A Time For Compassion

Even as the 2010 election in the Philippines comes nearer, political issues, discussions, and bickerings are temporarily put on hold to give way to the more important issue of the past weeks- help and compassion so much needed for the victims of typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng which put the nation in a state of calamity.

Typhoon Ondoy brought so much rainfall in the country and put most of part of the Metro Manila in deep water. Many people died, while houses, properties and business establishments were badly damaged by the flood.

A week after, and even the nation can even rise up from Ondoy's wrath, another typhoon, Pepeng, brought havoc on the northern part of Luzon. Landslides occured on the mountainous parts of the region; water dams were forced to release water that caused heavy floods in the nearby provinces, and crops and livelihood resources were badly damaged.

Indeed, this is a time for the country of the Philippines to stop fighting about politics and corruption, but instead focus all the efforts into finding the best ways possible to help the victims of the calamities.

This is a time for Compassion and Action.

And every Filipino is expected to give it.

Sari-sari: Our Friendly Neighborhood Store

Name it, you'll have it.

This seems to be the motto we can give to the so many sari-sari stores that we can find in almost every block near our homes.

From tinapay, to kakanin, yosi, chichirya, canned goods, candies, common medicines, softdrinks, diapers, to shampoos and eggs. And the list goes on and on- name it, you'll have it.

During my childhood days in the province, we have at least 3 to 5 sari-sari stores near our home. So now, I often wonder if ever the competition was so stiff; and why do they all continue to exist even if there is a big store owned by a filipino-chinese who caters the same set of commodities.

I remember my mother would send me to one of those sari-sari stores to buy 1/4 karne, or isang banig na paminta or any of those veggies that she'll use to cook pinakbet. Indeed, it fascinates me looking at how such a small area could hold up to almost anything and everything we need in our day-to-day lives.

The typical sari-sari store showcases the chichiryas in front. then on the stalls beneath will be the canned goods, such as sardines, tuna, liver spreads, squids, then the bottled ketchups, toyo, patis, and even sandwich spreads.

Why the sari-sari stores continue to exist sans the existence of large supermarkets, groceries and 24/7 stores were being studied by some well-know research groups.

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Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism thus says in one of its special reports,

Food items are the most popular candidates for micro-repacking, and it is common to see oil, vinegar, pepper, sugar, or achuete sold in tiny, plastic bags. They used to go for as low as five centavos each, but today the price is at P1 to P5.

People were buying in tingi because that's what they could afford. Cooking oil, soy sauce were measured in cups and then transferred to the bottle or glass brought by the customer. Even hard drinks were also sold in tingi, "paisa-isang shot."

TNS's Asiapanel division notes that in 2003 the traditional trade continued to gain share in the market, particularly in poorer rural areas.

According to AC Nielsen, these small neighborhood stores have grown to nearly 560,000, making them the top retail outlets in the Philippines.

So strong has been the performance of sari-sari stores, Mercy Abad of TNS says, that when a manufacturer comes in and first looks at the retail trade structure, he wonders, "How am I going to sell the 400-ml in a small store?"

Though sari-sari stores may impose uneven markups, consumers find these stores more convenient, especially for emergency purchases. Teresa Deocaresa of TNS says sari-sari stores have evolved into some sort of the Pinoy's extended pantry. The fact that they provide credit gives them another plus in the harried consumer's budget book.

AC Nielsen notes that while the "AB class prefers wide product assortment, the DE would buy on need basis, mostly small-size packs and on credit." And while these consumers buy in smaller volumes, it says, their huge number make up for the slack. Sachets and products in smaller packages enjoy wider reach in rural areas than in urban areas, says AC Nielsen.

Overall, shampoo, detergent, soap, and toothpaste remain the top (and growing) items in the nonfood category, according to TNS. These products, apart from being the most basic necessities of a consumer, all happen to come in sachets or smaller packs. Even fabric softeners are now fast becoming sachet-driven, says TNS account executive Omar Carlos.
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Indeed, the sari-sari store depicts much of the Filipino-his cultures and his ways of making it to survive.

In these hard times, where the Philippine Economy is at an unstable condition, the Sari-sari store will always emerge as the friendly neighborhood store that we can go to for our basic necessities in life.

Itakwil ang Pilipinas

I have a rather unexpected (but nevertheless, very much welcome) visitor on my blog site today.

It is not uncommon that somebody might visit you blog. However, the reason why he was able to get directed to my blog verily disturbed me.

(Forgive the blurred picture, anyway, the actual site is here , you can browse the list).

Thanks to feedjit.com, we can now trace our blogs' live traffic which actually indicates the location of our visitors, including some data how they were able to come through our blog.

Anyway, feedjit discloses that:

"Los Angeles, California arrived from google.com on "Mountain Top Experience" by searching for "itakwil ang pilipinas".

-meaning, my visitor came from LA, California. While searching for the word "itakwil ang pilipinas", google directed him to my site, because one of my blogs, Dekada, is a story of a man who tells his younger sibling:

"Alam kong bata ka pa at maaaring hindi mo pa maiintindihan ang sasabihin ko. Pero ang mga nakikita mong kamalian ay huwag mong gawing dahilan para itakwil ang Pilipinas.

Magbabago pa ang Pilipinas. Kung hindi man ngayon, sa hinaharap; kung saan kayong mga kabataan ay kailangang gabayan at turuan ng tamang pagmamahal sa bansa. Dahil ang pagmamahal mo sa bansa ang magbibigay-daan para sikapin mong baguhin ang mga kamaliang nakikita mo sa paligid."

I am reminded about a post made by one member of the bobongpinoy mailing list and so I have asked his permission if I can repost his article here in my blog. So here goes (article, unedited):

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I just came back here to the U.S. from a visit tomy Aunt's house in Canberra, Australia where we had a family reunion. We have no more immediaterelatives in The Phillipines and a lot of our family members from all over the world congregated in my Aunt's house. The reunion was brought about because my aunt Maritess just got her Australian Passport and was ecstatic about it.

In the middle of the party, a ceremony was made wherein a paper shredder was positioned in the middle of the living room and Filipino newspaper article clippings were arranged on a table along with a Philippine Passport. It was quite solemn and fun at the same time. People were made to sing their national anthems. First was the US people who sang "Star Spangled Banner" (though some kids did it mockingly, they haven't been to The Philippines yet and can't understand). Not to be outdone, the Canadian Citizens/Residents sang "Oh Canada" at the top of their lungs! Then came some from the UK and New Zealand who sang the irrespective anthems.

When it came time to sing "Advance Australia Fair", people first read the articles on the Filipino newspapers and put them in the paper shredder after finishing each. People just shook her heads and breathed sighs of relief after hearing the articles' details, thankful that they left behind that country and the dogs that run it. It was very symbolic of the fact that we are people who deserve to be treated as people and to live dignified lives in countries that value human dignity. As the articles were shredded, "WaltzingMatilda" was playing in the background as lyrics of "Advance Australia Fair" were passed around to everyone. Then, when the last article was shredded, the Philippine Passport was handed to my Aunt and there was a prayer and a short speech, then the passport went into the shredder for it's complete obliteration as "Advance Australia Fair" was sung.

The melody and lyrics of "Advance Australia Fair" was as musical as the gears and blades that ground the passport to crosscut pieces. My aunt was in tears, thankful that she was now a citizen of a country composed of and governed by real human beings.

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While I myself could not understand why and how people are able to disown my beloved nation Philippines, I could not help but respect their thoughts and ideas.

We differ in our beliefs. We differ in our ways. We differ in our principles and actions and subsequent reactions.

But one thing we can all share and agree on-the truth stands there-seen entirely by the naked eye-the country is in a state where there are lots of socio-economic problems, not to mention the moral issues faced by the leaders of the nation.

Then, again, we choose, our path as a citizen of the nation.

Disown the nation and be a citizen to a foregin land.

Or stay as a Filipino and help rebuild a better Philippines.

We choose. Today.

Pilipinas Kong Mahal

The loud voices reverberate inside the four corners of that small Aldaba Hall in UP Diliman as the people, most of them Iskolar ng Bayan, sang the Lupang Hinirang . I must admit that I have already forgotten the play I watched that time but I will never forget what I felt as all are singing the National Anthem.

Yes, it was only a song. But it was in those times when I can say Iam a proud Filipino. It was in those rare times when I can say, as I hear the students loudly sing the National Anthem, there is hope for the Philippines, there is hope for the Filipino.


"And the rain blended with our tears- tears of joy, of gratitude and of pride in supreme accomplishment. Above us flew for the first time and over this embattled land, alone, happy and unperturbed amidst the sweeping gales and whipping rain- The Flag of the Philippines.God! May it stay there ever, ever, ever."
- C.P. Romulo in "The Filipino Flag Rises... Alone"



[This is a repost from a previous entry made in bobongpinoy]