| Wednesday, March 19, 2008 |
| Paris Je T'aime |
I've been a fan for French romantic movies since I watched Amelie. I was intrigued with the plot of "Love me if you dare" but I can't find a copy of the movie with English subtitles (too bad). When I found out that this movie is going to be shown here in KL, I was excited.
Paris Je T'aime is a compilation of 18 short movies all set in Paris, dealing with what the city is famous for - LOVE. The movie have shown different aspects of love - love at its initial stages, love in times of sickness, love of a grieving mother, love for a dying wife and the list goes on. The theme is light, which makes it genuine.
The story that really struck me is "14ème Arrondissement", a story of a middle-aged single American traveller who studied to speak French in preparation for her "trip of the lifetime". Here is the famous quote in that particular story:
Sitting there, alone in a foreign country, far from my job and everyone I know, a feeling came over me. It was like remembering something I'd never known before or had always been waiting for, but I didn't know what. Maybe it was something I'd forgotten or something I've been missing all my life. All I can say is that I felt, at the same time, joy and sadness. But not too much sadness, because I felt alive. Yes, alive. That was the moment I fell in love with Paris. And I felt Paris fall in love with me.
I highly recommend to watch this movie for those who have a chance to do so. |
posted by subhuman @ 1:20 AM  |
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| Saturday, March 15, 2008 |
| Searching my soul.. |
When I was in grade school, I was very religious and an active participant in most of the church activities - I was with the choir, a member of the Children of Mary, was picked as a lector during our baccalaureate mass and was often asked to become the prayer leader in our school activities. I was once voted as the COM member of the year because of the commitment that I've demonstrated. My parents were usually teased by their friends because they're afraid that I'll end up entering the convent to become a nun (yeah, seriously!).
When I reached my teenage years, my commitment faded. I tried to join the youth ministry but I felt that it did not give me the fulfillment I need spiritually so I slowly drifted away from the Church. I was dealing with my teenage angst back then. All the things that I learned became meaningless. I was battling with my demons. Eventually, I started to question the reason behind every ritual that was imposed on me. I no longer join my parents in praying the rosary and novenas. But I know that this should be normal as I started to grow up; every relationship experience the its own stage of doubts right and without that, its not a real relationship.
But as my journey in life progresses, I can say that I feel His presence in my life. Being away from my comfort zone taught me how to trust Him, and made my existence more meaningful. It may sound cliche but I think its true. He may let me experience some difficulties in life and I know that's the time when He wants to remind me of my relationship with Him.
Allow me to share with you the phrase that really struck me from the homily that I heard 2 Sundays ago. The priest mentioned that as young people, we continue to search for wisdom. And as we go through that journey, it will eventually lead us to Jesus Christ. His teachings serves as a link between reason and faith. This homily gave me hope that even though I don't go to the Church most of the time, it does not mean that I no longer give importance to my faith. I may not read the Bible most of the time but I know that God communicates through the people around me. But by doing this, have I become a good example as a Christian even though I don't go to the Church quite often?
And Christ answered my question. On my way home last weekend from my piano class, I met an exchange music student from Africa. I mentioned to him that I am a member of a choral group. He asked me if I am a Christian because choral groups are associated to Christianity. I said yes. And I realized that by doing what I really love, and enhancing the talent that He gave me, I became a living example of His teachings. |
| posted by subhuman @ 3:15 AM |
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| Tuesday, March 11, 2008 |
| Un-Hopeless Romantic |
On my way home from our choir practice, one of the topics that my choirmates and I chatted is about why both of us were still single. According to him, fate has not intervened yet and he hasn't found that someone that he's intensely attracted to. He said that his friends may think that he's naive and ridiculous (actually I do) but that's what he believes in.
I find his answer quite 'interesting' because its rare for me to hear that kind of point of view from a guy. I mean, I always hear my female friends saying those kind of things, probably because most of us grew up watching or reading fairy tales, and most of girls end up believing that someday, their prince charming will come and rescue them from all the evil witches and spells. But for a guy to say those kind of stuff is something that's really new to me. Or maybe because I haven't asked much around the POV of the opposite sex. Probably, that guy needs to speaks the women's lingo (you know, the happily ever after thingie and not about sex).
I mentioned this to some of my friends and most of them found that answer to be normal. I don't know. And then I realized that most of the people around me opted to become hopeless romantics. I do not consider myself to be one. As much as I loved the movies The Truth About Cats and Dogs, Notting hill and While you were sleeping, I didn't imagine myself that the guy portrayed by Ben Chaplin, Hugh Grant or Bill Pullman will come along and save me from all the burdens that I'm been going through. I used to read the Love Stories and Sweet Dreams book series and I admit that I feel good reading these kind of novels but I really didn't get to the point of imagining myself to be the protagonist in those novels. Probably because I was also exposed with the stories that my mom (who's handling the women's desk) used to share while our family eat dinner - about the stories of women who were abused by their loved ones. At the end of each stories (which could be funny, absurd or heartbreaking), she will always tell me the lessons that I need to know. Most of my hopeless romantic friends thought that I'm the one that they can into whenever they need to get in touch with the real world. Well, its still up to them to decide on what they should do. But if you think that being an unromantic is a good thing, think again. Unlike the hopeless romantics, the point of view that I usually give is always on the safe side. And love is all about taking risks, which makes it beautiful. This now led me to ask myself - until when should I remain this way? Well, I know that when I meet my match, my opinions will changes and someone can make me take that risk. But while waiting for that person to come, I will still continue my role as someone to give my friends their own dose of reality check.
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| posted by subhuman @ 1:03 AM |
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| Saturday, March 08, 2008 |
| Super Mario |
One of my favorite games in my Nintendo Family Computer was Super Mario Bros. Of course, everyone play this game during my childhood. Of course, who would forget that pressing button A would make Mario/Luigi jump and B will make them run or fire a bullet on Koopa's monsters. I knew some of the cheats on how to get to the castle where the princess is hidden but unfortunately I wasn't able to save her.
And then there came Mario 2. Now that the princess is saved, there are four of them who's battling with Koopa. Its totally different from the 1st game because each character has a special power - Luigi can jump really high, the Toad has agility, the Princess can suspend longer while Mario has a balance of these abilities. Sadly, I wasn't able to complete this game :(
Anyway, I found this site where I can play some of Mario's games --> http://www.mariogame.info/. Unlike the Nintendo controller where I can use a different set of hands for shooting and jumping, I have to use the up arrow keys and right keys for the character to proceed. Just imagine how difficult it is for me to do that! Anyway, probably I'll get used to it. I'm just happy that I have this thing when I'm in a childlike mood :) |
| posted by subhuman @ 1:16 PM |
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| Thursday, March 06, 2008 |
| Rants and Raves for today |
- As what I've mentioned, I think I was caught by love bug that struck most people around me. Well, being a listener drained me emotionally.. so I'm taking a few days off as a "shrink" and I'll try to keep myself away from all the hopeless romantics out there.
- Starting this week, I was assigned to be the primary support for one of the high profile countries. The role is demanding and the users are quite sensitive; it would be a challenge for me to balance my musical activities and my work. However, it's a very goodopportunity. At this point, it would be better if I remain optimistic; my colleagues are nice enough to guide me with my daily tasks. At ang pinakamasaya sa lahat, ka-work ko ang crush ko! =P (pero innocent lang crush lang po yun)
- Oh well, I need to focus on studying my music sheets for the choir. I tried to record our previous rehearsal and I realized that I was singing out of tune! I was really embarassed when Gen pointed that out!
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| posted by subhuman @ 12:51 AM |
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| Tuesday, March 04, 2008 |
| I love you virus |
I don't know what's up with everyone lately. Most of the people around me are dealing with their own love problems. And its nothing like watching a Star Cinema trilogy where all the protagonists ended up happily ever after.
You see, love as portrayed by these kind movies is something that gives you that kilig feeling whenever the other person is near you; having someone to hold your hand or having a reason for you to wake up each morning.
But love in not like that. Its just the icing of the cake. Falling in love is a responsibility. You're accountable to that person you love, your loved ones and yourself. Unfortunately, most people would only consider their commitment to their special someone. They often forget the things that they need to do for themselves and for the people who care about them. They choose to lose their dignity and it really hurts their family and friends. This is the reason why most relationships are ruined.
And yes, I am one of those people who are affected by my loved ones who chose to fall in love. As a friend, the only thing that I can do is to listen and to give them an advice. Even though it breaks my heart to see them get hurt, I know that they need to experience that so that they would become wiser and more responsible with their actions.
I told one of my friends whose in an illicit relationship that in order for her to get out from that affair, she should not be afraid to be alone. Now that she already know what kind of love she could give in that setup, I hope that she'd realize how many people also get hurt when she tells us how hard it is to become a mistress. I wish that one day, she will realize that there's a lot of people who loves her, giving her the courage to set herself free. |
| posted by subhuman @ 10:01 PM |
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| About Me |
passionate about music; an aspiring teacher; a frustrated mathematician; an explorer |
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