Recovering Our Past-1

 

EDITORS NOTE: We’re happy again to feature an article written by multi-award winning writer Karl Quirino. A banker by training that back-stopped a productive career overseas, he is also the son of national historian Carlos Lozada Quirino – the Philippines’ National Artist for Historical Literature. This contribution arises from a request we made late last year that he write on the subject of Filipino expatriates alienated from their own ethnicity. At the time, he was engaged mentoring an IT business, doing Social Media and reputation management work for some organisations in Auckland and Wellington. Recently, he decided to dust off and update a previously-written piece he penned some years ago. The article was originally published in a high-circulation business magazine in the Philippines. It was subsequently quoted in several local and national newspapers in that country largely because his thoughts resonated with readers. Later on, parts of the same article appeared in online websites particularly when the Internet was becoming more fashionable as a publishing plat form. We now have his permission to reprint it here. It is his most recent expanded version. – Antonio de Pacis.

 

LAS ISLAS FILIPINAS

 

The first point in time which usually comes to mind when Filipinos across the world are asked about the Philippines of very long ago, the date March 16, 1521 is the starting point. That’s what most of them picked up from their history classes in school. This is largely because it was on that date that the Portuguese explorer Fernão de Magal hães (better remembered as Ferdinand Magellan), “discovered” the Philippines.

 

It is the wrong date. Why so? It’s because the Venetian chronicler Antonio Pigafetta – who in 1519 sallied forth with Magellan from the Spanish port of Se ville across the Atlantic on a journey that led them towards the Pacific Ocean and in doing so, failed to recognize their 5-ship fleet’s passage across the Inter national Dateline before reaching our shores three years later. The dateline hadn’t been invented yet but had he known this important convention of par titioning time across the globe, Filipinos would have been told to memorize March 17, 1521 as the real date of Magellan’s “discovery“.

 

Naturally, the archipelago was not then called the ‘Philippines’. This term was actually coined by the Americans at the start of the 20th century to anglicize the name ‘Las Islas Filipinas’ the Spanish had given it in honour of their Royal Crown Prince Felipe (Philip II). It was Philip II who reigned over the vast Spanish empire handed down by his father, Charles V. There were, however, much older names.

 

THE BIBLICAL EL DORADO?

 

The Hellenic Greeks of old are said to have called the whole part of the southern Philippines and a few small islands in the easternmost part of Indonesia facing Mindanao as ‘Chersonesus Aurea’ (the Golden Khersonese) – a name coined by Claudius Ptolemy (circa 90-168 AD) largely for its reputation as being a rich source of gold.

 

Watch The Video

 

Yijing (635-713 AD), a Tang Dynasty Chinese Buddhist monk, mentions ‘Chin-Chou’ (the Isles of Gold) as the archipelago south of China. Written records of his 25-year travels have contributed much to world knowledge about ancient king doms lying between China and the Nālandā Buddhist university in Bihar, India. This region is now what is called Southeast Asia.

 

The quest to find the Biblical El Dorado of Ophir – famous for its wealth during the time of King Solomon, who is supposed to have received a cargo of gold every three years, appears to have played an important role in the European discovery of the Philippines. When the Spanish finally arrived in the Philippines they found an abundance of gold used by its inhabitants who worked it into elab orate household wares and beautiful pieces of jewellery that adorned them.

 

Gold was so common in the Philippines that in the chronicles of Antonio Pigafetta – an Italian scholar and explorer who journeyed with Magellan as a ‘sobrasa liente’ (or supernumerary), he mentions that “pieces of gold as large as walnuts or eggs are to be found, by sifting the earth”.

 

In 1545 AD, the Portuguese explorer Pedro Fidalgo recorded that gold was so abundant on Luzon Island that its inhabitants were willing to trade ‘two pezoes of gold for one pezo of silver’. Similar accounts from Antonio Galvão (in 1555), Hernando Riquel and Guido de Lavezaris (both in 1574) and Antonio de Morga (in 1609) also attest to the munificent supply of gold found in the islands of the Philippines.

 

THE GOLDEN LAND

 

When the Portuguese first arrived in Malacca in Southeast Asia in April 1511 AD, they eventually discovered that most of the gold traded into Bru nei came from Luzon (or ‘Lucoes’ in Portuguese). At that time, the island was already known by the Chinese as ‘Liu-sung’ or ‘Lusung Dao’ (Golden Lu zon). Likewise, the inhabitants of the Indonesian empires of Srivijaya (in the island of Sumatra) and the Majapahit (in the island of Java) had long called the ancient Kingdom of Sapa they had trade relations with as ‘Seludong’ in the island of ‘Lusung’.

 

The Malays who had spread out across southern parts of Southeast Asia also called the Kingdom of May-nila (situated in Tondo, Manila ‘Seludong’, and the island of Luzon as ‘Tanah Manile’. Sea-faring Indian merchants and traders also referred to the Philippines as being the larger part of ‘Suvarnadvipa’ – a Sanskrit term meaning “Golden Land” or “Land of Gold”.

 

From all these historical accounts as it evidently appears, the European explo rers of the 16th century had finally found the fabled source of the ‘stones of gold’ that were mentioned in some passages of Old Testament pseudepigrapha as being “the mountains of that country and the stones thereof are all of gold.”

 

Could asserting that the culture, people and history of the Philippines is as ancient as King Solomon himself or is it a figment of one’s imagination? In a book found in the Archivo General in Spain entitled ‘Collecion General de Documentos Relativos a las Islas Filipinas’, the author describes how to locate Ophir. It is mentioned specifically under the section titled “Document No. 98″, dated 1519-1522. It says that Ophir is found “by travelling from rounding the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, to India, to Burma, to Sumatra, to Moluccas, to Borneo, to Sulu, then finally Ophir.”

 

In the same book, Ophir is additionally said to be “[...] in front of China towards the sea, [consisting] of many islands where the Moluccans, Chinese, and Lequios met to trade…” If you are well-versed with world history and geography, this particular group of islands could not be Japan because the Moluccans never got there, nor Taiwan, since it is not composed of “many islands”. Because the Collecion book specifically mentions the phrase “[…] to Borneo, to Sulu, then finally Ophir”, only present-day Philippines unequivocally fits this description.

 

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 |

Devil in the Details

Following through from the website of Filipinos in Wellington, this is Part-4 of the series titled “The Day After-Devil In The Details”. In this last part of the series, the author moves us forward to the year 2022 assuming that the transformation of the Philippines has gone on smoothly and exceedingly well for nearly all those 12-million overseas Filipinos who have trickled back to the Philippines. Much is not said (it’s just assumed) about how and when they all started coming back. But the movement of a large population of people from practically all corners of the globe back to the point of origin certainly takes some time doing. In fact, the whole process goes unnoticed by the rest of the world until a tipping point is reached. It is the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point. In a way, one can say that tipping points act like epidemics. To be more precise, the reverse migration of Filipinos was a social epidemic and the success of any kind of social epidemic like that which has just occurred is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts.

 

DEVIL IN THE DETAILS

 

It is December 2022 and the entire world has just come to realize that nearly all the familiar brown faces who were either temporary workers, residents and citizens in their countries have disappeared from the malls, offices and suburbs. It seems evident that they have all returned to the Philippines because news coming in recently from each of some 179 countries that had them as a minority group has been reporting the same thing. We are talking here about the 12-million Filipinos and their family members that were once dispersed across countries with names that run the entire alphabet, from Australia to Zimbabwe.

 

Let’s not worry first about why or how they departed. We know that the Phil ippine government started streamlining its economy in 2012 and may be one of the reasons why a few of them started returning. But only a few of them at a time as it then seemed. Then, we started hearing about this thing called heavy deuterium that could only be found in excessive quantities in the Philippines and how it was now being used as a cleaner fuel by them to power all our homes, appliances, electric cars, factories, offices and practically for that matter whole cities and towns around the world. The devil is probably in the details but the fact is they’re gone just as sure as a host of honey bee workers return to their own hives just before sunset.

 

It first started with a trickle of domestic helpers. But over the decades they were the ones that first help design and build our roads, streets, homes, bridges, buildings and ports. These were the basic infrastructure we needed to exist as a country and make it economically viable. A bit later they sent over their bank ers, accountants, technicians and computer system operators, office and human resource managers, writers, researchers and journalists, food technologists, educators and academicians, entrepreneurs, entertainers and artists – basically to give us the stuff we needed to sustain our aging populations and lead a very comfortable existence. At about the same time, they also started sending over their doctors, nurses, medical technologists, paramedical staff, and medical transcriptionists basically to keep us healthy and alive. Then, they were gone.

 

LANGUAGE THEY’RE BABBLING IN

 

It’s not just the children that are affected. Think of the homes that are depen dent on Filipino housekeepers, nannies, caregivers. Homes of parents and couples that are now forcing one of them to stay home are chaotic as their young children cry out for their nannies in this strange language called ‘Phillipino’ they’re babbling in and realizing only now that there’s just so much of housework that has to be handled and how demanding their kids can be. There no opportunity to attend parties and socialize or travel anymore.

 

The problems are even more serious with the elderly in homes and nursing institutions, because Filipino caregivers at one time provided so much of the critical services they needed. When temporary contractual workers were being brought in from among non-Filipinos to fill the gaps, the elderly complain. They want their Filipino caregivers back because they have that special touch, that extra patience and willingness to stay an hour more when needed. I guess once you’ve been spoiled, it’s hard to imagine anything else but.

 

Our hospitals too are adversely being affected. Gone are most of the Filipino physicians, nurses and other health professionals. As a result, appointments for rehabilitation services, from children with speech problems to stroke survivors, are indefinitely being postponed because there are now so few qualified speech pathologists, occupational and physical therapists.

 

Hospital administrators are announcing they can’t take in any more patients unless the conditions are extremely serious and death threatening. Instead, patients are being told to follow their doctors’ previously written prescriptions and orders and, if they have questions, to seek advice from several Internet medical sites. But hospitals are nevertheless swamped with new complaints. The web sites aren’t working because of missing Filipino web designers, website administrators and database managers who are no longer under their employ.

 

Service establishments throughout the world – restaurants, supermarkets, ho tels, are all closing down one after another because of their missing key staff who were involved in management and maintenance. They have returned to the Philippines.

 

In the Canada, the United States and Europe, many commercial establishments have to close shop, not just because of the missing Filipino sales staff but because their suppliers have all been sending in notices about delays in ship ments. Oh yes, the shipping industry has gone into a spiralling crisis as well because of missing Filipino seafarers.

 

The shipping firms begin to look into emergency recruitment of non-Filipino seafarers but then declare another crisis: They’re running out of supplies of oil for most of their ships still powered by it. The Middle Eastern countries have come to a standstill too without their Filipino oil industry workers.

 

MUCH LESS LAUGHTER NOW

 

Frantic presidents and prime ministers all over the world are now calling on the United Nations to convene a special session of the Security Council to discuss the growing problem across the globe but its new Secretary General advises that it’s not within the jurisdiction of the UN to handle that kind of a crisis. But even it were, she couldn’t do anything anytime soon because the UN system is on the edge itself. Many of its secretarial and clerical staff, as well as translators who were from the Philippines, have returned to their country from their main headquarters in New York and Geneva, as well as their regional offices through out the world.

 

In addition, the UN Head was getting calls from a number of UN services saying they too have to close down indefinitely because their skilled Filipino staffs that were running all these mission critical services on a day-to-day basis were no longer around. Worse still, she couldn’t even convene UN meetings for lack of a quorum because the airports in New York, Washington and other major US cities have clogged up. The reason? Filipino employees who used to handle quite a number of critical airport maintenance and security roles were no longer around.

 

Banks and other financial institutions around the world were also being affected to some extent as well. Their Filipino technical consultants, computer operators and treasury department staff were nowhere to be seen. Funds couldn’t be remitted in time and those delays were affecting businesses in almost all major financial centres.

 

Frustrated by the inability of the UN to help out with the situation which they characterised as a reverse brain drain the political and business leaders of the world convene a virtual summit through the Internet using video conferencing technologies.

 

A brain drain is usually regarded as an economic cost, since all emigrants and workers usually take with them the fraction of value of their training provided by the government and other organisations of home countries in favour of migrant hosting countries. It is the parallel of capital flight, which refers to the same movement of financial capital.

 

But with the loss of Filipinos who lived and worked in host countries across the world these leaders were saying that it alone just wasn’t a reverse brain drain in the mundane sense of the word. It was more of a ‘social epidemic’. That parti cular term was coined by Malcolm Gladwell in his seminal book “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference” published in 2000.

 

Epidemics are sensitive to the conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which they occur. In that regard, Gladwell’s book sought to explain and describe the “mysterious” sociological changes that mark everyday life and that ideas, messages and behaviors spread like viruses which are subject to certain laws that bring about tipping points of social epidemics.

 

One of these laws – considered the most powerful of three Gladwell mentions, is what economists call the 80/20 Principle. It is the notion that in any situation roughly 80-percent of the ‘work’ will be done by 20-percent of the participants. This minority of people are described as ‘Connectors’ who “link us up with the world”.

 

Connectors as a people have a special gift for bringing the world together not only through their abilities and skills but through a truly extraordinary knack for making friends and acquaintances. These people are characterized as having social networks consisting of hundreds of people. Gladwell attributes their social success to their ability to span many different worlds, cultures and situations. It is a function of something intrinsic to their psyche and personality as a people, some combination of curiosity, self-confidence, sociability, and energy.

 

As they reach the end of their discussions they all agree on one thing: the world has become a quieter place since the Filipinos left their respective host coun tries. It isn’t just the growing silence arising from the once smooth running of work in their places of work once handled by them; no, it seems there’s also much less laughter now that they aren’t around, both the laughter of the Fili pinos and those they served.

 

RETURN | HOME

Tell Me Your Secrets

 

 

RICHER AND MORE DIVERSE

 

Imago is a Filipino band formed in 1998 from a simple desire of friends to make music and perform. They wrote an album’s worth of original material which they recorded under the helm of producer and musician Bob Marlow. Their first al bum ‘Probably Not But Most Definitely’ was released in 1999 under Maharlika Records.

 

Material for their second album was recorded four years later in 2003 but its release was delayed due to unexpected record label setbacks. Enthusiastic over their new songs, the band was determined to release the album one way or ano ther. Composed of eleven new cuts, the new material had undergone remarkable changes. Compared with their original sound as a band that started from small production bar gigs to getting heavy airplays on FM radio stations in the Phil ippines, the second album was contextually heavier and fuller compared to their first album.

 

Released independently, their Take-2 album featured hit songs while its promo tional videos circulating on YouTube climbed the charts of music TV channels. Onstage, the band comes across as a dynamic and powerful act. As a live act, Imago stresses its sumptuous songs with a distinctive mix of melodic lines, strik ing vocals and meaningful words.

 

Imago burst out of its earlier boundaries and went indie for their follow-up album, which had a more electric guitar-driven, pop-rock/alternative take on things. The album was also the first to feature the band’s line-up of Aia de Leon (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Tim Cacho (lead guitar), Myrene ‘Maps’ Aca demia (bassist), and Zach Lucero (drums). In March 2008, the band was invited to be one of few other artists from all over the world to perform in the annual Mosaic Music Festival in Singapore.

 

Being labelled initially as an alternative-rock band leaning towards folk-rock music, Imago’s new sound evolved towards pop-alternative sound. The term ‘pop-alternative’ refers to musical artists and performers who are rooted in the style, sound and/or ethos of pop music but the context of lyrics and accom panying melody are richer and more diverse, which make this genre of songs more thought provoking if not memorable.

 

Proof of this refreshing change in Imago’s musical form and style can be found in their headline song ‘Akap’ taken from their Take-2 album. Overnight, the band won over a much wider audience having it even played in some mainstream CHR (Current Hit Radio) format stations.

 

The beautiful and clever lyricism starting with the song’s opening line – ‘Sabihin sa akin lahat ng lihim mo’ (in English, … so tell me all your secrets) and the powerful singing voice of its lead female singer, blends exceptionally well with the solid musicianship of the rest of the band. Trading in the ethereal with both New Age sensibilities and a modern pop flavor, Akap has since become consi dered by many as a sort of anthem for the genre it now represents worldwide.

 

Watch The Video

 

VERY MUCH EVIDENT

 

It has been a rollercoaster 14-years for Imago, who first came to prominence with their critically-acclaimed debut album which encapsulated the band’s early roots-influenced acoustic-laden music. But since the release of Akap as a single, it has cemented Imago’s status as one of the most in-demand acts in the live cir cuit.

 

Imago’s popularity has continued to skyrocket with their third album ‘Blush’ under Universal Records which features a more youth-oriented and bubbly mu sical approach and the hits ‘Taralets’ – the lead single which was one of the certi fied hits of 2006 in the radio and music video channels.

 

This was their first album with Universal Records and also the first to hit the Gold mark in January 2008. The song was also used as a theme song for the movie ‘Pitong Dalagita’ and later, as a campaign jingle for a Philippine senatorial candi date. In the same year, they recorded a revival of ‘Ewan’, which was originally sung by the now legendary trio the Apo Hiking Society.

 

In 2010, Imago released its fourth album entitled ‘Effect Desired None’ with its enigmatically titled ‘Huling Yakap Ng Mundo’ (or, the ‘Last Embrace of the World’) as its lead single.

 

Watch The Video

 

While the Philippines belongs to the East geographically, its music and culture have been heavily influenced by the West owing to nearly 400-years of Spanish rule and 45-years of American domination. Music in the highland and lowland hamlets – where indigenous culture thrives to this day, have strong Asian elements. Spanish and American influences, on the other hand, are more evident in music produced in urban areas. So it comes to no surprise that the country’s performance arts display a variety of genres and fusion of styles.

 

From ethnic rhythm to contemporary pop of the present times, Filipino musi cians are thriving according to their levels of creativity. Far from what every one knows about music in the Philippines, the country in fact has abundant musical talents who have established themselves in the international scene. They have kept their musical roots despite the influences of high-tech produced music these days. Their dedication and intense love for music is still very much evident.

HOME

What’s Obviously Implied

 

BECAUSE OF WHAT YOU EAT

 

In December 1825, just two months before he dies a French doctor by the name of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin publishes a book he authors titled “Physiologie du Gout, ou Meditations de Gastronomie Transcendante” (The Physiology of Taste). In it, he wrote what has now become a famous phrase, “Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es.” – Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.

 

When the quote is used outside the parameters of its original context, people tend to expand its applicability and sometimes, in many absurd even comical ways. For example, if you eat nothing else but beef then you must be a cow. If you eat fruits then you are one. Being a doctor, however, Brillat-Savarin wrote it to mean one and only one thing alone – which is, if you are healthy it is only because of what you eat.

 

Those of us choosing to follow a healthier, lighter style of eating can find a firm foundation for natural nutrition in the 800-year-old writings of Maimonides, the great scholar and physician. One of the foremost preventive-health advocates of all time, he prescribes a synthesis of good health and a nutritional lifestyle. He emphasized the importance of preventive medicine and disease prevention and foreshadowed today’s “discovery” of the effect of proper lifestyle, discussing the role of diet and exercise. Mind-body interaction was primary in his approach to illness and wellness.

 

The preservation of good health rests on the avoidance of overeating, which Maimonides referred to as “the poison of death” and the cause of most illness. Likewise, in every food that a person eats there is a combination of good and evil. Food physically consists of either good (i.e., nutrients) or bad (indigestible mat ter) counterparts. It reflect the fundamental nature in all of Creation which is, it is composed of a mixture of both good and evil.

 

Our eating style reflects and affects who and what we are. It identifies our ap proach to life. If we examine various societies and cultures, we can see what that obviously implies. “I am Italian. I often eat spaghetti, lasagna, or pizza,” or “I am a real American. I eat hamburgers, hot dogs, steak, coke, and french fries.”

 

The French indulge in crepes, Belgians ingest waffles, Chinese eat rice, Ethiopians swallow their teff, the Swiss munch on chocolate, Israelis gulp down felafel, Filipinos and Pacific Islanders love munching on coconut-based foods. In short, the “way we eat” reveals how we identify ourselves. It reflects and often deter mines our world view, our values, and our entire approach to life.

 

But which of these foods do you think is healthier?

 

A NATURAL ELIXIR

 

For nearly most of the past 4,000 years, use of the fruits of the coconut palm as a food, a pharmaceutical and building material has all been good. It was used as a sustainable resource for tropical communities, but most importantly its fruit – the coconut flesh, water, milk and its oil in particular were used as a natural elixir to promote mental vigour, lose weight, prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes and beautify skin and hair.

 

Watch The Video Below

The role of diet in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is continued to make strong headlines in 2011 as hundreds of millions of dollars in drug research have yet to produce any significant cure. One of the latest studies published appeared in the European Journal of Internal Medicine: “Nutrition and Alzheimer’s disease: The detrimental role of a high carbohydrate diet and its uptake in the brain. The brain represents only 2% of the body’s total mass, but contains 25% of the total cholesterol. Cholesterol is required everywhere in the brain as an antioxidant, an electrical insulator (in order to prevent ion leakage), as a structural scaffold for the neural network, and a functional com ponent of all membranes. Cholesterol is also utilized in the wrapping and synaptic delivery of the neurotransmitters. It also plays an important role in the formation and functioning of synapses in the brain. The lipid theory of heart disease started by the work of David Kritchevsky and later, Ancel Keys in the 1960s, led to dietary beliefs that cholesterol was to be avoided in the diet, and with that belief came the “over-zealous” prescription of cholesterol-reducing medications over the same decades in which there has been a parallel rise in AD prevalence.

 

Its uses were so respected that they were documented by Ayurvedic medicine in Sanskrit from 1500 BC in all areas relating to the mind, body and spirit. Early European explorers including Captain Cook wrote affectionately about the beauty of communities across the Pacific using coconut oil as an integral part of their daily lives. During WWII, Filipinos doctors used the water of the young green coconut successfully as a substitute for a saline drip saving the lives of many allied soldiers across the Pacific. After the war, in England coconut oil was sold as “margarine” and in the USA as “coconut butter”.

 

But that all changed in 1954. It was then that the well-oiled (pardon the pun) marketing machinery of lobbyists funded by the US soybean, safflower, sun flower and corn seeds industry supported by the American Heart Association committed themselves to change the American Diet, calling among others, for the substitution of saturated fats for polyunsaturates.

 

To bolster this claim in a social environment in which coronary heart disease (CHD) was becoming the primary cause of mortality in the adult population in the US, the lobbyists aggressively promoted the work of an obscure young researcher – David Kritchevsky, who published two academic papers on the sub ject. The first paper described the effects of feeding cholesterol to rabbits and indicated that this ‘may lead’ to the formation of blocked arteries and thus con tribute to potential heart disease.

 

SOME SLIGHT-OF-HAND

 

Curiously enough, there was no indication in Kritchevsky’s research papers that testing on human subjects was ever done. By some logic of analogy or worse yet, some slight-of-hand, arguments were raised supporting that what was bad for the poor rabbits were obviously just as bad for humans too.

 

Kritchevsky’s theory, however, fuelled support for the lobbyists’ lipid hypothe sis, which argued that saturated fat and cholesterol from animal sources raise cholesterol levels in the blood, leading to possible deposition of cholesterol and fatty acids as pathogenic plaques in the arteries.

 

Then came Kritchevsky’s second paper which went on to describe ‘The Prudent Diet’ in what he believed were the beneficial effects of consuming polyunsat urated fatty acids derived largely from, you guessed it, the oil of corn, soybeans, safflower and sunflower seeds for the lowering, at least ‘temporarily’, of choles terol in the blood.

 

Although many other studies at the time had also shown research to the con trary, the conspiratorial ‘dirt’ stuck and by the mid-1960′s the reputation of all saturated oils in America (including those extracted from coconuts) had been destroyed.

 

So determined was the pursuit of the lobbying American seed oil industry in converting their claims into magnificent billboards and advertisements of health and wealth in all forms of other media that even small island nations in the South Pacific were converted by this powerful marketing juggernaut to change cen turies of dietary traditions of consuming tropical oils that were growing in their own backyards to importing colourfully-packaged polyunsaturated fats harvest ed from the fields of the heartland of America.

 

STILL ON THE INCREASE

 

Fifty years on and The Prudent Diet has left a detrimental legacy which still haunts us all today. This shift in the eating habits of Americans has negatively influenced and changed the dietary regimes of societies all around the world that were initially not even affected by America’s particular meat, potato and milk diet before the 1960s.

 

Today heart disease is still on the increase and obesity, linked to the “new” American diet is a major social problem worldwide. It has governments worried about the healthcare cost of future generations. Even the U.K., Canada, New Zealand and Australia are all catching up with their American counterparts now experiencing a larger percentage of their populations defined as being over weight. The love of and addiction to American-inspired fast- and junk foods cooked in oceans of polyunsaturated fatty acids derived largely from the oil of corn, soybeans, safflower and sunflower seeds have taken its toll.

 

A UNIQUE GIFT OF NATURE

 

Is saturated fat really bad for you? It depends, seems to be the answer.

 

The travesty of an action taken 50-years ago was that one of nature’s most amazing natural resources – tropical oils, and especially coconut oil with all its functional, nutritional and pharmaceutical possibilities, has been lost to modern medicine for decades.

 

Current medical research is now in agreement that at least 30% of our daily nutritional intake should be made up of fats or oil. However, the structures of different oils are as diverse as nature itself and even some basic knowledge of what defines the different classification of fats will help us understand why this classification is so important when choosing oil to augment and support a healthy lifestyle for our children, families and ourselves.

 

It is important to remember that all coconut oil is not the same. Natural coconut oil (not the hydrogenated version often found in processed foods) is a saturated fat, but it is not one your doctor has warned you about. Although saturated, coconut oil is structurally, pharmaceutically and behaviourally different to any other natural oil or fat. Still, some cheaper oils from coconut are extracted under high heat and thus become denatured and not suitable for consumption.

 

Coconut oil is in many ways a unique gift of nature from the ‘Tree of Life’, as generations of Filipinos worldwide like to call it. It contains 92% saturated fatty acids, giving coconut oil important properties often lost under the dusty political cloud of the cholesterol debate. Natural coconut oil is quasi immune to light oxidation and highly resistant to rancidity. It is functional as a safe nutritional source in most climates without the need for refrigeration or special storage conditions. So it is no wonder that the finest certified natural coconut oils come from the Philippines.

 

Recent studies are revealing (actually, rediscovering) that this uniquely curative oil actually has innumerable health benefits ranging from disease prevention to anti-aging, allowing anyone to experience the healing miracles of what is now being deemed in the West as the “perfect food”.

 

Watch The Video Below

Coconut oil, by contrast, is highly saturated, and in its natural unrefined form has a shelf life of more than 2 years. Unlike unsaturated oils, it is not prone to oxidation.As coconut oil’s use becomes more accepted and widespread, and as people begin to realize the dangers of the low-fat dietary belief, we are starting to see more testimonies in relation to diseases like Alzheimer’s. One of the most widely published reports is from Dr. Mary Newport as reported by the St. Petersburg Times on October 29, 20086. Dr. Newport’s husband had been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and was watch ing her husband quickly deteriorate. After using drugs that slowed down the effects of Alzheimer’s, she looked into clinical drug trials and found one based on MCTs that not only slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s, but offered improvement. Not being able to get her husband into one of these trials, she began to give him Virgin Coconut Oil, and saw incredible improvement in his condition.

 

When taken as a supplement, used in cooking, or applied to directly to the skin, coconut oil has been found, among others, to promote weight loss, help protect against heart disease, cancer, diabetes, arthritis and many other degenerative diseases like Dementia and Alzheimer’s, strengthen the immune system, improve digestion and prevent premature aging of the skin. There is even a website on the Internet that lists 160 uses for coconut oil.

 

We have reached a critical time in our history when society is in dire need of a cost efficient, abundant, natural and effective anti bacterial and anti viral remedy. Modern medical research has allowed us to scientifically dispel many of the theories of the recent past and show the complexity of our modern lifestyle and diet. More importantly however, this critical research into coconut oil has pinpointed the one aspect that makes the case for coconut oil to be reaccepted, not only as a legitimate part of our daily diet, but also as a potent natural anti-ageing, anti-viral and anti-bacterial remedy of the future.

 

The reality is that benefits arising from the consumption of coconut oil within a healthy diet have been documented for over 4,000 years. The tree is beautiful and abundant and the question to be answered is whether the rest of the world can afford to continue to ignore its potential.

HOME

In Remembrance of Emmanuel

 

BECAUSE IT’S FREE

 

What does Christmas really mean? If we take a long and harder look these days Christmas has become a celebration of crass capitalism. It is a time of at the end of each year where we can pretend that our good behaviour for the day by itself will carry over to the rest of the year. Good food, a bundle of presents to give or receive with Hallmark cards attached, no school, no work. It has become a grand holiday, not a holy day.

 

Whether we like to admit it or not only a few of us who claim to belong to Christianity-based faiths understand that it is a time to thank our God for what he has actually done for us on this earth staring with the day that he was born in Bethlehem. But for the rest of us instead it is a time for resurrecting Santa Claus; a time to forget all worries and the hatred that you have against other people. It is about presents, about decorating the inside of houses with glitter and lights and generally just having a good time!

 

The meaning of Christmas has been lost. Now, it’s really just mostly about how many hours one can spend in a store and how much money you can spend. It is sad that we have veered away from the true meaning of Christmas which is – remembering when and why a redeemer called Jesus Christ was born and to be ever thankful for that event. Thankful?

 

Scripture reveals that in the beginning, God created the world and everything else in it. But we take it for granted because it’s free. So can you imagine what air would cost like if someone else has to provide it? And because we take this and the many other amazing and wonderful things created for us in this world for granted, we forget.

 

What then would God have to do to catch your attention? Put an ad in the newspapers? But if he had to anyway (remember, Scripture also reveals that we are a thick-necked people) we’d think he’d have this to say:

 

“I thought of making the world in black and white. But then I said … naaah! And how can you claim to be a self-made person? I remember perfectly making you in my likeness and image! If you missed seeing the dawn or sunset that I made for you today, it doesn’t matter. I will make another one just like it for you tomorrow and the next and the next and the next. Now, if you think that or the Mona Lisa is beautiful, you should see my masterpiece in comfort your own bathroom mirror each day! In my opinion, you are the most beautiful creature in the world. And surely as it was in the beginning when I made you, I am with you always to the very end of the age. So Earth people, do not treat me like a Martian. Believe!”

 

Watch The Video

 

In this video, Andrea Bocelli teams up with Katherine Jenkins in a duet to sing ‘I Believe’ – a song whose lyrics include the stanzas “Stand up and feel the Holy Spirit find the power of your faith … I believe in a world and giving our love we’ll make heaven on earth.” An Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist, Bocelli, who is regarded as the most popular Italian and classical singer in the world, was born with poor eyesight and became totally blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident. And yet, despite this we see a man who’s overcome a handicap using the gift of a God-given talent to inspire the world with a message that despite humanity’s frailties, fickle-mindedness, faults and failures we all have the potential to shine through if we just believe that the meek shall inherit the Earth.

 

OH IMMANUEL!

 

“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (Matthew 1:23). Immanuel is a beautiful word. It means “God is with us!’

 

While this may be a season of joy for many, there are also those countless others who are experiencing a season of pain. For some, it may be their first Christmas without their mother, father, sister, son, daughter, or other loved one. For others, if could be their last Christmas as they now struggle through the last stages of terminal cancer or some other dreadful affliction.

 

Then, there are the less financially fortunate of us and they are far numerous than you. These are the others who are not only unable to buy gifts for their children or loved ones, but are not even able to pay the electricity or groceries or to cover the costs of their basic needs.

 

In this time of the year, let us not get so wrapped up in buying gifts, finding deals, trying to please all of our family members by squeezing them into our already packed holiday schedules and all the other circumstances of stress that we allow to control our lives.

 

Let us open our eyes. Let us look beyond ourselves to the person in line behind us at the grocery store with only pennies in his or her pocket, to our neighbour who lives alone, to the children who have lost their parents now living in orphanages or in the streets, the homeless shivering in the cold wind, to our friends or loved ones who are struggling to make ends meet suffering deprivation in silence, or to an acquaintance or co-worker who have developed a bad attitude about life to show them that they are not alone nor forsaken.

 

Being made in the image and likeness of Immanuel, let us instead show them that He is with them and that He loves them enough to have sent His only Son so that they could experience who He is and what His love can do for them through you.

 

This is the challenge for us now as we near Christmas Day. Stop focusing so much on your ‘to-do’ list and what has to be done by Christmas. Instead, open your eyes and lift up your gaze and see that there are so many who need to know that God is with them (in you) and that, whether now is a bad time for them He has a plan to work it out always for the good in His own time. He will never fail, He will never forsake. He is Immanuel. He is with you.

 

From the Editorial Board of Filipinos in Auckland here’s wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May your righteousness be filled!

Filipinos in Vietnam?

THE SAIGON STORY

 

If we could read your mind now we reckon you’re probably thinking this is another one of those articles about Filipinos living in some other country like Vietnam. But that’s not what this post is really about and we don’t blame you either. It’s something more lyrical and also more serious in part, so do read on our dear readers.

 

The musical ‘Miss Saigon’ is based on Giaco mo Puccini’s opera ‘Madame Butterfly’ which in part takes from a short story “Madame Butterfly” (1898) written by John Luther Long in 1898. It relates the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover.

 

In this revised version of Puccini’s work Frenchmen Claude-Michel Schönberg (a musical theater composer) and Alain Boublil (lyrics) with Richard Maltby, Jr. (an American theatre director and producer), reset the plot’s location forward to April 1975 in Saigon during the Vietnam War in a sleazy Vietnamese club called “Dreamland” just weeks before Saigon City’s fall to the advancing forces of the Viet Cong. Madame Butterfly’s leading roles – the American Lieutenant and his Japanese geisha paramour are replaced by a romance between an American GI sergeant (Chris), and a Vietnamese bar girl (Kim).

 

Miss Saigon premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in London on 20 September 1989, closing 11-years later after over 4,000 performances, on 30 October 1999. It opened on Broadway (New York USA) at the Broad way Theatre in 1991 and subsequently played in many other cities and embarked on tours across the United States and other cities in the U.K.

 

The original role of Kim was played by Lea Salonga – a young and talented but up and coming Filipina actress and singer, who just at the young age of 18-years became famous because of this role. For her live performan ces on stage in the musical she won the prestigious Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award. The original role of the American GI engineer was portrayed by Jonathan Pryce who also won a Tony Award for the role.

 

Highlights of the show include the evacuation of the last Americans in Saigon from the Embassy roof by helicopter while a crowd of abandoned Vietnamese scream in despair, the victory parade of the new communist regime and the frenzied night club scene at the time of defeat.

 

Miss Saigon represents Schönberg and Boublil’s second major success, following Les Misérables in 1985 and as of September 2011, it is still the eleventh longest-running Broadway musical in musical theatre history.

 

Watch The Video

 

This video provided by Lobeline Communications which captures the Miss Saigon scene where Kim (Lea Salonga) and Chris (Simon Bowman) perform the duet love song ‘Sun & Moon’ as the two pledge their love for each other.

 

THE UP AND COMING

 

Since its opening in London Miss Saigon has been produced in many cities around the world that include Canada (1993, 2010), Germany (1994), Hungary (1994, 2011), the Philippines (2000), Brazil (2007), Norway (2009) and the Netherlands (2011). According to the Miss Saigon Official Site, Miss Saigon has been performed by twenty-seven companies in 25 countries and 246 cities. It has also been translated into 12 different languages.

 

Between 2009 and 2010 Miss Saigon toured various cities in New Zealand that included Christchurch, Dunedin, Wellington, Palmerston North, New Plymouth, Napier, Tauranga, Hamilton and Auckland.

 

Following the footsteps of Lea Salonga in the original production, another two Filipino-Kiwis auditioned and won the role of Kim – Ivy Rose Padilla for the Wellington season of the show and Tina Bergantinos following Ivy’s lead for the season shows performed in Hamilton (April 2010) and Dunedin ((September 2010).

 

The Auckland season of Miss Saigon commenced in May this year at the Civic Theater with a cast of 60 talented individuals; the largest team ever recruited for a musical in the City of Sails. In this most recent production of the musical there were 29 Asian cast members – 17 of whom were Filipino-Kiwis who landed some plum roles.

 

Of the 9 male roles in the musical, 7 went to Filipinos and of the 16 female roles, 6 were Filipinas.

 

Watch The Video

 

This video provided by Amici Productions Ltd. takes a peak behind the scenes at rehearsals, publicity and media shoots for the production of Miss Saigon which was eventually performed live on stage for the first time in Auckland, New Zealand from 20 May 2011.

 

The up and coming Filipino-Kiwi contingent of the Miss Saigon productions in New Zealand included: O’Neal Mendoza who plays ‘Thuy’ the North Vietnamese Army officer, Dwayne Mallo, Erwin Cifra, Leilani Guillen, Ena Rico, Reynald Ricafrente, Samantha Batchelor, Janel Surtida, Catherine Ombao, Abby Mara sigan,  Percy La Madrid, Russell Siayngco and Romel Gonzales. The four Filipino-Kiwi kids in the show are Kenzo Santayana, Abbey Martinez, Isabella Caballero and Johann Guadalupe who took turns play the role of ‘Tam’, son of ill-fated lovers Kim and Chris in the musical.

 

FOR A MORE WORTHY CAUSE

 

After the final season closed this year, these young and talented Filipino-Kiwis formed themselves into group called ‘Pinoy Saigon’, an apt throwback perhaps to their participa tion and collective experiences in Miss Saigon New Zealand.

 

With the help and guidance of Ms. Maricar Siayngco – who has successfully established herself as writer-reporter for a good number of news-oriented websites and is an active personality in supporting certain charities established by Filipino-Kiwis, the group is now moving on towards a more worthy cause by producing a CD music album (see jacket cover, image at right) for the SCOT Trust – a nonprofit charitable organisation operating from Auckland spearheaded by Nanette Carillo and Mike de Boer.

 

The SCOT Trust was established by West Auckland Filipinos and Kiwi families in July 2009. It was founded principally to empower Asian migrant children in New Zealand and Philippine-based street children and orphans to live a life more abundantly.

 

These are the ones that as children, societies put into institutions. They are the ones that end up being ostracized from family and faith. They are the ones that grow up to fill up our prisons. And then, we wonder why they turn out the way they do.

 

The Trust’s approach towards more positive outcomes deal with breaking the cycle of poverty; becoming a catalyst of positive change for the next generation and growing them to their full potential; providing a platform for a life of significance; and, employing other holistic programmes towards empowering the next generation.

 

Nanette and Mike have both just recently returned to Auckland from the Philippines after spending some productive months there supervising the launching of and expansion of programmes and initiatives that benefit Filipino street children and orphans.  After a time of respite, they plan to update their Social Media-oriented community website, which is still under development, with a number of stories about these children and the work that SCOT Trust continues to pursue indefatigably for them.

 

If you wish to support the work that Nanette and Mike do these days for dis advantaged children in both New Zealand and the Philippines, please visit this page on that website.

 

By: Karl Quirino

 

NOTE: If you’re looking for the article written about The Philippine Ati-atihan Cul tural Dance performances for the Rugby World Cup 2011 Festival of Carnival that was previously posted in this homepage, it has been moved to another section titled ‘Ati-atihan sa Wellington‘.

 

HOME

Apres Moi, Le Deluge

THE PARALLEL HERE

 

The phrase “Après moi, le déluge” (“After me, the deluge”) is the pompous expression attributed to the hedonistic King of France Louis XV (1710-1774) which although, it does not exactly contain a mention of a flood or of other catastrophes, we cannot resist recalling here a witticism attributed to the Cynic philosopher Diogenes (412-323 B.C.). Inferring the conviction that one must not worry about the evils which can arise after our death even if those evils arise from one’s own actions in life. Because of his indifference and excesses Louis XV extinguished the notion of monarchy.

 

Most of us are in denial or just don’t care or think that it is important enough to do something about it. Just as Louis XV’s indifference and personal excesses led to the extinction of monarchy as a tradition in France the parallel here is that we too are destroying the earth at the rate we are polluting it due to which we, ourselves are suffering. It is a scary thing to think about but it is real and if you really look around you will see just how dangerous it is becoming.

 

CLOSER TO HOME

 

Climate disasters are on the rise. These involve any long-term significant change in the expected patterns of average weather of a specific region (or, more relevant ly to contemporary socio-political concerns, of the Earth as a whole) over an appropriately significant period of time.

 

They are life-changing events that reflect abnormal variations to the expected climate within the Earth’s atmosphere and subsequent effects on other parts of the Earth. Around 70-percent of disasters are now climate related – up from around 50-percent from just two decades ago. These disasters –  which are be coming more frequent, are taking a heavier human toll and consequently, come with a higher price tag.

 

In the last decade, 2.4-billion people were affected by climate-related disasters, compared to 1.7-billion in the previous decade – nearly a 30-percent increase. Worse still, the cost of responding to disasters has also risen 10-fold between 1992 and 2008. Destructive sudden heavy rains, intense tropical storms, repeated flooding and droughts are likely to increase, as will the vulnerability of local communities in the absence of strong concerted action.

 

A foretaste of this scenario has already happened. The rainfall brought by ‘Ty phoon Ondoy’ (internationally tagged as Tropical Storm ‘Ketsana’) to Metro Mani la Philippines and nearby areas in a span of 6 hours on a Saturday last 26^th Sept ember 2009 was the most devastating in recorded human history.

 

Comparatively, ‘Hurricane Katrina’ – which poured over an inch of rainfall in the State of Louisiana USA for 3-hours and another 0.5-inches per hour over the next 5-hours on 29 August 29, 2005 paled in comparison even as it got more mileage from world media then.

 

Typhoon Ketsana/Ondoy’s devastation in the Philippines dumped an average of 2.24-inches per hour for six excruciating hours – equivalent to a rise in water of 900 ft. at sea level. Its ominous visit to the Philippines was measured as being the equivalent 6 typhoons strung over a 3-week period compressed into just 6 hours of mayhem!

 

IT’S ALL JUST BEGINNING

 

Sea level rise may also completely inundate coastal areas in all continents inhabited by humans. But even before that kind of catastrophe arrives on our world with increasing likelihood, something similar like it is already happening in reverse on the land itself in the Philippines. Data from the Philippine National Mapping and Resource Information Authority confirms that some areas in Metro Manila have already sunk by as much as 1.3 meters from 1979 to 2009 as a result of flooding.

 

To make matters worse, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomi cal Services Administration predicts that the rate of annual precipitation or the amount of rainfall per year will increase by as much as 17-percent in 2020 and another 16-percent in 2050. More sinking of ground is therefore expected leaving a metropolis of over 12-million people highly vulnerable when the seas start to rise.

 

The Philippines’ own Climate Change Commission, in its 2010 year-end report also warned that: “An archipelagic nation of over 90-million people, the Philippines now faces threats from destructive typhoons, drastic changes in rainfall, sea level rise, and increasing temperatures.” The country, it warns, is “ranked highest in the world in terms of vulnerability to tropical cyclone occurrence, and third in terms of people exposed to such seasonal events.” Southeast Asia will also see its megacities face harsher storms and floods with disastrous effects … if current climate-change trends continue.

 

Let’s fast forward ourselves to September 2011. The rampage of Typhoon Pedring which is just now exiting the Philippines has killed people, inundated homes affecting close to 11 thousand families, and inflicted damage in the amount of over Php.3-billion. Flooding in Central Luzon areas affected by it may take three more days before subsiding. And if that’s not enough, another tropical cyclone ‘Typhoon Quiel’ is fast approaching on its heels. Rainfall is projected to be 15-millimeters to 25-millimeters per hour within the storm’s 400-kilometer diameter.

 

Watch The Video 

 

 

 

There is nothing unexpected in this dismal view; it is none other than the extra polation of the present into the near future. It is but an expression of stark reality and the handwriting is already on the wall. Can something be done to avoid this catastrophic fate?

 

Of all the living things that have inhabited this remarkable planet humans – thanks to their superior brains, have managed to struggle and emerge under almost any condition. For most part, this explains the unique success of our species thus far. Unlike other living organisms which exist in this world, we have the unique ability to change things beneficially or malevolently.

 

It’s a simple matter of choice. Now that our species is aware of the menaces of the future, it can make a choice to do unimaginable things today that ensures its continued survival well into a future even as the prospects today look desper ately bleak.

HOME