Scared of Kids?

                          (photo: pinterest.com)

When did trick or treat started to be done in the Philippines?

In the 80’s, the socialites and social climbers would only shop and do their groceries in Rustan’s. The elite flocked on the imported clothes and eau de toilette inside the department store and Pringles and Snickers were only tasted once in a while by the commoners. Brands like YSL, Gucci and even the scents of Victoria’s Secret were shipped direct from abroad

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Basically, the well-off families were the ones to visit the United States and Europe. They talked about their escapades and the events they were able to attend were fabulous! There was Thanksgiving where turkey was served; the kissing under the mistletoe during Christmas; the New Year countdown in Times Square…and of course, the trick or treat of the kids during Halloween.

The boom of information technology ushered in the different events which are famous and well-talked about. The internet particularly brought the different celebrations and interests on the fingertips of the people especially the young ones. Knowledge on the brands like Guess, Levis and other global brands became the staple. China grabbed the chance and so the birth of Class “A” brands came to the market.

It was with the advent of malls when commercialization was attached to the celebrations and holidays as part of the marketing strategies to bring people inside the malls. Valentine’s Day was attached to the young ones and most of them would be stressed once they could not give some sort of gifts to their romantic partners. Birthdays are incomplete without a cake. And of course, Halloween is an addition to the events where malls, hotels, cafes and other establishments would put a lot of efforts to mount so that people would come. The more people in the establishments, the better business will it be.

But why so engrossed with the ugly, the gory and the scary? We need not dwell on the supernatural to get scared. All we have to do is view the news on TV or listen to a politician talk. All the goosebumps in the world could be experienced through them. Yet, the scary has also a commercial value that the horror genre is not out of fashion. Even books with horror as the theme are always on the bestsellers’ list. The likes of Stephen King, Peter Straub, even the stories of Neil Gaiman and the movie ventures of the Monteverdes with the “Shake, Rattle and Roll” franchise are doing well in the market.

Another thing which seems to be en vogue is the tacking of the different phobias. There is the fear of clowns, the fear of insects, close spaces, open spaces and the more popular: fear of dolls and children.

On introspect, it seems that phobia is still part of acculturation brought about by the influences from the things we see and we read from the different media sources. During the early times when the internet was still nil, people were afraid of the dark. Their imaginations created the manananggal and other supernatural beings. When the country became accessible to electricity, we were introduced to the zombies…

We could not help but to adapt since the world is getting flat. Japan has started embracing this culture. We just have to process such things to the young and hold on to our own cultural identity since we fought so hard for our own. We need to make the things we allow dwelling on our psyche as things that we understand and we can control. We won’t allow these things to be the ones to control us.

Revenge

                               (photo: abs-cbn.com)

When the lights subdued, confetti started to fall. Then, a hush came when power returned and a woman clad in gold gown came down the stairs. Everybody’s attention was to her and when she reached the steps, fireworks commenced on cue. She proceeded to the governor and his daughter whose mouths were agape. Then, the woman who rose from the dead said: I’m back. Ivy Aguas is dead. Lily Cruz is alive. You could never destroy me. I’m indestructible! Ironically, music inspired of Spandau Ballet’s “Gold” was played on the background as the main characters eyed each other with hate and deception. The local cyberspace was then full of the tag line Black is Out, Gold is In.

This was the much talked about scene of ABS-CBN’s telenovela “Wildflower”. The program catapulted to fame as a woman started to make revenge as her breakfast, lunch and dinner. She also dashed and garnished her persona with hatred to the point that the sole purpose of her existence is to get even with the people who made her inferior inside and out.

The formula of the TV program was easily picked up by the Filipino audience due to the numerous backgrounds of the viewers. One could admire the research conducted by the production team on what would tickle the minds and interests of the majority. Most of the people who view TV on these time slot are women who prepare the family’s dinner, so why not place a strong character which could suit the fantasies of the weakling? A woman who topples domineering males could be a potent one to fill the air time.

There are also those who are waiting for the evening news to be aired who are expecting rape victims, abused women and the weak as the prey to be aired on the national current events. So, why not put a reversal of such dreary mood by showing women who fight back and politicians who could be manipulated by them?

We see the power of the women being heralded on the show to the point that the male characters seem to play supporting roles only. With the coming in of Zsa zsa Padilla’s Red Dragon, the weak wives could now wait for their revenge on their dominating husbands as they marvel and feel the seething rage over Ardiente: the epitome of their pain and insult.

But then, one could wonder why do we feed on hate and lead to revenge? Isn’t this a negative thing to dwell on? People who constantly plan for the destruction of their enemies are not at peace. Their anger destroys their relationships, their careers and their capacity to serve others will be hampered since their prime motivation is to hurt and get even. We could not judge them since we did not feel their pain yet being grabbed with peace due to past pains could be counterproductive. The present holds their children, their friends and their will to serve. If these things be put at stake due to past hurts, life could be miserable.

The drama series is rated SPG (Strong Parental Guidance) since the kids might see the presented scenes as the ideal ones in real life. The viewers are expected to be adults who just see this one a pure entertainment. Yet, could we be assured that all people who view the show as mature enough to draw the line of what’s real and not? What if we like the thought of dressing up and proceed to our archenemies in full regalia and announce our vengeance?

In art lessons, we are being told that movies and other works of fiction are reflections of our culture and beliefs. It is a bit alarming seeing our kids spend time viewing shows just like these with hate as themes. We must reflect on the type of culture we are projecting for the future generation. We are sometimes lenient since we are caught in our own battles.But responsibility is attached to us so with our efforts to be and become.

Yet there are those of us who could be stubborn. We stick on our twisted beliefs. We are weak enough to confront our inner selves with the truth. We are already made. Some of us do not adhere to the belief that changing for the better is a continuum.

Superficial

When one changes his appearance through cosmetic surgery, will the person inside him change as well? Will his fears and insecurities vanish when the mirror speaks differently this time? It seems that there is a dangerous line between reality and fantasy that one needs to cross to be able to fully accept his being. But then, a stained white shirt would be worn differently when bleach works out in eradicating the stain.

An outburst of discussion happened in the social media sites when Marlo Arizala transformed himself to Xander Ford through multiple surgeries augmenting his looks to become that of his dreamed face. The former character actor with dark complexion and not-so-likable nose was featured in Korina Sanchez’s “Rated K” which catapulted the fame of the “new” kind of handsome.

Dr. Bryan Madelson, a noted cosmetic surgeon said that we live in a society that is obsessed with looks and those who go under the knife want their confidence back. Might as well consider the loss of confidence... What is it? Is it due to the pressure the society is setting that the good-looking ones are the persons to make it better and get the attention in the community? Or an unmet need of being accepted for who he or she is…

Historically, the Filipinos have been oppressed by different cultures that “hiya” is deep-seated in our midst and so with inferiority. When the Spanish conquestadors ruled over us, we were the household help. Our forefathers suffered the disgust of being an Indio - the brown-skinned helper. The fair-skinned senyors and senyoritas paraded the society with their perfectly-chiseled noses and smooth and milky complexion. They were the demigods and we really wanted to be like them. We then saw the arrival of the Americans as an academic bliss. They seemed to have a messianic impact to our culture since they educated the dark-skinned tabula rasa. They taught us with literature and we loved the American-English language that we even consider a person intelligent if he or she could speak it well. We marveled on their height and fair-skin, perfect noses and musical accent.

Acculturation took place and continued. That is the reason why our national heroes did a lot of efforts in raising our own identity as Filipinos. Some of them even died fighting for it.

So what’s the fuzz on Xander’s need to look differently? Our culture dictates it. We grimace on the brown complexion that we have. The influx of whitening lotions and soaps with glutathione are evidences of such need. We dye our hair to be similar to those of the American supermodels and we see women who are not tall as inferior to those who have long legs. We are the ones telling our children to be NOT who they are but be influenced with a belief transferred from one generation to another.

We all could be Xander Fords in our own ways. We just have to remember the times when we tried hard to look young, to see make up as a miracle and the cosmetics as enhancers of our real images. We just have to recall the times when we felt inferior when someone so fair-skinned passed by and we wanted to be like the person.

But going back to the inner self: Is Xander Ford different now? Are the needs and longings being addressed by the augmentation procedures? What would happen if they were not? Let us remember the sad plight of Michael Jackson, an African American who then became white. He underwent surgical procedures to look like his ultimate dream of a face: Diana Ross. When he attained the desired look, the hunger continued…His money went to the drains when the inner person continued to be unsatisfied that he eventually died unhappy.

Self-acceptance and self-love are essential things for our overall health and happiness. By embracing our flaws and individuality, we find the key to the realization that we are made differently. We are special in our own ways. We are unique. The body is just a shell.