Eat Pray Love

I just recently finished this great book by Elizabeth Gilbert: eat pray love. It's a good read especially for women trying to find meaning in it all. And more.

Since I barely have over a month before the toxicity of pre-residency, I have been searching the web and newspapers for good books to read.

Can you suggest any? Except for horror-suspense, anything will be appreciated.

Read more!

Sino sila?

Ano ang batayan para ang isang tao ay matawag na bayani?

Jose Rizal. Andres Bonifacio. Emilio Aguinaldo. Ninoy Aguino. Ito ang mga bayani na pinaparangalan natin taon taon. Dahil isinugal nila ang kanilang buhay para sa bayan at para sa mga Pilipino. Pero naisip ko minsan, kailangan bang mamamatay ka para ikaw ay matawag na bayani?

Ang larawang ito ay galing dito.

Tingin ko naman, hinde. Buti na lang, sa edisyon na ito ng The Blog Rounds, naisipan ni Dok Gigi sa Beyond Borders: The Lei Si Chronicles na bigyang pugay ang mga bayani sa ating buhay na di madalas mabigyan ng pansin.

Aking naisipan na bigyan pugay ang mga bayani na aking nakilala sa 2 taon kong pamamalagi sa barrio:

• Magsasaka. Hindi ko maisip minsan kung paano nila nagagawang yumuko para magtanim, buong araw, umulan or umaraw. Sa isang bansa na ang bigas ay malaking bahagi ng hapag-kainan, dapat mas bigyan natin ng pagpapahalaga ang mga nagtatanim ng ating kinakain.
• Barangay Health Worker. Hindi ko minsan mapaniwalaan na may mga tao pa na talagang likas sa kanilang puso ang pagboboluntaryo. Saan ka pa makakita ng tao na maglalakad ng ilang milya para magpurga ng bata, magbuhat ng gamot at kumalinga sa mga may sakit at makakatanggap lamang ng 200 piso bawat buwan?
• Magulang. Bawat magulang sa barrio (at kahit saan man sa Pilipinas) ay may isang pangarap sa kanilang anak: matapos ang mga ito sa pag-aaral. Kaya kahit na hindi sila kumain, magka-ulcer sa pagtatrabaho, hindi iniinda ang gutom, ok lang, basta lang may baon ang kanilang mga anak na nasa kolehiyo sa siyudad.
• Mga kabataan na naglalakad ng mga 5 hanggang 10 kilometro para lamang makapag-aral. Hindi iniinda ang sikat ng araw at sakit ng kanilang paa dahil gusto nilang matuto.
• OFW. Walang Filipino na walang kamag-anak na OFW. Wala ng hihigit pa sa pagsasakripisyo nila, pagharap sa kalungkutan at diskriminasyon sa ibang bansa, para lamang mabigyan ng magandang bukas ang pamilya na iniwan sa Pilipinas.
  

Sa bawat beses na nakakasalamuha ko ang mga taong nabanggit, nasasagot ang aking tanong. Di kailangang mamamatay para matawag na bayani. Sa katunayan, di kailanga isugal ang buhay para matawag na bayani.

Ang mga taong walang sawang iniaalay ang kanilang buhay, oras at panahon para sa ibang tao, un ang mga totoong bayani. Lalo na kung ang mga bayaning ito, di nila alam na kahanga-hanga sila. Ginagawa lamang nila ang mga ito dahil sa kanilang isipan, ito ang tama at ito ang dapat.

Saludo ako sa bawat taong aking nabanggit.

~~~~~

Ito ay kontribusyon sa The Blog Rounds na tungkol sa mga Bayani na tinatalakay sa Beyond Border: The Lei Si Chronicles. Read more!

Fact of life

I used to mind being called Doktora. Now, I could care less.

The transition happened when I was an intern assisting in a cholecystectomy. My very noble task: retract the liver. After a few minutes into surgery, I was asked to scrubbed out. I couldn't retract well and the surgeon was having a hard time because of me. My male group mate replaced me and he did a great job.

This incident, another few months in training and years at work actually taught me to accept one fact of life. Men and women are different.

Photo from Sweden.Se

Males have testosterone. Females have estrogen. What we do, how strong we are, our emotions are actually ruled by these two powerful hormones. That's why men are generally physically stronger than women. While women, are usually more emotionally equip to deal with different situations.

Dominance. No wonder, surgery was tagged as a male dominated field while pediatrics is women's. Not because women can't get into surgery or men into pediatrics, but because hormones dictates this. Men are naturally more aggressive, more inclined to cut up. Women, on the other hand are more geared towards taking care of the young ones. It's instinct.

What he can do, she can do. Most of times, yes. But sometimes, this is not true. There are things that men can do and women can't. Or things that women can and men can't. Being gender sensitive doesn't mean fooling ourselves and pretending female are a match for sheer male strength. But let's not use these differences to discriminate. These differences were created to complement.

Lucky for those in the field of medicine, these differences don't matter much. There is nothing in this field that a man can do that women can't (well, in my case, except retracting the liver), or vice versa.

Equal opportunity. They say that some specialties in this field don't give equal opportunities to both sexes. But these are talks. I believe that if you can prove your worth and can match up with your contemporaries, regardless of the sex, you will be given the same opportunities.

That's why male patients refusing a female examining physician throws me off. It's primarily because, the female physician was not even given the same opportunity. But this issue deserves another post.

It's habit. Now I don't mind anymore when I am being called Doktora. Because I don't think that I am being discriminated at all when people call me these. Most of the times, it's just habit. But for those who intend to discriminate by adding that extra letter A, go to hell.

~~~

This is a contribution to The Blog Rounds, hosted at Dr. Manggy's No Special Effects.


Read more!

Not an ordinary weekend

Food is one of the many things I am always proud of my Kapampangan heritage.

This was already discussed here. But to illustrate more, let me tell you about this not so ordinary weekend. Let me introduce you to the 'out of the box' Cabalen food that we grew up with.

Menu for Sunday lunch: Kamaru and tugak. That would be cricket and frog for you.

Crickets cooking in vinegar and salt at your left, frogs frying at your right

Oh yes, those are crickets and frog heating up in our kitchen.

Early this morning, my Dad was invited over at his friend's place to catch kamaru. Up to this time, I am still amazed to see my Dad, an architect, whenever he displays his 'farming' abilities. He grew up in the farm. So he knows how to plant, grow and harvest rice, catch fish, kamaru and tugak, among other things. He simply chose another path in college that's why he ended up with a white collar job.

Going back to the food, kamaru and tugak are delicacies in this province. Kamaru are usually simmered first in vinegar and salt, fried until crispy, then sauteed in tomato. FYI, one serving of this costs a whooping PhP 250.00 in a famous Kapampangan restaurant chain.

Can you recognize the insects?

Frog, on the other hand, are cooked either as batute (their tummy stuffed with ground pork then fried), in tinola (soup with green papaya), or fried, like in this pictures. It tastes so much like chicken. No kidding.

That's Mr. Frog, skinned, fried, ready to eat. I just hope he's not THE frog prince.

This was not an ordinary weekend because of these extra ordinary food. If by any chance you drop by Pampanga, try any of these. It would make your day. I guarantee that.

Let's eat.

Read more!