Cut Out Visions

Transit Dialog has published my essay Cut Out Visions last January 28, 2022. Here’s the full text:

"𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘵𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦."

𝗖𝘂𝘁 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀

𝘉𝘺 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘎𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘴

I had my Covid-19 booster shot this morning. My day started normally, which was with a cardio workout, a cold shower and a heavy breakfast. After drinking my cup of black coffee, I was off to the vaccination site near my home.

On the way to the public school where I was about to receive my shot, I reflected on how far I have come since the pandemic hit our shores. I’ve been freelancing as a writer and researcher. But the workload before the pandemic was more demanding, which is why I am able to pursue my hobbies and passions more these days.

While I am not pleased about the resurgence of Covid-19 in 2022, I am thankful that I have already figured out protocols, self-soothing and coping mechanisms by now. I have learned to adapt to our changing times thanks to consistency with my routines and priorities.

By the time I reached the vaccination site, I was able to outline the vision board that I wanted to make in my head. A local cultural agency gifted me with back issues of their official publication, so I had material for this project. I was inspired to make a vision board after reflecting on my growth during the pandemic and while I am keeping myself safe from the virus. Safety does not mean being stagnant. For me, it is possible to balance safety with taking personal risks in order to thrive during uncertainty.

The ironic part is that we keep on discussing how uncertain things are these days when in reality, everything has always been uncertain. The unknown has simply been magnified with the pandemic, so we tend to see the world through the lens of uncertainty. Personally, I found it unsettling to deal with more external variables beyond my control, but it also enabled me to zero in on my capabilities. This led me to do volunteer work for frontliners and typhoon victims, and realize my dream of becoming an author. The two books that I have self-published are a testament to the power of dreaming and never giving up.

I finally took my turn to get jabbed. I got vaccinated by a friendly frontliner who seemed unfazed by the crowd. I took a quick selfie to document this momentous event, and exited the venue with a lighter heart.

I went straight home to eat lunch. After drinking another cup of black coffee, I took the magazines out. I cut out images and words which reminded me of my dreams, aspirations, and visions. I made a vision board based on my love for writing and my desire to continue doing what I love. I pasted pictures of food, because I am happiest whenever I enjoy my meal. I included photos of ladies in Filipiniana attire because I feel most dignified whenever I am wearing a terno or a Maria Clara blouse. In fact, I was in local dress when I launched my two books. That way, I was able to pay tribute to my heritage as I fulfilled my dreams of having my own books.

I included the word metaphor on my vision board because I realized that my day represented the rest of my life. I got vaccinated in order to safely explore the world. I want to write more so that I can tell stories based on the pieces of inspiration I find each day. I want to piece my memories together on my blog so that others may be inspired to try new things. And I realized that the pandemic was a period of personal growth for me.

My cut out visions are only the beginning. I hope that you will also find time and inspiration to make your own vision board one of these days.

𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘎𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘉. 𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘦𝘣𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘦, 𝘸𝘸𝘸.𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘢𝘮.𝘤𝘰𝘮, 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘺 2017 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘨 𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦, 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 2021, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘞𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦, 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 2021.

Source: Transit Dialog

The Craft of Writing Certificate

I finally received my certificate for The Craft of Writing! It was a short course taught by THE Jessica Zafra. I highly recommend her writing boot camp because her teaching style is straightforward and practical. I suggest that you make time for any of her courses because her valuable insights has helped me produce quality written output lately.

For more information on Jessica Zafra, click here.

To purchase the 25th anniversary edition of Twisted, click here.

Punk Tracks

Hello! My 100-word short story, Punk Tracks, was featured here.🍺 Cheers!

𝗣𝘂𝗻𝗸 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀

I rode the LRT today to Carriedo. I needed to clear my mind after a long day of working at home. I ride trains to decompress because the tracks give me a sense of grounding. Once I reached Carriedo, I made the short walk to Fred's for a beer. They were playing punk from the noughties.

The beer and the lively, guitar-driven melody transported me back to my younger years. I felt the stress of work melt away. I was back to being punk without a clue.

I rode the train back to Balintawak. I was ready to embrace the weekend. - 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙖 𝙂𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙇𝙪𝙘𝙖𝙨

Wake Up, Dreamers

I recently started watching Demi Abilon a.k.a. AnakniRizal’s writing vlogs on YouTube. I have been enjoying her informative videos on creative writing. Writing has been a hobby and source of income for me, and yet I believe it is essential to continue learning how to improve my craft. Demi’s YouTube channel apply entitled Tales of Demi has been inspiring me to write lately. I highly recommend it!

I also started reading Demi’s latest published novel Wake Up, Dreamers. It is about a group of college students from different backgrounds who unintentionally work together for a school project. They discover themselves and the meaning of life through the project’s various assignments that put them in situations that force them out of their comfort zones. You may purchase the book here.

I hope that Demi’s vlogs and latest novel will also inspire you to write and express yourself during the lockdown!