many lessons from my high school that had a great and positive impact in my life. Since this masterpiece entered public domain last year, I'm saving a copy of it here in my blog (emphasis mine).             Desiderata   Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence . As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant ; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself . Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a rea

Weblog 09062024

There are moments in a person's life when he will pause, take a deep breath, look back on his life, and just let himself drown on the deluge of emotions brought by waves and waves of memories -- all while listening to nostalgic music and/or sipping his favorite drink in the middle of the night. I used to have these moments frequently when I was younger. Or maybe, I was more aware of my inner self back then, intently listening and taking advantage of these moments to ground myself, have the time to really feel my emotions, cherish events close to my heart, and let go of things that burden me. Of course I can do all of these in my mind, but I think writing and reading them gives a more profound and lasting benefit on myself, so please do bear with me. As I grow older, I still have these tiny moments when my brain will tell me to stop and have these introspections. These moments, unfortunately, are quickly hushed by the business of life, feeling drained and exhausted from all the day&

My Final Fantasy III

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 "Some day, you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again." - C.S. Lewis When I was young, fairy tales (and cartoons, in general) provided me with a world of vast opportunities and possibilities, allowing me to be transported to different realities with no limitations and no fears. I would routinely battle bad guys with King Arthur and the Knights of Justice, with my powerful dragon coming out of my shield and burning my enemies. My fear of heights would not hinder me from showering with pixie dust and flying together with Peter Pan and the lost boys, playing tricks on Captain Hook and his band of pirates.  One of the first books that I bought for myself was "When the clock struck thirteen". As a young child with very few life experiences, I could only imagine the fear, excitement, disappointments, and hope that the iron boy felt when the clock struck thirteen, allowing him to move and embark on an adventure to become a real boy. I remember feeling so sc

V-Day 2019

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"Is life + love = happy?" -Lex This simple question, coming from a 5 year old boy, made me think about how simple life should be. In our unending quest to find happiness, we try so many things, go to different places, and aspire for various goals. We spend a lot of time, money, and energy in this seemingly unending pursuit. And most of the time, we still come home feeling tired, lonely, and unfulfilled.  My life so far has been a rollercoaster of emotions, especially the first 30 years. But someone changed everything for the better. This someone made me realize that even though life has many ups and downs, love has a way to make everything better. It is through love that we can convert a good experience into a great memory, and a bad experience into a good lesson. For when we love, we strive to become better than what we already are. When we love, we gain our north star, our purpose, our anchor, our home.  That someone is none other than my wife. To my

Random Thoughts on Fatherhood and Blogging

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It has been more than 4 years since I became a father, and my journey is still a young one. I would love to write every little detail of my exhilarating ride, but the problem with blogging when I already have a family is that I am not talking about just myself anymore. Back when I started polluting the Internet with my nonsense writings, I made a conscious decision that I would not care about what people think about me because of the things and events that I write, especially about what's going on in my mind. This was my outlet, this was my punching bag, and at times, this was the only thing keeping me sane. But this is not the case anymore. As a father, my first and foremost concern is the well-being of my family. Unfortunately, this means filtering my thoughts, censoring my words, and being careful on how people will perceive my family based on what I write. I don't care if you see me as a corny, emotional, attention-seeking person. That is your problem, not mine. But if so

Success And Failure

Q: Why is it that no matter how hard I try, I still fail? A: It depends on whose perspective you want to get. A pessimist would say that your objectives are too high and unreachable. An optimist would say that reaching your objectives is simply a matter of time and distance. You just need to exert the required amount of effort to get you from where you are to where you want to be, given the right direction. A pessimist would say that you don't have the necessary knowledge and skills to achieve your objective. An optimist would say that knowledge and skills are simply tools to reach your objectives. Anybody can learn new knowledge and gain new skills whenever they want. You may not learn as fast as the other person, but if you really try, you WILL gain those tools. A pessimist would say that your efforts are fruitless and result to nothing. An optimist would say that even if you don't achieve your objectives now, you can use the experiences that you gained from that

Project TILT: Empathy and Compassion

This is definitely one of the best answers I have read on Quora: " When Empathy hurts, Compassion can heal" Read the full question and answer here .