MARGIENARY

I have written a lot (and complained a lot too) about the "Igorot stereotypes" that other Filipinos have about us Igorots. In my "MY IGOROTNESS" entry which you can read here I have cited personal experiences which happened mostly in Mindanao and one or two instances in Luzon with someone from down south. Being the argumentative wife that I am, I always manage to bring this matter up with my Zamboangeno husband but he must have gotten exasperated with me and so he told me, "Woman, why don't you think about and write about when you first told your family about me for a change?" I thought about it, and I grudgingly admit that it wasn't actually much different from my experience with his side of the tree. By the age of 19, I was fairly independent, although I have been independent (in a way) since age 10, and so I did not go through the process of having to introduce suitors to the family and let them have an opinion on who should I choose. N...

If you have noticed, my two previous entries were of a different genre. (Hanep sa genre!) Some found the tone funny, some might have found (and some did find) it a bit distrubing. To all of you who thought the entries were funny, you now have a concrete evidence that you were born sarcastic . To those who found it disturbing, I apologize (with a smile.) Earlier this week, I was in Baguio with other members of the organization of which I am also a member. One morning, our mentor shared a few devotional thoughts. We read from John 12:20-33. In verse 28, Jesus said: "Father, glorify your name.” He said this in the context of the impending agony that He's going to suffer. From the biggest to the littlest hardship that I ever went through, the first thing in my mind is, "Lord, please take the pain away, or Lord, please protect me, or Lord, please avenge me from that person who stepped on my rights!" I am always too fast to ask God to remove me from any unwanted ...

I just realized today that I hit the wrong button on that Bus Ride entry. The thing is I opened it one too many times to continue it and hit Save as Draft everytime but I must have Saved and Published it (of course, how else can it be there? :) the last time. Sorry to all of you folks who visited the page, I can see there were six people. You must be wondering where the rest was... well, the rest is still in my head... and it is still in Kalanguya. As I was sayin', I went to Manila last Monday, and oh boy, was it so hot. But before I was able to get there, I had to literally run in front of a coming bus (as in hinarang talaga) and beg the driver to take one more passenger. It is not that there were no buses but I have been waiting for close to two hours and probably 20 or more buses have come and gone. They just swished fast by me with their lights off, meaning they are full. It was a Sunday night and I am aware that it's usually a busy time for buses going in to the c...

Last Monday, I have had to go to the 'furnaceish' Manila to meet with VIPs :) who are and will be a big part of my academic life and ministry. I am one of those people who believes that the road lengthens during the day, but it shortens at night. When I travel on my own, I prefer to do it at night. A day trip takes forever and a night trip that usually takes 6 hours only takes an hour, (I think! ) That is my

For most people, the holy week is one of their most awaited holidays (probably second to Christmas) because they get to have their much needed sabbatical. Most went to enjoy the sun and the beach, but for us here in CFM, this past week was the most demanding. We have barely caught our breaths from the busyness of the past translation checking weeks and would have looked forward to a restful holy week, but no! Well, we did look forward to it, but for another reason--a big wedding in our midst. I'll let the newlyweds tell their story though, so I'll stop here. I'll just talk about myself and what happened at the wedding from the perspective of a 'runner.' Of course I am the runner. What do I mean by a runner? I'll give you an example: When the processional was about to begin, and of course the first to march were the candle sponsors, they found out that there was no candle to light. They ran to me as if I only needed to raise my magic wand and presto, candles woul...

For most people, the holy week is one of their most awaited holidays (probably second to Christmas) because they get to have their much needed sabbatical. Most went to enjoy the sun and the beach, but for us here in CFM, this past week was the most demanding. We have barely caught our breaths from the busyness of the past translation checking weeks and would have looked forward to a restful holy week, but no! Well, we did look forward to it, but for another reason--a big wedding in our midst. I'll let the newlyweds tell their story though, so I'll stop here. I'll just talk about myself and what happened at the wedding from the perspective of a 'runner.' Of course I am the runner. What do I mean by a runner? I'll give you an example: When the processional was about to begin, and of course the first to march were the candle sponsors, they found out that there was no candle to light. They ran to me as if I only needed to raise my magic wand and presto, ca...