Thank God for Family and Friends!

So are you expecting me to talk about my love story? Well, don't be too disappointed because I won't be talking about that kind of love. I may sound like a loser but I've never had any girlfriend YET. I tried to have one but yeah, I failed. It sucks to be Reynald Alenn Tan, I know.

Okay so back to topic! The love that I'm getting from my family and friends is the fuel that keeps me alive. Without them, I'm nothing but a lifeless dude. It is very nice to know that I have a loving family and a kickass group of friends and I consider myself as a very lucky person to be having them. For other people, they think they always need a partner to provide them the love that they need. Well for me, family and friends are enough.

I am really grateful to be part of a very loving family.  My father is a person who has a lifetime supply of humor and he shares it with me. My mother is the number one manufacturer of tender-loving care worldwide. And finally, my sisters are the biggest suppliers of happiness that ever exist. I just don't imagine myself with another family because for me, my family is the most perfect thing that ever happened in this world. We may have experienced a lot of problems but it only made our bond stronger.

I thank God for sending me angels that have disguised and called themselves my friends. My high school friends are the craziest people I have ever met. They taught me how to enjoy life and they played a very important role in shaping who I am today. My college friends are one of the coolest (or hottest, if you're on Team Jacob) people I have ever met. I never expected them to be that way because they said that college is much different than high school. Well, that theory is very much wrong because me and my blockmates are enjoying our college life as if we're still in high school! Lastly, my newfound friends from the DLSU Animo Squad are the newest set of angels that God has delivered in my life. It can't get any better than that, ya know. I am really contented with my life now!

"I don't want to walk this earth if I gotta do it solo" WE HAVE THE SAME SENTIMENTS, IYAZ!

-Reynald Alenn M. Tan
C31 ENGLCOM

Teeny Weeny Love :">

           Teenage love is one of the best things to experience in this world. It is probably the thing you must not miss. It would affect your whole being and it could be for better or for worse but still it depends on how you would deal with it. It’s always normal to experience this kind of feeling although not all of us would try to be affected. Teenage love is sometimes referred to puppy love but on my point of view, it’s another scenario because it is part of growing as individuals. I myself had already experience this feeling of loving and being loved and it really feels great when you would undergo to this unexplained emotion. It would really make my day and I could see how wonderful the world is although sometimes we can’t escape from being hurt but still life moves on and it is a part of loving.

            Teenage love affects people’s lives. This is where often first love blooms but still we can’t predict if we already in love. Teenage love creates an impact to young individuals; it may have both positive and negative effects. Sometimes, it may lead to inspirations that make us strive for the better and this maybe the best thing to happen but sometimes teenagers get too emotional that they weren’t able to manage themselves or lose its focus on his priorities in life. I believe that to experience this kind of feeling would help us determine our weaknesses and deficiencies because this is the stage in our life that we are developing and knowing ourselves.

            Teenage love is a great thing in this world. It would not complete your teenage life if you won’t experience this. This would be the first time when our hearts would work and pump to the beat of the melody of love. 

-JIOU DESCANZO, c31

The Best Album Ever! Trust Me :)

Whenever I download songs from iTunes, (I mean, Limewire. I used iTunes to make it sound more legal LOL!) I always make it a point to download those tracks that are not so popular. Like indie bands such as Summer Set, Friday Night Boys, etc. These kinds of bands are the ones that produce songs that have real sense! I mean look at the songs of Kanye West and Black Eyed Peace? Music is supposed to be an inspiration. For example, Miley Cyrus’ I Can’t be Tamed.  With that song, she’s saying that at the age of seventeen, she already can’t be tamed! What kind of inspiration can we get from that? 

Anyway, if you’re looking for the perfect “love song” album, the On Your Side by A Rocket to The Moon is for you. It’s not really a boring album that contains songs like Paper Roses by Jolina Magdangal. It’s more like an emo, (but not super emo like Secondhand Serenade’s) alternative and pop-rock approach to it. The album is actually like the male version of Taylor Swift’s Fearless. Listening to it makes you want to fall in love. The story behind the music depicts love as very hard but sometimes like heaven. Some of their lyrics may sound a bit cliché, but you can feel that it is honest and real.

I don’t really like sharing my playlists because I’m afraid that they might get popular and be mainstreamed. (Remember the page in Facebook, “I used to love that song but then it got popular and overplayed”) But for me, this is the best album yet and everybody should have a copy of this. I highly recommend the songs Baby Blue Eyes, She’s Killing Me and Dakota :D 

JC Benedicto

C31

LOVE

“When you are young, you may want several love experiences. But as time goes on, you will realize that if you really love someone, the whole life will not be enough. You need time to know, to forgive and to love. All this needs a very big mind.”When I read these words, I feel deeply touched in my heart.


When I was a child, I thought the perfect love should be romantic, like Cinderella or Snow White. Once there is a kind and pure girl. The girl’s fiancé should be a prince charming, and deeply get in love with the girl at the first sight. There must be someone hate the girl and always try any methods to do harm to the girl. The plots of the story should be complicated, and after several crucifixions, the dramatis personae finally have a happy ending.

Time flies. As I grow up, I am not a child anymore. I realized that the Snow White and Cinderella are only fairy tales. The reason why these stories sound so beautiful must have several reasons in the following: the girl and the boy always have good looking, the boy must be rich and powerful, the bad guys do not have good appearance and finally they lose. When we review the stories as an adult, we can obviously realize that the stories have so many Money worship things, and also looked with a jaundiced eye on the appearance. When we face the real life, we may know how childish we were in the past.

As time goes on, I realized what is love little by little. When I was on the bus, I saw a pair of old couples carried each other, I did envy them so much. After then I was always expecting for a nice guy and I hope we will stay till the end of the life!

BY Shell, Wu

They Call it Dance; I Call it Life :D

Every time I hear music, I just can't help my body from moving with the tune or beat of the music. Although, I sometimes minimize my movements, so that people around me won't notice. I do love dancing, but I'm always be that shy type of person. I will only dance in public if I have companions or there's a prepared dance choreography, but when I'm alone... that's the time where I love to dance the most. 

I love to dance during late hours, where everybody is already sleeping (except for me of course), because it's the time when silence strikes and when no one else can see me dancing. The only sound that I hear during these times is the music, therefore allowing me to feel it even better. I choose those songs with lively tunes when I'm feeling happy, krump songs when I'm angry, etc. Kristy Nilson, a dancer and choreographer, once said, "dancing is the world's most favorite metaphor." This quote proves to be true to me. I express myself through dancing and that's the main reason why I do. 

Whenever I am scared, I dance those fears off. Whenever I feel like I ain't progressing with my assignments and projects, I dance to refreshen myself up. Whenever I need to let my emotions out, I express them through dancing. I can incorporate the principles of dancing to basketball, another favorite hobby of mine, by treating the movements of my opponent as my music. For now, happiness is just a dance away. (Sigh) It feels great that I have learned how to dance because it helped me a lot. I'm thanking all of those people who has inspired me to dance for without them, I can't achieve this extreme happiness that dancing has given me. 

Let me end this with a video made by Eddie Uehara. The video that inspired me to dance.

Miranda, Gerald Kim T.
C31

Long distant love

Long distant love

Love? What is the true love? I think love is ‘faith’. Because I have a relationship with boyfriend from Korea. Yes. We are long distant couple. So we need to believe each other. Actuality I don’t know what he did every moment. But I love him and believe him. So it doesn’t matter.

We just talk at night on the internet. We login in skype or messenger at same time. Sometimes we call by cell phone each other. But international call fee is very*2 expensive. We are just student. So we talk what we did all day by skype for free. I can see him by cam. But It is not real him. So it is very sad. To get over this sad situation, we express love emotion each other. Namely sweet words, encouraging words, etc. He always concern on my Philippines life. Because it is very different between Korea and Philippines. I don’t like hot weather. Actually I hate it. So I was very hard adapting to new circumstances at first time. But He always cheers up for me. I was very impressed by his aptitude. Because of his encouragement, I could adapt to Philippines life fastly.

Sometimes I imagine life without him. It is very terrible. We met at coffee shop in 14, April. It was our first meeting. One of my classmates introduces him. We had a ‘blind date’. We dated some times. We are fallen love with each other at least. I like his smile, kindness,,, everything. Also he likes me. I don’t know well still why he loves me. Am I beautiful, cool, and nice? It is Just kidding.

But we approached bad situation at that time. Because I had to go to Philippines for exchange program. I was very sorry to him. We had to separate until December for about 7 months. He suggested that he will wait for until returning Korea. I was very surprised and impressed by his avowal. We met many times as soon as possible. We made a lot of memories.

Yes! I’m in Philippines. It is a little difficult what live in another country. But I have a good boy friend and I always think of him. He is always helpful to me. Although we are miles away, it doesn’t matter to us. Because we believe each other. Good news! He will come in Philippines on 21, July. I’m very expecting and happy. I will take care of him and we will travel at white beach. This is my true love story. I’m very happy girl be loved who my boyfriend.

Here is Chloe Park. Englcom C31

Love knows no borders

LOVE KNOWS NO BORDERS

 

International marriages are becoming commonplace in the age of globalization. We speak with couples whose love has crossed geographical borders and the boundaries of citizenship.

What do celebrity couples David Bowie and Iman, and Seal and Heidi Klum have in common? Apart from the obvious singer-model coupling, they are also part of a huge community who have overcome geographical borders to meet and marry people of different nationalities. Both Bowie and Seal are English, while Klum is German and Iman is Somali-born.

JOY SHIFERAW & SEAN SEARCIE

Joy Shiferaw knows exotic. Her mother is from Philippines while her father is from Ethiopia. They met while her mother was teaching in the Ethiopian countryside. Joy met Sean Searcie the traditional way in US – through a mutual friend, Walter. “Joy was pleasing to the eye”, says Sean. Still, it took Sean almost a year to figure out that Joy was the one. Religion was their biggest issue, Sean is a Seventh Day Adventist while Joy is an Evangelical Protestant. It took a lot of compromise on both sides, but Joy and Sean worked through their “differences” issues.

HIROKO TAKAGI & BASIL MASSEY

Hiroko Takagi, a female reporter from Japan had been sent to the field office in Afghanistan to check up on a Disarmament Demobilisation Reintegration project, which Basil Massey, a former colonel with the Indian army, was managing. There was literally no room at the UN guesthouse for Hiroko, so Basil gave up his room for her and bunked down on the floor of DDR’s half-built office. It was freezing. What neither expected was this: out of the icy depths of winter, love took root and blossomed.

It seems that being born in different countries is no barrier to falling in love. It’s certainly not a new concept. International marriages have been around for a very long time. What is new about international marriages in the 21^st century is that the couples coming together are about as diverse as they get. It’s more of how couples deal with such differences and disappointments that determines the quality of marriage.

Couples who come from diverse cultural backgrounds may face more challenges. They’ll have to overcome the initial hurdles of language and unexpected cultural differences and expectations. In order to do this, first they must respect each other’s cultural value. The key here is to understand each other’s values and traditions – even if you don’t agree – without being judgmental or imposing your views. Another one is use a common language. Lastly, get involved in each other’s life. Go to the places and listen to stories that made them who they are today. This includes cultivating a good relationship with your partner’s family – even if they live oceans away.

Compatibility and Companionship – that’s what all couples look for. It’s a factor that has little to do with nationality.

Melissa Angelyn R. Pascual

C31 ENGLCOM

Source: "Love knows no borders", Reader's Digest, February 2006, pp. 74-77

Bestfriend or Lover?

Imagine a boy and a girl who have been together since their childhood, friends who have been through the hardest of times and the happiest of times. As they matured,  they have been accustomed to live life supporting one another. Then as time passes, the boy falls in love with his bestfriend.

There are a lot of stories I have read where bestfriends turn into lovers, some ends their friendship while others end in happiness. In the book "The Guardian" by Nicholas Sparks it illustrated the story of a lady who had to choose between his bestfriend or a lover. In the end of the book, she fell in love with her bestfriend who has been with her through everything. I myself experienced this kind of story, where my bestfriend had to choose between me and a lover she had but unfortunately the outcome was devastating for me. Though she didn't choose me, we still continued to bestfriends upto now.

Being with someone our whole life, most of the time its hard not to fall in love but its not wrong to happen. We take risk, we risk our friendship but love is really like that. If we don't take the risk then we will never know. So take the risk! We never know!

- Rodriguez, Rodolfo C31

Love is really Powerful

            Love is a very broad topic. Even dictionaries don’t have specific definition of love; they only give description of it. Humans or people can understand what love is even if others don’t tell them. We are born to love and to be loved. 

              Love for our friends. We tend to love our friends, that’s why we always try to understand them, we comfort them in times of sorrows and we rejoice with the in times of happiness. We always celebrate our birthdays together and we cram our test all together. We love each other so much that we are already like a family. We always care for them and take our burdens together. That is what our love for our friend mean.

             The least we give our love is to our environment. We always forget it even if we are always with it. It’s like we have a blind eye that’s why we don’t see it. That’s the reason why the environment can’t take it anymore; he is already revolting against us. We always ignore him. Environment also has its feeling; he is already full and cannot take the feeling of what you are doing to him, anymore. We should start learning on how to also take care of it, like one of our friends.

              The most important is the love for our family and the love for God. God is like a father and a friend for us. He is already a part of our family since we were born. Our family is where our strength comes from. They are the ones we can always lean on. As time passes by our friends may leave us but our family always stays there waiting for us. Whatever mistakes we commit and even as time passes by, they are the one who would never leave us, because we are a family and it is the only thing that never changes. Maybe love is really the most powerful thing on earth, because it brings two different people together. It makes a great friendship. It passes through all hardships that arise. Love gives person riches in his heart. So love each other always!

           Love is always there, it’s waiting for you and it’s for free.

By Charmaine Ngo of C31

Love at First Sight - Is There Such a Thing?

In most of the instances, when a girl saw a handsome guy or if a guy saw a gorgeous chick, he or she will definitely say that kind of person is his or her ideal partner; an ideal partner without even knowing the other side of that person. How can it be an ideal partner if it is only his or her first time to see that person? How can you say that you fall in love with that person without even knowing his or her personalities? It is quite impossible to say you love a certain person just the way he or she looks without even knowing him or her well. But sad to say in today's generation, people can already fall in love easily even just knowing or seeing a person for the first time.

It is indeed true that our eyes can play a very critical role in choosing our partner, but it should still be remembered that true love only happens if you feel that there is a spark that you can see in that person. A spark that is not only you can see outside of that person, but also what's inside of that person. Though the term love at first sight is often used by the young ones, it should still not be used as a gauge to love a certain person. It should also be remembered that love is not just about the looks of a certain person. It is definitely more than the looks. The term love at first sight can be used as a term to describe your ideal partner, but it can't be used to express a feeling on that person just by the way he or she looks. If you say you had experienced having love at first sight, then it just means that you have already found your ideal partner, but you can;t say that you immediately love him or her, and want that person to be yours already. It is quite stupid to say that you immediately love that person without even getting close to him or her. You even do not know what kind of a person he or she is to say that you love that person. Though love can be developed from love at first sight if both parties will get to know each other. By knowing each other, one can realize if he or she really loves that person. In time, if both parties know each other pretty well already, and, at the same time, both of them love to be with the company of each other, then this would be the time that we can say that true love exists between the two parties. Other than that, the love that we feel towards a certain person when we see him or her for the first time is just admiration and not true love at all.

Love at first sight is very much easy to say, but is very much difficult to prove. You can't dictate your heart to love a person just by merely looking at his or her looks. You have to get to know more about that person before your heart can love him or her from who he or she is and not just the way that person looks. Though deeper love can be developed from love at first sight in time, but definitely not on the first time you saw him or her. Saying that you already love that person that you saw for the first time without even knowing his or her personalities is definitely a joke. If this is indeed true then it only shows that your love for that person is fake because you only love him or her just the way he or she looks, but definitely you don't love him or her for who that person is.

- Jackyson B. Sze

C31 - BSA

11009357

Karma Strikes

"After a while...
...you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul...and you learn that love doesn't mean leaving and company doesn't mean security, and you begin to build all your roads of today because tomorrow's garden is too uncertain for plans...
After a while...
you learn that even sunshine burns if you get too much, and you begin to see that kisses are not contracts and presents are not promises.  You begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes open...with the grace of an adult, not the grief of a child.So plan you own garden and decorate you own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers, and you would learn that you can endure, that you really are strong, and you do have worth. "


  Back when someone would ask: “Don’t you want someone special?” with their eager faces that just begs for me to answer ‘yes’, it was quite fun feeding them disappointment every time.  

                So I would say: “I don’t need anyone else.”  I would accompany it with a smile and curt laughter.

                Then a chapter in my life begins and swore to myself that all of that love-hating ritual I did before was all thrown at me by karma—yes, karma, you! You owe me big time!—I was faced with dilemma. Let’s just say senior year was the year of relationships and I was the black sheep (opting to ignore the stupid bandwagon), my friends faced the exact same thing I despised. Love, or so they would claim, have broken their hearts. I, being the only person who has never involved herself further than friendship, was their last chance. They would come up to me, eyes watering in desperation with questions along the lines of “What went wrong?!”, “It hurts so much, I want to forget about him, what should I do?” and of course, “Sa dinami-dami ng tao diyan, bakit siya pa, bakit iyong tao pa’ng kahit kalian ay alam ko’ng hindi ako kanyang mahalin?” (There are so many people out there, why did it have to be him, why did it have to be the person I know that can never love me?). I had always explained myself clearly, blunt and rash: because you wanted to, don’t blame your heart—it’s not the one falling over this one person. Nothing’s wrong, it’s just how love is, expect it to be always kind and you’re asking for a miracle, hurt is part of it, sacrifice is the main point of it. Forget about forgetting, you don’t have to force yourself to forget—because you know in yourself that at one point in your life that person meant something to you, that person made a difference and that person mattered. And as for the obviously repeated question that involves regret, I always give them what I thought, no sugar-coating, but as is.

                “It’s because, it’s him. A person can be sweet and kind, but that won’t push you to fall for him. You like this person because he’s who he is. Sweet, kind, a little impatient, kuripot, corny and a bad dresser—positive, negative, everything, you love him all the same. If you don’t, then you’re lying. You don’t love him, you just like a part of him and that’s not love. That’s false admiration and you’ll just have to deal with that yourself.”

                I think I know why I have such bad taste in guys; it’s my karma for being too brutal with my answers. I constantly find myself still searching for people that would make me feel better about myself. But I, ended up with the complete opposite of it. Maybe it’s God’s way of laughing at me, or his twisted way of amusement because heaven’s too good to have a person twisted to a point and poked to no end by ‘love’.

  I have thought that love is over-rated, (who needs an emotion to dictate to them how to act?) but when I was at that point—there was nothing I could do.  Maybe he isn’t the best looking guy out there; maybe he’s the worst choice to like, and maybe I could be just preparing myself for the longest jump I will ever have to do. But I know it’s worth it. I was never a person that easily falls into godforsaken traps, so when I do, I find it completely impossible to climb my way out. Right now, I’m at cross whether to dig myself a grave or to reach out for the hand that’s been held out for me to get. There are so many reasons for me to let go and forget about this person, so many ‘What the hell!? Why….!?’ Reactions that just make me laugh. I never expected anything, nor will I ever. I don’t need reciprocation; I just need him to be happy. I can’t make him laugh, smile, or anything at all. It’s a sad truth that I have to come accept; I love seeing him bounce his way up to somewhere with that confident smile, love seeing him just openly flirt with anyone. It’s entertaining? Funny? Both? I don’t know. I just like it that way. He has this thing about him that I just like seeing; whether it’s his smile or smirk, it just affects me in ways I can’t show. I could be having the worst moment in my entire life, and still find it quite easy to smile when he does. It’s infectious. He could as well be the meanest person alive, but for some unknown fraction of truth I like him.

My best friend once told me: “I bet when you fall in love, you’ll be the one begging for your own advices. I know you April, I know how you care, how you depend on others, how you value every moment. You never felt the cold stabs of a broken heart, and I hope that when you do, you’ll really do what you told people to.”

Best friend, you know I think I could possibly need one of your super-down-to-earth-slaps right about now.  Hey, at least I know what I am to this person. I know where I stand, and I think its fine. I’m not the person that can make him smile his best, or the person he could talk to, I can never make him laugh like others will, and like hell I can’t be the person he likes—but it’s fine. Cliché as it is, I fell for that smile and that’s all I’m after.

I’m not saying I love this person. I won’t say it, or rather I don’t deserve to say it. 

There’s a difference.

April Santiago

C31

Forever Love :)

Love? I remember our sociology professor, Mr. Alvaro Calara, define love as something that everybody feel but no one can give an exact meaning of it.
When I learned that is week's topic is about love the first thing that came in my mind is the boyfriend-girlfriend thingy, but I come to realize, why limit myself to that? There are lots of people I care for, one of those are my close friends. aaawww... thinking about them makes me miss them more.

 

Since I am an only child, my "barkada" boys serve as my "Kuyas" cause it has always been my dream to have older brothers. They treat me as the baby of the group. I always get what I want, SPOILED if you may say so, at least for them. I have never been used to girl talks because my usual companions are boys. I AM NOT A LESBIAN OKAY? :] It's just that I am closer to them because of my longing for big brothers. 


I always tell my friends before that I am getting fed up with their faces and how I wish not to see them for months, but now I miss them more than ever. I miss their corny jokes, their complains, their laughs, I miss everything about them. 
Hearing us exchange "Iloveyous" may sound a bit weird, but that's how we express our feelings toward each other. We say it because we mean it. I hope and pray that our friendship will last forever. :)

- Arvie Lotus Grace Belga