Talumpati: OFW, ang ating bayani

Una po sa lahat ay binabati ko ang bawat isa sa atin ng isang magandang araw!

OFW. Yun ang kadalasan naririnig natin palagi sa telebisyon, sa radyo, sa mga kaibagan, o kahit saan-saan. Ano nga ba talaga ang OFW? OFW o Overseas Filipino Workersay tawag sa mga Pilipino na pumupunta sa ibang bansa para magtrabaho. Nagtatrabaho sila sa ibang bansa dahil mas malaki ang kita doon.

Para sa iba, akala nila masarap ang buhay ng mga OFW pero hindi nila alam na marahas ang kanila pinagdaanan. Marami ngayon mga balita na pag-aabuso, pang-aapi, at ginugutom ng mga amo dahuyan ang mga Pilipino sa ibang bansa. Meron din iba na hindi makauwi sa Pilipinas ng buhay kundi bangkay na lamang. Akala nila mabuti palagi ang kalagayan ng mga OFW. Lingid sa kaalaman ng marami na pilit nila nilalabanan ang pagod, puyat, sakit at matinding pananabik na makita at makasama ang mga mahal nila sa buhay.

Iniwan nila ang kanilang pamilya papunta sa ibang bansa para alagain ang mga  tao na hindi naman nila kaano-ano. Minsan nga, hindi sila makapunta sa mga importante na pangyayari ng kanilang mga anak dahil lamang nahihirapan sila kumita ng pera para sa kanila. Gusto ba nila nito? Syempre hindi pero ginawa pa rin nila para sa kanilang pamilya upang bigyan sila ng maganda na kinabukasan. 

Meron palagi dalawang desisyon ang mga OFW. Mananatili sila dito sa Pilipinas kasama ang kanilang pamilya ngunit hindi sila makakita ng malaking pero o magtrabaho sa ibang bansa para sa isang maganda na trabaho ngunit hindi nila makasama ang kanila mga mahal sa buhay. Hindi madali para sa mga OFW magdesisyon dahil sa bawat pagpipilian, may kapalit.

Kaya, sa mga kabataan na may OFW na magulang, huwag kayo magalit kapag hindi maibigay ng mga magulang mo ang gusto mo kaagad sa ibang bansa dahil hindi pinupulot ang pera kung saan-saan lamang. At para naman sa mga kabataan na makasama mo ang iyong mga magulang, bigayan sila ng importansya. Sa huli ka lang magsisi sa ginawa mo sa kanila kapag mawala na sila sa katabi mo. 

Alam ko na hindi naman natin maiintindihan kung bakit nila ito ginagawa. Pero sa huli natin ito maintindihan, kapag mga magulang na tayo at may mga anak, kung bakit kailangan ito ginagawa ng ating mga magulang. Pero klaro na ito sa akin na ang isang dahilan kung bakit ay dahil mahal nila tayo at handa papasukin ang lahat na bagay para lamang sa ikabubuti natin.

BAZOOKA ROCKS III: ECHOSMITH

        Bazooka Rocks is the first annual Philippine indoor rock festival that started on 2012. It's a two-day concert featuring some of the best foreign and local bands of today. Since it's a two-day concert, we decided to come at the second day of the show which includes; You Me at Six, We Are The in Crowd, The Summer Set, Echosmith, Coldrain, and many more! If I had one word to describe this concert, it would be epic. Why? You'll know why. 

      We haven't really seen the whole performance of Coldrain because me and my sister were already preparing for the meet and greet of The Summer Set. Unfortunately, picture's are not allowed. Sucks right? Well, we got to see the last part of their performance and they are a good band.

ECHOSMITH

           After the performance of Coldrain, me and my older sister were walking slowly towards the front row while some people are sitting waiting for the next band, Echosmith, to perform. Echosmith is an indie band that consists of siblings who range from 15-21. Pretty young, right? But listening to their music makes it clear that the siblings have some real talent. 

       Before their performace, the siblings were fixing their stuffs on stage covering their faces. Everyone was screaming because covering yourself isn't obvious (note sarcasm). The band started with "Ran Off in The Night" and the crowd was already screaming at the top of their lungs. Well, who wouldn't? 

      Echosmith has a bright future ahead of them because the future is always bright for talented young artists like them.

                     

Meaning of Life

        I went with my dad early morning at Guimbal to swim with the dogs. I decided to take pictures of the beach as the sun rises. While taking pictures of the beach, I saw these children playing and I enjoyed taking pictures of them playing something like mermaid stuff. When I was younger, me and my sisters played a lot at the beach and acting like mermaids. 

        But looking at them was more than that. It made me thought of most of us today. Here we are, spending our days mostly in beds and slowly dying in front of our computers or gadgets, shutting our doors. We can stare at the stars, and not just at our screens. The first and last thing we hold after and before sleeping is our phone or gadget. I can't stand hearing the silence of a restaurant because most of the people around me are using their gadget. We came here to talk and not look like robots. The children today thinks it's the normal because we, the older people, are all doing it and they're just copying it. We all wished that we're thinner, happier, full of regrets because we are always caught in the net. We should be like the kids on the picture, living life the real way.

ATRING

           While me and my dad were walking towards the hill to take pictures at the place where he used to go in his childhood times, we saw an old woman just walking, alone, smoking tobacco. My dad asked me if I wanted to take a picture of her for my next drawing. I said no because I have no clue. Maybe I was shy? 

          We were walking towards the hill for almost an hour but we decided to return to my grandmother's house because I was exhausted. We were already walking towards my grandmother's house and already walking for an hour. We saw the old woman again, walking under the heat of the sun, smoking tobacco. Because I was amazed, we approached her and ask a few questions before I took her picture. Her name is Atring. My dad introduced himself and told her that he is a Garibay hoping that he might know my lola.

          After the long walk, I showed my picture of Lola Atring to my other lola, Lola Lica. She told me that she knows her and said that Lola Atring knows my grandmother but just forgot because she was also a teacher like my grandmother. She told me that she walks everyday on a rocky path from her daughter's house and walks for so long to visit her old house, alone, smoking her tobacco.

         

Humans of Iloilo City (HOIC)

Last time, I went to Iloilo Central Market to take pictures of people's daily lives to practice photography and also use some of my pictures as my reference. I got shy at first because it feels weird for me to approach a stranger and take a picture of them but luckily my dad did all the talking and the next minute I was already laughing with them. 

I always like drawing or looking at pictures of homeless people because their eyes always tells a story. I might not know their whole story but their eyes says it all. I drew the old woman at the top photo because I was inspired. She sells vegetables just to earn a living. With the high level corruption in our country, the old woman despite of her handicap, manages to earn an honest living.