A Girl’s Notebook :)

While the American people celebrate their Independence Day, the Filipinos on the other hand, remember Fil-American Friendship Day.

July 4 was the date designated by former President Diosdado Macapagal to commemorate the freedom of Filipino and American soldiers from Japanese forces which happened at the of World War 2.

Before, Philippine Independence Day was celebrated every 4th of July.  But it was moved to June 12 from which the Philippines had declared independence from Spanish occupation in 1898.

Ciao!

I attended our band practice yesterday in preparation for our company’s Christmas party. After the practice, I decided to take MRT going home. I need to drop by a supermarket to buy milk for my daughter. When I get off the MRT, I found a man holding a young boy in his arms. The boy has hydrocephalus. He’s too skinny yet he has a big head. There is a little bag infront of them for donations.

I was really moved with what I saw. Then, I came to realize that our society is very sick. I really don’t know how the government will act on this. I don’t know if they even think about these people. I just shook my head thinking how corrupt our government is. I cannot take my mind out of it. I am not sure if the father have asked the help of DSWD or other organizations for help. 

It’s really sad to think that while all these goverment officials spend the country’s money for their trip and luxuries, a lot of people, escpecially children are suffering from illness, hunger and poverty. I don’t know if these politicians even think of these children and of the people who voted for them, in hope that they will be good and honest leaders.

It’s always in the news, when activists file impeachment cases against the president. Sometimes, I don’t understand why they keep on doing that. But seeing that man with his son, made me realize how ill our leaders are. Everyday, when they report for work I know that they can see these children on the street. Oh yes there are orphanage and DSWD(Department of Social Welfare Development) are working on it and there are a lot of non-government organizations who care about the sick, the aged the abondoned children. But then the goverment should allocate enough budget for this.

I just really felt bad about it.

Oh yes, we study history since elementary but do we really know our history? Here are some  interesting things to add up to the what we have:

• Founded in 1595 by Spaniard, the University of San Carlos (USC) in Cebu City, Philippines is older than Harvard and is the oldest university in Asia.
• University of Santo Tomas in Manila, established in 1611, is Asia’s second oldest.
• In the Philippines, Filipinos were introduced to the English language in 1762 by British invaders, not Americans.
• What is the world’s 3rd largest English-speaking nation, next to the U.S.A. and the UK? The Philippines.
• The USA bought the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam from Spain in 1898. The Filipino-American Independence War from 1898 to 1902 ensued, killing 4,234 Americans and how many Filipinos? 16,000 were killed in action and 200,000 died from famine and pestilence. (The Philippines lost and was colonized until 1946.)
• Los Angeles, California was co-founded in 1781 by a Filipino namedAntonio Miranda Rodriguez, along with 43 Latinos from Mexico sent by the Spanish government.
• What antibiotic did Filipino doctor Abelardo Aguilar co-discover? Hint: Brand is Ilosone, named after Iloilo. Erythromycin.
• The one-chip video camera was first made by Marc Loinaz, a Filipino inventor from New Jersey.
• The first ever international Grandmaster from Asia was Eugenio Torre, a Filipino, who won at the Chess Olympiad in Nice, France in 1974.
• This son of two Filipino physicians scored over 700 on the verbalportion of the Standardized Achievement Test (SAT) before age 13 is Kiwi Danao Camara of Punahou School, Hawaii.
• Edward Sanchez, a Mensa member, bagged the grand prize in the first Philippines Search for Product Excellence in Information Technology.
• Who was the Filipino-American dancer who scored a perfect 1600 on the SAT? Joyce Monteverde of California.
• Who invented the fluorescent lamp? Thomas Edison discovered the electric light and the fluorescent lighting was thought up by Nikola Tesla. But the fluorescent lamp we use today was invented by Agapito Flores (a Cebu man named Benigno Flores of Bantayan Island, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer), a Filipino scientist.
• Americans helped, then, President leader Ramon Magsaysay to develop for worldwide commerce. (Yes! Many foreigners have noted that the Filipino population has Asia’s highest rates of inventors and international beauty queens.)
• Two Filipina beauties, Gloria Diaz and Margie Morgan, chosen as Miss Universe in 1969 and 1973.
• Pure or part-Filipino celebrities in American show biz include VonFlores, Tia Carere, Paolo Montalban, Lea Salonga, Ernie Reyes Jr., Nia Peeples, Julio Iglesias Jr., Lou Diamond Phillips, Phoebe Cates and Rob Schneider.
• The first Filipino act to land a top hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in the 1960 was a group Rocky Fellers of Manila. Sugar Pie deSanto (father was from the Philippines), The Artist Formerly Known as Prince (according to the October, 1984 article “Prince in Exile” by Scott Isler in magazine Musician), Foxy Brown and Enrique Iglesias followed.
• Pure Filipinos who made success in minor charts were Jocelyn Enriquez, aka: Oriental Madonna, Buffry, Pinay and (Ella May) Saison.
• Latina-American pop star Christina Aguilar lost to Filipina Josephine Roberto aka Banig during the International Star Search years ago. In a mid-1999 MTV chat, she said that competing against someone of Banig’s age was “not fair”.
• Besides gracing fashion magazine covers, this international super model from Manila had walked the runways since the 1970s for all the major designers, like Calvin Klein, Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Donna Karan, Gianni Versace and Yves Saint Larent - Anne Bayle.
• Who is the personal physician of United States President William Clinton? Eleanor “Connie” Conception Mariano, a Filipina doctor who was the youngest Captain in the US Navy.
• The first Filipino-American in US Congress was Virginia Rep. Robert Cortez-Scott, a Harvard alumnus.
• Distinguished British traveler-writer A. Henry Savage Landor, thrilled upon seeing a Bicol landmark in 1903 wrote: “Mayon is the most beautiful mountain I have ever seen, the world-renowned Fujiyama (Mt. Fuji) of Japan sinking into perfect insignificance by comparison. “Mayon has the world’s most perfect cone.”
• Filipinos had their first taste of Mexican chili and corn during the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade (1564-1815). In return, Mexico’s people had their initial taste of tamarind, Manila mango and a Filipino banana called racatan or lakatan.
• The first female president of the Philippines sworn into office in 1986 was Corazon Cojuangco Aquino. Her maiden name is chinese.
• On March 31, 1997 article, The New York Times reported that the CIA manipulated elections: “(CIA operative Col. Edward Lansdale essentially ran the successful presidential campaign of Defense Minister Ramon Magsaysay in the Philippines in 1953.”
• Who was the first Asian and/or Filipino to snatch America’s Pulitzer Prize? Philippines Herald war journalist Carlos P. Romulo in 1941. (He was also the first Asian to become UN President.) The first two Filipino-Americans to garner the same award 56 years later were Seattle Times’ Alex Tizon and Byron Acohido, who was part-Korean.
• Filipino writer Jose Rizal could read and write at age 2, and grew up to speak more than 20 languages, including Latin, Greek, German, French and Chinese. What were his last words? “Consummatum est!” (”It is done!”).
• “What’s still impressive to me about the Philippines is the friendliness of the people, their sense of humor…” wrote Honolulu journalist John Griffin in a 1998 visit to Manila. Although, I lived in America longeryears than my birth place Bohol, I still have plenty of bagoong left in my body that can energize and catapulted me all the way to Maribojoc, Bohol, Philippines.

BE PROUD YOUR A FILIPINO!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! to all Filipinos, wherever in the world you are.

The first Philippine Independence Day occured in Kawit, Cavite on June 12, 1898. It was then, the Philippine Flag was raised and waved by President Emilio Aguinaldo. Even though the Philippines was taken over by the Americans and the Japanese way back in the 1940’s, the very first Independdence day is being celebrated on this day. This is to commemorate the country’s declaration of independence from Spain, who ruled the nation for more than 300 years.

The proclamation of the Philippine independence from the Spaniards was depicted on the back of the old 5-peso bill.

June 12 Independence Day had not been possible without these famous heroes:

DR. JOSE P. RIZAL        APOLINARIO MABINI    

  ANDRES BONIFACIO     GREGORIO DEL PILAR

 GEN. JUAN LUNA             EMILIO JACINTO                    

 MARCELO H. DEL PILAR     EMILIO AGUINALDO

                                               THE GOMBURZA

        BURGOS                                 GOMEZ                             ZAMORA                       

MELCHORA AQUINO

There were speculations though that Emilio Aguinaldo planned for the murder of Andres Bonifacio in Bundok Buntis. I remembered my history teacher in highschool, Sir Manny. He said that Aguinaldo died sad because of what he did to Bonifacio.

Whether it is true or just a rumor, we should not forget the heroic deeds they’ve done for our country. Today, as our country faces economic difficulties, I believe, that we can  also be a hero in our own special ways to help our country..

Happy Independence day!