LIVING, LOVING AND LEARNING

Aristotle use to say - " Learning is always accompanied by pain."
Great books are over our head, at times hard but don't complain
That is why they need our attention, so listen to what they teach
Read and reread until our mind, our intelligence is on a stretch

A learned man, lover of life cannot be idle for he kills time by study
He becomes whole only when he can face life and always be ready
To tackle every hurdle that blocks his way to where he wants to go
Fail then try again until he's able to pursue things that he wants to do

Love what you're doing and not waste part of your life just to please
To display the qualities you do not possess to keep up with the Joneses
Gain applause you could not keep, to end at a loss and be frustrated
Unable to pretend any longer, be with the crowd you never wanted

Never be a slave of a reputation - the opinion other people have of you
Living the life that was not meant, acting a role, a face that is never true
Show your real colors, say what you really feel, and stop all the drama
Things maybe good for a while, but once they find out, that's your karma

Then don't settle for a love relationship that won't let you be the true you
Follow your heart, its the only thing that can give you the feel, to woo ...
Your heart know things that the mind can never explain and cannot see
Love and happiness goes hand in hand, two hearts as one, you and me

Once the love problem is solved, then learning is what will keep us going
Everyday we love we learn, everyday we learn we live, our chance to sing
About the love, about the past, about everything, places we came to pass
The goal is not to live forever but to enjoy our lives to the very last ...

WHAT LIFE IS ALL ABOUT

Take this one from Ralph Waldo Emerson :
      Finish each day and be done with it.
      You have done what you could
      Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in.
      Forget them as soon as you can
     Tomorrow is a new day.
     You shall begin it well and serenely...

So many ways life has been defined but what is it really all about ?
We end up pursuing happiness, with riches it can never be bought
For happiness is a by product of  loving, and a  life well lived
Of giving as well as receiving, and not doing what God forbids

Just think about it - if you were paid a hundred for every good deed
At the end of your days, will you be rich ? If not, then you bungled
For doing good is the rent we pay for the space we occupy on earth
Failing to do so we still have a chance, before you die renew your faith

Life is a grindstone, whether it grinds you down or polishes you up
Depends on your character and what you're made up, so be tough
It goes with saying, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going
You may be knocked down but try to get up, and just keep on moving

Even if you're failing, don't stop if  you're moving at the right direction
Inch by inch, who knows. there may still be time to win, be a champion
For if we cannot build a good fortune for our self, at least we tried ...
As we grow older at least we can say we're not a quitter with pride !

Its Ok not to be Ok, just don't stay that way - always strive to get better
Enjoy life today, yesterday is gone, and tomorrow may lead us nowhere
God had given us more than we need but not enough to satisfy our greed
Once you learn how to love life then you are ready to plant a good seed

Someday we too will say goodbye, people who love us will surely cry
But we should leave them without having to explain the reasons why
For a good tree to grow a seed had to die, be buried so it could sprout
A new life with new meaning, and to pass on the good sap from its roots

Someday you will all look back and know exactly why it had to happen
The past is your lesson, the present's  your gift, and the future to brighten
At times we don't know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory
It hurts to let go but at times hurt more to hold on, so set yourself free ...

As Maya Angelou use to say - "Our live is not measured by the number
      of breaths we take, but by the number of moments that our breath away."
The greatest challenge is discovering who you are,  and what  kind
And the second greatest challenge is being happy with what you find

LEARNED MAN VERSUS AN EDUCATED MAN

Mark twain said, don't let your  schooling interfere with your education
Yet still it is not enough to be educated, gotta use it and put it in motion
The school helps, it is your first step for confidence and for recognition
But it will take years of experience and good works to earn a reputation

Teachers teach but you need good books as well to get more information
Great books were written by the greatest liberal artists and men of vision
For they taught one another and taught all the previous, older generations
Surely they can teach us more if we'll only figure out the right questions

Liberal, t'was called the education enjoyed by the privileged and the rich
So there is no reason why liberal education should be beyond our reach
We have to overcome the innate human tendency to underrate our class
The rich look down on everyone who don't belong, " they are not us ! "

People who don't share their background, they cannot have their ability
They will put you down, and they'll push you out of their elite society
But remember, the great books came out of ignorant, inquiring humanity
Most of them were written for, and addressed to us, poor people ordinary

That is why great books are great teachers, so heed all, all of us readers
Pay attention, get as much information,  we will not be mere pretenders
Knowing and learning, that's how we can call our self  a human being
Able to understand, pursue the highest point we're capable of attaining

Make time, learn the art of re-reading, books you read when you're 16
Age makes a difference... understanding some things you have not seen
You will find out that you have missed something, a new kind of feeling
No matter how hard your mind before, you'll be surprised, its working !

BUENA MANO : QUESTION > DO YOU BELIEVE IN THE BIBLE ?

          First e-mail question I got was rather tricky.  I have a feeling that she's baiting me into committing myself - but it doesn't really matter what I believe in, its what you believe in that really counts. The Bible is a great book and everyone should devote some time to get acquainted with teachings for it laid the foundation of the Christian world. For over 2000 years, generation after generation have debated about the messages the Bible reveal, but instead of uniting the so-called Christians it only caused more divisions among them. Each espousing their own interpretation, we therefore have the choice which one to believe.

          I remember one glaring scene in the movie, "The Day After Tomorrow"- a group of survivors clammed in inside a US national library while those left outside were all frozen to death. To keep themselves from freezing, they were forced to burn the books so they can keep warm. The librarian who was in charge set aside a bible which he kept near.. When asked why, he answered that though he doesn't believe in God, he said it was the first print of the Bible, and once all of them are gone  it will be the only remaining proof that a civilization once existed. Historically, that's the importance of the Bible. Its other importance is the attached belief  that the words written therein were the words of God dictated to the prophets for man to understand the workings of the Supreme Being.

          We are all defined with what we believe in, the books we read, the songs we listen to, the movies we watch.  All human beings are genetically 99 percent similar with one another but its the 1 percent difference that gives life and living all the excitements. We've made ourselves different from other animals because only humans can kill from a distance. Animals kill for food. Only humans kill for fun. And only humans worship a God that they could not touch and see. Only humans leave a legacy, and the Bible is one of the greatest legacy of civilization. Its not the earliest though. There were some written dogmas centuries earlier, but to the Christian world the Bible is the only truth that should be believed.

         Going back to the question if I believe in the Bible.  I believe it was written with the noblest intentions - and if ever you have experienced how it feels to be at your end of the rope, it could provide with the strength to go on and feel that there is a Great Someone who watches over you.  "Not even a sparrow will fall down the earth without my permission" - I remember reading that in the Bible. If you can believe that with all your heart, then you have experienced how it is to have "faith" in God. I believe that God communicates with us every minute of the day. I am now 58 years of age and approximately my heart has pumped  2,325,000,000 times. At least about a third of that life I spent sleeping - helpless and unaware of everything that is happening. Surely Someone watches over us during that time. As Einstein said in one of his interviews - " Being spiritual is different from being religious. Its either you don't believe in miracles or you believe everyday is a miracle.

          One thing I learned in all those readings - you also have to unlearn first the things you have learned about something before you truly understand what you wish to understand. Only when the cup is empty that it can be filled - so empty your cup first. Its is never wrong to open all doors you have a key to see what is inside before you can describe what is in it and not rely on someone else what they have seen inside it. We have but a limited time and no age have spoken with a single voice. There always was a major disagreement. But it is also wrong to dismiss the wisdom of the sages of the former times. Our heart will lead us into it if only we follow where it leads. Reading the Bible with an open heart is a good start.

A MASTERS OF ARTS DEGREE IN DAYDREAMING

          I earned my PRC license in 1983 on my second try. I was not really very proud of it then since I was the only one who failed in our first try  ( there were 24 of us and one landed 2nd place). It made my parents real proud but unfortunately their dream was not my dream. I did landed a good job, a promising one during that time, since we were assigned at the fore front of the planned water service project that would modernize the entire Metro-Manila. Unfortunately, Cory Aquino came to power and decreed that all Marcos proposed projects are to be shelved and that ended our dream of becoming the future project managers of other project components that were soon to follow.

          The new administration that prided itself to be incorruptible bloated the MWSS plantilla from 3000+ to 16,000+ employees in just over a year and it was no surprise that after 4 years, the company went bankrupt and had to be privatized. I ended up in a job assignment that was a poor use of our training while my peers found work in the Middle-East constructing desalinization plants and underground silos for defensive weapons. Having had over a year of experience how lonesome it was to be in a field assignment where you could only go home  on weekends, I opted not to go since I was then newly married and yearly furlough to me then was unthinkable. Besides, no matter how hard I tried I just couldn't use to playing the kind of game one had to play in a corporate world. My heart was simply not into it and I sought escape from the pressure and stress that managing other people brings.

          It was then that I  came back to where I started from, having acted as a second to my father in running our fruit business. I opted for a different product though, conducive to my moods and compulsive behavior.  And that  was how I ended up with the book business. Everyday for the last 27 years I do nothing but read, scrawl notes, watch movies, exchange ideas with customers, and do some writing at the end of the day. I earn from the effort to provide for my family's needs and get to daydream the minutes in between. As Goodrich use to say, " I have earned my Master of Art degree in Daydreaming."

          It was a complete turn around from the world I use to live in - and since that day I have neglected connecting with former friends until I found myself detached. I found no need for a cellphone that I stopped using one about ten years ago. My world became my family, my bookstore, and my imagination. My counter became my podium where I get to share the useless information I picked up from the books I read and movies and documentaries I've seen. My suppose to be legacy lies in the volumes of scrapbooks I've kept through the years of notes and cut-outs pasted on its pages. Add to this the blogging and the playlist that I hope my kids would one day find interest playing for them to be reminded me of when I'm gone.

          All my kids turned out to be more interested in numbers than the letters I have enjoyed  juggling through all my years. But up to this time, they still listen to whatever I have to say and still find my jokes funny. So I guess it would just be a matter of time when they would one day turn the pages of the cartoons and jokes I clipped from the old magazine and newspaper I read. The things I wrote which I never got to say to them, would one day too will be read so they'll know that even when we're not together its them I have in mind most of the time. Never wanted to hold them on a leash, for I thought that the less rules I make, the less I have to worry about them breaking it. To see them laughing, smiling, and home each was more than what could make my day. Hope that maybe when they are gone and had families of their own they'll still try to connect with us. I don't like to bet on that but one thing sure, so I stocked up memories to hang on when I have nothing more to do but ride on my rocking chair waiting for my time to end.

          I am not stopping. With visions fading, as well as my troubled hearing, and arthritis crippling my hands, I still continue with my reading, my writings, my cut-outs, and my talking. I have yet to earn my Doctorate degree in caring. I've been down so many times, I haven't really leveled up to a day when I can do more than just share my thoughts. I hope someday I could still have time to connect with the old friends and relatives. I had to tell them that I haven't really forgotten the good times we've had. Just have to leave for a long while to nurse my wounds and once completely healed, get back to them and share some good times together.

HINDI PALA AKO NAG-IISA

          While I was scanning an old Jeepney Magazine (no longer in circulation) I could hardly believe an article I read about an old friend in my high school days. He was no extra-ordinary student during our days but he was a good-looking Spanish mestiso and I would say a great storyteller. It was no surprised to me when we met 10 years after high school already a made man.

         He finished B.S. Chemistry and easily landed a job at Unilab as a Med-Representative, and became one of the company's top salesman. On one of his seminars in China ably convinced a CEO of company manufacturing medical equipment to have him as act as the firm's sales conduit in the Philippines. He was given a budget, a fat salary, and all the backing he needed to make good. He was then earning millions even before he turned 30. We had some get together with some other old friends which ended in promises that we'll get in touch in later years. That was the last time I heard about the guy.

         That day, some 30 years later, he was featured in four colored pages of the Jeepney Magazine operating a sort of shelter for abandoned and orphaned kids, taking care of their education until they let them go on their own after graduating from high school. There was no glamour in the job, and surely no high financial reward but he sure looked happy with his wife and with what he was doing. That article made me happy too - at least I am not alone in doing the kind of thing I wanted most.

        I remember him telling me privately how frustrated he was with his job then, having have the play the dirty games of dealing with people who always demand something "extra" for them to approve the permits in importing their products as well as the corrupt doctors who wanted beautiful escort in their seminars abroad provided by the company before they approve the acquisition of the medical equipment. He said he felt "dirty" doing those things. Now, I am very sure he feels "clean".

LAST STORE STANDING

          It takes years to build a reputation. To be acknowledged, to be well known was farthest from my mind when I started this business about 27 years ago. I loved it, and after about a year I knew inside that this is the kind of life I wanted.  Its true, come hell or high waters, you'll find me at the same place 365 days a year, 8am to 9pm, browsing and scrawling about the old books I had acquired, repairing the torn covers, sanding the edges, and trying to make them worth reading. 

         The kind of life is very far from the first one I started which I too enjoyed but being in the field of construction and technology is simply not me. I want to appreciate what I have in me every moment and share it with people who too are trying to find answers to questions they are afraid to ask. An older customer once told me that I just don't sell books for a living but I also sell ideas and inspiration to some who needed the push to pursue what they wanted in life. I never thought of it that way - I just love to talk but I learned that to be effective I had to back my talks with a lot of knowledge and information. And in books and movies is where I get it from.

         The book business was good to us for I was able to provide for my family and send my kids through college. But like all kind of business, it has its ups and downs, and when you're down and still shining, some moneyed guys want to takeover your business. All the stalls around me had been vacated and empty and my place is now a dead spot in the commercial complex I'm in. Its a make or break deal for me unless I am able to come up with something to show the management that the store is worth maintaining for they are now vent of having other moneyed establishment occupy the space. Moving inside the inner core of the dry goods section would surely mean the demise of our bookstore considering how unfriendly the mall have managed the place and the rent is not really that affordable.

          Sad as it may, I am not considering of selling the business to someone who could manage it better - improve the store, better shelves, lightings, more goods to sell aside from books. Considering the number of faithful customers who had patronized my store through all those years that had allowed us to stay in business while all around us was suffering from losses, I believe a much improved bookstore and general merchandise would still make good. For me its not the end of a dream but having a dream live beyond me.

          I am open to offers, even as a minor partner if ever I am still needed to operate the store. I still have until the end of the year...