Usapang Pangkababaihan lalong laluna pang Pinay sa English kaya o Pilipino, pagsamahin natin ang mga pangarap, pagtingin, pananaw sa mundong ginagalawan natin.
Let's weave a tapestry of our voices, knowledge and dreams. Let's enrich our lives with these treasures.
Two important happenings in a day. One, the traditional Mother's Day falling on the second Sunday of May and the other one is the State election in North Rhine-Westphalia. Above are some of the posters which are still hanging on some lamp posts in our village and the local papers for the day. The winners will be left hanging there for a while with renewed posters saying thanks to the voters while the losers would surely be removed even on the night after election. Now, we will just to have to wait which promises would be kept...no more tuition fees for example and which colors of parties would form a coalition. In the meantime, we would still see lots of talk shows and interviews with political personalities and hear the reasons for their victory or defeat.
Blessed be my brain that I may conceive of my own power. Blessed be my breast that I may give sustenance to those I love. Blessed be my womb that I may create what I choose to create. Blessed be my knees that I may bend so as not to break. Blessed be my feet that I may walk in the path of my highest will.
(Photo is taken from Koelner Stadt Anzeiger. Photographer: Kathy Stolzenbach) Spring weather since start of the week. Am feeling thankful for wishes granted and did a short walk in the village into the open fields colored now yellow, green and brown. Sunny first day in May. While demonstrations are being planned in most cities by labour unions with Berlin's First of May demonstration getting the most media coverage, I'm on the lookout for these Maibaueme in our neighborhood. Yesterday, I saw a young man riding on a bike carrying a Maibaum which was still wrapped in a white net...a modern Romeo carrying the proof of his love. When will he put it up, I was wondering and where? Got the trees but did not see any lovers outside. Maybe they are all still sleeping from the late dancing on the eve of May 1st. Ending my brisk walking at the neigborhood flower shop, I saw a young man carrying a pot of a tall hibiscus plant to the cashier. He is more practical, I thought. I waited for my turn to pay for my two bottles of white wine for my Romeo...well, also for me to drink with our first asparagus for this season, our first asparagus in the month of May.
Capturing the splendour of a Dutch spring season in some photos taken during my visit to Keukenhof this April. Theme for this year: From Russia with Love
"Art is still not where you think you're going to find it."...from the French artist, Patrick Mimran. I was reading it our local papers Koelner-Stadt-Anzeiger featuring the preparation for this year's Art Cologne. Stealing the limelight from this event is the eruption of Eyjafjallajoekull vulcan in Iceland producing tons and tons of ashes in the atmosphere which caused chaos in all European airports and financial loses reaching more than 200 million dollars or 148 million Euro for airline companies per day. I'm wondering what happens to all those expensive airflown papayas and mangoes?
The weather this Friday is sunny but mostly cloudy. Would like to attribute it to the reported gathering of ash covering Western Europe caused by avulcan eruption in Iceland. I remember one news report mentioning that Pinatubo ashes were reaching as far as Munich when it erupted in 1991. Hmmmm, how many extinct volcanoes are there actually in Germany, I wonder.
Was shortly at the city today and got attracted to these colorfully clad girls munching bread in front of this huge bakery in Cologne. They seemed to be preparing for something and I waited. Soon they were spreading their Isomatten/mats. Screaming and whistling followed. I found out that they were candidates for Abitur, the school-leaving examinations for high school in Germany. To celebrate their graduation or finishing school, they planned to hold a five-day impromptu performances on the shopping streets of Cologne. Today was Fitness for fun. Asking some of them if they have especial message or why they are doing the instant shows, the answer was simply they want to have fun. School is over. University life starts soon.
Ordering pasalubongs is now easier...even the last minute pasalubong order is possible with our access to internet and texting possibilities. As hubby was doing a reportage during the Easter week in Wow Country, I was pestering him this time to bring me Pasalubong, not the big travel souvenirs as dust collectors but just heavenly tasting Ube Halaya, a especialty of my elder sister, and the world famous hopyas from Chinatown. It is my third order for hopyas and no one as of writing has been successful in getting them. I heard during my brief visit in Holland that bags are now rigidly controlled, opened and even contents are thrown away which as you could imagine cause so much heartaches for returning Pin@y travellers. A returning Pinay lost the content of her delayed suitcase which I learned later to be packs of tuyo (dried fish) and maybe other intriguingly smelling goodies from the home country. I wonder what happens to such confiscated goodies? Thrown away, feed to the sniffing dogs or brought home as doggie bags by Customs/airport officials and workers who know by now that such smelling goodies could only enrich their taste buds and culinary experience. When the dear "kabiyak ng puso" returned recently from a reportage travel in the Wow Country, he surprised me with packs of Pasalubongs which I religiously reminded him to bring back: my ube halaya (sweet violet yam jam), mangoes and pandisal. There were small packets of dried, mini-mini anchovies, (dilis) dried kamias, some pieces of Kalamansi (native citrus), small heads of native garlic (hubby's most fav travel souvernir in addition to his books), first home-grown papaya from my elder sister who also did this labour of love in preparing the Yam jam, small packets of sampaloc and other Phlippine spices. What a especial treat from hubby who is learning to capitulate to the texting and emailings of wifey for these treasures from the homeland. Forecast this weekend is sunny and with these precious Pasalubongs to enjoy, I would not care if it rains cats and dogs again. Meanwhile, hubby is still sleeping, recuperating from the heroic act as Pasalubong carrier.
In return for his consideration, I think I would let him indulge in his passion for garlic and just bear the garlicky days ahead in our flat. Nope, he also did not get the world famous hopyas from Chinatown. Nabitin na talaga ang hopyas!
...there's a never ending refrain in the return of nature, once reading it but could not remember the author but I sent the greetings to nice friends and social networking contacts adding that whatever beliefs you have, have a nice Easter. As additional blog post, I'm pasting here a short info on what Easter is all about. I thought the word must be lacking in letter N when I was learning English some light years away. It reminds me all the time of a Manang Ester we had, actually two Manang Ester (Manang-older sister)and thought then they had beautiful, meaningful names, Ester. So here's the brief info I found in another sites It is celebrated as the religious holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Easter is also the time of spring festivals. But the celebrations of Easter have many aspects that are pagan in origin and not associated with Christianity. The name Easter is thought to come from the goddess of mythology "Eastre,". She is associated with spring and fertility. Her festival was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox. Traditions associated with her festival survive in the Easter Bunny, a symbol of fertility, and in colored easter eggs that were painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring and given as gifts. The Christian celebration of Easter encompasses a number of traditions with emphasis on the relation of Easter to the Jewish Passover. The early Christians, many of whom were of Jewish origin, were brought up in the Hebrew tradition and regarded Easter as a new feature of the Passover festival, a commemoration of the advent of the Savior as foretold by the prophets. Easter is observed on the first Sunday following the full moon that occurs on or following the spring equinox (March 21). So Easter became a feast which can occur as early as March 22 or as late as April 25. Easter is at the end of Lent. The Lent is a period of penitence in preparation for Easter. Lent ends with Easter Sunday, the day of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. http://persiankittens.net/Easter/
My Easter Thoughts Earl J. Prignitz March 31, 2007 The Resurrection is the most important event in the life of the Christian Church! Not the birth of Jesus, nor his ministry, nor his crucifixion are as critical as his Resurrection from the grave. Obviously the Resurrection could not have happened without the previous phenomenons occuring. But without the Resurrection the Church of Jesus Christ would not have survived these many years. That is my conviction and I hold it strongly. I have been convinced of this for many years.
After the crucifixion and burial of their master the disciples were terrified and disconsolate men, hiding fearfully behind barred doors in an upper room in Jerusalem. They trembled at every knock on the door; they feared the same fate that had befallen Him. But after they had been convinced--and they were not easily assured, as the various Resurrection narratives make quite clear-- they were men transformed. Fear was transformed into courage, uncertainty into a strong and radiant faith. Immediatly they were out in the open streets of the city that had dealt so brutally with their master, proclaiming with passion and joy the great salvation that had been wrought through this mighty vindication of His son by the almighty God. The Resurrection has very little to do with spring, except that we celebrate Easter then. There is some symbolism involved in those Easter eggs, in the idea of new life emerging, in the budding of trees and the appearance of flowers, and in the earth's recovering from the death-grip of winter. But the Resurrection is so much more.
The Resurrection is the power of God which raised Jesus Christ from death to life. Ephesians speaks of that power "which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms..." (Eph 1:20, NIV). That is the Resurrection! It transcends season, and it even by-passes revered religious rites and rituals, because it is centered in the dust and trauma, the blood, sweat, tears, hopes, and dreams of all human existence.
Yes, the Resurrection is the Good News that there is life after death and we can look forward to it with great anticipation. HAPPY EASTER! I am a retired Friends pastor - 93 years of age and a dedicated peace lover. I have been a pacifist for well over 70 years. I spent 39 years of my life in one form of ministry or another in 4 different states. I am now living in Friends Fellowship Community and have been for over 9 years after suffering from two strokes just prior to that. I am married for the second time to a lovely woman named Rosalie.My first wife died in 1996 after we were married for over 61 years. From http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/23159 ****************************************************** Happy Easter whatever your beliefs are.
Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 22:07:00 03/28/2010
Filed Under: Government
IT was when Philippine Ambassador to Germany and former foreign secretary Delia Albert received the “Most Outstanding Filipino Woman in Global Diplomacy” award from President Macapagal-Arroyo in ceremonies in Malacañang that she received confirmation, from the President herself, of the swirling rumors. She was being replaced.
The smile-while-I-stick-the-knife-in-your-back announcement was part of a wave of recent presidential appointments, all made despite the election-period ban. Justice Secretary Alberto Agra, himself a new appointee, said there was “nothing irregular” with the latest round of mass hirings and dismissals. In a sense, he was right. Albert’s sudden replacement, together with other secretive appointments such as those involving the National Historical Institute and the National Museum, are in fact characteristic of Ms Arroyo’s management style. The last-minute advice to affected parties, the general lack of transparency (the Senate and House representatives to the board of the National Museum, for instance, were not informed of a key meeting), the strained rationalizations offered after the fact and, above all, the plain lack of courtesy—this recent wave of appointments has the President’s signature down to the last flourish.
The rationalizing of her spokespersons was characteristic too. The Palace had violated the strict protocols that govern diplomatic appointments, in part by skipping certain necessary steps, but all deputy spokesman Gary Olivar could say was: “No, it wasn’t hasty.” And that was that; no elaboration or explanation.
If it wasn’t hasty, why wasn’t Albert told well beforehand, following the usual 60-day recall notice, so that she could prepare for her return and advise the German foreign ministry? If it wasn’t hasty, why did the announcement of her replacement by the 87-year-old taipan Alfonso Yuchengco catch the Department of Foreign Affairs flatfooted? A DFA spokesperson was left to say, awkwardly: “We have learned of Yuchengco’s appointment but we have not received official copy of his appointment. Ambassador Albert stays so far.”
More crucial is the fact of replacement. Why would the Philippines appoint a new ambassador to Germany who can, at most, and assuming all legal obstacles are hurdled, serve for only three months? Yuchengco, the man behind Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. and other business interests, served the country as ambassador, at various times, to Japan, China and the United Nations. But even a diplomat with his experience cannot hope to do anything substantial in a mere three months.
The president of the Union of Foreign Service Officers, Assistant Secretary Vicky Bataclan, expressed her peers’ main concern. “Our beef is that Mr. Alfonso Yuchengco’s appointment is void. There is no Commission on Appointments to confirm his nomination, which is [needed for] the necessary steps, like requesting his agrément from the German government. In any case, all political ambassadors are coterminous with [the President]. This is, thus, a useless nomination to a nonexistent CA, almost void ab initio, if not unconstitutional.”
Like we said, characteristic of the President’s management style.
There is also the matter of the election ban. In the Supreme Court’s most controversial ruling to date, it decided that the President could appoint the Chief Justice even during election season, when the Constitution expressly prohibits appointments except for urgent requirements in the Executive. The President’s latest wave of appointments crashes against the breakwater of this decision (it certainly makes the majority justices even more vulnerable to accusations of being used, whether willfully or naively, by a Machiavellian administration).
Belatedly, administration spokespersons have argued that the latest appointments were all done before March 10, the date the election ban started. But one of those dismissed, Clarence Paul Oaminal, until very recently vice chairman of the Dangerous Drugs Board, gave the lie to the Palace’s party line.
When he was informed of his misfortune, he said, he found out that his dismissal was made retroactive to March 5, or before the election ban took effect. Expect the same unkindest cut to be tried with Albert and the rest.
There might not be any sun this weekend but my dear neighbor Ursula S.was a shinning source of joy when she knocked on our door and just handed me this bunch of tulips saying "for simply being a nice neighbor," and she meant me! She declined to be my friend in Facebook as she wouldn't want to have anything to do with any social networking. I also prefer her that way...a friend, a thoughtful neighbor in person and not just per clicking in virtual life. Hmmmm, how do I return such simple gestures of niceness when her husband got threatened when I knock on their door with a plate of fingergoodies to taste. Would you care for a freshly brewed gumamela (hibiscus) tea, dear Mr. S.?
"It's spring again and the birds on the wing again start to sing again the old melody" Frank Sinatra
According to the calendar,it is the official start of Spring, March 20. Time to change the wardrobe, maybe get a new haircut, new hair color,out of the greying zone, get friends for brunch in street cafes, check on the few potted tulips in the terrace. Emma B., a friend who has a green thumb even for cultivating Alugbati* inside their house suggested to loosen the soil a bit so the tulips get out of their wintry hiding. Nothing of that sort happens yet so one buys ready to go tulips from the supermarket and gets out with thick jacket and gloves not forgetting the handy umbrella. *Alugbati...I wrote the usual what is alugbati in English, googled it and got this answer: Malabar Night Shade. Other source said it is a kind of spinach. One more point learned while waiting for spring.
I love drinking coffee even if I am alone. Solo eating, no. In Frankfurt, I found this place recommended by friends who also frequent this cafe. For this set of croissant with cappuccino rather caffe macchiato you pay 4.90Euro. Nice nook to read or just to observe.
For those who are thinking of visiting some cities in Germany, here are some photos I took while visiting Frankfurt. Photos show the area near Dom/Roemer, the magnet for all tourists. Just to give you a rough idea how much fare costs: With ICE train from Cologne to Frankfurt and back, about 112 Euro. Check for cheaper tickets with German trains. Trains could be b....expensive in Germany.
Sunday, March 14 Another rainy and grey Sunday this month of March. Have to fight the addiction to click to my Farm and talk to some avatars in this small network of buddies I have created since I started virtual farming. You really miss them and that's what this game is all about...you have your own mini world of contacts, not just the thrill of getting XP experience points and coins from virtual harvesting, plowing and planting...you get wishes, greetings, small talks, weather checks from countries of your buddies, their work situation. I have one dancing partner every now and then, and one woman who calls me Hun...or ends her sentence with that term. Funny, but endearing somehow.So while waiting for my pineapples to mature and hating the thought that I have to sort papers out again, I'm getting back to blogging...adding spice to my own private conversation. I bumped into Manuel last Saturday while rushing to get my train home. He said he had just returned from Lissabon the other day but mentioned about a visiting Portuguese author who is participating in this yearly LitCol, http://litcolony.de/ said to be the biggest of its kind in Europe, a literary event.
What I have been missing by being a virtual farmer? Read not reap the virtual fruits...the new slogan for me.
So ein Mann, so ein Mann...a long night of showing compassion for
the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.
George Clooney opened the concert with the message that "at the
core of every religion is the belief that we take care of one
another."
Hmmmm, more glamoruous men like him but hopefully less
catastrophies in the world.
The much awaited blue moon on the eve of the new year...this one I saw when woking up early morning of the first day of the new year. Not so bluish but the same moon. Symbols to welcome the new year...olie bollen, grapes, and sticky rice cake "palitaw"...all things round to get luck in the new year. Our first film for the year...It's Complicated...and so with the posting of the photo...pure entertainment...go see it and have a good releasing laugh watching veteran actors Meryl Streep, Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin act out complications in human relationships i. e. marriage, family, divorce and falling in love. It's complicated
Still no sign of snow be neighbors' chimneys are all giving out smoke signals. A friend sent message that they have snowflakes this morning somewhere in Bonn. It seems everyone is just waiting for the first snowfall. In Copenhagen, another friend is sending invites to friends to join the big demonstration for climate protection and appeal to the UN Climate Change Conference participants to make Copenhagen conference a big breakthrough in keeping their responsibilities for protecting our planet. First of the 9th day before Christmas...Paul McCartney performs tonight in Cologne. Cross-posting here the most famous song in our planet earth...Yesterday... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WqdAgl2cfM
"Recognition of human dignity of all people is the foundation of justice and peace in the world."
I'm posting a copy of the open letter of the German Federation of Journalists to the Ambassador of the Philippines to Germany on the Ampatuan/Maguindanao massacre on November 23, 2009.
Letter of International Federation of Journalists (Germany) to Philippine Ambassador Share Today at 02:55 9 December 2009
RE: Massacre in the Philippines
Your Excellency,
The German Journalists Union (DJU in ver.di) respectfully requests your cooperation in ensuring the Government of the Philippines is aware of the global outrage about the massacre of a confirmed 59 people in Maguindanao Province, Mindanao, on November 23.
We urge you to use your authority and position to impress upon your Government that the global community is demanding immediate and credible action to ensure that all parties responsible for this atrocity are held accountable to the full limit of the law.
We are informed by the International Federation of Journalists and its affiliate the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines that at least 30 journalists and media workers were among those murdered. At the time of writing, another four media personnel are unaccounted for.
This is the worst mass killing of journalists and media workers ever recorded.
Journalists and the international media community are grieving and distraught at the failure of the Government of the Philippines to uphold its responsibility to protect our colleagues and to end the long-running culture of impunity for the murders of journalists in the Philippines.
During President Arroyo’s tenure, at least 75 journalists have been killed in the Philippines. Almost all have been killed in relation to their professional work. At last count, only four convictions had been secured for these killings. Outside of Iraq, the Philippines has become the most dangerous country for journalists this century.
The Government of the Philippines is obliged under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1738 (2006) to actively protect journalists and media workers reporting in conflict zones within their national borders, in accordance with their status as civilians under international law.
We call on you to ensure your Government and police and security forces act on their responsibility to bring the perpetrators and masterminds of the November 23 atrocity to account, without delay, and to act now to end the culture of impunity that has plagued the Philippines for so long.
Respectfully Yours,
Ulrike Maercks-Franzen General Secretary of German Journalists Union dju in ver.di
Still feeling so empty and sad since this Nov. 23 Ampatuan massacre. I started looking for songs and I found this link with YouTube featuring this Italian song I heard when I was in Italy this summer...domani. Tomorrow. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4B5Yzh84xg
wondering if the site will accept the two posted sites.
Now the lyrics of the Italian song:
Originally Posted by bellacomeilsole
Tra le nuvole e i sassi passano i sogni di tutti Between the clouds and the stones the dreams of everyone pass
passa il sole ogni giorno senza mai tardare. (Tiziano Ferro) the sun passes every day without ever being late
Dove sarò domani? (Enrico Ruggeri) Where will I be tomorrow?
Dove sarò? (Gianni Morandi) Where will I be?
Tra le nuvole e il mare c’è una stazione di posta (Franco Battiato) Between the clouds and the sea there is a coaching inn (la stazione di posta is a place where wayfarers used to stop in order to get some rest)
uno straccio di stella messa lì a consolare (Massimo Ranieri) a tear of a star put there to comfort
sul sentiero infinito (Max Pezzali) on the infinite path
del maestrale (Eugenio Finardi) of the northwest wind
Day by day (Zucchero) Day by day (Cesare Cremonini) hold me shine on me. (Zucchero) shine on me (Cesare Cremonini) Day by day save me shine on me (Zucchero, Carmen Consoli, Mauro Pagani, Cesare Cremonini, Eugenio Finardi)
Ma domani, domani, domani, lo so (Francesco Renga) But tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow, I know
Lo so che si passa il confine, (Roberto Vecchioni) I know that it passes through the confines (lit. I know that the borders will be passed)
E di nuovo la vita (Mauro Pagani) and again life
sembra fatta per te (Giuliano Palma) seems [to be] made for you
e comincia (Elio) and it begins
domani (Elio e Le Storie Tese, Vittorio Cosma ) tomorrow
domani è già qui (Jovanotti) tomorrow is already here
rap 1 Estraggo un foglio nella risma, nascosto scrivo e non riesco forse perché il sisma m’ha scosso (Caparezza) I pull out a piece in the ream, [being] hidden I write and don't succeed maybe because the earthquake shocked me
rap 2 Ogni vita che salvi, ogni pietra che poggi, fa pensare a domani ma puoi farlo solo oggi (Frankie Hi Energy) Every life that you save, every stone that you place, it makes you think about tomorrow but you can only do (it) today
e la vita la vita si fa grande così (Gianluca Grignani) and life, life is made big like this
e comincia domani (Giuliano Sangiorgi) and it begins tomorrow
Tra le nuvole e il mare si può fare e rifare (Claudio Baglioni) Between the clouds and the sea you can make and repair
con un pò di fortuna (Ron) with a little luck
si può dimenticare. (Luca Carboni) you can forget
Dove sarò (Baustelle) Where will I be?
domani? Dove sarò? (Samuele Bersani e Baustelle) tomorrow, where will I be?
rap 3 Dove sarò domani che ne sarà dei miei sogni infranti, dei miei piani Dove sarò domani, tendimi le mani, tendimi le mani (Marracash) Where will I be tomorrow, what will become of my shattered dreams, of my plans. Where will I be tomorrow, stretch out your hands to me, stretch out your hands to me
Tra le nuvole e il mare si può andare e andare (Laura Pausini) Between the clouds and the sea you can go and go
sulla scia delle navi di là del temporale (Carmen Consoli) in the wake of the ships beyond the storm
e qualche volta si vede (Nek) and sometimes you see
domani (Antonello Venditti) tomorrow
una luce di prua (Nek) a light of the prow
e qualcuno grida: Domani (Antonello Venditti) and someone yells: tomorrow
rap 4 Come l’aquila che vola Like an eagle that flies
libera tra il cielo e i sassi, siamo sempre diversi e siamo sempre gli stessi, free among the sky and the stones we are always different and we are always the same
hai fatto il massimo e il massimo non è bastato e non sapevi piangere e adesso you did the maximum (you did your best) and the maximum wasn't enough and you didn't know how to cry and now
che hai imparato non bastano le lacrime ad impastare il calcestruzzo that you learned the tears aren't enough to blend the concrete
eccoci qua cittadini d’Abruzzo here are the citizens of Abruzzo
e aumentano d’intensità le lampadine una frazione di the intensity of the lamps grows a fraction of
secondo prima della finee la tua mamma, of a second before the end your mother
la tua patria da ricostruire, your love of the land to reconstruct
comu le scole, le case e specialmente lu core as well as the schools, the houses but especially the heart e puru nu postu cu facimu l’amore eppure un posto dove facciamo l'amore (guessing)- and a place to make love (Jovanotti, J Ax, Fabri Fibra e in chiusura Sud Sound System)
non siamo così soli (Giuliano Sangiorgi) we are not so alone
a fare castelli in aria (J Ax e Fabri Fibra) in building castles in the sky (air)
non siamo così soli (Giuliano Sangiorgi) we are not alone
sulla stessa barca (J Ax , Fabri Fibra) on the same ship
non siamo così soli (Giorgia) we are not alone
a fare castelli in aria (J Ax e Fabri Fibra) in building castles in the sky
non siamo così soli (Giorgia) we are not alone
a stare bene in Italia (J Ax e Fabri Fibra) in being well in Italy
sulla stessa barca (J Ax) on the same ship
a immaginare un nuovo giorno in Italia (Giorgia, Giusy Ferreri, Dolcenera, Mario Venuti, Jovanotti, J Ax, Fabri Fibra) in imagining a new day in Italy
Tra le nuvole e il mare si può andare, andare Sulla scia delle navi di là dal temporale (Piero Pelù) Qualche volta si vede una luce di prua e qualcuno grida, domani (Morgan) Non siamo così soli (Giorgia, Mario Venuti, Giusy Ferreri, Dolcenera, Giuliano Sangiorgi) (tromba solo di Roy Paci) Domani è già qui Domani è già qui (Jovanotti, Marracash, FabriFibra, J Ax) (Assolo violino Mauro Pagani) Ma domani domani, domani lo so, lo so, che si passa il confine (Gianna Nannini) E di nuovo la vita sembra fatta per te e comincia (Elisa) domani (Sud Sound System) Tra le nuvole e il mare, si può fare e rifare Con un pò di fortuna si può dimenticare (Manuel Agnelli Afterhours) E di nuovo la vita, sembra fatta per te (Mango) E comincia (Niccolò Fabi) (coro finale) domani E domani domani, domani lo so Lo so che si passa il confine E di nuovo la vita sembra fatta per te E comincia domani
(Photo: Liza Tripoli. FaceBook:Justice for Ampatuan Massacre Victims)
Statement of the Mindanao Commission on Women 24 November 2009
Mindanao women outraged over Maguindanao carnage
No words can describe the bestial acts perpetrated yesterday in Maguindanao Against civilians, mostly women. Together with the group were two sisters and the wife of Esmael Mangudadatu, Vice Mayor of Buluan town, who were on their way to file his certificate of candidacy as provincial governor of Maguindanao when they were attacked in broad daylight. They were murdered in cold blood and there were reports that some of the women were also sexually violated, in a senseless massacre that will go down in the annals of this country’s history as the worst election-related violence. If unarmed women,lawyers and journalists are not safe, who is safe?
From news reports, the Vice Mayor was quoted to have said that he purposely sent his wife, sisters and female relatives to file his candidacy without military escorts as he believed that they would not be harmed being women and unarmed. But to his shock, the perpetrators precisely took advantage of this position of vulnerability and succeeded in committing those barbaric acts.
We, the Mindanao Commission on Women and the Mothers for Peace, express our outrage at this new low in bestiality perpetrated by men on civilians but most specially on women. If the reports that the women were violated are found true, we condemn it. Sexual violence is an issue of power, domination and control wielded by men over women. In times of conflict, it is used by men to ensure utter humiliation of the enemy.This latest incident by men, who are widely-believed to belong to a private army, makes us shudder at what will happen in the days ahead if these criminals and their principals are not brought to justice.
We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the Mangudadatu family. Eden Mangudadatu, sister of Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, and a Vice Mayor herself had attended activities of the Mindanao Commission on Women. It is ironic that early this year Eden participated in discussions of our project, “Women Healing Communities:Preventing and Reducing Rido (clan feuds)”. During the session, she shared her thoughts about rido and how women played an important role in settling cases of clan violence.
The barbaric and brutal massacre in Maguindanao shows the total breakdown of security in parts of Mindanao where many women and their families live in dehumanizing poverty and violent conflict. We call on President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo – as President and as a woman - to do the right thing:disband and disarm the private armies, bring down the full force of the law on the perpetrators, and rid Maguindanao and other parts of Mindanao of the scourge of warlordism. We also call on our colleagues and partners in the development community to stand unafraid to denounce this crime loud and clear. Let us continue to work for the end of conflicts that divide us, so that our children will grow up imbibing not anger, hatred and violence, but love,justice and peace.
As Mothers for Peace, we commit to continue our work for peace in the ways of peace.
The Mindanao Commission on Women and Mothers for Peace Movement
121 University Avenue, Juna Subdivision, Matina, Davao City
www.mindanaowomen.org
Telefax: (082) 298-40-31
About MCW
The Mindanao Commission on Women was established in 2001 as an NGO by Mindanao women leaders. Its mission is to influence public policy and public opinion. It advocates for a Mindanao peace and development agenda from a women’s perspective. Area Core Groups across Mindanao give MCW the ability to influence local, Mindanao and national issues. The Mothers for Peace movement is its grassroots base.
(Photo taken in Germany) Iroquois Thanksgiving Prayer (adapted) "We return thanks to our Mother, the Earth, which sustains us. We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supply us with water. We return thanks to all herbs, which furnish medicines for the cure of our diseases. We return thanks to the moon and stars, which have given to us their light when the sun was gone. We return thanks to the sun, that has looked upon the earth with a beneficent eye. Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit, in Whom is embodied all goodness, and Who directs all things for the good of Her children." -- Iroquois Prayer, adapted Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace
The first entry I saw this morning in my FB was the posting of my niece about the winning of Manny Pacquiao alias Pac Man...another honour for our suffering country, another entry in our history book, she wrote with such a pride. Wrote her, "thanks for the sharing but I'm not keen on boxing. I believe this is one of those sports which should be deleted from the world of sports..." Too much use of the same words I realized later. Sorry Pacquiao but I just hate that scene when people are screaming and rejoicing for more punches, infliction of pains. How could one enjoy this kind of entertainment?
In between posting,hubby called me asking me if I would like to see the video of the fight as posted in the daily inquirer. You bet, I did. They were talking about their sizes...rather their heights. Cotto seems to be taller than this raging Pinoy. Some punches here and there and after those brief moments, I left hubby who waited for the posted video to finish then asked me again to see another video entry showing Hilary Clinton talking about civil society and protection of human rights in the Philippines.
The Wall in the Mind Easterners Still Feel like Second-Class Citizens A new study confirms that Germans living in the former East Germany feel disadvantaged and resentful of the West. The study also finds higher levels of racism and Islamophobia in the East, while sexism remains stronger in the West. Nearly twenty years after the fall of the Berlin wall, what Germans refer to as the "wall in the mind" remains in place. The results of a long-term study released on Thursday by a team of 17 sociologists at the University of Bielefeld shows that resentments linger in part of the country that used to be communist East Germany. Some fear these resentments may drive rising levels of racism, anti-Semitism, and homophobia.
AP A new study shows that Germans living in the eastern part of the country resent the West. Fully 64 percent of eastern Germans feel treated as second-class citizens, while almost 75 percent feel disadvantaged in comparison with Germans in the west. Some 77 percent of easterners feel they are treated less fairly than those in the west, and 59 percent believe that the two halves of Germany have not yet grown together into a common society. Researchers worry these resentments bear a direct link to hostility towards minorities, which tends to be higher in the east and is rising in certain categories -- even as prejudice falls in the western part of the country. Across Germany as a whole, according to the Bielefeld study, the prejudice indices that rose this year from last year were racism, hostility toward entrenched privilege, and hostility toward the unemployed. But measures of Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and hostility toward the homeless all shot up in the East, while sinking in the West. The only index of prejudice that was clearly higher in the west was sexism -- although a different study released last week showed higher levels of anti-Semitism in western states, especially in Bavaria. "Prisoners of Their Own Self-Image" Wolfgang Thierse, vice-president of the German parliament and a native of the eastern German state of Thuringia, warned in an interview with the Berlin-based daily Tageszeitung that the results of the study were complex and shouldn't be ascribed to simple demographics. He said Islamophobia was higher in eastern Germany, for instance, even though fewer Muslims live there than in the west. And homelessness is viewed with special bitterness in the east even though long-term unemployment would seem to be a more menacing problem. "And here we always thought we east Germans were great ones for solidarity and justice!" Thierse joked. In his view, "socio-economic or socio-pyschological explanations" cannot fully account for the study's findings. "We also have to talk about the cultural, intellectual, and moral history of eastern Germany -- including the lingering impact of the GDR." He suggested that eastern Germans "feel like second-class citizens because they are caught in a prison of their own self-image." Even when presented with data showing that reunification had been good for eastern Germany, Thierse said, many continue to nurse resentments. "This self-image cliché that 'we are second-class citizens,'" he said, is such a strong a mental crutch "that facts which might attenuate this feeling are no longer taken into account." National Pride, Good or Bad? One potentially encouraging sign of the report was that levels of national pride and identification with Germany were up across all regions of the country, suggesting that residents of the former GDR are increasingly comfortable associating themselves with the new unified state. But Ulrich Wagner, a social psychologist who worked on the study, warned that growing affection for Germany could come at the cost of stoking xenophobia. Wagner told Tageszeitung "the rising identification with one's own country and the rising national pride also have negative consequences worth considering ... We should be cautious about all forms of national identification, if Germany and the Germans want to behave in a cosmopolitan way." Thierse added that the ongoing financial crisis posed the greatest political and moral challenge, "not to permit tough economic conditions to brutalize human relations." cpg -- with wire reports http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,594656,00.html
The other day, I was reading an entry in Facebook. It says Halloween is fast approaching and if anyone could share something about Aswangs in the Philippines. Aswangs? I prompted a short response writing that these Aswangs have nothing to do with this Americanized version of a tradition we have in the Philippines...not that we have a tradition of remembering the Aswangs but what I meant was the celebration when we remember all the saints and souls on the 1st and 2nd of November and we call this tradition Undras.
Aswangs, Halloween, Undras and Guinatan.
This is also the time of the year when sticky delicacies like rice cakes Kakanins, sumans and coconut milk-based dessert, Guinatan are prepared as food for the wandering souls but enjoyed of course by hungry mortals. The sticky finger goodies are given to kids who come in the evening singing "kaluluwa'y dumaratang, sa tapat ng durungawan etc... we are lost souls in front of your windows, bells are ringing to wake you up, and if you want to give us alms, please make it fast before the door of heaven closes on us." I think a more dramatic interpretation than the globalized Trick or Treat Halloween fun for kids.
But back to my original blog entry which is the recipe for this typical Filipino merienda. Preparing guinatan has become one of my keeping up with the tradition stuffs either to appease the hungry spirits or my own cravings.
Recipe:
Sweet Potatoes Bananas Ube (violet yams) Shreds of Bottled Sweet Langka (Jackfruit) Sticky rice Bilo-bilo Coconut Milk ( I used three cans of 400 ml each) Sugar Drizzle of salt Pandan leaves for aromatic effect (Violet yams while cooking in coconut milk with pandan leaves)
Place the yams, taro in a saucepan, pour in coconut milk with the pandan leaves. Bring to boil and later add the sliced bananas, langka, bilo-bilo and cook further for ten minutes, adding sugar to your taste. Note: You have to watch it while cooking. Mine turned like a cream yellowish pumpkin soup but the taste was sweet enough to cure my nostalgia.
I texted my sister to ask on the exact date the kids do this pangangaluluwa. She texted back that it is on the night of Nov. 1 to Nov. 2 but it is no longer practised in our village...the cost of malagkit rice has gone so expensive, around 80 Pesos per kilo. People could no longer afford to give away Sumans and sticky rice delicacies to keep up with the tradition. Poor hungry, wandering souls.
Poor me, eating my guinatan alone. Hubby said when he saw the bowl of guinatan for our brunch... "hmmmmmmmmmm, you can have my share."
