Rizal's Birthday and Report

Yesterday was Rizal’s birthday. The whole country observed, with solemnity, the 150th birth anniversary of our national hero. Of course, Rizal was an incomparable Filipino (or Malay) because of his talents, achievements and gifts. He was a doctor, a polyglot, a poet, a nationalist, a painter, etc. His novels were the catalyst for the Philippine Revolution. The portrayal of the sufferings of the Filipinos and the tyranny of the Spaniards in his two novels inspired the nationalist spirit among the revolutionary leaders to organize that Katipunan to fight for the freedom and the independence of the Filipinos from Spain. The rest is history.

I attended, was forced to attend as ordered by the department, to attend the commemoration rites held at the Taytay Municipal Hall yesterday. I was partly amused and impressed when I saw the Knights of Rizal dressed in Barongs wearing sash and medallions calling each other “sirs.” Knights are really called “sirs”; it’s a British tradition.  That’s why whenever my pupils call me “sir” I feel like a knight in cotton armor. The speaker was Reghis Romero II a famous businessman known for his allegedly anomalous deals during the Ramos Administration but since nothing was proven; he was not convicted of any wrong doings. Well, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. Hmmm… But what would Rizal say? That is, if he was alive.

It was Sunday and I did not attend church. But the whole thing, the ceremony, the patriotic songs, the message and the flower offerings to the statue of Rizal felt like I was in a church worshipping a demi-god.

Hmmm…too much coffee.

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I hate writing formal reports. Maybe it’s because they have formats and certain rules to observe. Another thing I hate about it is the necessity to check and recheck for grammatical errors (or lapses) and also the choice of words used. It must have the appearance of a…hmmm…an academic or an educated author. It must conform to format from the letterhead: from the Republic of the Philippines, to the department, to the region, to the division, to the district, to the school, to the logo, to the bullets, to the numbering, to the signatories, to the diapers, to hell… It’s the system. Hmm…

Anyway, without any format the report would begin to look like a blog. He,he,he…

One of the habits I have developed when reading, or writing reports or writing a post for this blog is drinking coffee. I drink from three to four cups of coffee to keep me interested in what I’m doing. I don’t know if drinking coffee is good for the heart because some coffee manufacturers boasts that their coffee contains good cholesterol or omega something which is, according to them, good for the heart. Of course their ads are always followed by the caveat: “No therapeutic something…”  But I have read that addiction to coffee is akin to chain smoking. Usually that what happens, nicotine addicts become caffeine addicts—from cigarettes to coffee. It’s the stimulants. I experienced that when I quit smoking a few years ago.

 Maybe it’s the caffeine, or maybe it’s the taste, or maybe it’s the hot liquid going down the throat stimulating the nerve endings in the larynx that stimulates the brain. Anyway…