Purple

October 24, 2010 - Just when you thought nobody is worth it, someone comes along and did something stupid.

"I hate the way you talk to me, and the way you cut your hair. I hate the way you drive my car. I hate it when you stare. I hate your big dumb combat boots, and the way you read my mind. I hate you so much it makes me sick; it even makes me rhyme. I hate it, I hate the way you're always right. I hate it when you lie. I hate it when y

ou make me laugh, even worse when you make me cry. I hate it when you're not around, and the fact that you didn't call. But mostly I hate the way I don't hate you. Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all."

This is the sonnet that Kat Stratford (played by Julia Stiles) created and dedicated to Patrick Verona (played by Heath Ledger) in the movie 10 Things I Hate About You.

The movie was adapted from Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. In the movie, Patrick was the notorious one. Kat, on the other hand, was the smart girl who doesnt care what her schoolmate thinks about her. But no matter how mean Kat was, Patrick was able to tame the shrew. And Kat fell in love with the notorious Patrick. And I know, Kat didnt see it coming.

Like me, I didnt see it coming as well. I didnt thought that I would be able to find someone who would dare tame the shrew in me. I never thought someone would stay after finding out a lot of things about me. He made me feel special and wonderful. He made me feel good about myself. More than that, he made me feel that I deserve to be love - that I have the right to be loved.

And this weird feeling that I never felt since I was born, made me feel excited and inspired. So this is LOVE. And this is what makes life worth living. :)

.This was totally unplanned matching outfit.

Dear Bee,

Faith. Trust. && Pixie dust. That's all we need for now. I am now ready to face this crazy thing they called LOVE. I am not ready to break down the walls I built for year even thought it would make me vulnerable. But I could careless because I know you will do me no harm and that you will take care of me. You opened my eyes and made me see that life is beautiful when it is shared with someone special. I ♥ you and I don’t care what they think. I ♥ you for the man you want to be and I ♥ you for the man you almost are. Let's just enjoy this ride and have fun. :)

Maybe I know, somewhere deep in my soul

That love never lasts

And we've got to find other ways to make it alone

Or keep a straight face

And I've always lived like this

Keeping a comfortable distance

And up until now I had sworn to myself that I'm content with loneliness

Because none of it was ever worth the risk

But you are the only exception

You are the only exception

And I'm on my way to believing...♥

Identity Lost

Healing the Soul of the Nation
by Marlene Aguilar

When I was growing up I was told in school that my country was colonized by Spain, for a period of over 330 years. We were then colonized by the U.S. for 46 years and occupied by Japan for 3 ...years. School also taught me that I should be grateful to Spain because the Spanish gave the Philippines European civilization and religion. Unfortunately most Filipinos still believe this. That is why the Philippines is still in the dark age. How did my people come to believe these lies? I do not see how any people could understand colonization in these terms. The Spaniards came to my country. They murdered our men, raped our women, stole our lands and enslaved those who survived. They damaged our cultures beyond repair. The Spaniards came to the Philippines, as they did in other countries, to rape, murder and plunder. And in school I was taught to be grateful because Spain had given me their religion and their so-called civilization. This is like asking the Jews to be grateful to Hitler.

Imagine a group of armed bandits storming into this room right now, raping you, slaughtering you, and stealing everything of value. When they are finished, they tell you, the surviving victims, “Here is our civilization and religion. Be grateful.”

I thought the Philippine education system had changed from the time I was a little girl. Recently I started to read the Philippine Constitution in a textbook by Hector S. De Leon, 2005 edition, that is given to today’s students at the Universities of the Philippines and Ateneo. On page 12 it says… and I quote:

“The demerits, however of the Spanish administration were more than offset by its merits.

(a) The Spanish rule, when viewed in the broader light of global colonization, was generally mild and humane. The Filipino people were not brutalized. Spaniards and Filipinos intermarried and mingled socially. Slavery and tribal wars were suppressed.

(b) It brought about the unification of the Filipino people. The diverse tribes were molded into one people, under one God, one King and one government, and out of their common grievances against Spain, blossomed the spirit of nationalism; and

(c) Spain uplifted the Filipinos from the depth of primitive culture and paganism and gave them the blessings of Christianity and European civilization.”

End of quote. “Spain uplifted the Filipinos from the depth of primitive culture and paganism.” How can Spain call the Filipinos primitive when they were the ones who came here to rape and murder? Who is primitive? My forefathers honored the moon, the stars, the earth, the mountains and the trees. What is wrong with that? Don’t you honor god when you honor nature?

If to become Christian means to slaughter my mother, my father, my brothers and my sisters, I would rather be pagan.

Spain did not give the blessing of Christianity to my forefathers! They were told to convert to Christianity or die! That is what Spain did to many countries all over the world.

I believe that our problem in the Philippines today is not lack of money nor too much greed and corruption. This is not the root of our problem. Rather it is first and foremost a lack of identity. An individual who cannot grow up with an identity can never be confident, and can never know success. The Philippines is full of individuals without identity, without confidence. The Philippines is suffering from an identity crisis. I believe this is what makes this country a poor nation.

Filipinos often complain about the problems of the Philippines comparing this nation to China, Japan, Singapore and the USA. We cannot make this comparison. There is no comparison. These nations have not been raped and plundered like the Philippines. None of these nations have suffered foreign domination for almost 400 years!

The Republic of the Philippines was inaugurated on July 4, 1946. We have only been an independent state for 60 years. We cannot expect this country to heal in such a short period of time.

Our soul has been damaged by continuous foreign control. But we can fix this. We can change the future. It is up to us. I believe our only chance for survival and progress is to raise a new generation of Filipinos aware of their rich culture and noble heritage. For the past ten years I have been publishing books to defend and promote Philippine art and culture. I believe that some day soon there will be a cultural revolution that will inspire the Philippine cultural renaissance. I believe there are many Filipinos like me who will make a difference, who will make this happen.

There is hope. As long as there are Filipinos like me, like my brother Freddie Aguilar, our national artist Napoleon Abueva, Alwin Sta. Rosa, Mita Ong, Rafael Cusi and all the artists here tonight who love the Philippines and are willing to take a stand, there is hope.

I believe that the Filipino artists are the flame keepers of our rich culture and heritage.

I believe that together the Filipino artists can heal the soul of this beautiful nation.

Mabuhay ang sining Pilipino!

Maraming salamat po!

Speech by Marlene Aguilar
Publisher / Author
Yin and Yang by Cusi Book Launching