There's a line in a song that goes, "shame on YOU if you fool me once, shame on ME if you fool me twice"- of course most of us are familiar of the song Life Goes On by LeeAnn Rimes.

What did the song imply? It's too heavy to handle actually. It's a song of a girl who fall in love for the wrong person but eventually realized the dilemma she's been through.

Unfortunately, not all madly in love individual have the same realization because there are still those who choose to continue to live in stupidity (sorry for the word), those who choose pain over common sense.

If you are involved with the WRONG person- don't hold on, you must stop it before you lose your sanity. Never allow that person to hurt you over and over again- that is called SELF-RESPECT.

Have you tried going to the market with no particular list on what to buy then you saw fruits and veggies on sale then out of compulsion, you bought and brought it home but could not figure out what to do with it because, in the first place, you really is not good in cooking?

Well, it happened to me most of the time. I once brought ingredients for Chicken Tinola (minus the chicken) and I just put it inside the refrigerator then days passed by it all dried up and gone to waste- what a waste of money! This often happens for busy working Moms like me. That feeling of having all the will but not the power to do it by yourself because you are just too tired to work in the kitchen after an all days work!

Somehow I learned my lesson from all those waste. I learned not to buy out of compulsion anymore. I see to it that once I bought something for meals, I should have enough time to prepare for it to avoid the same mistakes again. That is why I preferred buying ingredients during weekends so I have enough time to cook.

The ready-made food in the bottle is also a big help for busy Moms like me. That Spanish sardines in a bottle can be a better option. However, I minimize buying processed food because of preservatives, not unless it's chili sauce because I knew for sure that it has no preservatives at all just like Dandom's Chili Sauce. Talking about chili sauce, here's another thing, instead of making your own, why not trust it to the experts? In that way, you could free yourself from the hustle of grinding and estimating the taste of your sauce? My colleague once bought a kilo of fresh chilies because she wanted to make her own chili sauce but failed to do it because, yes, she doesn't have the luxury of time. The ending? she just threw all those dried-up chilies- just like throwing away her money because chilies are quite expensive.

The Original Dandom's Chili Garlic Sauce

So, a piece of advice from a not-so-good cook Mom like me? Spare yourself from the hustle- you want chili garlic sauce? Why not try Dandom's homemade Chili and garlic sauce? It is made from fresh chilies and fresh garlic, plus you can be assured that it is of superb quality and savory flavor because the maker herself is a licensed food technologist. How do I know? She's a good friend of mine and I could really vouch for her expertise!

Where to find them? Check their website at https://www.dandoms.com.

What is your stand on Reproductive Health Bill? Are you caught in between?

This has become a hot issue in the previous years. People on Congress were on hot debate regarding this matter, some even took one's opinion personally. The Church stressed out their defiance against the RH Bill. If you have gone through the full text of House Bill No. 5043, I am pretty sure you have now your stand. I didn't go through the whole issue, I just read the different opinions from those who were able to read it. Some made a responsible opinion while others don't. I really don't know if CORRUPTION has something to do with this. 

My attention was caught on Sec. 12 of the said bill which has the following provisions:

SEC. 12. Mandatory Age-Appropriate Reproductive Health Education. – Recognizing the importance of reproductive health rights in empowering the youth and developing them into responsible adults, Reproductive Health Education in an age-appropriate manner shall be taught by adequately trained teachers starting from Grade 5 up to Fourth Year High School. In order to assure the prior training of teachers on reproductive health, the implementation of Reproductive Health Education shall commence at the start of the school year one year following the effectivity of this Act. The POPCOM, in coordination with the Department of Education, shall formulate the Reproductive Health Education curriculum, which shall be common to both public and private schools and shall include related population and development concepts in addition to the following subjects and standards:

a. Reproductive health and sexual rights;

b. Reproductive health care and services;

c. Attitudes, beliefs and values on sexual development, sexual behavior and sexual health;

d. Proscription and hazards of abortion and management of post-abortion complications;

e. Responsible parenthood.

f. Use and application of natural and modern family planning methods to promote reproductive health, achieve desired family size and prevent unwanted, unplanned and mistimed pregnancies;

g. Abstinence before marriage;

h. Prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS and other, STIs/STDs, prostate cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer and other gynecological disorders;

i. Responsible sexuality; and

j. Maternal, peri-natal and post-natal education, care and services.

In support of the natural, and primary right of parents in the rearing of the youth, the POPCOM shall provide concerned parents with adequate and relevant scientific materials on the age-appropriate topics and manner of teaching reproductive health education to their children.

In the elementary level, reproductive health education shall focus, among others, on values formation.

Non-formal education programs shall likewise include the abovementioned reproductive Health Education.

I just don't know if teaching such a subject to young elementary students will make a good impact. I am not even sure if they will be able to comprehend such topic. Let's take into consideration item f, the use and application o natural and modern family planning methods... I don't think they will really be able to grasp the importance of such topic when all they could think of was how Spongebob was able to do some tricks on Patrick. Their mind are completely oblivious on this kind of issue. 

I do not know how the Congress and the President himself will be able to deal with this issue... The bill isn't really that bad but I guess it needs to be reviewed once and for all. They should weigh things out before coming up with final decision. Above all, they should take the Biblical truths into consideration.

If you happen to relate with those people who get bullied for being single then this message is for you. DON'T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY. Some were just trying to make fun out of your situation but you don't need to get affected by them. Never rush into something that you are not sure about simply because you get pressured by your peers.

I have more than one colleague who is still single in their 30's. We do sometimes teased them just for fun but we never encouraged them to do suicidal moves just to please everyone- it's their life and it's their choice. Though I have this one friend who is in a relationship for quite some time already and I do encourage them to settle down considering their age and their future family if they thought of having kids.

But seriously, marriage is a decision that needs thorough consideration by both parties. Unlike before, marriage is not about urges anymore. Most young couples now reconsider their capacity and capabilities of building a family of their own. Some were even building houses before building homes. But in my own opinion, I do not go for living together prior to marriage. As much as possible, that situation should not be tolerated. Practical as it may seem, but never make it a norm. Yes, we are already in the modern era, in post millennial time, but would that mean we are going to erase chastity and dignity in the book of vocabulary?

That doesn't make sense.

    No matter how good or reliable you are in your work but you ignore taking any steps for your professional growth, you will remain always at the bottom. Chances are, you will be working like a horse and your take-home pay cannot even compensate for all the stress that your work has caused you. This is the reality in my beloved Philippines. No wonder many professionals opted to work abroad where all their hard work and efforts are fairly compensated.

    As for me, I have no other choice but to embrace the system. At work, I always felt so exhausted with all those works piling on my table considering the multitasking that I have to do. I cannot leave my work and go abroad because I don't want to leave my family here. Thus, I am left with no choice other than to pursue my Master's Degree. Yes, I have already earned 30 units but I need to earn more in order to hit their goal and eventually apply for Teacher 3 (Currently I am still Teacher 1), Yes, you heard it right, earning a Master's Degree is not even a guarantee that you will be promoted right away because you need to apply for it- which means, you need to compile all the necessary documents to earn it.

    As of now, I have enrolled in 6 units and I really find it so difficult to work and study at the same time. But I am always praying for God's wisdom and strength that I could make it through! Good thing I have my sister who helped me with the expenses for my studies.

New Year, new hope.

The pandemic is still on but let us remain resilient with the situation. We cannot control the pandemic but we can manage to remain calm amidst anxieties. Together, let us all pray for a safer, better 2021.

What awaits us this year? It depends on our daily undertakings, our daily decisions, and our daily choices. If 2020 brought us into tears, then maybe we can do something to change our 2021. What occurs in 2020 that brings us down must mold us to stand up and look forward. As long as we live, we are up for better chances-just keep the faith. If we survived 2020, there must be a reason and that reason should be good enough for us to go on- to persevere and to face life amidst adversity with hope and greater faith in God.

Happy New Year everyone!