Freak

                                      (photo: spring.org.uk)
I want a perfect soul,
I want you to notice,
When I'm not around...
But I'm a creep, I'm a weirdo,
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here...
                                         (Radiohead)

We are here with you. Sometimes you stare grimacing at the mere sight of us. Yes, we are like irrational facts in your beautiful existence. But how could we help it? We, too want to live in your world. Even if the spaces you allow us to occupy are claustrophobic, we still squeeze into them... hoping to breathe the same oxygen you beautiful people do.

I was the classmate you laughed at due to the outmoded clothes I wear. You see, that was the best pair I have. My parents could not afford the designer shirts and jeans you are donning. I saw another one similar to me. He had dark skin and "ugly" according to your standards of beauty. You laughed at him and called him names. I felt his pain as I looked into his eyes...

Yesterday, I saw another one your type made fun of. She was a special one. Yes, she could not comprehend quickly since she was born that way. Did she deserve the side comments you gave her? Isn't she another human being with the capacity to get hurt as well?

There are instances that you feel you have the power because you are endowed with beauty, that you are gifted with intelligence to the point that you hurl insults and painful things to us. But you just have to be careful. We are starting to get hurt. Dogs bite when they are constantly kicked.

You are not powerful. You only have borrowed confidence from a crutch you think that makes you one. Wait till you walk alone at night in a dark alley. One of my kind might be lurking in the dark and will snatch your hand. What would you do? Scream yourself out? Curse the ugly presence or do spontaneous combustion?

You do not have the confidence. You only have one when you are with your companions. What if our kind will be in a certain place...eight of us and you are alone? We could hiss at you when you pass by. Imagine your reaction! You could run for your life else be eaten by the bestiality your kind abhor so much. 

You are not beautiful. The tons of moisturizers and cosmetics you dab on your skin could not hide the rotting corpses inside your being. The stench of your soul is more foul than the cockroaches in the world. You just think and feel beautiful but you are as ugly as the dead twigs in the wilderness...

You are not fashionable. The clothes you wear are pretentious to the point that your social-climbing is being seen by your kind as something en vogue. But you ain't. Remember the times when you borrowed money and even got indebted due to the expensive clothes you invested so much? You are being eaten by a fake system you think you fit in. You are materialistic and nothing more.

Yes, we are around. You see us as the UNINVITED. You dislike us because we do not look like those people in the fashion magazines. But we are REAL. You are a victim of the fickle mind of an author who created you. You are being eaten by a fairy tale world you thought you fit in. You do not. You are a product of delusions of grandeur.

You could not eradicate us from this world you thought is yours.

We are the poor ones, the ugly people, the persons with disabilities, the nerds and those whom you think are weird. We are the laughingstock, the one who stutter, who lisp. We are the students who are not liked by many, the ones who are disregarded by teachers. We are the folks being laughed at on the streets, the wall flowers on parties and the individuals who are tagged by the popular kids as "plain" and uninteresting. We are those who are being teased due to our skin color, sexual preference and origin. We belong to the indigenous minority and sometimes products of broken family...But we are better than you.

We are NOT the freaks. YOU ARE!

Unwanted

                                              (photo: The Coverage)

Teenage pregnancy in the Philippines is on the rise. In fact, the data derived from the Certificates of Live Births submitted by the Local Civil Registry Offices from 2011 to 2014 show that about one in every ten women of child-bearing age was a teenager, and there were 24 babies born every hour by teenage mothers. This is according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

This unsettling reality often slap a parent in the face once the daughter will announce that the pregnancy test kit turned pink. Yet a lot seem to look at this as sort of a "trend" among the young. There are more adolescents in the schools who are pregnant and the public schools could not help but find ways and means in helping them continue with their schooling through the alternative delivery modes. This is to make inclusive education take effect in all parts of the country.

There are different factors to examine this situation. Some parents blame themselves for trusting too much. There are those who point the finger to the type of friends the daughter is exposed with. Some would put the blame on dysfunctional families. The teachers sometimes think that the curriculum must have a teeth on the lessons focusing on reproductive functions. The church wants the moral foundation of the young to be sturdy ... and many things more.

But what must be done? Of course, the young kid must be given the opportunity to go on with her life. Yet, she has to be strong in facing the consequences like bullying, gossips and labels by the society which could be self-righteously harsh. A strong support system must be created for the young woman to be able to cope with the pressures around.

This writer thinks that self-empowerment must be instilled to the young girl when she reaches the fragile age of adolescence. I observe a lot of young girls at school and they seem to be victimized by the things they see on media platforms. They fantasize to be like that of Nadine and Kathryn with good-looking love teams that they opt to have boyfriends and won't be ashamed to show them off to their friends as if it is an achievement of sorts.

In the afternoons, we see young couples going home indifferent to the stares from their schoolmates. They look so proud having someone to be with them to the point that they even take pictures to be uploaded on social media sites to the chagrin of their parents and relatives. Their emotions are so important that the lessons they must learn in school is put on the sidelines. There are even some who go to school not to learn but to see their "love teams."

Emotional entanglement is a distraction. According to studies, when a person spend a lot of time and resources dwelling on a certain thing, it would become a habit and eventually become his or her destiny. The role of parents and teachers is to facilitate their needs for the young person to understand how to prioritize. Yet, we adults seem to be busy dealing with our own needs especially those unsatisfied ones...

Better dwell on the tasks at hand first. According to M. Scott Peck, one key in realizing dreams is to DELAY GRATIFICATION. It is difficult to do, I admit. But cultures could be instilled in small communities like the family. A positive outlook paired with a reasonable set of discipline is a good one. Efforts on leading towards self-actualization from the adults will really help. We could be the walking self-help books the people around us might read through our actions.

But who am I to rant? The life we want is how we live it. What if we are not happy being successful? What if we are not concerned about personal achievements? What if we just want to live the day like that of a  bird? 

Still, there are young children who suffer. Most of the young mothers are products of unstable emotional foundations. Why can't I tell stories to the young girls too? These might erase the fantasies of being a princess waiting for the prince to save her but she will become strong warrior: A young woman ready to wage war against a bleak future.

I will light a torch. This might be of use in a young girl's dark night.

Parokya

When Chito made his appearance onstage, the crowd shouted with glee and started jumping up and down. The lightning threatened rain and the skies seemed to give flashes from that of heavy-powered cameras. Rain was forecast but it did not dampen the excitement of the concert-goers to be immersed with Parokya ni Edgar's music. The young ones who understood the genre wanted to be near the stage and those who were just curious stayed at the back. The band opened with "Boloy" and the crowd went wild. Water from bottles shot up like liquid confetti and the young people (and some old ones) released their angst and became the music.

On the ground, the grass and the beach area, plastic wrappers and soda bottles screamed along with those in the mosh pit. The food stalls continued to dispense food and drinks wrapped and contained in, of course, plastic. You were seeing the event on the sidelines and you were horrified when some girls were spotted doing the act of peeing on the beach area.

Yes, it is nice to let your fears and worries be lost in the moment...

Chito then requested the male viewers to protect and take care of the women near them. He continued that it is not nice to hurt girls for the sake of personal interests. This could be the band's social stand which was given with subtlety. The input could be appreciated but if repeatedly done, poetry would then segue into a sound similar to a fork scraped on blackboard.

The persons who got curious started to lost their interest and faded in the night. Some kids with unkempt hair played ball on the beach and others roamed the area with other things on their mind. 

The epiphany came. We are indeed individually riding our boats and we choose which waters to wade. Others came for the music, others just for the hang of it. There were those who were plainly curious about the event and there were those who just want to get drunk.

You were also there for your own purpose; your own motivations. Even if you prefer Wolfgang or stories of Champ and the rest of Hale, there were those who felt bliss embracing Parokya's lyrics. There were those who came from far places just to witness the event. There were those who gained something due to the influx of people...Best, there were friendships which intensified and reunions were apparent.

What is important is that Boloy did not become Torete and the skies suspended its crying.

Fight

                                                     (photo: Encyclopedia Britannica)
"Those who want to live, let them fight, and those who do not want to fight in this world of eternal struggle, do not deserve to live."
                                                           - Adolf Hitler

Looking at the weary eyes of the people around, you seem to see a weariness: a collective tiredness of being alive. M. Scott Peck aptly said that life is difficult. So, what is there to do but to fight back and motivate oneself with what he or she considers as meaningful actions? Some psychologists warn you with the so-called repressed depression. This illness manifests when one constantly gratify the self with material things and "good time" with friends and even strangers...

Teachers complain about the burden they carry with the job of nurturing the holistic growth of the learners. The learners air their side by saying that teachers are exposing them to too much work they now fail to learn but just beat the deadlines. The politicians are telling us that legislation is not working since it is difficult to implement them. The majority is saying that the government is not doing something for the common tao. It seems that the 4 P's scheme is still not enough even if other countries consider such as dole out.

But isn't life war in itself? Sun Tzu's masterpiece "The Art of War" is being used not just by companies, organizations and political parties but individuals as well. The wisdom he offered resonates with one's daily struggles. "If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles," so the sage reflected. Therefore, it is but proper to look at your armor and weapons and look for more if you see that you are less-equipped. It is also necessary to know the enemy and look for ways and means in defeating it...Else, it is going to be your weaknesses that could topple you down.

The holocaust told us stories about how Hitler devoured the weak. He even terminated a bunch of people since he considered them as "useless". He dreamed of a generation full of brilliant and physically-endowed persons. He wanted to make a valid contribution to the world by eradicating the ones he considered as unworthy. One would wonder, if I was there at that time, did I die or spared?

You fight. By living the day and putting up a good fight is victory in itself. With all the difficulties looming over us, one often surrenders to defeat. But not for the brave and courageous. Those self-righteous villains will fall but the strong and silent ones are waging their wars in their own ways. Their victories might not be heralded as good but it does not matter. Everything will be fine as another war is going to be faced.

The world needs those people who rise above the challenges. We need leaders who think for their pack. We are rooting for teachers who will do their tasks in molding the young instead of oppressing them. We love students who learn and equip themselves to become future leaders. We dream of political figures who will serve others over themselves... But best, we are aiming to become individuals who are like the phoenix, a beautiful bird rising from the ashes of hot challenges around it.

There will be Hitlers in our midst. But always, they will just become another figure in the history of the brave.