I met heroes

“Heroes aren’t born, but they are created in times of strife and struggle. Everyone is capable of being a hero in their own way, often without even knowing it, they are a hero to those around them.” ~ Unknown

Meet Eugene

Eugene bikes for 25 to 29 kilometres 4 times a week- given it doesn’t rain.  He hauls his bike from Imus Cavite to Makati City and back twice a week and from Imus to a hospital in Dasmarinas Cavite twice a week.  

“How long does it take you to reach your destination?”, I asked.

“Around an hour”, he nonchalantly replied as though moving through Manila’s and Cavite's traffic in 2 wheels is the easiest thing in the world.

He confided that at the start, he was merely traversing a distance of 700 meters ( which took him around 2 minutes) and then he gradually increased this distance.  Now, he could easily manage 60 kilometres in a day ( 3-5 hours including the rest time ).

Why did you start biking?, I continued to inquire.

“Initially, it was for health reasons.  I used to jog and thought of trying out biking.  Also, I wanted to avoid the traffic and decrease my transportation cost”, he said.

“Then, I heard of the climate change issue and I included it in my reasons.”

“How did you make shift?”, I prodded.

“It was hard to adjust my routine initially 

(I used to drive around the metro.) but I saw benefits- improved health, less expense and help to the environment.”

Like a staunch advocate that he is, he raised both hands, stomped his feet and bellowed, “Bike is life!” 

Meet Marra

“I became more open to a lifestyle change because of yoga.  It taught me how to live simply.”, confided Marra a 1 year old pescetarian.

“How did you start?,” I asked.

“I started letting go of meat when I attended a yoga retreat for a weekend where we were only served vegan food.”

“Initially, I was wary of the diet because of my active lifestyle.  I run marathons and I thought I need meat to sustain my fitness regimen.”

“Actually, I feel lighter now.  In fact, my performance improved after 

I changed my diet.”

“Why are you still at it?”, I queried.

“For good health.  Then, I became more conscious when I watched the 'Cowspiracy' documentary. I was shocked to know that our food supply is responsible for a big percentage of carbon emission which causes climate change."

According to the documentary, animal agriculture is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions, more than the combined exhaust from all transportation.

“What’s your understanding of climate change?”, I followed up.

“Climate change is the end of the world.” (if we don’t do anything about it)

The Hotseat 

Whether you admit it or not, you have the capacity to be a hero too.  The question is,  “Are you willing to change so that you can save the world?”.

I know CHANGE is a big word.  Just as Eugene and Marra attest- it’s not easy but if your why is bigger than your excuses then it can be done.  

How about starting with a step?  Just think of 1 thing you can do to better yourself and the world and then start it this very second.

P.S.  I would love to hear how it goes for you.

P.P.S.  When I say you, I’m addressing myself as well.

video from Release Your Wings

I interviewed a 13-year-old gangster

 Image from http://www.zerochan.net

I was a facilitator in a youth camp last weekend.  There was this boy whom almost everybody complained of.  The girls reported that at bedtime, he would open their dormitory door and throw pillows at them.  The boys said he'll do it when one of them is near the door so he could conveniently place the blame on them.  He would call his fellow campers names and would play practical jokes on them.  In short, he was the camp's bully.

Before I spoke to him, I sensed that he was going through something and that he was simply acting out.  Still, I was surprised at what I later find out.

The talk
I was sitting in the sofa with the boys and asking each one of them how the camp was when he joined in and  threw a question at me, "We were taught that we have to listen.  What does that mean?" "Well, everybody around us tells us one thing or another- our parents say this, our teachers advise that and our friends say something different all together.  Sometimes, we forget to listen to the most important person- our self.", I replied.

"You know, Ate (older sister), I have decided to listen to this (pointing to his heart)."  He, then started to narrate his story.  He told me of his 13-year-old friend who recently died because of frat war.  He knew that friend from a dance group and then later as one of the leaders of a gang.  His friend decided to leave his group and change his ways.  However, one day, while he was walking on the road with 2 other buddies, they came across their previous opponents- a whole batallion of them.  His other friends ran but he tripped and was beaten to death.

"Why did they kill him when he's no longer part of a gang? He was trying to change!", he reasoned.  His 13-year-old self could not understand why it had to happen.  I simply listened.

His story
He went on to say that he used to be part of a similar group too.  "I joined because of brotherhood", he explained. "Later, I observed that we were mere puppets of the founder.  He urged us to fight other gangs and taught us all sorts of vices.  My friend's death shook me up to all these nonsense."

With all the courage he can muster, he declared, "I will finish what my friend wasn't able to finish. I will change!"

He related that he had been changing for 6 months now.  It wasn't easy as he had to break his ties with his previous crew and he has to be on guard because of his gangs' previous enemies.

I know he will make it. He has that look of determination on his face.

What now
When the camp finished, we gave feedback to the children's caregivers.  The boy's lola (grandmother) received all the complaints before I got to talk to her. I tried to squeeze in a short meeting with her before they head off.  I did not tell her the whole story but only what she needs to know, "Your apo (grandchild) is bent on changing his ways. In fact, he's been working on himself for a long time- 6 months now. Whatever, you see right now are remnants of the habits he has acquired. He still is a work in progress and he needs all the help and support that he can get".

My lesson
I realized that it is so easy to be critical of another person.  It is so easy to point out another's defect.  What is hard to recognize is the effort that the soul is exerting.  More often than not, I do not know where that one is coming from and what is really going on.  What is visible is a just the tip of the iceberg.  So, from now on, I resolved to never ever judge.    

                                                                 video from easymeditation

How to Kill an Addiction

Cartoon from http://lastlemon.com/harolds-planet

I'm usually a sensible person.  I'm in and out of facebook- making sure I'm not scrolling the newsfeed for more than 30 minutes on the few times I log in (and that's goes for other online social media- youtube, twitter, etc), I never play online games (or any video game for that matter), I've said my goodbye to the dvd player and videostreaming a long time ago but for some weird reason the tv just got me hooked (Please see The TV Took Me Hostage to know the full story).  I couldn't quite put my finger on it.  So, I did more soul searching to understand why I am doing what I'm doing (since I'm a self-development junkie, I just really need to know).

So, I looked back at my previous patterns.  I saw that if there's something I couldn't handle- I sleep.  If I came across a roadblock- I run away.  If  a bigger-than-life opportunity comes my way, I cringe.  

After facing myself squarely, I realized that I allowed the TV to take hold of me because I couldn't quite pull myself together.  I was not powerful enough to turn the remote off because I am afraid of facing the opportunities in front of me.  I lacked the will and strength to change so I revert back to an old habit.  Also, I wanted to reach the goal but I don't like to put in the work involved to get there.  Like infamous Juan Tamad (Lazy Juan), I opted to sleep under the guava tree hoping that the fruit will miraculously fall straight to my mouth.  I took the easy route- stall and escape!

The TV allowed me to go just that,  lull my mind and go brain-dead for a few hours.  It allowed me to simply dream of the fruit and prevented me from climbing the tree so I can get the guava right away.  It brought everything to a halt just like sleeping.

In actuality, the culprit's not the TV afterall, it's my fear and laziness. 

Yay, now I know the root cause!  Since realization is the first step to change, now, I only need to gather the courage to do the right thing -again and again until I form the habit of just moving forward towards the goal, not minding the hurdles.

Cartoon from http://lastlemon.com/mahoney-joe

  

On Going Berserk

I rarely watch tv (like i'll probably gape at a commercial first shown months ago) but when I do, I can go on forever.  I can live on salad (like just lettuce and tomato with lemon dressing) for  a week but when I go crazy, i can drink a liter of soda with 2 giant bags of chips in one sitting.

I realized that it's when I feel deprived that I go out of the wagon (the good one).  I surmised that's probably the main reason why I keep on pressing snooze when my alarm rings and why I break new year's resolutions. This feeling of being deprived sends me back crawling to my old patterns.

Old habits stay because it's comfortable.  On the other hand, sticking to new habits is painful- initially.

But when I understand it for what it really is, then changing can be a breeze.  Like no one can make me eat meat- be it lechon, fried chicken, or even chocolate cake because I fully comprehend the logic behind it.  I am vegetarian because I believe in and practice non-violence.

Now, I really just have to understand why I have to eliminate my occassional addictions and I can change.

photo credit

I Love Me!

I've been trying to understand why I have to change.  It's so difficult!  Sometimes, (like right now) I'd rather revert to my old ways.  It's so much easier that way.


At the moment, I can very well sympathize with how Arjuna of the Bhagavad Gita feels before the great war begins.  His words express my sentiments,  "My limbs sink, my mouth is parched, my body trembles, the hair bristles on my flesh. The Magic bow slips from my hand, my skin burns, I cannot stand still, my mind reels."


I rather not fight this inner battle.  Why can I not just let things be?  Why get out of my comfort zone?  Why struggle?


I really need to understand!


I've been doing some soul searching these past few days.  Deep inside, I know I need to find my why so I can move forward (and it has to be a very strong why).


Before the day ends, I have discovered my why in 3 words,            I LOVE ME!.  "Seek and you shall find" proves to be true after all.


I deserve the best!  I so love me!

I got a note from my  life coach (i'm a self-development junkie, in case you haven't figured it out) at the end of a leadership course, it reads: I DESERVE THE BEST!  I wept buckets when I read it.  It hits my heart like an arrow because I have short changed myself so many times.  I often tell myself, "Ok na yan!" or "This is enough." or "Let's just stay where it's comfortable.".  I have settled for crumbs and the sidelines for so long that's why my heart aches.  The note just echoes what my heart has been screaming for, "I deserve the best!"  So, from now on, no more settling.  I shall not rest until I become the best me.  That means, all the bad stuff must go.


It's time to level up!  "Self, let's get better!"

They say life teaches lessons.  Funny thing is, tests come and  will keep coming until I get the lesson.  So, the challenges are really exams for me so I can get the point.  It can really be tiring and boring to get the same test over and over (even if it's masks in various scenarios).  So, I say, "Self, let's finish this one so we can move up a notch!  We don't want to get stuck, do we?".


It's just a small thing. No biggie!

I've been listening to Bro. Jagdish's classes.  He says even if you are facing a mountain, imagine that it's just made of cotton and you can easily pass through.  "You have the power to make anything smaller", he emphasized.  "Our Teacher tells us to consider obstacles to be a paper tiger so there's really no need to be afraid."  Finally, he stressed out it is written in last stanza of the Gita that  Arjuna will definitely be victorious because God is on his side.  In the same way, if I just keep God's company, everything will be a breeze.

I love me!  I love me!  I love me!  I love myself so much that I will bravely face and conquer my biggest enemies- my fears and my weaknesses.  Game on!