Restrain me

(A Character Sketch by Inah Cathes Lopez)

Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. lines from the 2006 movie V for Vendetta converted from the original ten-issue comic book series V For Vendetta by Alan Moore. This movie showcased proposition of a masked anarchist who sought to kill some of the political leaders of their country. This V, the main character of the movie/comic book hero, was wearing a Guy Fawkes mask, long black wig, mostly pure black clothing as well as black cape and hat to complete the whole concept of villainous hero of the story. The character is a mixture of an actual advocate of anarchism and the traditional stereotype of the anarchist as a terrorist. Like V, we all have our distinct purpose. I have seen myself once as V. I have gone through a lot in life. Even this movie helps me venerate what it means to have stood by our own thoughts and listen to our own ambitions. Ive once been a child. I have been a sponge. I kept on absorbing everything anyone told me. Not knowing whether what I was engrossing was either all but truth or lies. The word understand was never in my dictionary. Nothing much meant to me, no one told me which not to believe. Like a bottle being filled, I didnt bother think nor choose which to fill me. It all depended on the people around me. My attitude relied on what I rapt from my environment. If they told me this then this is what I am. If they tell me not to do that then I am not that, but I have been thought that everything in life has happened to people because it was either destined to happen to them or it is their fate. Living my life was but a game to me. I was either controlled or told what to do. I enjoyed it since I was simply in a milieu where people know who I was and how I was with them but time takes you to places youve never imagined. All I thought, all I imagined were all but images in the television where there were imaginary creatures and unspeakable villains. We all had to live and breathe on our own without people having their chains all over us holding us back from who we could be and who we really are. From locking yourself in the privacy of your home to going to another place they term to as our second home. We must enter a world unfamiliar to us. A new surrounding wherein a fresh faces and varied people come and converse with us. By that moment, we seem to recover the idea of what reality is. I was simply afraid, fearing that no one will accept me. I learned the idea of masks and how using them can hide our faces and ourselves. Honestly I visualized the outside world as a playground with slides and swings and monkey bars but as I wandered off I noticed that even in these games there are challenges. Even before coming to these play stations I take long steps and in some of these steps I take I trip and fall yet as I try to persevere, during this process I kept hurting myself as my urgency keeps pushing me towards my goal I tend to forget the ones around me so I stopped and went back home. I was yet but a child that benefit from the pleasure of playing games and enjoy the luxurious feeling of getting tired while smiling. Studying was and could

never have felt so satisfying to me back then. Like a fish desperate for water, I was that eager to know more. But not at all times and all things I enjoyed learning. Being a child, my attention span will always and never be that long. I easily grew tired of acquiring knowledge. Luckily I had my mother to thank for pushing me further into realizing what this would mean to me and how much it could help me realize what really is and how it really is. Hungry for more and desperate for attention I noticed how much my parents and relatives valued my brother more. I saw myself before as a hungry cat fighting for some piece of scrap from a local trash bag just to fill my famished stomach. I wanted more attention and affection. I strove hard and long for it. I accomplish in much endeavors in a young age. I kept struggling to achieve and attain my immature selfishness to come to realize that what I was pursuing will never be reached. A conquest I sought for was yet to be mislead. Growing up with the dream of being socially accepted by your family. They may have treat me like family but if only you would be there you would see how crushed I was deep inside. Having to sit in a corner remaining quiet as they praise your sibling for his accomplishments. Like a freshwater fish in a saltwater room, I was apt for an aquatic environment yet I knew that it was not my habitat, not really the place I belong to. I was not a salmon that could live in both surroundings but I was rather just a passer-by who has but no permanent direction but has a specific purpose. I lived my life the way people want me to live it. I became a cat for I tried to be as flexible as possible to be able to climb and tiptoe over my obstacles. I had a dream I threw it away. I replaced it with what they want me to be. Now, I am a writer. I am here to satisfy you with my ideas and perception. I have come here to help you relax, enjoy and entertain you in the ways I know. I have nothing. I own no one. All I want now is you happiness. Seeing smiles and hearing laughter is my source of strength. Though the fact that we can never make everyone happy crushes my soul yet I still have hope that someday this ample vision of mine could be a part of reality. I am a clown at least, hiding behind the tears of one. While creating this piece, I stumbled upon a song. Entitled I Found A Reason by Cat Power from the film V for Vendetta, I do believe in all the things you see, what comes is better than what came before. This movie has not only became a part of my life but it is also the life I am living. If you still find confusion in what I am trying to portray try watching that movie and you will see what I saw and feel what I felt. For as V had mentioned, There is a face beneath this mask but it is not me. Most of you may realize the importance of being true to yourself, do not ask me for I myself am is as lost as a lamb and only the Lord can lead me.

Insanely Haughty
(A poem about family by Inah Cathes Lopez) I would never want to change anything Its not that I love everything in my life Its just that I appreciate them even if Its not that typical life you except

Family- composed of people I love to hate and hate to love People so complicated to read Once when you think you know them, Then second you dont

Crazy as it seems, but this family is to die for Sincerely speaking, one thing I love most is During reunions we make the most active bunch We make memories and get called insanely haughty

At the end of everyday, theres always these people We may have friends but in every chapter in life We conflict and misunderstand them This comes to show that family is always there to turn to.

My Color is Rainbow
(A poem about myself by Inah Cathes Lopez) Hey Juliet, For The First Time, Call Me, B-E-A-UTIFUL The songs I usually listen to for the past days. Days without music is like deprived with hearing. This is my addiction one thing I cant live without.

I admit, I am addicted and slightly lunatic. I definitely am not an open comprehensible book. I hate prejudgment as well as vanity. So be wise in befriending a peculiar person like myself.

I may seem all rowdy and strong But inside this austerity is a fragile glass. Easily wounded, unnoticeably emotional at heart Mistaken as bipolar but merely just delicate

Complex I may seem but try to dig deeper Youll see the colors behind this stained glass Neither anyone nor everyone can adapt to changes at heart I let loose the real me, my color is rainbow

Heroine
(A poem about love by Inah Cathes Lopez) A path to realitys cruelty. A sight for sore eyes that are blinded by desires. An escape from juvenile walls of mere immaturity That keep holding us back from our most loved.

No sin, no evil can tear us apart. Neither misunderstanding can divert this sensation Nor discrepancy can make this deal be done Nothing can destroy this perfectly imperfect provision.

Make believe that this is all but fantasy. No ecstasy can make this illusion. No other amount of nicotine could make you more addicted. Loosing control never felt this frantic yet delightful.

I never thought that this hallucination would be good Attaining this relentless satisfaction at was never that easy. Even before attaining pleasure we stumble upon tests Yet once we have it we just cant get enough of that heroine.

Enchanted
(A Poem on Friendship by Inah Cathes Lopez) Another face in a crowd we pass by Another voice we hear as we move along Walk on the path of life in front of you This journey you embark you cant do alone.

Watch your hands open and close to a fist Look closely as you take grip an object Notice how fingers clump together as you clutch You can never hold something with only one finger.

We do work, we can do it alone But we cant do all these without helping hands As the famous saying goes, Two heads are better than one.

The best solutions are made with plenty choices. A bundle is better than a single piece. A life alone is never as happy As life with friends is unspeakably enchanting.

Tongue Twisters
To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, In a pestilential prison, with a life-long lock, Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock, From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block! To sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, In a pestilential prison, with a life-long lock, Awaiting the sensation of a short, sharp shock, From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block! A dull, dark dock, a life-long lock, A short, sharp shock, a big black block! To sit in solemn silence in a pestilential prison, And awaiting the sensation From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block!
by W.S. Gilbert of Gilbert and Sullivan from The Mikado

I wish to wish the wish you wish to wish, but if you wish the wish the witch wishes, I won't wish the wish you wish to wish. Something in a thirty-acre thermal thicket of thorns and thistles thumped and thundered threatening the three-D thoughts of Matthew the thug - although, theatrically, it was only the thirteenthousand thistles and thorns through the underneath of his thigh that the thirty year old thug thought of that morning.
by Meaghan Desbiens

How many cans can a cannibal nibble if a cannibal can nibble cans? As many cans as a cannibal can nibble if a cannibal can nibble cans.

When you write copy you have the right to copyright the copy you write. You can write good and copyright but copyright doesn't mean copy good - it might not be right good copy, right? Now, writers of religious services write rite, and thus have the right to copyright the rite they write. Conservatives write right copy, and have the right to copyright the right copy they write. A right wing cleric might write right rite, and have the right to copyright the right rite he has the right to write. His editor has the job of making the right rite copy right before the copyright would be right. Then it might be copy good copyright. Should Thom Wright decide to write, then Wright might write right rite, which Wright has a right to copyright. Copying that rite would copy Wright's right rite, and thus violate copyright, so Wright would have the legal right to right the wrong. Right? Legals write writs which is a right or not write writs right but all writs, copied or not, are writs that are copyright. Judges make writers write writs right. Advertisers write copy which is copyright the copy writer's company, not the right of the writer to copyright. But the copy written is copyrighted as written, right? Wrongfully copying a right writ, a right rite or copy is not right.
The Department of Redundancy Department Copyright Department Copyright, 1999

Through three cheese trees three free fleas flew. While these fleas flew, freezy breeze blew. Freezy breeze made these three trees freeze. Freezy trees made these trees' cheese freeze. That's what made these three free fleas sneeze.
from Fox in Sox by Dr. Seuss

Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Spread it thick, say it quick! Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Spread it thicker, say it quicker!

Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread. Don't eat with your mouth full!

Bobby Bippy bought a bat. Bobby Bippy bought a ball. With his bat Bob banged the ball Banged it bump against the wall But so boldly Bobby banged it That he burst his rubber ball "Boo!" cried Bobby Bad luck ball Bad luck Bobby, bad luck ball Now to drown his many troubles Bobby Bippy's blowing bubbles.
from mid-Willamette Valley theater

How many berries could a bare berry carry, if a bare berry could carry berries? Well they can't carry berries (which could make you very wary) but a bare berry carried is more scary!

Out in the pasture the nature watcher watches the catcher. While the catcher watches the pitcher who pitches the balls. Whether the temperature's up or whether the temperature's down, the nature watcher, the catcher and the pitcher are always around. The pitcher pitches, the catcher catches and the watcher watches. So whether the temperature's rises or whether the temperature falls the nature watcher just watches the catcher who's watching the pitcher who's watching the balls.
by Sharon Johnson

Bible Verses
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
16Rejoice always, 17pray without ceasing 18and give thanks to God at every moment. This is the will of God, your vocation as Christians. -Prayer is said to way of expressing our compensation from God for His grace, guidance worshiping Him. be the way we Christians communicate with God. It is our utmost thanks for what God had given us, of asking for the faults and sins we have committed, of requesting and help and most especially of giving Him praise and

2 Timothy 2:23-26

23Avoid stupid and senseless discussions, since such are the cause of
misunderstanding. 24Gods servant must not be quarrelsome, but kind to all, always teaching and patient with those who do not understand, 25gently correct opponents; perhaps God may grant them to repent and discover the truth, 26withdrawing them from the snare of the devil who held them captive to his own -I remember the saying ideas bring about words and words bring about actions so on so forth. We must contain ourselves and think well of what to do regarding all situations. We must make sure that the decisions we make and discernments are all for and according to Gods will. For God the Father, being the Father of all wants us not to pull each other down and accuse each other of anything but He wants us to love one another as true brothers and sisters of Christ. We must learn to avoid being too much affiliated to gossiping and eavesdropping for it will not do us any good. We must refrain ourselves from giving in to the inducement of the devil and keep our faith and love for God strong.

Proverbs 29:22
The hot-tempered man provokes disputes, his anger multiplies his sins. -Anger is not best reciprocated with anger. Anger will never be the best solution in a situation. If not controlled. This may result to even more endangerment and thus brining more hazard. There is another thing we call, adding insult to injury. Usually when we are angry we could not control our words and what we exasperate about gets us pumped up to the point where we also have a tendency to hurt others not only verbally but physically.

1 Corinthians 5:12
Why should I judge the outsiders? But, are you not to judge who are inside? -This verse pertains to religious beliefs. It emphasizes that we could not simply make other sects believe what we believe and do what we do. We cannot just tell them that what they do and believe in is wrong. Jesus taught us the way to follow but we cannot just demand that they understand our moral standards.

Luke 14:26
If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he can not be My disciple?

- The word disciple simply means a person who learns from someone else. So if I am a disciple of Christ, I learn from Him. But Jesus wanted people not to learn and just keep it in their minds, but to keep it in their hearts by also DOING as he did. Jesus came with love and not with condemnation, and if you hate anyone, then you are not doing as He did. He did not mean hate them, but He really meant to just love Him more than all else. The Greek word that was translated to hate was miseo, actually meaning to love less. We love Him so much more than everyone else and ourselves that by comparison it seems to be that we hate all else. But in loving Him, the things that we seem to hate, we still love much more than the people who dont have Jesus are able to love. Because it is His love in us. As a follower of Jesus, your version of hate should have even more love in it than the worlds version of love. This means a lot to me because Jesus never said for us to just go get people saved. He said make disciples of all nations. And not just IN all nations but OF all nations. See, its great when people get saved, but a lot of times theyre left feeling what do I do now? what next? is this all? Its as if we abandon babies at the alter. We need to make disciples of people, take them under our wing, mentor them, answer questions, show them how to apply the Bible to their daily life, etc. At the same time, we are still someone elses disciple. We should have someone else doing the same for us. Some people even go as far as becoming spiritual parents. And at the same time as that, we are all still learning from Christ because He is living inside of each of us when we be coma a new creation and our hearts begin to echo His heart. What being a disciple means to me? Love.

Say What?
(Speech about Family)
Mother, father, brother, sister, all are but members of the family. But how do we really consider a bunch of people as family? Is being together with your family really that much of a bunch you want to? So many questions have been flooding my mind when I stumble upon the word family. What is family really? Can we consider two people as family? According to Wikipedia, a family (from Latin: familia) is a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children. Extended from the human "family unit" by biological-cultural affinity, marriage, economy, culture, tradition, honor, and friendship are concepts of family that are physical and metaphorical, or that grow increasingly inclusive extending to community, village, city, region, nationhood, global village and humanism. A family group consisting of a father, mother and their children is called a nuclear family. This term can be contrasted with an extended family. Merely, family should be biologically related. There are also what some term to as kadugo or blood-related. In television shows, mostly quarrelling happens within a family or either a family feud. Notice that no television soap drama does not forget to miss out the part where the family or families of people argue. Partially it is more realistic but then it gets too overrated and very predictable. And as these shows go on, the producers do not know that these shows have some psychological effects on some families. Some most likely some family members particularly the children who are like sponges that absorb everything may act or behave like the family members they watch on television. Family members especially the parents like to compare. Often times they compare fantasy with reality. We also tend to imitate what we watch. Even in our surroundings we are inclined to bend our habits and form new ones that we acquired from other families. For me now, there is no original family, except for those in mountain provinces and far from civilization. They are the true ones. The ones who really value their children and care for them. The children of those from primitive life dont rely on their parents as long as they can be on their own and live they dont burden their parents. Unlike us, we are the civilized ones. We are the ones who are easily influenced and brain washed. Lets try to go back. Family? Really? Thats too much of the thing of the past, too overrated, too commercialized. The true family is where there is no feuds, no war, no argument. Where can you find that?

The Heroes of Our Generation

(Speech about Education)
Teaching has been and will always be continuous. Learning goes hand in hand with teaching. Teaching will never be effective without learning. We cannot teach if we do not learn and we can not learn so we can not teach. This field not only pertains to school subjects but also applies to typical living. Each generation attains knowledge from different modes of teaching and develops variety of lessons. There are different levels of learning as well as different techniques of teaching. There are a lot of things to consider in teaching to make it most effective. Before even being able to share knowledge we must first learn ourselves. All of us have undergone the same lessons, subjects and topics in school. Even our grandparents have also went to school to study and obtain more ideas about life and things around us. We have all been under supervision and guidance of teachers. Without teachers, obtaining facts would be much disoriented and more over be mislead. Some things are best learned form the best teachers. Everyones first teachers are family. Our first mentors are our parents. They teach us the value of family. Not only that but also being well oriented human beings by showing politeness and courtesy towards others and most especially to our elders. They teach us also to be models of our siblings and be responsible for them. Responsibility is one of the most important thing that our parents teach us for this is very essential in all aspects of daily living. From being responsible enough to do house chores to cleaning ourselves up and fixing our things at home. Besides from the house the second lieu of learning is at school. This is the place where we learn the fundamentals of life and the knowledge of all fields in life. From learning the basic grammar and composition, basic operations in mathematics, basic fundamentals in computers, basic religious rites and prayers to basic general knowledge of science. And as the levels of learning go up, the more topics are being added and the more intense and complex the information the students obtain. In this second home there are also what we call parent and these are our teachers. They not only teach us subjects but they really do act as parent to us most especially when we were all but toddlers. They were the ones who taught us to wait in line as we buy or get our food. They taught us to spell long words and write our names. Basically teachers teach us much of everything in life. Come to think of it, we get to see more of our mentors than our parents. We are at school five out of seven days a week. I salute our teachers and mentors for doing a job well done in their work and let us give them a round of applause for their never ending efforts to lecture us students on both life and in subjects. And to those teachers of our teachers let us give them a hand for without them we could never be the persons we are today.

So, what Filipino?

is

Before I present my speech to you all formally I would like to ask, who here is proud to be Filipino? Are you all firm with your decisions that you ARE proud? Hold on to that thought as I begin my proclamation. What comes to our minds when we hear Filipinos? What makes something be branded as from Philippines? Some may say, Imelda Marcos and her contributions to culture and the arts(yes, that also includes her shoe collection), the Cojuangco-Aquino clan who were the main players of the so-called People Power Revolt and the 2010 Election, Manny Pacquiao, Shamcey Supsup, Venus Raj, adobo, sick man of Asia, friendly people who know how to smile in even the worst situation, people who will insist a visitor takes their own bed while they themselves sleep on the floor, notorious traffic jams, jeepneys, pedicabs, shopping malls, GROs, bars and a place where time isn't counted in seconds or minutes but within half an hour or so. I dont want to sound full of shallow pride but honestly? Do you take all these? Does these really represent the REAL concept of Filipinos or rather the Philippines as a country itself? Do you think this is really whats going on in our country? Well let me tell you a thing or two about what I know about what it is like to be a Filipino in this country. Lets all close our eyes for a while and imagine ourselves finding out the cause of many problems. Is it the obnoxiously rich persons who refuse to share the wealth? Is it the people in power who abuse their privileges and even go to extreme lengths just to deny other people the opportunity to provide the people service that is second to none? Or is it the people who hold back, fold under pressure and say things just to please the persons who yield influence over the land? Regardless of the cause of our many problems, we are still stuck in an environment that is synonymous with slavery, enchantment, superstition, unwarranted self-importance and entitlement, name-calling, character assassination, gimme this, gimme that and other mentalities, traits and other elements that keep a Filipino starstruck and ignorant. However, we can reverse this. As a Filipino, I believe that those dysfunctions can be changed by changing a lot of things, starting with our dysfunctional culture and a government that has the resources but not the willpower to reform. A Filipino believes that language, faith, creed or affiliation doesnt hinder our love of country. A Filipino is in favor of constitutional reform, especially when more jobs are created and livelihoods secured through economic liberalization, the development of other regions through evolving federalism and the rise of more competent, patriotic and compassionate leaders through a parliamentary system. A Filipino can prosper and become financially independent without a streak of remorse, regret or a bothering conscience. A Filipino is not afraid to face the challenges of the present and the future, and to stand up to those who enslaved him for so long that some think that he cannot fight back and reclaim what is his. A Filipino can stop dying for the right reasons and start living for the right reasons, under his own terms. A Filipino can live to love one another without prerequisites or anxiety, so he can love to live and enjoy its fruits. And finally, a Filipino can be proud of his heritage not in celebrations that invite shallowness, but in achievements and accolades that bring honor and glory to the nation.

A Filipino can do those things. Not later, not in a few minutes, hours, weeks, or even centuries. But now. Now is the perfect time to Get Real, change for the better, advocate for things that can make a nation awesome and tread on the path that is neither straight nor narrow but wide enough to accommodate every Filipino towards the path to pace and progress.