Weaving life

"We all have our own life to pursue, our own kind of dream to be weaving, and we all have the power to make wishes come true, as long as we keep believing."

~Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), American novelist

On display at the 3rd floor of Greenbelt 5 mall are the gorgeous nito vine baskets of the indigenous Iraya Mangyan of the island province of Mindoro. The Ayala Foundation has committed to providing education and skills training to a community of Iraya Mangyan in the town of Puerto Galera, a popular beach and diving destination. Part of their commitment is to revive the traditional art of weaving beautiful and functional baskets made of nito (Lygodium circinatum), a forest vine. Sales of the baskets go directly to the families who weave them.

You can learn more about—and support—the Ayala Foundation's Iraya Mangyan Project here.

Theology & Philosophy

"If there's no chocolate in Heaven, I'm not going."

~Jane Seabrook, Furry Logic Laugh at Life

Theo & Philo chocolates are made of cacao beans and other ingredients sourced straight from local farmers. I confess that it is the first (and, so far, the only) Philippine-made chocolate bar that I like. Aside from milk chocolate and 70% dark chocolate, they have other flavors that are distinctly Filipino: siling labuyo (tiny, very hot chili), kapeng barako (a local coffee bean with a robust flavor), green mango and salt, pili nut and pinipig (toasted glutinous rice), and a few new ones which I haven't tried yet. Their gift boxes, which can hold 3 or 5 bars, are based on the colors of the Philippine flag.

Team building

Our office trip to Bantayan Island (see yesterday's post) wasn't only for rest and recreation. The more important objective was team building. In our case, it was quite literal.
  Gawad Kalinga (GK), which means "to give care," is a poverty-alleviation and nation-building movement which builds houses and creates communities all over the Philippines for the poorest Filipinos. GK communities are known for their colorful houses, which is but the first step in the long process of poverty-alleviation. There is a young GK Village in Bantayan Island—named the Pope Francis GK Village—and we spent our first afternoon there.
  GK is completely funded by donations and powered by volunteers. The land for the Pope Francis GK Village was donated by the municipality, which increased the donation after Typhoon Haiyan destroyed many of the coastal villages in Bantayan Island. The houses are largely funded by Xavier School and the ERDA Group, both Jesuit institutions based in Manila.
   The simplest way of volunteering is by helping build houses, which is what we did. The boys did the heavy work of mixing the sand, cement and water. (I tried, but my arm strength is absolutely pathetic.) That's our big boss dude in the Hawaiian shirt.
  We passed buckets of the cement mixture for the floor of one of the units. Aside from volunteers, GK houses are built by their recipients, who have to log in 300 hours of labor and attendance in values formation workshops before they can move in. GK calls it "sweat equity." And the formation continues long after the beneficiaries receive their houses—necessary if one wants to build real communities and not just houses.  
  Before we left, some of the children of Pope Francis GK Village performed a dance for us, a dance that they had been practicing for a big GK event.

To learn more about Gawad Kalinga, and maybe even donate or volunteer, please visit their website.

Framed

"Set wide the window. Let me drink the day."

~Edith Wharton, Artemis to Actaeon and Other Verses

Other than the enormous floor lamp in the middle of the room (see yesterday's post), the interior of Earth Kitchen is simple and even quite spartan: raw cement floors and walls, and tables and chairs that are very utilitarian. The big window which looks out onto the street is beautifully screened by the bamboo and palm trees outside, however, making it look like a painting from inside. The real paintings which currently adorn the otherwise bare walls were created by students of Cabuynan Elementary School in Tanauan, Leyte who survived Typhoon Haiyan. They are for sale for PhP500 each and all of the proceeds will be used to rebuild their school.

Renewable energy

Bamboo bicycles have been around since the 19th century, but it was only in the mid 2000s that they began gaining serious attention. They make a lot of sense to me. Unlike metals which need to be mined and processed in highly damaging and polluting methods to be usable, bamboo are some of the fastest growing plants in the world, and are, therefore, ecologically and even economically sustainable. I didn't see which particular company made this bike—the Philippines now has several—but it was on display at the Human Nature store (see yesterday's post).

D.I.Y.

Chairs made out of the corrugated cardboard used in packing boxes! Aren't they fantastic? Quite appropriate for the store of my favorite all-natural products, Human Nature, which advocates environmental sustainability, and also promotes other social enterprises.

Throwaway

This nativity scene was made by the personnel of the Ateneo de Manila University's Office of International Relations. The design concept is based on both mosaic and stained glass, but it is completely made of plastic junk—bottle caps and bottoms, straws, and ring binders—with a few broken optical disks thrown in. I find it absolutely fantastic!

There are sixteen nativity scenes around the campus created by the different units that make up the university. One of the criteria for their creation is the use of recycled and indigenous products. I have yet to walk around to take their pictures, but I'll be sure to post them here once I have.

Of smiles and hearts

At the Blue Market social enterprise fair where I took yesterday's photo, I was immensely gratified to learn about Quezon City's Sikap Buhay Entrepreneurship and Cooperatives Office. More than just a microfinance program, the office helps its poor clients with business development and planning, and it also helps the micro enterprises find new customers and markets. In fact, their stall in the fair featured the handicrafts of several cooperatives and enterprises, which included bags, mats and picture frames woven from fabric scraps, used paper and foil packs. Less garbage for the city, livelihood for the city's poor, and useful products for their customers. Everyone wins.

Snack bags

Would you believe that these woven bags are made of those plastic and aluminum foil packs that potato chips and their ilk come in? Several years ago, someone realized their potential for a livelihood project for the residents of Metro Manila's slums, especially those near garbage dump sites where used packs can be salvaged from. Habi (weave) Bags are made by the residents of Baseco, a huge island ghetto where the Pasig River flows into Manila Bay. The enterprise has the support of Oishi, a local (despite its Japanese name) manufacturer of snacks and drinks, which provides the weavers with damaged and scrap materials for their colorful and amazingly sturdy bags.

Bless his big little heart

The children from the poor communities served by the Ateneo de Manila University—and this big little kid—who attended this year's Lights for Hope Christmas outreach program were treated to a wonderful performance from Wanlu, a puppeteer and ventriloquist who provides entertainment for many events, and who appears regularly in local television shows. Wanlu heard about the outreach program and volunteered himself and one of his sons, who is also a puppeteer. This puppet's name is Nicolo and he's an incorrigible joker, mercilessly teasing Wanlu every chance he gets. He also has the sweetest singing voice I've ever heard from someone made of wood.

Bottled light

If old shoes used as planters (see yesterday's post) aren't quirky enough for you, how about a chandelier made of old beer bottles? Too bad it was daytime when we went to Resurrection Furniture and Found Objects Gallery—I would have loved to have seen what it looks like lit up. And I think that Red Horse Beer should buy this piece by Nathan Apilado.

Fashionable plants

At Resurrection Furniture and Found Objects Gallery (see yesterday's post), reused and recycled objects are not only found in the pieces that they sell. Everything at No. 10-A Alabama Street is old, refurbished, recycled or repurposed. I couldn't help but notice the planters all over the place. I saw tub and toilet planters in the back yard, huge old CRT monitor planters inside the house, and a fashion show of shoe planters lining the path from the gate to the front door.

P.S.
Jetro Rafael of Van Gogh is Bipolar thought up and made these shoe planters.

Something else

Number 10 Alabama Street in New Manila, Quezon City (see the previous two posts) is the home of Resurrection Furniture and Found Objects Gallery. They sell a few original vintage pieces, like the vanity and ornate mirror, but their strength lies in giving new life to what other people call junk. The chest of drawers—which I absolutely adore—is made of salvaged wooden planks; notice the drawer pulls that come from a variety of pieces so each is unique. The lamp on the floor in the foreground is made of the narrow side of old CPU towers, and the silver flapper lampshade of the piece on the chest is made of soda can tabs. The gallery sometimes has guest artists to exhibit in the house (which really is a house, by the way); the crochet sculpture is by Aze Ong and is part of her "Liwanag" (light) touring exhibit.

New life

A lowly bayong—a coarse but sturdy tote bag made of woven palm leaves, commonly used while buying vegetables, fruits, fish, poultry and meats in fresh markets—is given a lovely coat that is just as environmentally friendly, made of a patchwork of wonderfully textured fabric scraps, by What If Handmade, a social enterprise that repurposes old and used fabrics.

Asong Pinoy

A new sculpture in the plaza of Eastwood Mall pays tribute to the Aspin, short for Asong Pinoy or Filipino Dog. The Philippine native dog was called Askal—Asong Kalye or Street Dog—until the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) decided to take up its cause more aggressively, which required a special public relations campaign and a new, more socially acceptable name for this short-haired, medium-sized hunting dog. The plaque on the base reads:

Silent Companion

By Seb Chua

In honor of the "Aspin", the Filipino dog… Companion, playmate, protector, friend

Without words, Beyond words…

Living in his own homeland, yet often homeless.

Seen everywhere, yet overlooked,

Voiceless and invisible.

The Aspin dreams of the day he will find a safe, loving home.

He looks up to a human, and hopes for humanity.

Will they see him and speak for him?

To all who give voice to the Aspin,

Who have called his name and welcomed him into their family,

Share in this quiet tribute.

This is where it all began

Back in November of 2009, I wrote about our office's annual Christmas outreach program called Lights for Hope. The 2010 event did not have as many children; we were a few tens shy of a thousand. Mr. Octopus the inflatable bouncer wasn't inflated on time—which is why he's still lopsided here—and soon after I took this picture, it started raining, which forced everyone to move to the alternate venue. But I have to hand it to the college kids who spent time with the public school children and the local child actors who came to spread some Christmas joy: they adjusted to their sheltered but cramped space, everyone gamely continued with the program, and I saw nothing but smiles on the young children's faces.

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I would like to apologize for disappearing without a word for two whole months. Even early in November, my schedule and work load were getting progressively worse and it was soon after this event that I had to decide to let go of something, and it just had to be my blog. I don't want to bother anyone with the details since it isn't what My Manila is for; suffice it to say that it was the first time in a decade that I had to go to work during the Christmas break and that I hardly felt the past two months go by. To everyone who worried, visited, and left messages and sent me email: thank you from the bottom of my heart. I wish I could give each one of you a real hug.

Let me say one final thing: I'm baaaaack! :)

No room…

to run,

Tiger (Panthera tigris)

Lion (Panthera leo)

Double-wattled Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius)

to crawl,

Albino Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus)

or to fly

Kalaw or Rufous Hornbill (Buceros hydrocorax)

at the Malabon Zoo. :'(

There will be darkness

SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City is currently the Philippines' second and the world's fourth largest shopping mall, with a floor area of 390,000 square meters (4.2 million square feet) in 42 hectares of land reclaimed from Manila Bay. Tonight, this whole area will be plunged in darkness, at least for an  hour, for Earth Hour 2010.

8:30 P.M. • SATURDAY • 27 MARCH 2010

See what's reflecting what at James' Weekend Reflections.

1,500

THEME DAY: WAITING • Goodie bags filled with biscuits, candy, noodles, slippers (flip-flops) and a rubber ball waiting to be distributed to children who live in poor communities and whose homes were flooded because of the heavy rains of typhoon Ondoy (Ketsana) during the 2009 Lights for Hope Christmas outreach party.



It will be interesting to see how City Daily Photo bloggers interpret this month's theme. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

An early Christmas

Like last year, and the eight years before that, our office organized the Lights for Hope Christmas outreach party for young children in the poor communities and public schools that various organizations in the Ateneo de Manila University are involved with. This year, though, we also opened the event to the children of university employees who suffered from typhoon Ketsana (known as Ondoy locally). Last Saturday, about one thousand children spent the afternoon in a large field in the university. There was a program with games and prizes, and Jollibee himself (his fastfood chain provided the kids' afternoon snack) dancing for the kids. He is probably the most famous and best-loved animal mascot in the country and up close, it's easy to understand why—he has the cutest shy smile! He's a pretty good dancer too.



For those who didn't care for dancing or parlor games, there were two large inflatable slides. The college students who volunteered to help did a fantastic job of keeping the waiting lines orderly.



Canon Philippines provided a photo booth. Pose with the Canon snowman and get a free print, a souvenir of the afternoon. Filipinos are usually shy about asking strangers anything and people probably thought this was just a display booth, so two officemates and I got things going by being the first to get our picture taken. We posed together but we each got a copy. And, no, I'm not posting that photo here. No way.



Instead of just our regular one goody bag, all the children went home with four bags. Our blue tote bag had biscuits and other snack foods, a rubber ball and slippers. The Ateneo High School Class of 1967 provided a knapsack full of school supplies, including a Tagalog-English pocket dictionary. And ABS-CBN, one of the largest media companies in the Philippines which was also one of the largest relief operations centers during the typhoon, provided two bags of relief goods: rice and canned goods, and clothes. The Ateneo High School and Grade School basketball teams helped us distribute all the bags, help that was much appreciated because just before distribution I thought we didn't have enough hands. The high school boys even helped the smaller ones carry all their 'loot' back to their picnic area.



None of these would have been possible without the generosity and hard work of so many people, so indulge me as I thank others not mentioned above: all the alumni who gave donations to pay for the afternoon's expenses; Culinary Exchange for its free-flowing coffee to keep the volunteers going; Blue Christmas, the college group that organized all the kids and their facilitators; and, of course, the entire Office of University Development and Alumni Relations, especially Marijo and her team. Thank you, everyone, and may God bless you all.