The Freudian Slip Of A Bacolodnon

The week before DC week was kind of like a hectic week. Last Monday and Tuesday were field trip days. Monday was spent in Springfield, Illinois where we visited the Lincoln Presidential Museum. It was definitely a great experience. I loved the 3D theater presentation they had on "Ghosts of the Library". The effects just blew my mind away. Before going to the Museum though, we dropped by New Salem where we were transported back to time in the late 1800s. After the Museum, we all went to the house were Abraham Lincoln lived while he was working as a lawyer in Springfield. Tuesday, we crossed the Mississippi river, went to Duburque, Iowa and visited their Mississippi National River Museum. We also visited Lock and Dam No. 11, one of the dams built over this historic River. Wednesday morning was spent in a Forest Reserve just within DeKalb county where we planted trees in a wetland within the reserve. The afternoon of the same day was spent for a panel discussion on NGOs. Thursda...

There was some problem with the music but the Filipino students just kept on dancing, showing the Filipino spirit and pride, that nothing can stop us from our goal, from our purpose, from enjoying life. Way to go, Team Agila!

The First week has been loaded for us SEAYLPers here at NIU. The week was filled with workshops, sessions and field trip. During the first week, we got to meet our new friends from Burma, Thailand and Indonesia. I got to meet and know my fellow adult leaders (all of whom are English teachers) from other countries. I am the only medical doctor in the group. It was during the first week as well that we got to meet and stay in our host families. I am staying with the Kostrey's in DeKalb and they are a beautiful family. John is a pediatrician and Millie is a retired teacher. Both are living active lives, love to take long walks and do some gardening as well. They have a beautiful house with a beautiful backyard. They are taking good care of me and we would always have interesting conversations during breakfast or dinner. They both want to know a lot about the Philippines and they too are very willing to share about their own experiences in DeKalb and in Slovakia. Throughout our convers...

After a long long trip from Manila to Chicago (and after almost losing our luggage at the airport), the Filipino SEAYLPers finally arrived in Dekalb, Illinois. So far, the past 3 days have been fun (and chilly) and the kids are enjoying their experience of America. I am loving it too although I was feeling kind of homesick. I miss my family back home and during the second day of the training I received some bad news from my family. My close cousin died of complications of her diabetes last Friday and it almost broke my heart. She was a close cousin and she always have been there for me when I was little. She is even the godmother of one of my kids. I will miss her dearly. When I attended mass last Saturday here at NIU Newmann Catholic Center, I was almost fighting my tears. The music was beautiful, the chapel was beautiful and the sermon was great. It reminded me of my family, and my late cousin. In a few minutes now, my host family will pick me up together with 32 other delegates. I a...

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Life is a journey. It may sound so cliche but it is. Even before we learned how to walk, we were already traveling. In our sojourn down the alley of our life, we have encountered so many co-travelers, some heading the same direction, others going exactly the opposite. The travel can be a confusing experience, fighting our way against the crowd, pushing and squeezing ourselves through. There are days when the traveling can be lonely, walking alone on a dirt road, with no soul in sight. Sometimes, traveling can be fun, filled with humor and laughter. Then the rain would come and ruin the party. We walk moving forward, at times, more determined by the sight of the nearing destination. Oftentimes we try walking backwards, looking back at the road we have already traveled, reminiscing in a pace where we can find time to recollect memories. Life is a journey and we travel in so many ways in so many means with so many people. Along the way we were able to encounter new names, recognize old fa...

"Home is the wallpaper above the bed, the family dinner table, the church bells in the morning, the bruised shins of the playground, the small fears that come with dusk, the streets and squares and monuments and shops that constitute one's first universe." - Henry Anatole Grunwald