9. Traslacion

On Sunday 25th of October I attended the opening Gala night for the movie "Traslacion : Ang Panglakad sa Alter ng Alanganin" (the march to the altar with uncertainty) directed by Will Fredo. This film is a Quezon City Film Festival documentary film entry.

All dressed up for the opening Gala night of Traslacion 

Posing with the director of Traslacion, Will Fredo

Traslacion is a documentary film which captures the hearts of couples faced with their biggest challenges, themselves and society. It features individual LGBT couples in the Philippines and focuses on how society perceives them, how they live their life, sex life and it tapped on the marriage equality rights in the Philippines. The director, Will Fredo, also emphasized on the religious aspect of homosexuality, since it is known that the church has a great influence on the states decisions.

Few of my fellow dancers who attended the Gala night posing
 with director Will Fredo (standing 4th from left)
and main actor during our scene, Sabastian Castro (standing 5th from left)

I had also played a small part in the documentary film, so I was technically part of the movie. I was part of a dance scene, along with other of my dance friends from CrewPex, BackFire and HEM Crew who performed a flash mob marriage proposal for a guy to guy proposal. If you're not familiar with a flash mob marriage proposal, google it. We performed in Quezon City Memorial Circle on what I recall as the "international walk-path" because it was surrounded by flags of different countries which had a large bell in the center representing peace. My dance scene was the very first scene of the film and I was most probably squirming, pointing at the screen and looking like a fool. There was at least five close up shots of myself dancing so I was quite proud of it. Thanks editor! The dancing shoot looked amazing, especially since there was a drone that took an aerial shot.

I am truly honoured to be part of a documentary that I feel I believe emphasized on a current issues that faces the entire world. There are so many opinions and perspectives on the LGBT community and having documentary films like this made, better educates the public about the real hardships and ostracizing.

Will Fredo introducing the film before the screening started

What I better understood?

Personally, I did not really understand the transgender community that well. After watching this, I can honestly say I have a better understanding and respect for the transgender community. I believe they are the most ostracized group of individuals in the LGBT community. The main protagonist is a transgender man who was born a woman but has undergone the procedure and hormones to become a man physically. The first time I saw him, I honestly thought he was just an average Joe that was born a guy.

Serenaded by the theme song of the movie with the artist that wrote and performed the song.
It will be heard at certain points in the film and at the end credits. 

Something Interesting I learned. 

Probably the most interesting thing I learned was that there is a LGBT Catholic Church in the Philippines. It looked like a small house that was converted into a church on the weekends. The priest was a openly homosexual individual and their vision was to worship God under the Catholic archdiocese without being ostracized for being a LGBT.

 Q&A session with  

Emotional Chord

The part that really struck a chord emotionally for me was during an interview between one the partners, Susan and Ien. Susan has three children from previous marriages with males and now lives with her partner Ien along with her kids. Towards the end of the documentary, Susan says "I wish for my children to have a normal life, unlike mine". Though as a mother, she was coming from a protective maternal instinct, this statement actually highlighted her non-acceptance of who she really is. She failed to realize that she is very much normal and her family is not conventional but they are very normal. That made me quite sad because its not her that wrong, its society that is wrong.

So I urge everyone to watch Traslacion and support local films. You will surely not be disappointed and perhaps will learn something new.

Little treat after the screening

Here is the remaining schedule for the film: 

Oct. 27, Tue, 3:30 pm, Galleria 7

Oct. 28, Wed, 9:40 pm, Gateway 2

Oct. 30, Fri, 1:30 pm, Trinoma 2

Oct. 31, Sat, 3:15 pm, Trinoma 1

Watch before the screening ends. :)

Due to popular demand, Aiza Seguerra & Liza Dino-Seguerra will be present for both Trinoma screenings. Aiza is a Filipino singer-song writer and a guitarist and Liza is a beauty titlist and multi-award wining actress in the Philippines. Both are one of the main subjects in the documentary film. 

8. APC No Smoking Campaign

On the 21st of October, Asia Pacific College held a "No Smoking" Campaign initiative seminar to educate students on the dangers and negative implications that smoking causes. We, BM 151, under our EEP advisor, Ms. Eliz, attended the seminar, first, to educate us ; and, secondly, it was a requirement. Regardless of it being a requirement, I believe it should have been mandatory for the entire school, because the smoking culture in APC is very much prevalent front freshman to seniors.

Me standing outside the entrance where the
"No Smoking Campaign" was held (MPH-2).

The campaign was organized by the APC guidance department and involved two guest speakers, Engineer Ermer Rojas and Dr. June Lapada.


Engineer Emer Rojas

Mr. Emer Rojas speaking to the students
with the aid of a electrolarynx

Mr. Rojas is a certified engineer from the Mapua Institute of Technology and holds a masters degree in Entrepreneurship from Asian Institute of Management. He is the founder and president of New Vois Association of the Philippines which is a cancer prevention, person with disability (PWD) and tobacco control advocacy group. Due to his continued advocacy of anti-tobacco campaign, he was awarded the 2015 Healthy Lifestyle Exampler Award for organizational leadership by Health & Lifestyle Magazine. He is also the 2nd nominee for the cancer party-list. He is also one of the spear-head leaders in pushing for the Sin Tax Law which states a 40% increase on so called 'sin' products such as tobacco and alcoholic beverages.

Ern. Ermer Rojas is a throat cancer survivor and tobacco victim. He mentioned that he first started smoking in high school with just a couple of cigarettes a day which then escalated to about 2-3 packs/day once he finished college and started working. He was diagnosed in 2002 and this has dramatically altered the path of his life. He has had his vocal chords removed and now speaks using an 'elctrolarynx' which is basically like a vibrator that when applied to your throat area, acts as larynx by vibrating your throat therefore allowing him to make sounds.

He talked about the implications that he has to live with due to his throat cancer. Besides being unable to speak without a 'electrolarynx'; throat cancer patients can't swim, have a proper shower or sing. He stated the statistics of throat cancer survivors in the Philippines (2,000) compared to Japan (20,000), US (50,000) and China (1,000,000). Yes the number was low not because throat cancer victims were few but rather due to the medical system in a third-world country compared to that of US and Japan. Statistics also showed that there were 5 new cases/month and about 3 deaths/month due to re-occurrence or other diseases. Listening to the statistics being read, I was terrified and immediately thought about my loved ones and myself of course.

Benj posing with a board displaying the advertisement
on cigarettes packets in different countries

Besides the graphic images which was used as a persuasive scare tactic, the important message that I received from him was the 1/3 of cancer is preventable. This can be achieved by proper diet, reduction of alcohol intake, quit smoking and regular exercise. Also 1/3 of cancer is curable with early detection and proper medical care. I will definitely apply to my life and the life of the people around me.

Dr. Dario Lapada Jr.

Dr. Dario Lapada jr. speaking to the APC students 

Dr. Dario Lapada jr, who goes by Dr. Jun (perhaps for the junior part), is a certified surgeon who cares for the less fortunate especially cancer patients. He is a 14 year cancer advocate and performs his duties without expecting financial payment. He is also the 1st nominee for Cancer Party-list.
He has a personal experience with a cancer patient, his father. He recalls that when he was in 4th year medical school, his father was diagnosed with cancer and was only given about 6 months to live. He acknowledged the emotional and financial burden his family faced. Especially juggling his final year in medical school with him knowing his father will soon pass. It was this experience that fueled his advocacy and special interest with cancer patients.
Dr. Lapada focused his speech on the medical aspect of smoking and cancer. He restated that a proper and healthy lifestyle is needed is prevent cancer. He also listed examples of people with cancer and how much there life has changed and the medical implications of it. He said that having cancer is very financially and emotionally stressful.

Dr. Lapada gave us the advice to always be checked regularly even at a young age, don't wait till your older because cancer has very high chances of curability of detected early. He also mentioned how cancer can be genetic, therefore if any family members were victims of cancer then that's more of a reason to get checked regularly. Cancer stages depict the amount of pain one faces, the higher the level the more pain the patient feels.

I asked him a question, saying, " Is a 2nd degree smokers' effected worse then that of a 1st degree. And if so, how?" Well he sorta answered my question in a minuscule way. He explained the 3 different types of smokers; 1st being the actual smokers, 2nd being the people around the immediate environment of a smoker (which is usually me) and 3rd being the people who do not smoke but a in a enclosed area in which smokers are present and a smoking. He said the still the 1st degree smokers are more susceptible to cancer but the 2nd and 3rd are still high risk.

After hearing his message, I was compelled to advocate the message I heard to my friends and family members. I do not smoke myself, so I feel a little okay, but the idea of this happening to someone I love or care of then it truly hurts.

Enrg. Emer Rojas and Dr. Lapada receiving certificates
of appreciaion from Asia Pacific College

Most students and staff members who spend a good portion of their off time in the parking-lot area, usually are smoking or surrounded by smokers. Therefore, like I stated above, making this mandatory for all students would have been very effective.

7. Most Memorable Vacation

A vacation is a time for rest and relaxation or maybe to go wild and have fun. Basically doing something out of your ordinary, everyday life. If I was to think back, probably the best or most memorable vacation would have to be the Christmas of 2010 at the island of Panapompom I spent with my dad and brothers.
I was still living in Papua New Guinea at the time and usually for Papua New Guineans during holidays people go back to their respective villages and provinces. For my brothers and myself, we have never been to that specific village where my dads father is from. 

My brothers, dad and I with a Elder of the village

Panapompom island, Milne Bay Province is my where my fathers father (my grand-father) is from. We have never been their because it was quite far from where I lived so the anticipation of what to expect was quite high.To get their, we needed to take a 1-hour flight from the capital, Port Moresby, where I lived to Milne Bay Province. Then from there, a 18-hour boat ride to the remote island of Panapompom. The boat we used was a old fishing boat that traveled like 2 knots/hour so I think that was the main reason why we took so long.

My brother and I pretending to be models on a driftwood

The boat ride there was quite horrible. It was cramped and I got severely sea sick. But once the morning came, we woke up to the sun rise on the beautiful open ocean and made me fall in love with it even more. 18 hours later we finally arrived.

In Papua New Guinea, you never ever go to the village empty handed. It is seen as very rude and people from the village always expect something. There's a common saying "you go lo ples big sot na coma back pipia" (you go to the village a rich man and come back with nothing). So we traveled with cartons of tin food, bales of sugar and flour just so people could get something. It is a normal custom, so we were used to it.

I think the best thing about this vacation was that the island is literally off the grid. No electricity, no phone signal, no running water to your house or proper sewage systems. The best part was not having to care about phones. It was the best bonding experience I could think of. With no distractions from the outside world, we lived a very subsistence lifestyle for about 2 weeks. I bonded very well with my brothers and dad and had some of the best experiences I will ever have in my life.

Another unique experiences was the WWII history of the area. Literally right outside my grand-fathers house was a WWII plane that had crashed on the beach. It is exposed and all that it left now it the propeller and engine. Usually villagers strip anything that can be removed, my grand-father was one that collected WWII memorabilia from the gunned down planes. I am not sure whether it was a Allies or Axis plane. Just a short canoe ride out and another plane is submerged in the shallow, crystal clear waters. This one has more of the body intact.

WWII plane in the shallow waters

Everyday we went swimming and fishing and gardening and just did what normal villagers would do. We visited the small dam that my grand-father built for the village for easy access of water throughout the entire village. Walked throughout the entire village and I think we met everyone, they were all so very welcoming. Walked up into the small mountainous hills to observe the gardening process. We also frequently paddled the canoes out to the smaller island just a few hundred meters from Panapompom. We would play sports with the local kids and meet elders daily. If we weren't doing anything, we would just sit on a make-shift patio called 'pata-pata' and observe the undeniable natural beauty and just appreciate life.

Like father, like son

Probably one of the most memorable experience I had was during Christmas eve. The villagers would gather after the church service and walk all the way to one corner of the island and go from house to house singing hymns in the local dialect. It started at exactly midnight and was anticipated to last till the morning of Christmas day. Thankfully we had a hymn book of all the songs in our local dialect so we all sang along. The island is quite big so walking from one end to another and going to every house was was going to take awhile. Each house the group went to we were showered with powder or deodorant and some even gave candy to everyone signing.

My dad and brothers, half-way through got tired and announced that they would go back home and sleep, but  wanted to finished it. I thought to myself, when else will I ever get this opportunity to do something this beautiful. There was one moment in the middle of the morning, I don't know what happened but the energy just rose so much, it was some of the most beautiful singing I have ever heard. It actually made me quite emotional. As we reached the last house the sun had risen already and we have been walking and singing for about 5 hours now. The last remaining people of stayed the entire night, myself included, all set down and they turned to me and thanked me for staying the entire time. I felt quite special.

We only planned to stay there for a little over a week but actually were on the island for about 2 weeks. This was mostly because the boat that brought us here did not turn up as planned. We had the best time ever but needed to go back because we knew my sister was due to give birth anytime soon and we were hoping to get back in time for the birth.

Luckily my dad had a friend who visited the island on his fishing boat and offered to give us a ride back to the mainland. The farewell with the locals was very emotional and quite heart-breaking. We did not know when we would see each other again and I was left an emotional wreck trying to mask my tears.

Working the 'Titanic' pose

The boat ride to the mainland was quite memorable in itself. We anchored in the middle of the Conflict Islands which is a cluster of small islands named after H.M.S Conflict by Lieutenant Bower in 1880. We then started fishing and had fresh fish for dinner while we slept under the beautiful stars. By the morning sunrise, we were passing through smaller island waving to local islanders who lived on the beaches. Alongside the boat swam a group of dolphins such a memorable experience and quite breathtaking.

At the Conflict Group of Islands

Throughout the entire boat ride back we kept peridoically checking our phones if a signal would come through, to check on my sisters status, still hoping to be their for the birth. When we fnally got signal we immediately called and found out that she already gave birth with twins, one girl and boy. This was the ultimate Christmas gift and we couldn't wait to go back home to finally meet these two precious gems.

Inez-Jade and Moere. My nephew and niece born while I was on Panapompom Island. 

If I think back there is just so much I could talk about, so many experiences I will never forget and just such an unforgetable vaction all around.

To my readers if you could experience a place that is literally off the grid cut off from technology, please do try it. You will not be disappointed.

6. 2015 SOAB Chants and Cheer Competition

On the 7th of October, 2015, the tri-semetral event of chants and cheer competition was held at the Asia Pacific College. This is a competition held during the "English Term" among the freshman batches in the same school. The School of Accountancy and Business (SOAB) inclusive of Tourism Management (TM), Marketing and Advertising (MA), Accounting (AC) and Business Management (BM) students took part. I am a Business Management major therefore my batch was BM 151.


The 2015 Chants and Cheer Competition among the SOAB schools was a stressful successful. I was one of the four voluntary leaders specifically in charge of the dancing and movements portion of the cheer. However at times , it coincidentally felt like I was the parent trying to discipline a disobedient child.

 My fellow course mates would just not participate and I was left  questioning myself whether I was in college or grade school and whether I was speaking to adults or a child. Nonetheless I was hopeful, that when push came to shove, we would deliver and at least give it the best we had.

The actual performance day had a ecstatic feeling resonating in the air from every batch present. I was nervous but excitedly waited in anticipation for when we would be called up to perform. When the first 2 Accounting classes performed, they were quite good and I started to question whether our cheer was good enough or long enough or if we could have practiced more. This did not help with my nerves at all.

Small group of BM 151. ©Benjamin Bajet

"BM 151 please prepare", announced the MC and we all sprung up to get into formation. I quickly tried to fire-up my class whilst simultaneously preparing the stage along with my fellow leaders. "Ready! Don't forget intimidation!" I quietly shouted.

We started our intimidating entrance, stumping and beating to the beat of "We Will Rock You" by Queen. Thinking back, the entire performance was almost a haze now, but I do remember screaming my lungs out to the state where my veins where protruding my neck.

There was one part in the cheer where my fellow course-mat, Leonard, forgot to shout "Now let me hear you say This Class is Bananas". Luckily, I picked up on it quickly and covered for him without raising too much suspicion.

My favorite part has to be when Enzo (Lawrence) smoothly broke off to perform his amazing break-dance stunts. I believe that portion of our cheer set us apart from the rest.

And surprisingly, we pulled it off and won 2nd runner-up. Not the champions, but still a better result than I was expecting.

The 2nd Runner-Up Trophy
©Peter Son

Needless to say, I am still very proud of my batch and now that if we all just put in that little more extra effort, then BM 151 would be set for greatness.

Speech Choir and PE Two bring it on!!

5. Turn Left, Turn Right

I can't remember the last time I awed, gasped, cursed and was in the ultimate *'kilig moments while watching movie. Well "Turn Left, Turn Right" did just that to me. This movie left me in the kilig state throughout the film. This movie is based on the graphic novel "A Chance of Sunshine" (English translation) by Jimmy Liao who makes a cameo appearance in the film, he basically pulled a 'Stan Lee'.

I was left in such a state of romantic bliss, I swear my cheeks hurt by the end of the movie but however this was swiftly accompanied by the periodic cursing at the screen. I know pretty silly but watch it and you will know exactly what I mean.

The plot follows the lives of John, a frustrated, classically trained violinist struggling to lend his dream job doing odd stints in restaurants and studios to make ends meat and Eve, a talented writer working as a translator of Czech literature into Chinese. They both were unhappy in their current state and this is portrayed in the beginning of the movie where they seem to be facing their demons. The lady running from a demon from the books she read to translate and the guy from an obsessed driven crazy woman.

They live in neighboring apartments, only separated by a wall, but never seem to realize or meet. They are always a few feet away from each other, oblivious of the fact that they are both almost always in the same vicinity.

They movie shows them first meeting in a park near a water fountain. They sit on the opposite ends, she reading her translated poetry and him reading his music. A sudden gust of wind blows her papers into the water and he comes to the rescue jumping in to save her work. After spending the afternoon together whilst drying her papers, they get closer and seem to have a instant connection.

They both decide to get a drink and he starts telling a story of a girl he met during a school trip in middle school. John tells of how he saw a very pretty girl but was way too shy to talk to her. The story is quite similar to how they just met, the girl sitting by the pond and a wind blows and John comes to the rescue to save her papers. Actually it is exactly the same scenario, just about 13 years apart.

Coincidentally without realization, Eve remembers that same story and tells him that she was the girl. They identify themselves by their school numbers, John being 763092 and Eve 784533. That was one significant thing they both remembered and it resonated throughout the entire film. They never actually introduced themselves to each other so that's the only form of name they knew of each other.

It started raining and they both needed to leave, so they exchanged numbers and off they went in separate directions only to go back to the same place, separated by a wall. They both were caught up in the moment and forgot to take some medication after being caught in the rain and due to this got seriously ill. Adding insult to injury, the rain also washed out their numbers, so in a morbid state, they tried their best to contact each other, basically by guessing each digit. They longed till the day they would meet again.

Again let me state, they were only a wall apart but remained oblivious.

They seemed to be experiencing the exact same situations, from getting sick then going to the hospital, ordering from the same restaurant and wanting the same food. Thus strengthening the message that they were meant for each other, they were soul mates.

In their debacle, two people came into their lives unwillingly and forcefully. Dr. Hu who has had a crush on Eve since college and Ruby the delivery girl from the restaurant for John. They both forced themselves into the lives of John and Eve claiming to be in a relationship with them.

There were so many scenarios where they were so close yet so far. These were the moments the entire was was either shouting to turn around, cursing at them or just sitting in disbelief. I swear I was a mix of emotions, quite indescribable.

John and Eve finally have had enough and ask Ruby and Dr. Hu to leave, making it clear that they are not interested in the. Dr. Hu and Ruby meet in a bar and realize they have more in common then what they originally thought. They decide  to take revenge by sending John and Eve pictures of them just a few feet apart, knowing that they have been searching for each other for a very long time now. Throughout their heart break, their love for each other never dies. John says, if he needs to wait another 13 years, he will. Ruby and Dr. Hu now feeling guilty exchange John and Eve's number, but they say it's theirs.

Frustrated that they couldn't find love, John and Eve decide to take jobs abroad, again very similar in what they do. On the last minute, before finally locking up there apartments, Eve decides to call the number thinking it was Dr. Hu and explains that she is leaving and that she still loves and misses John dearly and hopes to meet him in the near future. John hears this message over the answering machine and calls her back, but suddenly a earthquake shook the foundations of the building, knocking the wall down finally revealing that they were always together.

I sighed and awed in my kilig state and shouted "finally". It was a unexpected ending but nonetheless quite a good one too.

If your the type of person that likes a good love story then do take your time to watch it. The full movie with English subtitles are on YouTube so it's very convenient. But be warned now, there will a lot of cursing from the audience too haha.

In all honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and recommend it for anyone. I most probably will recommend to all my friends and family.




*kilig- Colloquial Filipino term which means a sudden feeling of in-explainable joy that one gets when something romantic or idealistic occurs.

4. Teatro Play: Ang Tatay Mong Kalbo

During my high school days I always watched the plays that were showcased and I grew a certain fondness for it. I have always been interested in arts, from dancing to visual arts and theatrical plays to movies. So when I was told to watch a play for my English Enrichment Class, I was quite excited. 

Entrance of MPH1, APC displaying the actors and their
respective roles 

After I found out it was actually in Filipino, I was quite confused but needless to say I was still happy to watch it because theater is not just about a understanding the language but the holistic feeling you get from the performances.

Ang Tatay Mong Kalbo written by Isagani, R Cruz, PhD is an adaptation of the French play "The Bold Soprano" by Eugene Inesco. This play was written in the style of the Theater of the Absurd, which is a type of drama that tries to portray absurdity of human life using illogical, meaningless, and deliberately confusing action and dialogue. 

Ang Tatay Mong Kalbo is an excellent example of a theater of the absurd. The plot follows the lives of Mr. and Mrs. Santos, Mr. and Mrs. Reyes, Maria the maid and Hepe the fireman. Though I did not understand fully what was said, I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

In the beginning, Mr. and Mrs. Santos have a ridiculous conversation about rice. Yes! Rice! I assumed that this being a Filipino play and it’s common knowledge that Pinoys love their rice, it was bound to be in there. They get into heated arguments with each other and Mrs. Santos points to the crowd saying that "all guys are the same". The crowd cracks up and Mr. Santos is clearly annoyed by her complaining. The actress that played Mrs. Santos was perfect for the role. Her sublime performance of a over-the-top Dona was truly fitting for the role and I loved her expressions in her eyes and face. Her sly looks to her husband was quite hilarious and she managed to pull it off each time.

Later on Mr. and Mrs. Reyes joined the scene. When they first entered the stage, they acted like they did not know each other but had a slight inkling of them meeting somewhere before. The scene was cleverly written and as each clue of where they might have seen each other was said, I soon realized that they were husband and wife. I laughed at how idiotic the scene was and how oblivious they seemed, but I guess this is exactly the requisite of a 'theater of the absurd'. When they finally realized they were husband and wife, they both were ecstatic and filled with love, caressing and hugging like they haven’t seen each other for a very long time.

My favorite part would have to be the entrance of Maria the maid. I seriously lost it there, especially when he makes his grand entrance and then does a twirl on stage saying "360". The actor that played Maria was flawless. He was funny in every sense. I loved his playful flirtatious character especially during the scenes where he would bend over showing his under-garments to the crowd. The audience all laughed hysterically and I thoroughly enjoyed his performance.  

Final prepared stage before the show started

The fireman, Hepe, was equally is funny. His hysterical loud gasp when Mrs. Santos who seemed to be hitting on him so weirdly funny. It was like a mixture between a loud baby crying and an old man shouting with no teeth. My favourite part of his was when he fell in love with Maria the maid. He jumps on her, caressing each other. I laughed so hard at that part. 

To my readers, if you ever have the opportunity to watch this play either in your local theater stage or school, please do so. You will not regret it. Or if a play in the style of 'theater of the absurd' is in your area, then watch it.  

3. Heneral Luna

Heneral Luna!! What more can I say after so many good reviews that I have overheard, or read on multiple social media accounts, I've finally watched it. 

The feedback has been amazing thus showing for over a month now, daily and racking in a whopping PHP 240 million pesos by October 2015. I was envious at first because I knew the movie was in Tagalog and I can't really speak or understand it. However after finding out that the Power Plant Mall cinema at Rockwell, Makati screened the movie with English subtitles, I was ecstatic and immediately made plans to watch it.

Heneral Luna is a biopic set during the Philippine-American War from 1899-1902 when the US nation bought the Philippines from their Spanish colonists and claimed the Philippines as a US territory. The story entails the US army in battle with the Philippine forces and bases its plot around the main protagonists of the film, Heneral Luna, who was the Supreme Chief of the Army under the First Philippine Republic.

The general plot begins with the American forces entering the Philippines over a hostile takeover. The then President Aguinaldo, Heneral Luna and important cabinet leaders are seen gathering to decide on the action that they must take. It is clear that Luna's stance was to fight hard to reclaim their own land from the US and there was a clear division amongst the leaders.

Luna is almost portrayed as a tyrant leader who is too harsh in the way he conducts his leadership role.This was seen when Luna marched into the base of the Kawit Battalion under Captain Pedro Janolino after he refused to listen to direct order from Luna to send reinforcements. Luna catches him in bed with a lady and pulls him out by the crotch, embarrassing him in front of his soldiers. Luna believes that this harsh way of leading is the only way that the Philippines can win the war and reclaim their own land.

The ultimate demise was the fact that his own people brutally murdered him. Teaching us (the audience) that the Filipino people biggest enemies were not the Americans but however themselves.

The most powerful scene for me was the killing of Heneral Luna. According to stories told and portrayed in the movie, he took countless number of strikes from the machete and gunshots to the face and body, but he did not go down easily and without a fight. A true story of a heroic man who seemed almost invincible.
The ending scene shows the two American soldiers saying how the Philippines only hope was Heneral Luna and they killed him themselves.

I urge everyone to watch this film. The cinematography, story line, acting, directing and editing is second to none.Jerrold Taong, the director and editor, along with his team of writers and cinematographer did an amazing job on this film. I hope it wins the Oscar for best foreign film, they truly deserve it.

2. What it takes to be a teacher?

Do you recall the very first time someone asked you "what do you want to be when you grow up?", whether it may have been your dad, teacher, your best friend, playmate or that distant relative who always seemed to be a tad bit too nosy?

Well, I do.  I was probably in the 2nd or 3rd grade and living with my dad. For as long as I could remember and mind you I have bad memory skills, my go-to answer was "hmmmm I don't know, probably a business man". My dad would then re-iterate the question saying "what makes you happy?" and always the first thing that came to my mind was 'helping people' but of-course I never said it. More specifically when a fellow classmate would have come up to me asking for assistance and I would gladly help them to the best of my ability. I also really liked children. I spent a good portion of my childhood taking care of my younger cousins who are half my age. Of-course being the older cousin, we needed to take a bit of responsibility at times. 

It was not until a few years later during my early teens that I started to put the pieces together that perhaps teaching would be a good career option for myself. Or at least in the field where I'm in the act of teaching my skills to others. I just imagined myself being immersed with eager learners and the fact that they would address me as Mr. Davis or maybe a nickname if I became the 'cool teacher'. It seemed like a very good ambition to have. However I never really had experience actually being a teacher of some sorts. I never really knew 'what it would take to be a teacher'. 

My only experience was helping my fellow classmates with school work and sometimes my teacher would ask me to explain or be their tutor after class. That made me feel good about myself and I felt like I contributed a lot to my friends understanding the content better. But again that was just middle school. I guess I could count my few leadership roles I played throughout my elementary, middle and high school period because I did learn a lot from them. Being a teacher is being a leader. A leader that leads by example and one who inspires.

Grade 2 students at International School Manila

My first official role as a teacher assistant was a short stint while I was a senior at the International School Manila. For a whole semester I dedicated a block in my class schedule for the teacher aid position, that was a meeting twice a week. I signed up and was assigned to the 2nd grade class under Mr. O'neel who was the head teacher. My requisite job was to basically firstly observe, assist students where need be and learn from my experience. I was to write an online journal entry weekly to document what I have learned each time. My final assessment was to teach the class. To tell you I was nervous was an understatement. Ive always liked kids and if ever I was to be a teacher I would have teach young kids, truthfully I just couldn't deal with prepubescent kids or rowdy puberty stricken students.

The late Mr. Travis O'neel

My mentor was Mr. O'neel. He was a former college football player, so you could only imagine my surprise when I walked into his class the first time seeing this huge 6'3" beast of a man teaching these tiny 2nd graders. It was a juxtaposition that I wasn't expecting but nonetheless he was amazing with them. He taught me that being a teacher is just not about knowing the subject matter really well. Its about having patience and being kind, about when to be tough and soft-hearted, about knowing who needs the most help and the least, about not just being an educator but also a parent, leader, one who inspires etc ; and about knowing that your impact though it may seem minuscule, is part of a journey which makes everyone a better person. He never sugar coated things. He told me that teaching is hard and that I was to prepare for long nights, disgruntled parents, disobedient students just to name a few. But he always said it was worth it all if you were truly passionate about it. I could honestly say that yes I was a little shaken up but I did gain a ton of experience from just being present in his class. I dedicate this blog post to the Late Mr. Travis O'neel who tragically passed away due to a motorbike accident on June 19, 2015. He was a inspiration to me and will forever be remembered.

Recently, my classmates from batch BM-151 and I are all in preparation for the "2015 Chants and Cheer Competition" in Asia Pacific College. I volunteered to be a leader not knowing what I was getting myself into. After dealing with college students whom I presumed where grown and mature enough not to be told what to do all the time, I can honestly say teachers have one of the hardest jobs out there. This experience had actually inspired me to write this blog. I tried to be understanding and democratic in my decision making process but it seemed like a lot of the students just didn't care. It was only after my fellow classmate/leader Peter had to scream at them that everyone paid attention. I don't have a similar leadership style so I let him speak.

This experience gave me a greater appreciation for all teachers out there. Teaching is probably the most under-rated job out there and I wish everyone would give a higher pedestal to all teachers and commend them on a great job. Well at least a majority of them, I am not saying every teacher is amazing :).

So if you are a student reading this post; please don't give your teachers a hard time and if you are a teacher yourself, Thank -You very much. Your hard work is very much appreciated.