This New Way of Life

Now, why am I not writing about the joys and sorrows of being a high school teacher?

It's because I'm too busy. Too busy with checking papers. Too busy preparing lesson plans. Too busy coming up with creative ideas for their performance tasks and other assessments. Too busy with making powerpoints. Too busy joining them in their various activities, like working as baggers in SM.

Whereas if I taught philosophy in college, I think I would have the luxury of time to blog a lot, to write about basketball, to even continue my musings on key existential ideas. I should have chose that because I was well-trained for it, because that has been my passion since the time I entered college and understood the meaning of the word "philosophy."

But certain events in my life led me to this decision, and at this point in time, I can say that due to the things that I have experienced, I don't regret choosing to teach in high school.

Is it because of the pay? Not even. If it's because of money, then I could have left the vocation of teaching and instead entered a company or a big newspaper firm and wrote lots of articles for them. It's part of the things that I can and love to do, anyway.

Is it because of lighter intellectual work? Far from it. In fact, teaching high school seems to be more difficult than teaching philosophy. I even had to do what I'm not really accustomed to doing: planning and preparing for things that I have to teach, coming up with different creative and engaging activities that deviate from the usual conventional styles, and even organizing the way I would have to deliver the important concepts in and out of class (which includes accompanying them in different school activities).

Is it because of a lighter form of work? Definitely not. Teacher life is not cloud-hopping all day long. Most of the time you go home with a lot of academic load at your back. You have to check those papers and design activities within a given time. When you go home, routines are still present, and it might be possible that you're going to miss the latest episode of "Chuck" or postpone watching Japanese films and save them for the weekend. In fact, work load is so much heavier compared to that in college, and there's a great deal of adjustment involve in terms of living my life and coping up with work.

And sometimes it brings you down. It comes with a lot of stress that you just want to eat and eat while doing these in your workroom or at home. It makes you think, raises questions, as to why you are still in this job, or, most appropriately, why you pursued this particular vocation.

But despite those things, I say that I'm happy with it.

I'm happy whenever my students were able to understand what I'm teaching. I'm happy whenever they come up with their deep, moving, and insightful class prayer services which would really surprise any Chrristian Life Education teacher who have seen these. I'm happy with the way students get along with me and ask me various questions about what I teach. I'm happy with how they get along with me and talk not just about religion but also basketball fantasy leagues, their plans for college, as well as their sentiments about the things that they have experienced during the past days. It might be true that the teacher would invest all of his time and effort to the students just for a relatively low salary compared to that of business employees. But then, where else could you find such sense of fulfillment? Where else could you be able to serve and actually take care of other people who are just like you? Nothing, except in the school, where everyone grows and becomes actually human both inside and outside the classrooms and the workrooms.

And I guess I'm satisfied with that. These reasons might not be clear and intelligible enough to serve as explanations. But after a few months of teaching, together with the little successes and failures that come with it, one thing is clear for the person who once saw himself as a philosopher: that the philosophy that he has learned should be exigent. It should get out of itself and encounter the daily lives and struggles of the people around the thinker. It has to serve as a foundation for living, to ground everything in it, to apply it and impart the lessons that it teaches in particular contexts, in particular subjects, in particular classes. And for me, it is in forming these young men, in being with them, in teaching and guiding them, that the philosophy that I have learned in college is enfleshed. It becomes truly alive, truly lived.

It might be busy. It might take most of my time. It might leave me with no free time at all. But who cares, as long as you're growing to be happy and fulfilled with it?

Knowing Loving

Oh it is love from the first / Time I set my lips against yours / Thinking, "Oh, is it love?"
-Hellogoodbye

Making sense of human existence unavoidably includes the search for the meaning of the experience of love. There is this wanting to understand what love is and, most importantly for some, what makes it special, distinct from other experiences. Perhaps one of the questions that experience continually bothers us is "how do I know that I love someone?"

The moment when we ask this question awakens us to the fact that love is a very unique experience in our lives. It is something that draws us, attracts us, and pleases us in life, that which makes us feel relieved in the midst of the absurdities and incongruencies that life has dawned upon us. However, it also reminds us that love is a responsible offering of oneself to that which gives you happiness. In asking this question, you go deeper and dwell into its authenticity, trying to know in what ways can we know that we are loving someone. It is an attempt to look through one's actions and then conclude whether one is loving or not towards another.

Are our sweet nothings and little moments enough to be called love already? Does my deep longing for that person already love? With all the things that we have been doing, is this love? When asking these questions, we put the starting point on our own experience s and deeds, actions which, when proven true, would lead us to conclude whether it is love or not.

But would it be right to start with these actions? Do we really have to start with these "proofs" and "evidences" so that we can conclude that it is love? Is love really the end of this equation?

I believe that we have to turn everything around. It is not the case that we should start with our perception of our actions as "proofs." If we start with those things, we will only see a shallow aspect of love, one that is manifested by concrete actions and thoughts. In the end, we will not be able to see love in its truest form.

The experience of love will only truly make sense if we place it as the starting point of our understanding. Love should be first and foremost primarily understood as a movement of the will. The decision to love is to take a leap towards greater meaning in our lives. It is only in the will to love, to offer oneself for the other by seeking her and seeking her happiness as well, that we come to understand everything. Yes, love might entail knowing someone and being on a certain level of intimacy; however, they could never become indicators of love. At the most, they are mere body contacts that do not really mean anything. All of these things make sense when we decide to love the other.

We say that love indeed makes the ride worthwhile. However, as seen previously, we can't even ask if we can make the ride or if its trips will be meaningful for it to be considered a good ride. It is only in riding and going for the trip, that we will be able to make every twist and turn of the vehicle worthwhile.

And thus, when we discard the question and instead put the will to love as a starting point, everything not only becomes different but also makes more sense. When a person primarily wills to love the other and makes it the center of things, then experiences will have a new meaning to reveal and a new light to shed in our minds and hearts. Each sign, symbol, and expression to communicate one's presence to the other are not just meaningless movements, because for the person who loves and is loved, they are acts which manifest love as an act of will. With the will to love, human existence is given a new direction and a meaningful purpose. Everything now is oriented towards achieving happiness by accepting the other as she is. With love, there is fullness of life. With love, there is meaning. With love, there goes the meaning of human existence.

But unless we decide to love, to take the leap and risk everything that we have for the other, nothing makes any real sense at all.

6 Points: AdMU vs. DLSU

Ateneo 63, La Salle 66

-Part of the rebuilding process is the need for experimentation, and coach Norman Black did just that during this game. He experimented with various lineups to catch up with the Phoenix Suns-like play of DLSU.

-A closer. That is what we need. Perhaps this would be the worst game where Ateneo had the chance to win the game through a comforting 9-point lead. Someone has to step up and play both offense and defense. Besides the game being against La Salle, this was the most heartbreaking because the blue team never expected that the squad will lose.

-Kirk Long was the factor. A pump three, behind the back layup, and five fouls.

-Sam Marata took the opportunity to bring the lead to DLSU when Ateneo played sloppily.

-I think the 6th Men got used to winning too much. We have to cheer harder even in the midst of difficulties.

Quarter scores

DLSU 66 – Webb 12, Marata 12, Atkins 9, Tampus 6, Andrada 6, de la Paz 5, Tolentino 5, Mendoza 5, Vosotros 3, Villanueva 2, Ferdinand 1, Paredes 0.

Ateneo 63 – Chua 16, Monfort 11, Long 9, Buenafe 7, Salamat 6, Salva 5, Golla 3, Escueta 2, dela Cruz 2, Austria 2, Tiongson 0, Gonzaga 0.

Quarter scoring: 14-15, 26-30, 46-42, 66-63

Make Or Break: AdMU vs. DLSU

Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles (2-1)

Make:
-Eric Salamat's health and, therefore, his effectivity in his game counts. Coming off the bench with a knee contrusion, there is no guarantee that he can play a hundred percent and therefore get his game back.
-It's still defense. La Salle's games against UE and UP made all their shooters look really good from the outside , while their match against NU proved that with good defense, everyone in the Green Squad will falter. A more efficient zone defense which could also give way for bodies to be placed on their shooters.

Break:
-Too much shooting from beyond the arc. It would be better for them to choose their shots well, with most of their attempts from the paint and trying to force fouls.
-Filling in the point guard spot. Coach Norman Black should perhaps work out an effective 8-10 man rotation which would allow their combo guard and forward players to find their spots.

De La Salle University Green Archers (2-1)

Make:
-Wingmen efficiency. They were able to beat UP and UE with their mid- and long-range effectivity, coming from their experienced back court composed of Tolentino, Atkins, and Marata. Making those long jumpers would eventually force Ateneo to stretch their defense, therefore allowing more opportunities inside the paint.
-Two players off the bench would be quite crucial in bringing La Salle to their first ever victory against the Eagles in two years: Almond Vosotros and Yutien Andrada. While Andrada can shut down almost every member of the Blue frontcourt, Vosotros can outrun anyone and destroy the rhythm of Ateneo defense. Ateneo has to have someone who can check him

Break:
-The tiring full court press seems to not work with Ateneo anymore. However, if they continue to employ this defensive play, they are in danger of racking up too many fouls. Previously, UE was able to capitalize on the early penalty and calls toward the charity stripe. With quicker players who can bring the ball on both sides of the court, Ateneo might just seize that opportunity as well.
-The Archers have a tendency to play hit-or-miss and will gamble on wild out-of-this-world jumpers (among those who do these is forward Joshua Webb). Once they start to panic and lose the determination to bring the ball inside, then the game should finish early in the second half.


One Big Fight.

Takes: Inception

This just shows how great can Christopher Nolan be, and guys like these are those that we really need in this generation of shallow people who are too immersed in simplistic pleasures and thoughts.

However, I would not say that it raises deep philosophical questions. Like "The Matrix," it stands on an already misunderstood notion of the human mind - the Cartesian idea that the starting point of knowledge (and hence the idea of truth and meaning) is founded on the individual thinking being, the cogito, all alone and separated from the supposed "reality" that he is in. This cogito is therefore stuck with itself, unable to get out and encounter reality except through his own mental constructs and projections.

But with how it was mixed up with psychology and our notion of drawing the line between what is real and what is not effectively disturbed us and once again ask either Lao Tzu's question of the dream, or Descartes' second question in his method of arriving towards the cogito.

The question: am I real? Is everything real? Or are these merely states of mind implanted in my head and I'm sleeping somewhere, in eternal slumber?

Interesting as to how existentialists can answer this.

The Many Faces of Basketball Passion

Heck, no. Not Yutien Andrada.

But when we talk about the explosion of passion in the game, there's certainly one guy who can do the job better than the Boston Celtics' "Shrek," it's Ateneo's reserve big man, Jumbo Escueta.

In him is passion personified.








Better look out for him. He's got all the potential to be the next Blue Monster.

Pictures from fabilioh.com.

6 Points: AdMU vs. UST

Ateneo 68, UST 56

-First things first: Justin Chua. With his advantage over the UST frontcourt guys combined, he was able to score off kickouts and even drove down the lane for a weird layup. He really was someone we need in times like these. Beef up like Jumbo, and you'll be a formidable big man.
-Norman Black's frontcourt combo seemed unusual for the spectator. However, it has proved to be useful, considering that it responded to the need to neutralize UST undersized big men.
-Emman Monfort, after becoming the unlikely hero against the Falcons, slightly turned the tables after doing a "Vujacic." The Eagles should have pulled away early if not for that.
-For this season, digging deep into the bench and tapping all those the Eagles really need in particular situations would prove helpful not just this season, but in the future as well. Perhaps a way of building the next "power team"? Maybe.
-Eric Salamat ought to rest and play limited minutes. His injury restricted him to play his game, as he was left limping after breaks. Good job with his swipes, though.
-This is the game that the Season 72 fans miss. We have to accept that we got too used to winning by a blowout. Let this be a message that it can still happen. But then, discipline is what we need.

Ateneo 68 - Chua 17, Salva 14, Monfort 8, Salamat 7, Golla 7, dela Cruz 5, Long 2, Austria 2, Buenafe 0, Tiongson 0
UST 56 - Bautista 11, Teng 10, Camus 8, Mariano 7, Fortuna 7, Pe 4, Afuang 4, Marata 2, Aytona 2, Daquioag 1, Wong 0, Tinte 0, Mamaril 0, Lo 0

Quarter Scores: 15-14, 31-32, 51-46, 68-56

Goateneo.com for the picture, a.dy for some details.