Sleepless

It was by accident that she saw the sign to the clinic and by compulsion that she decided to come in for consultation instead of going to her usual doctor. She looked as if she had the whole world on her shoulders, and maybe she had. She appeared in her 60s even though she was just in her early 40s.

I haven't been able to sleep for the past couple of days.
I conducted the usual history taking and she admitted that she was going through a tough time for the past couple of weeks. We never went into the details but it seemed to involve her grandchildren. She was fighting back tears when she admitted that it was her worries that prevented her from getting much needed rest.

It was one of those rare instances where sleeping pills were needed. But I told her that the best remedy was to get away from the problem for a couple of days and gain a new perspective on how to deal with what was troubling her.

She took the prescription for the pills and left.

After 2 weeks she was back. Her face was brighter and she didn't appear as tired as when I first saw her.

I stayed with my sister these past few days and I'm sleeping much better even without the pills.

She felt she had gathered enough energy to go back to her home and deal with the same problems as before. There were still the same problems and she still didn't know how to solve them. But she had a more positive outlook now.

Those few days away gave her some breathing room to think and reassess how she could deal with things.

But just in case, she asked for another prescription for the sleeping pills, just in case...

Loyal or Faithful?

A faithful person doesn't have time to get attracted with others. Her/his attention is exclusively for the one he/she loves. A loyal person still gets attracted to others, appreciates beauty, flirt in some ways. But at the end of the day, a loyal persons knows where his/her heart belongs.

Forgiving AND Forgetting I

The 1st ever automated elections in the country has just been concluded and most of the winners have been proclaimed. Noynoy Aquino will be the next President of the Philippines.

He is the son of former President Corazon "Cory" Aquino,  who was a plain housewife until she was swept up into politics when her husband (and Noynoy's father) Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr. was assassinated in 1983 by the alleged order of then dicatator President Ferdinand Marcos.

Cory ran for president in the elections of 1986 and won despite rampant cheating. But Marcos overruled the election results and declared himself as the winner. The following turn of events led to millions of people flooding into the streets of EDSA in what would be known as People Power and overthrew President Marcos and his 20-year dictatorship and billions of $$$ of the country's money in their bank accounts.

Cory was proclaimed president. She had no political experience and the country suffered from the poor advice that was given by her Cabinet but still, it was she who was the reason the country was free from the dictator.

Fast forward to 2009 and 3 presidents later. People sick and tired of the corrupt government, Cory, living a private life but succumbing to colon cancer died in 2009. Suddenly the spark of unity that brought People Power and was long thought gone was rekindled. Thousands if not millions of people lined the several kilometers of roads from the church where her wake was held to the cemetery where she would be buried. The whole nation paid tribute to the lady who brought democracy back to the Philippines...

... and then these show of massive gratitude gave some people the idea to persuade Cory's son, Noynoy to run for president in the just concluded elections. He didn't want to nor did he plan to. But maybe the pressure was too much that he agreed to run for president.

Like his mother, it really appears that he has the Nation's best interests in heart. But like his mother he isn't really experienced (even if he already is a senator). Maybe if it was a dictator he was running against, his relative inexperience would not matter. But restoring the image of a democratic but corrupt government needs more than a good heart.

For the first time, there were presidential candidates who needed to change the country but the people used their hearts and not their minds.

Maybe we made the right deciscion, Maybe.

The Stereotypes

I just got back from a 4-day medical mission in a province north of Metro Manila. It was my first time to meet most of the members of the team and I couldn’t help but observe and classify the guys who were there.

the ALPHA MALE BORN LEADER- this guy takes the lead naturally and has everyone in the palm of his hands without even knowing it. His charisma and charm (it doesn’t hurt that he’s physically attractive) is so strong that male and female alike follow his lead. Even kids and those a lot older than him are taken by his charm. I have no idea how he does it but somehow he manages to make time for everyone, moving from circle to circle like a politician on the campaign trail, and no one feels left out. He even manages to help out on the smallest requests. Our host described him as an open book but I disagree, despite somehow being able to have time for everyone, he strikes me as being aloof someone or hiding something. But maybe it really is just lonely at the top.

the JOKER - unlike the nemesis of batman, this guy isn’t always laughing or smiling. Yet, even with a straight face, he manages to get everyone laughing with his comments. He even gets away with what would normally be considered rude and sarcastic remarks without anyone feeling hurt.

the CLOWN - maybe 2nd to the alpha make in charm and charisma, this guy’s jokes may not be as funny as the joker’s but the combination of his jokes and antics draw people to him. And his baby face lets him get away with almost anything.

the THINKER - maybe the eldest in the group. He has seen a lot more in life than most of us. He manages not to be aloof yet is quiet and reserved. He has this aura of mystery that people are drawn to him because of curiosity.

the GEEK - is the guy who already has very thick glasses and yet has to hold things very very close to be able to read and see them properly. He has the typical gait while walking - the upper body seemingly pulling the legs and feet. He talks about intellectual stuff like world history. And he is oblivious to people around him making him appear self-centered.

the LOVESTRUCK guy - the only one patient enough to put up with the geek. Is always after advice on how to impress the girl he’s infatuated with. Seems like puppy love to me.

the NO-NONSENSE guy - is a bit less quiet and reserved than the thinker but is easily irritated by time-wasting activity. He’s always straight to the point.

the WORKER - muscular build, few words and always gets the job done without complaints. Yet he’s the one whom I think notices my irritation with the last guy:

the CLUELESS guy - is absolutely out of touch with what’s going on. He tries to be funny but has no idea that his comments are jokes are neither funny or harmless. His timing is always off. So is his pitch. Yet he has no idea how annoying he is.

A Working Democracy

This past May 10, 2010 about 40 million (out of an estimated 90 million) Filipinos went to polling precincts and cast their votes for the person who would lead the country for the next 6 years.

It was the first election where I, and most people really felt the need for change. We are all tired of the present government. Even the media has taken steps to encourage people to vote.

It was also the first time I can remember that there actually were candidates who were worth voting for and not just the usual ones who appealed so popular sentiment but had no brains for the job. This time there were candidates who actually had concrete plans for the country.

Another thing that made this day important was that it would be the first ever automated elections. The automation process which started months ago has been criticized several times and I still think that those in charge were either very stupid or very cunning. This election would test that.

 

We got up early and walked through streets filled with propaganda material to get to the precinct early and be able to vote. It turned out that the automated elections were somehow causing the rather technologically challenged public school teachers to be over vigilant and were rather rigid in the voting process. Lines of people stretched out. It took us 4 hours to vote!

 

Here is the controversial PCOS machine which would read the ballots and transmit the results to a central server for tallying.

We made a choice and I think the results show whom the people really voted for (a 7 million lead). Unfortunately, it turns out that we are sore losers. Facebook and Twitter are starting to fill up with with negative and even uncalled for comments for the next President even if he hasn’t even taken his post yet.

How easy it is to forget that we are the ones who chose and yet we are already washing our hands of the mistakes he hasn’t even made yet. We still have a lot of growing to do. But I believe that the future is a bit brighter already.