Kape at Keso

I was scanning through my files in my drive and found two diary entries written about ten years ago. The overwhelming and maybe staggering emotions here took me by surprise. And guess what, the person I dedicated this diary to, actually read it. Now the memories are coming back reading through it all over again. And it's amazing that remembering all those times only gave me happiness and peace. I was braver and bolder. Whatever happened to me now? 〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰 〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰 〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰 August 3, 2012 (Friday) It’s been more than a week since he told me he has something to tell me. Honestly it bothered me. I felt excited yet at the same time confused and afraid. I let the day passed and to my surprise, he texted. Well, nothing’s new, he has this favor again. I did not mind. But I know at the back of my head I was actually waiting for him to remember what he’s suppose to. That very night, he called me up. It was a long hour of conversation again. We were just comfortable talking. I m...

This year's presidential elections took a toll on us. With social media magnifying the bickering of the presidential supporters, one can't help but be ashamed of what we have become as citizens. Anyhow, instead of spending time arguing on who to vote for, I just made sure that I exercised my right of suffrage.  Since I am in Japan, the process is a bit different. We received our ballots via mail two weeks prior to the election day. The envelope contained 4 documents. 1. the ballot, 2. the seal, 3. the return envelope, and 4. the instructions.  After voting for my chosen candidates, I folded the ballot and inserted it in the return envelope. I closed it and sealed it properly. I dropped it in the nearest post box on the same day. It has to be mailed soon so it reaches the embassy on or before May 9th. Another option for us was to go to the embassy and cast our votes there. Also, I could only vote for national government positions - president, vice president, 12 senators, and a ...

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte who is sometimes referred to as PRRD, PDuts, or Tatay Digong will be closing his term come June 2022. He will have successfully completed his 6-year term despite oppositions wishing him ill. PRRD has received criticisms because of his war on drugs. Human rights activists are condemning him for the bloody fight against illegal drugs.  But that infuriated me. I would rally behind PRRD's back if he will be held accountable for those deaths. And I know I am not the only one. There are millions of us silently supporting him for the past six years, ordinary people who understood better what war on drugs means. I grew up in a drug-infested community. We were seven when my playmate was raped by her drug addict uncle, there is an illegal drug trade in our neighborhood, neighbors stealing just to sustain their addiction, my cousin and his partner are drug addicts and their family is wrecked, I saw by my own eyes a couple using drugs in midday.  So when PRRD...

Image from: https://roomsbooms.com/what-is-help-mark/ Let's call her Nora. She was a student in my 1-to-1 classes. I remember the first day I met her. She looked composed and calm. Given her professional background, I anticipated a commanding, domineering aura. Nora is an instructor at a medical university. She was doing a research that required her to read through dissertations, journals, case studies, etc.  It was in our 5th or 6th meeting I noticed that Nora has that red tag. Curiosity and confusion both came running my mind. However, I was forbidden to ask anything personal so I acted as usual. Nora must have intended to let me see that red tag on that very day. The documents we were working on are about brain disorders. She gave me a copy of a rough draft of a case study she did. I read thoroughly.  I handed her back the paper and showed her the things she needed to improve on - grammar, vocabulary, coherence, everything except the content. "It's my story.", Nor...