Do you smoke?

It all started with one question from a good person... Do you smoke?

My Answer:  Yes, I smoke occasionally. But you know, when my eldest son was born, I stopped cold turkey (i.e., immediately), and was on sick leave for the next one week due to flu-like symptoms. I never touched a single cigarette nor puff another smoke since then...until I was assigned to work in the warzone (Afghanistan)... when my smoking habit returned and I became a smoker once more, albeit sporadically. I have been an occasional smoker ever since. Seems reasonable and logically right...eh? 

Well, I supposed not... it was wrong! Why was it wrong? Because such an inconsistent answer give me SCRUPLES. It bothered my conscience for several days and I have restless and sleepless nights.

Flashback: When I was just starting my career as a young Engineer in the field of Telecommunications, one of my guiding principles then (and still up to now) is to let my conscience be my guide... ala Jiminy Cricket. Later on as I mature, I have come to connect the "prompting" of my conscience as the subtle whisper of the Holy Spirit... "to guide my feet into the way of peace".... peace of mind that is, in order to sleep soundly like a baby at night.

Decision: So after a week of contemplating that "inconsistent answer" to that one question that started it all... it seems that the only way to settle this dilemma of choice is to either... continue to smoke or stop smoking (again). So on Mother's Day of this year... I stopped smoking!

Reason: But the more important question now is why or for whom? You see, the reason when I first quit smoking is for the benefit of my newborn son (i.e., smoke is not good for the health of the baby)... and then that baby grew and became a man... and then I returned to the smoking habit. So it would be futile to again stop smoking for the benefit of the grandchildren, the wife or any other person for that matter. The reason should be something nobler, higher, purer and greater.

Then I stumbled upon this verse .."Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought by a price. So glorify God in your Body. (I Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV). This is the reason or motivation that I needed to continue this commitment to stop smoking.

Now, a strange thing happen for the next two (2) weeks... from Mother's Day to Pentecost Sunday... that godly person who nonchalantly asked me that one question that started it all, have been sharing/posting reflections/articles about the Holy Spirit...on a daily basis!!!

These nuggets of daily reflections on a single theme further convinced me that I have made the right decision to stop smoking, in order not to desecrate the temple of the Holy Spirit...my body.

Have a blessed Pentecost Sunday to all!

Takeaways:

1. It is important to have a guiding principle, a strong moral compass and value living with integrity.
2. It is important to listen to your conscience and take action when it prompts you to do so. To make choices that align with your values and bring you peace of mind.
3. It's amazing how sometimes the universe seems to align and give us signs to reinforce the decisions we make. It's great that I was able to find support and encouragement through the reflections and articles shared by that godly person. It's a reminder that we are not alone in our journey in this life...towards better health, well-being, and be at peace with God.

Written on Pentecost Sunday 2023 (Villaverde, Nueva Vizcaya)

Posted on 125th Philippine Independence Day (Las Pinas City)

Every Exit is an Entry Somewhere Else...

This Blog Entry was left "rotting"in the "Draft" of Blogspot, and was just recently recovered after that long Hiatus.

I have "exited" Afghanistan, and the life of an expatriate executive and made my "entry" (i.e., return) to Philippines as a local executive, sometime in 2008. This move maybe "unwise"... careerwise ... otherwise... it was a wise decision considering that; I have witnessed my son taking his "exit" from high school life, and his "entry" into college; I have witnessed my daughter taking her "exit" from childhood, and her "entry" into adolescense; and my youngest daughter her exit from "dolls and low-tech" toys, and her "entry" into the world of sophisticated and hi-tech gadgetry (albeit more expensive) toys.

That was two (2) years and 200 pounds ago (I have shedded 30 pounds of weight...down to 170 pounds now). Last month, I have taken another career move... "exit" from a local executive position, and "entry" (again) into an expatriate executive position in Pakistan. It's a never ending story of a series of "exits" and "entrys" in this round world of ours. Inshallah (God willing)... I will be spending the next two years of my career in this country.

After a Long Hiatus

Finally, a blog entry after a very long hiatus...or hiatuses for that matter. From Afghanistan to Huawei Philippines, from Huawei Philippines to Pakistan, and from Pakistan back to Huawei Philippines as a "prodigal" executive...all of these things have transpired during that BLOG hiatus...not to mention that I have forgotten my BLOG password after such a very long break.

 

Speaking about breaks, we recently have a short break with my wife in Hongkong and Macau to have a respite from the monotony of a "humdrum" existence. Hongkong is a shopping haven for prolific shoppers,whether at the "Night Market" or the branded "Outlets" in Tsim Tsa Shui. Then trying to your luck in one of the Macau Casinos called "The Venetian," ...all with that unending "perfect" sky and that Venice canal   in the 2nd floor...guaranteed to part you with your hard earned bucks from your wallet.

Actually, the reason for this Blog entry is not about the break/s, but about something I have written from my original blog circa 2007. On my first blog entry, I have written the milestones of my life. I was able to established a "Small Business", AQVILA Management & Services Company, which is item 2 in that blog, yet forgot to implement item 1, which was to write a book. My youngest daughter have challenged me just now, that she was already writing the second chapter of her book, and was asking me ...dadi, when can you finished you book?

Way back then, I have already conceptualized the gist of that book which I intend to write, but alas, the time and circumstances have not permitted me to start even a single chapter of that book. Well, with that motivation from my daughter who was already writing that second chapter of her book, I guess I need to work double  time in writing the manuscript for my own book as well. Who knows, we might have to publish these books at the same time.

Oh, the enthusiasm of our children and the wisdom of our age. So let's write that books whether in Hongkong, Macau or Manila. It has been a part of the milestone being proposed some 5 years back in that initial Blog posting.

And yes, I have also discussed about grandchildren and more grandchildren on that same blog entry (items 5/6), which I think will be realized in the very near future.

So Mote It Be.

My Signature Themes! (...of Talents/Strengths)

In the book "Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton, the reader is encourage to take the "strengths finder" test to discover one's strengths or talents.

Posted below are the results of this test, revealing my five dominant signature themes/talents, based on The Gallup Organization survey.

Strategic
The Strategic theme enables you to sort through the clutter and find the best route. It is not a skill that can be taught. It is a distinct way of thinking, a special perspective on the world at large. This perspective allows you to see patterns where others simply see complexity. Mindful of these patterns, you play out alternative scenarios, always asking, “What if this happened? Okay, well what if this happened?” This recurring question helps you see around the next corner. There you can evaluate accurately the potential obstacles. Guided by where you see each path leading, you start to make selections. You discard the paths that lead nowhere. You discard the paths that lead straight into resistance. You discard the paths that lead into a fog of confusion. You cull and make selections until you arrive at the chosen path—your strategy. Armed with your strategy, you strike forward. This is your Strategic theme at work: “What if?” Select. Strike.

Responsibility
Your Responsibility theme forces you to take psychological ownership for anything you commit to, and whether large or small, you feel emotionally bound to follow it through to completion. Your good name depends on it. If for some reason you cannot deliver, you automatically start to look for ways to make it up to the other person. Apologies are not enough. Excuses and rationalizations are totally unacceptable. You will not quite be able to live with yourself until you have made restitution. This conscientiousness, this near obsession for doing things right, and your impeccable ethics, combine to create your reputation: utterly dependable. When assigning new responsibilities, people will look to you first because they know it will get done. When people come to you for help—and they soon will—you must be selective. Your willingness to volunteer may sometimes lead you to take on more than you should.

Ideation
You are fascinated by ideas. What is an idea? An idea is a concept, the best explanation of the most events. You are delighted when you discover beneath the complex surface an elegantly simple concept to explain why things are the way they are. An idea is a connection. Yours is the kind of mind that is always looking for connections, and so you are intrigued when seemingly disparate phenomena can be linked by an obscure connection. An idea is a new perspective on familiar challenges. You revel in taking the world we all know and turning it around so we can view it from a strange but strangely enlightening angle. You love all these ideas because they are profound, because they are novel, because they are clarifying, because they are contrary, because they are bizarre. For all these reasons you derive a jolt of energy whenever a new idea occurs to you. Others may label you creative or original or conceptual or even smart. Perhaps you are all of these. Who can be sure? What you are sure of is that ideas are thrilling. And on most days this is enough.

Input
You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information—words, facts, books, and quotations—or you might collect tangible objects such as butterflies, baseball cards, porcelain dolls, or sepia photographs. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. The world is exciting precisely because of its infinite variety and complexity. If you read a great deal, it is not necessarily to refine your theories but, rather, to add more information to your archives. If you like to travel, it is because each new location offers novel artifacts and facts. These can be acquired and then stored away. Why are they worth storing? At the time of storing it is often hard to say exactly when or why you might need them, but who knows when they might become useful? With all those possible uses in mind, you really don’t feel comfortable throwing anything away. So you keep acquiring and compiling and filing stuff away. It’s interesting. It keeps your mind fresh. And perhaps one day some of it will prove valuable.

Relator
Relator describes your attitude toward your relationships. In simple terms, the Relator theme pulls you toward people you already know. You do not necessarily shy away from meeting new people—in fact, you may have other themes that cause you to enjoy the thrill of turning strangers into friends—but you do derive a great deal of pleasure and strength from being around your close friends. You are comfortable with intimacy. Once the initial connection has been made, you deliberately encourage a deepening of the relationship. You want to understand their feelings, their goals, their fears, and their dreams; and you want them to understand yours. You know that this kind of closeness implies a certain amount of risk—you might be taken advantage of—but you are willing to accept that risk. For you a relationship has value only if it is genuine. And the only way to know that is to entrust yourself to the other person. The more you share with each other, the more you risk together. The more you risk together, the more each of you proves your caring is genuine. These are your steps toward real friendship, and you take them willingly.

Views Through the Viewfinder

A picture speaks a thousand words...this blog entry has less words... and just pictures recently taken with my new DSLR camera.

Safi Landmark Hotel (Kabul, Afghanistan)













Hongkong International Airport







Manila Ocean Park







Bubba Gump Restaurant (Makati, Philippines)

Closing a Cycle (by Paulo Coelho)

Having recently tendered my resignation is part of "closing a cycle" so to speak in my life. Below is an article by Paulo Coelho which appropriately describes the situation I'm into at the moment.

Here goes....


One always has to know when a stage comes to an end.

If we insist on staying longer than the necessary time, we lose the happiness and the meaning of the other stages we have to go through. Closing cycles, shutting doors, ending chapters – whatever name we give it, what matters is to leave in the past the moments of life that have finished

Did you lose your job? Has a loving relationship come to an end? Did you leave your parents’ house? Gone to live abroad? Has a long-lasting friendship ended all of a sudden?

You can spend a long time wondering why this has happened. You can tell yourself you won’t take another step until you find out why certain things that were so important and so solid in your life have turned into dust, just like that.

But such an attitude will be awfully stressing for everyone involved: your parents, your husband or wife, your friends, your children, your sister, everyone will be finishing chapters, turning over new leaves, getting on with life, and they will all feel bad seeing you at a standstill.

None of us can be in the present and the past at the same time, not even when we try to understand the things that happen to us. What has passed will not return: we cannot for ever be children, late adolescents, sons that feel guilt or rancor towards our parents, lovers who day and night relive an affair with someone who has gone away and has not the least intention of coming back.

Things pass, and the best we can do is to let them really go away.

That is why it is so important (however painful it may be!) to destroy souvenirs, move, give lots of things away to orphanages, sell or donate the books you have at home. Everything in this visible world is a manifestation of the invisible world, of what is going on in our hearts – and getting rid of certain memories also means making some room for other memories to take their place.

Let things go. Release them. Detach yourself from them. Nobody plays this life with marked cards, so sometimes we win and sometimes we lose. Do not expect anything in return, do not expect your efforts to be appreciated, your genius to be discovered, your love to be understood. Stop turning on your emotional television to watch the same program over and over again, the one that shows how much you suffered from a certain loss: that is only poisoning you, nothing else.

Nothing is more dangerous than not accepting love relationships that are broken off, work that is promised but there is no starting date, decisions that are always put off waiting for the “ideal moment.” Before a new chapter is begun, the old one has to be finished: tell yourself that what has passed will never come back. Remember that there was a time when you could live without that thing or that person – nothing is irreplaceable, a habit is not a need. This may sound so obvious, it may even be difficult, but it is very important.

Closing cycles. Not because of pride, incapacity or arrogance, but simply because that no longer fits your life. Shut the door, change the record, clean the house, shake off the dust.

Stop being who you were, and change into who you are.

Surpassing the 3,000 ml Milestone

Y'ello Care programme...a volunterism campaign of our company that involves every employee to community building projects...of helping those who are in need.

Personally, it re-affirms my commitment (as an active Boy Scout in my younger years) to help other people at all times. Last week has been my ninth recorded blood donation with the Red Cross and Red Crescent, in addition to the undocumented blood "gifts" provided to friends and  relatives during hospital visits.

Last week's blood letting though is also a personal milestone as I have suppased the 3,000 ml mark....and still more to come. Yes, that's more than 3 liters of my blood flowing on other peoples veins. Here goes the count...

1. 16 February 1990 - 250ml
   
2. 10 February 1995 - 250ml
3. 14 August 1996 - 250ml
4. 17 April 1998 - 250ml
5. 22 July 1998 - 250ml
6. 12 February 2000 - 450ml
7. 21 February 2002 - 450ml
8. 24 Mordad 1386 (Persian Calendar) - 450ml  [Note: 15 August 2007]
9. 22 Khordar 1387 (Persian Calendar) - 450ml [Note: 11 June 2008]

The next milestone will be to hit the "one" gallon mark which is 3,785 ml.

It has been said that..."If you donate money, you give food! If you donate blood, you give Life!!!"