A Young Korean's letter to the Filipinos

Dearest Friends,

I got the following write-up from my friends at UNESCO.
Our young Korean friend who wrote about his feelings about the Phil made me think about us as a people. Insightful and pure. Just something to ponder upon.

---------------------------------


My Short Essay about the Philippines

Filipinos always complain about the corruption in the Philippines. Do you really think the corruption is the problem of the Philippines? I do not think so. I strongly believe that the problem is the lack of love for the Philippines.

Let me first talk about my country, Korea. It might help you understand my point. After the Korean War, South Korea was one of the poorest countries in the world. Koreans had to start from scratch because entire country was destroyed completely after the Korean War, and we had no natural resources.

Koreans used to talk about the Philippines, for Filipinos were very rich in Asia. We envy Filipinos. Koreans really wanted to be well off like Filipinos. Many Koreans died of famine. My father¡¯s brother
also died because of famine.

Korean government was awfully corrupt and is still very corrupt beyond your imagination, but Korea was able to develop dramatically because Koreans really did their best for the common good with their heart burning with patriotism. Koreans did not work just for themselves but also for their neighborhood and country. Education inspired young men with the spirit of patriotism.

40 years ago, President Park took over the government to reform Korea. He tried to borrow money from other countries, but it was not possible to get a loan and attract a foreign investment because the economy situation of South Korea was so bad. Korea had only three factories. So, President Park sent many mine workers and nurses to Germany so that they could send money to Korea to build a factory. They had to go through a horrible experience. In 1964, President Park visited Germany to borrow money. Hundred of Koreans in Germany came to the airport to welcome him and cried there as they saw the President Park. They asked to him, "President, when can we be well off?" That was the only question everyone asked to him. President Park cried with them and promised them that Korea would be well off if everyone works hard for Korea, and the President of Germany got the strong impression on them and lent money to Korea. So, President Park was able to build many factories in Korea.

He always asked Koreans to love their country from their heart. Many Korean scientists and engineers in the USA came back to Korea to help developing country because they wanted their country to be well off.

Though they received very small salary, they did their best for Korea. They always hoped that their children would live in well off country.

My parents always brought me to the places where poor and physically handicapped people live. They wanted me to understand their life and help them. I also worked for Catholic Church when I was in the army. The only thing I learned from Catholic Church was that we have to love our neighborhood. And I have loved my neighborhood.

Have you cried for the Philippines? I have cried for my country several times. I also cried for the Philippines because of so many poor people. I have been to the New Bilibid prison. What made me sad in the prison were the prisoners who do not have any love for their country. They go to mass and work for Church. They pray everyday. However, they do not love the Philippines. I talked to two prisoners at the maximum security compound, and both of them said that they would leave the Philippines right after they are released from the prison. They said that they would start a new life in other countries and never come back to the Philippines.

Many Koreans have a great love for Korea so that we were able to share our wealth with our neighborhood. The owners of factory and company were distributed their profit to their employees fairly so that employees could buy what they needed and saved money for the future and their children.

When I was in Korea, I had a very strong faith and wanted to be a priest. However, when I came to the Philippines, I completely lost my faith. I was very confused when I saw many unbelievable situations in the Philippines. Street kids always make me sad, and I see them everyday. The Philippines is the only Catholic country in Asia, but there are too many poor people here. People go to church every Sunday to pray, but nothing has been changed. My parents came to the Philippines last week and saw this situation. They told me that Korea was much poorer than the present Philippines when they were young. They are so sorry that there so many beggars and street kids. When we went to Pagsangjan, I forced my parents to take a boat because it would fun. However, they were not happy after taking a boat. They said that they would not take the boat again because they were sympathized the boat men, for the boat men were very poor and had a small frame. Most of people just took a boat and enjoyed it. But my parents did not enjoy it because of love for them.

My mother who has been working for Catholic Church since I was very young told me that if we just go to mass without changing ourselves, we are not Catholic indeed. Faith should come with action. She added that I have to love Filipinos and do good things for them because all of us are same and have received a great love from God.

I want Filipinos love their neighborhood and country as much as they love God so that the Philippines will be well off. I am sure that love is the keyword which Filipinos should remember. We cannot change the sinful structure at once. It should start from person. Love must start in everybody in a small scale and have to grow. A lot of things happen if we open up to love. Let's put away our prejudices and look at our worries with our new eyes. I discover that every person is worthy to be loved. Trust in love, because it makes changes possible. Love changes you and me. It changes people, contexts and relationships. It changes the world.

Please love your neighborhood and country. Jesus Christ said that whatever we do to others we do to Him. In the Philippines, there is God who are abused and abandoned. There is God who is crying for love.

If you have a child, teach them how to love the Philippines. Teach them why they have to love their neighborhood and country.

You already know that God also will be very happy if you love others. That's all I really want to ask you Filipinos.

Jaeyoun Kim
September, 2003

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SA AKING PAGTANDA

Here's something to touch our hearts . . .

SA AKING PAGTANDA

Sa aking pagtanda, unawain mo sana ako at pagpasensiyahan. Kapag dala ng kalabuan ng mata ay nakabasag ng pinggan o nakatapon ng sabaw sa hapag kainan, huwag mo sana akong kagagalitan. Maramdamin ang isang matanda, nagse-self-pity ako tuwing sisigawan mo ako.

Kapag mahina na ang tenga ko at hindi ko maintidihan ang sinasabi mo, huwag mo naman akong sabihan ng "bingi", paki-ulit na lang ang sinabi mo o pakisulat na lang. Pasensiya ka na anak, matanda na talaga ako.

Kapag mahina na tuhod ko, pagtiyagaan mo sana ako at tulungan tumayo, katulad ng pag-alalay ko sa iyo noong nag-aaral ka pa lamang lumakad.

Pagpasensiyahan mo sana ako kung ako man ay nagiging makulit at paulit-ulit na parang sirang plaka. Basta pakinggan mo na lang ako. Huwag mo sana akong pagtawanan o pagsasawaang pakinggan. Natatandaan mo anak noong bata ka pa? Kapag gusto mo ng laruan, paulit-ulit mo yong sasabihin, maghapon kang mangungulit hanggat hindi mo nakukuha ang gusto mo. Pinagtiyagaan ko ang kakulitan mo.

Pagpasensiyahan mo na rin sana ang aking amoy - amoy matanda, amoy-lupa. Huwag mo sana akong piliting maligo. Mahina na ang katawan ko, madaling magkasakit kapag nalamigan, huwag mo sana akong pandirihan. Natatandaan mo noong bata ka pa? Pinagtiyagaan ko din ikaw kahit amoy putik ka, at pinagtiyaggan kitang habulin sa ilalim ng kama kapag ayaw mong maligo.

Pagpasensiyahan mo sana kung madalas ako ay masungit, dala na marahil ito ng katandaan. Pagtanda mo, maintindihan mo rin.

Kapag may kunti kang panahon, magkuwentuhan naman tayo, kahit sandali lang. Inip na ako sa bahay, maghapong nag-iisa, walang kausap. Alam kong busy ka, subalit nais kong malaman mo na sabik na sabik na akong makakuwentuhan ka, kahit alam kong hindi ka interesado sa mga kuwento ko. Natatandaan mo anak noong bata ka pa? Pinagtiyagaan kong pakinggan at intindihin ang pautal-utal mong kuwento tungkol sa iyong teddy bear.

At kapag dumating ang sandali na ako ay magkasakit at maratay sa banig ng karamdaman, huwag mo sana akong pagsawaan alagaan. Pagpasensiyahan mo na sana kung ako man ay maihi o madumi sa higaan. pagtiyagaan mo sana akong alagaan sa mga huling sandali ng aking buhay, tutal hindi na naman ako magtatagal.

Kapag dumating ang sandali ng aking pagpanaw, hawakan mo sana ang aking kamay at bigyan mo ako ng lakas ng loob na harapin ang kamatayan.

At huwag kang mag-alala, kapag kaharap ko na ang Diyos na lumikha, ibubulong ko sa kanya na pagpalain ka sana . . . dahil naging mapagmahal ka sa iyong ama't ina . . . .



Written by Rev. Fr. Ariel Robles
CWL Spiritual Director
St. Augustine Parish
Baliuag, Bulacan

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More Jokes and Puzzles

A driver pulled up beside a rundown farmhouse. He got out and knocked at the door. A very old woman answered the door, and he asked her for directions to Des Moines.

"Don't know," the woman said.

He got back in his car and pulled away. Then he heard voices. He looked in his rearview mirror and saw the woman and an equally old man waving for him to come back. So he made a U- turn and drove up to them.

"This is my husband," the old woman said. "He doesn't know how to get to Des Moines either." (o matanda yan ha, wag batukan).



Bert stood over his tee short on the 18th hole for what seemed like forever. He'd waggle, look down, look up, but never start his backswing. Finally Danny, his playing partner, asked, "Why on Earth are you taking so long to make this shot?" "My wife is up there watching me from the clubhouse, and I want to make this shot a good one," said Bert. "Good Lord," said Danny, "you haven't got a chance of hitting her from here."

(Similarity in names is purely coincidental.)

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Two blondes were facing each other with a lake between them. The first blonde wants to get to the other side so she yells to the other blonde, "Hey! I want to get to the other side of the lake but I can't swim. Please tell me how you did this!"The second blonde then says, " But you ARE on the other side!"

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A highway patrolman pulled alongside a speeding car. Glancing at the car, he was astounded to see that the blonde behind the wheel was knitting. The trooper cranked down his window and yelled to the driver--"PULL OVER!"

"NO!" the blonde yelled back, "SCARF!"

(Ganun ba talaga ang mga blonde Danny?)



PUZZLES


During a visit to the mental asylum, a visitor asked the Director what the criterion was which defined whether or not a patient should be institutionalized. "Well," said the Director, "we fill up a bathtub, then we offer a teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to empty the bathtub." "Oh, I understand," said the visitor. "A normal person would use the bucket because it's bigger than the spoon or the teacup."


Do you agree?

"No." said the Director, "A normal person would pull the plug.
Do you want a bed near the window?"




Lost your way

You're travelling to some village. At some point there is a fork in the road. You could go two ways but only one of them leads to the village. Lucky for you there are two men standing next to the fork. But unfortunately one of them always lies and one always speaks the truth and you do not know who is who. Since the men do not really like to help you, you are allowed to ask one of them only one question. What question should you ask?

Puzzle by Queena N. Lee-Chua, PDI June 2, 2007

26 = Letters of the Alphabet

What about the following?

12 = S of the Z 12 Signs of the Z.....

1001 = A N

90 = D in a R A

24 = H in a D

88 = P K

Watch out for the Answers next Posting

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People Principles

from the book, Winning with People by John C. Maxwell

Lens Principle
Who we are determines how we see others. Our perception of others depends more on our attitude than it does their characteristics. If we are positive, we see them as positive.

Pain Principle
Hurting people hurt people and are easily hurt by them. Our negative experiences and emotional baggage color our perception of others’ actions. Normal interactions can cause us pain even when another person did nothing to inflict pain.

Elevator Principle
We can lift people up or take them down in our relationships. People possess a mind set of either lifting of limiting others.

Learning Principle
Each person we meet has the potential to teach us something. People in possession of a teachable attitude can learn from everyone they meet. On the contrary, someone who assumes others have nothing to offer will walk away from relationships empty-handed.



What do Ed Canela and Manny Pangilinan have in common? (Who is Manny Pangilinan? He is a very successful manager. He is now the PLDT and SMART Chairman and CEO.)


I read an article in The Philippine Star about his speech during the graduation ceremonies (where he was also conferred an honorary degree) at the Xavier University in Cagayan de Oro City. Among the simple steps to right living that he mentioned was:

"Hug and kiss whoever helped get you – financially, emotionally, intellectually, morally – to this day. Don’t let the sun go down today without saying thank you to someone, and without admitting to yourself that absolutely no one gets this far, alone." (O di ba, pareho silang may hug and kiss!)

There's also another advice probably intented for our foreign-based classmates:

"Stay in the Philippines. I was born here and I will die here. It’s true that I spent some years of my life abroad, but I have returned to give a part of my life back to this country, and the place to start giving back is the place where you are right now. – But if you decide to depart our sunny shores for greener pastures abroad, may there always be a part of you that will remain enduringly Filipino. And may you perennially possess that durable sense of longing to come home one day."

May tama ba?

Itong susunod, hindi na galing kay Manny Pangilinan.

“It’s not how hard you can hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” (aray!) - Rocky Balboa to his dispirited yuppie son, Rocky Jr.

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Joke, Joke, Joke

Making Good on Her Promises
A woman recently lost her husband. She had him cremated and brought his ashes home. One day she picked up the urn he was in and poured him out on the counter.Then she started talking to him, and tracing her fingers in the ashes, she said, "You know that fur coat you promised me, Irving?" She answered by saying, "I bought it with the insurance money!"
She then said, “Irving, remember that new car you promised me?" She answered again saying, "Well, I bought it with the insurance money!"
Still tracing her finger in the ashes, she said, “Irving, remember that blowjob I promised you? Here it comes …



The Cabbie and the Blowjob
A successful businessman flew to Vegas for the weekend to gamble. He lost the shirt off his back, and had nothing left but a quarter and the second half of his round trip ticket -- If he could just get to the airport he could get himself home. So he went out to the front of the casino where there was a cab waiting.

He got in and explained his situation to the cabbie. He promised to send the driver money from home, he offered him his credit card numbers, his drivers license number, his address, etc. but to no avail. The cabbie said (adopt appropriate dialect), "If you don't have fifteen dollars, get the hell out of my cab!" So the businessman was forced to hitch-hike to the airport and was barely in time to catch his flight.One year later the businessman, having worked long and hard to regain his financial success, returned to Vegas and this time he won big. Feeling pretty good about himself, he went out to the front of the casino to get a cab ride back to the airport.
Well who should he see out there, at the end of a long line of cabs, but his old buddy who had refused to give him a ride when he was down on his luck. The businessman thought for a moment about how he could make the guy pay for his lack of charity, and he hit on a plan.The businessman got in the first cab in the line, "How much for a ride to the airport," he asked? "Fifteen bucks," came the reply. "And how much for you to give me a blowjob on the way?" "What?! Get the hell out of my cab." The businessman got into the back of each cab in the long line and asked the same questions, with the same result.

When he got to his old friend at the back of the line, he got in and asked "How much for a ride to the airport?" The cabbie replied "fifteen bucks." The businessman said "ok" and off they went. Then, as the drove slowly past the long line of cabs the businessman gave a big smile and thumbs up sign to each driver.

Blowjob That'll Make Her Scream

There were these three guys outside of a bar. There was a black guy, a white guy, and a Filipino guy. They all had been in the bar before and saw this gorgeous woman. Well they made a bet to see who could make the woman scream.

The black guy goes in a comes out and the woman is laughing, and then the white guy goes in, well after he comes out she is laughing even harder.

The Filipino guy goes in and a after a few minutes she is screaming bloody murder. Then he comes out, and the other two guys said how did you do that, and the Filipino guy goes "Me filipino, me play trick, me put hot sauce on my dick!"


Horrible Road Head Accident
In an appalling blowjob accident, a man had his penis severed when he hit a tree while his wife was giving him a blowjob while he was driving their car.

His doctor assured him that modern medicine could give him back his manhood, but that his insurance wouldn't cover the surgery, since it was considered cosmetic. He said the cost would be $4,500 for "small", $9,500 for "medium" or $16,000 for "large".The guy thought he'd get a medium or large, but the doctor urged him to talk it over with his wife before he made any decision.

The man called his wife on the phone and explained their options. The doctor came back into the room, and found the man looking dejected."Well, what have the two of you decided?" asked the doctor.

The man answered, "She'd rather remodel the kitchen".

Samu’t Sari:

Q: Anong similarity ng sperm at mayonnaise?
A: Pareho silang galing itlog at parehong Ladies' Choice.
----- oOo -----

At a strip joint, a girl wearing a g-string dances on stage.Japanese hooks Y10,000 to her panty, the American hooks $100,Filipino takes out his credit card and swipes it thru the girl's butt!
----- oOo -----

Chinese: I have 4 wives, one more I have a basketball team.
American: I have 9 wives, one more I have a football team.
Pinoy: I have 17 wives, one more I have a golf course, 18 holes.
----- oOo -----

Dalawang mag-syota are necking while parked sa madilim na lugar sa Ortigas.(First time for him and the nth time for her.) As he kissed her passionately, he slowly placed his hand on her thigh. "I love you," he whispered,( nanginginig pa ang boses)."Higher," she whispered,in anticipation (with buntong-hininga)."I love you," he repeated, in a higher pitch!.

----- oOo -----

Pagkatapos nang date nila, inihatid ni Tony si Tess anticipating a goodnight kiss.
TONY: Salamat sa date, ha? Sana maulit.
TESS: Okey lang, pero since Dutch treat tayo buong gabi, you kiss yourself and I'll kiss myself goodnight.

Bagong kasal si Tina at kinakausap ng Papa niya ang kanyang napangasawang si Tonyo.
PAPA: Bilang manugang ko, bibigyan ko kayo ng malaking halaga upang magamit ninyong puhunan subalit ano naman ang kapalit nito?
TONYO: Bibigyan ho namin agad kayo ng resibo.

----- oOo -----

Q: Bakit mas malakas umutot ang lalaki sa babae ?
A: Dahil may mike sila sa harap !Q: Eh bakit may echo kung umutot ang babae?
A: kasi malapit sa kuweba !

----- oOo -----

Dedicated to Danny
Q: Bakit matamis ang ulo ng kalbo?
A. Eh Kasi panot siya (pronounced panutsa)

----- oOo -----

An alcoholic son's letter to his Dad:

Beer dad,
gin na ko iinom, whisky kelan.Tanduayan mo yan.

Your san,
Miguel.

----- oOo -----

Dedicated to Men
The pinoy interpreter was trying his best to translate what the Filipino witness is saying in a court case:Witness: "Pagkatapos ng kung ano-ano ay nagdatingan ang kung sino-sino!"
Pinoy Interpreter: "After the what-what came the who-who!"

Kahit hirap mag-englis, panay pa rin ang ligaw ni Alfredo sa isang Amerikana:
KANA: I like men who are frank.
ALFREDO: My name is Alfredo, not Frank.

Dedicated to Fr. Efren
Katatapos lang basbasan ng pari ang isang presong nakaupo sa silya-elektrika.
PARI: "Mayroon ka bang nais na hilingin bago ka bawian ng buhay?"
PRESO: "Opo."
PARI: "Ano yon, anak?"
PRESO: "Pwede po bang hawakan n'yo ang kamay ko hanggang bawian ako ng buhay?"
----- oOo -----

KILLER: “Father mangungumpisal po ako.”
PARI: “Ano ba kasalanan mo?”
KILLER: “Pumatay po ako ng 20 tao”
PARI: “Bakit?
KILLER: “Kasi po naniniwala sila sa Diyos, kayo po ba naniniwala?
PARI: “Dati, pero ngayon trip-trip na lang.”

At para sa inyong lahat:

Anak: “Inay, meron na pala kayong puting buhok?”
Inay: “Oo anak. At ito’y kagagawan mo. Sa bawa’t mga kalokohan na ginagawa mo ay nagkakaroon ako ng puting buhok.”
Anak” “Ah, kaya pala puti na lahat ng buhok ni lola!”

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