Childhood Cartoon Shows

Those were good times.

Below is a list of childhood cartoon shows* which rocked my world:

Dexter's Laboratory
Robotech
SWAT Kats
Wildcats
Shadow Raiders
The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat
King Arthur and the Knights of Justice
X-Men: The Animated Series
The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest
Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs
The Centurions
Batman: The Animated Series
Ghost Fighter
Samurai X
Gundam Wing

*Honorable mention: Phineas and Ferb (This show came out when I was already in college but it is a favorite)

Assistant Action Group Leader

So it's come full circle.

First Talk

Note to self: Just delivered my first talk.

Two weeks ago, Bro Jepoy tasked me to be the speaker for one of the talks during the Lingkod Weekend. It was about honor and respect and how both applied themselves in our community, Ang Lingkod Ng Panginoon. Was I excited? Well, I dreaded it at first. But was I challenged? Of course, yes.

I was fortunate that the preparation time was considerably long because, during the first few days, I had a hard time grappling with the topic. Added to that difficulty was a personal insecurity: I could speak in straight English, yes, but engaging the audience in banter and keeping the talk light and fun were seemingly insurmountable challenges. For your information, I always thought of myself as the serious guy, capable of lulling everyone to sleep.

But having said yes, there was nothing to do except practice and prepare. I started off with what the sequence of ideas should be, then I went about creating my presentation, and then reading and re-reading and re-reading again the talk outline. Added to that was the daily routine of prayer and scripture reading with a daily dose of "Lord, please help; don't let me screw this up".

I was also fortunate that I had a full day to really think about the talk through and a scheduled dry run with some of the council members. Making use of a holiday, I tried to wrap up my preparations. And, during the evening of that same day, I gave my mock talk to the council. As expected, what I gave that night was not  polished and those present - Sis Adz, Bro Rommel and Jesse - saw that. They gave very valuable inputs and I went home thinking about how to put all their insights into my talk.

On Saturday, I was just mumbling to myself the whole day, trying to get sentences right and looking for the "flow" of my talk. On Sunday morning, I was on the first stages of stage fright (it doesn't go away, does it?) and I was simply praying, "Not I but You."

Thankfully, during the actual talk proper, I somehow just managed to pull it off. There were no gaffes or prolonged gaps and the brothers and sisters - bless them - were very supportive and active.

After the talk, I was unprepared for the commendations given to me. Some commended my diction, eloquence, presence, what have you. Some thought I was a teacher by profession (I was flattered to be honest). All the while, I kept thinking to myself, "Lord, ako ba jud to? Lisod man katuohan."

To end, the exercise of giving a talk gave me a chance to see what I was capable. I'm glad I said yes the first time. But I'm also glad that talk's over and done. Now, I cannot wait for the rest to also have their time under the spotlight. 

To God be the glory.

Lingkod Weekend

"Wow. Humana na diay?"

That was the first thing that crossed my mind this morning when I woke up. For the past day, I was with my brother and sisters in the community, Ang Lingkod Ng Panginoon, for our Lingkod Weekend. It was a blast and, even now, I'm still smiling at the memories made and the people I've come to regard as siblings in Christ.

The Lingkod Weekend, as I understand, was the culmination of our Christian Life Series (CLS) and Christian Growth Series (CGS). It was a highly-anticipated event where the community formally welcomes new members into its fold and where existing members renew their commitments.

I still cannot fully describe what just happened. Despite carrying some personal emotional baggage, I still feel greatly blessed to have served and to have witnessed His Love during the event. I feel privileged to have been a part of the Lingkod Weekend and of this community.

I just want to share one realization though. One of the quotes from T.S. Eliot that I found in a geology book is this:

We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started 

And know the place for the first time.

Through the unknown, remembered gate

When the last of earth left to discover

Is that which was the beginning

The quote was meant to highlight the fascinating quirk of geology and that is of scientists trying to understand what was the earth like in its infancy and how life and the world started.

Though a bit off, I believe the quote is still applicable to my journey with Ang Lingkod ng Panginoon. For the past year, I've been immersed in the activities of this group. I've participated in my Action Group's activities. I've served in various capacities to the point that I felt I already knew the community.

But, at the end of it all, the Lingkod Weekend brought me back to the basics: it taught me the reasons why we behave as we are in the group and why there's even a community in the first place. The event taught me  and pushed me to remember how it all started. And, for all this, I could only say, "Oo diay no?"

God bless us always.

Lord's Day

Last Saturday, I celebrated the Lord's Day with my fellow community members in Ang Lingkod ng Panginoon. It was my second time to be part of such a celebration for this year. 

It also brought back a lot of childhood memories. My parents, as members of Couples for Christ, also celebrated the Lord's Day when my siblings and I were still young. We attended Lord's Day dinners with other families and we also had intimate Saturday and Sunday celebrations at home.

I was mesmerized by the ritual that went with the occasion. I looked forward to eating the lechon manok, a rare specialty back then, and the soup: instant concoctions back when ready-mix soup packets were still a new fad. I also relished drinking the red wine, my first encounter with alcohol, and learned an early lesson on moderation (because if you drank the whole thing, there won't be any left for the rest of the family). 

Gradually though, the Lord's Day faded from our weekly lives. We, as a family, grew old and grew busy. 

So it was a pleasant surprise that my new community actually observes the Lord's Day every now and then. It's a welcome throwback for me to relive this part of my childhood and to observe it, this time, with a more mature mind. 

That Saturday night, celebrating the Lord's Day was a paradox: it was an occasion that was both new and old.

Stefan Karpinski: Modern-Day Don Quixote

Stefan Karpinski is on to something.

With fellow computer programmers Viral Shah and Jeff Bezanson, he set out to create a universal programming language that's meant to be good at all tasks. That language is now called Julia.

Here's the article:

Out in the Open: Man Creates One Programming Language to Rule Them All

IBM Is Taking Us To The Future

Mimicking nature is not a new fad but IBM is doing something really extraordinary: mimicking the design of the nervous system to make a vastly efficient computer chip.

Check the link below:

IBM Chip Processes Data Similar to the Way Your Brain Does

Mom's First Birthday

It's nice that there are corporate ads which touch your heart first before touching your wallets. Like the Coco-Cola OFW ad two years ago, this one also gets it right. 

Personally, nothing contributes more to branding and marketing than knowing that a company is not beyond celebrating the human condition.

Happy Parent's Day

A birthday is a weird thing: it's meant to be special but, at the same time, can be very generic.

Cliches abound. The birthday cake. The birthday gifts. The dinner with family or friends. The pampering that goes with the day like a massage session, a trip out of town, or a stay-at-home leave free from work and stress. The many greetings that are superficial and the few which are heartwarmingly sincere.

All these are modes to celebrate. But it begs the question: what are we celebrating exactly? Are we celebrating the fact of having lived another year, an accomplishment that only 98% of the world's population can say they've achieved or will achieve in 2014? Are we celebrating the presumed growth and maturity that comes with aging? Are we celebrating it to remind people that we are God's gift to the world?

First, let's think about the most popular birthday: Christmas. Rightfully, we celebrate it because it marks the arrival of Jesus Christ. It marks that historic moment when God dismembered Himself, became powerless and vulnerable, and transformed into a crying baby. 

But this is not the only reason we celebrate Christmas. That's because, in the days leading to December 25, we also commemorate and celebrate the story behind Christmas. The readings point to the family history of the Savior, the shepherds in the field, the wise men (this reading is after December 25 though, if I'm not mistaken), and even the barn animals who are witnesses to a medical miracle: the first and perhaps only human baby who is a product of parthenogenesis and a virgin who gave birth without a midwife or a doctor in sight (and in a completely unsanitary setting if you don't know that yet). 

More importantly, we remember Mary who, with a meek yes, became the Mother of God. We remember also Joseph who got wind of God's plan only in a dream and, even so, still chose to believe it.

In short, when we celebrate Christmas, we actually celebrate both the birth and the story. 

This is important because when we apply this insight to our own birthdays, we become aware that our celebrations are incomplete: we don't usually remember the story behind our births let alone celebrate it.

But when we begin to give a second thought to the story, something opens up. In my case, I begin imagining a young woman who was probably cursing at the universe while she was pushing me out of her womb (This boggles me: after millions of years of evolution, why is childbirth still painful?). I also imagine a man almost my age right now, thinking to himself, "How am I supposed to raise two kids with my (choose adjective) salary?!" Finally, I imagine a young couple who got stupid, fell in love, and created me.

The story matters and it's important that we celebrate and remember it for two reasons.

First, because by doing so, we break down the edifice of narcissism and self-worship characteristic of this hyper-commercialized event. 

And second, when we do so, we start realizing that our birthdays are not really about us. Birthdays are ultimately about our parents: about the mother who gave birth and the father who held her hand afterwards.

In sum, a birthday is never just a celebration of life; it's a celebration of the people who made that life possible in the first place.

So to the two persons responsible for my birth: Happy Parent's Day.

Katangahan

Mabuti naman at ang katangahan ay unti-unti nang kinikilala bilang isang seryosong kundisyon.

Halimbawa na lamang ang nakalagay sa larawang ito na inililista ang mga kundisyon na sagabal sa aktibidad na "white water rafting" o pagbabalsa sa ilog:

"Inability to follow simple instructions". Bawal po ang tanga sa libangang ito.