Truly there is no place like it. Whatever they say about the United States, or any other country for that matter, it is only when you set foot on Philippine soil, sopping wet and flooded as it has been a bit too often lately, that you feel that warm and fuzzy feeling of home.
My latest landing was a bit too early, dark and damp before four in the morning last Wednesday. I don’t think there was anyone on that airplane happier to be on terra firma than I was.
At my age, being cooped up for almost 14 hours in a Boeing 777 is much too long. I don’t care if your seat stretches out to kingdom come, turns into a bed and assumes different shapes to give you optimum comfort.
No matter. PAL is still my carrier of choice. They have their own special brand of TLC.
I left Manila in the wake of Typhoon “Glenda” and got back just before “Mario’s” deluge. It was seamless nasty weather.
But I let nothing rain on my parade. I was home. Oh, the joy of fluffing my own pillows and sleeping in my own bed! Yes, there’s no place like it!
Catch up
Home just a week, jet lag and all, I think I am all caught up. Social media has helped, but not everything can be “shared” on Facebook.
How do you post the joy of a tight hug from my first great grandson just hours after touchdown? He lives in Seattle and studies at the University of Washington. We lunched the day I arrived, his last in Manila. He was here on an internship. That sounds important and real grownup. Seems like the last time I looked, he was only in the first grade.
On my last day in the Bay Area, I had a date for Mediterranean brunch in a quaint and cozy café in Burlingame with a handsome young man who works at Google. Lest you call me a cougar, allow me to be a doting lola one more time.
It is both remarkable and encouraging in this day and age finding a young man (he will be 24 in November) who holds the door open for you, rises when you enter the room, and looks after your comfort and safety above his own. We chatted. He asked about his cousins, what they were up to; about my writing; my health. He was interested. He listened. What a treat!
Today, no one speaks face to face anymore. I forgot how good it feels to gaze into someone’s eyes during a conversation; to actually hear and not have to imagine the tone of a voice. It has been so long.
I did not have to compete with a cell phone. Of course, he carries one. He used it once to get directions. But he respected our time together. It can be done.
Same old news
I watched a lot of CNN in the US. Unfortunately, there was little good news. I lost count of the times I switched channels, terrified.
I did keep up with Pinoy news online and tried not to dwell on political garbage. But there was little else.
I’d like to honestly say that I don’t care. But I still get angry, so I guess I do. I hate it that whenever there’s reason to brag a little, something or someone pulls you down. The deplorable UP incident made me cringe in shame.
Tidbits
Did you know that kissing a dog on the mouth could give you rabies, no matter how vaccinated your pooch is? FYI.
Don’t be fooled by products that announce “now gluten-free.” They never had gluten to begin with.
Why is everything suddenly organic?
What are range-free eggs?
Star at the UN
Emma Watson delivered a powerful, emotional speech at the United Nations headquarters. She was recently named UN Women Goodwill Ambassador to spearhead “HeforShe,” a campaign versus gender inequality.
I love the way she speaks. Her voice trembled a bit. She was visibly nervous and a bit unsure but totally unruffled—typical Brit, poised, prim and proper.
The impeccably dressed star of “Harry Potter” films told men all over the world: “Gender equality is your issue, too.”
She commented on the many misconceptions about “feminism”; that the term has become “unpopular, uncomfortable and perceived as anti-men.”
Could it be that the overzealous women who marched in the 1960s in the name of women’s lib caused this? Just asking.
Watson said: “I’ve seen my father’s role as a parent being valued less by society. I’ve seen young men suffering from mental illness unable to ask for help for fear it would make them less of a man. Men don’t have the benefits of equality, either. We don’t often talk about men being imprisoned by gender stereotypes but I can see that they are.
“I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and decisions that will affect my life. I think it is right that, socially, I am afforded the same respect as men.
“All I know is that I care about this problem and I want to make it better. I feel it is my responsibility to say something.”
She quoted my favorite saw from Irish author Edmund Burke: “All that is needed for the forces of evil to triumph is for good men and women to do nothing.”
I humbly submit that this should be our mantra for life.
With a defiant half-smile, Watson ended her speech with: “If not me, who? If not now, when?”
She got a standing ovation.