For the first time this morning (after maybe over 6 or more months?) birds were heard chirping again in the garden. After all these talks of nuclear war and conflict, it’s a relief to still be alive and hear nature singing their song. Going through life one day at a time is a credo that keeps me calm and centered While being in the present, another useful (useful to yourself and to others) deed is to count one’s blessings. And to reach out, even just through our loving thoughts, to our fellowmen (or as I was taught, our other selves), near and far.
Speaking of reaching out to help other people, I was quite elated when I chanced upon a wonderful discovery in one of my first forays into the center of downtown Toronto after most of the covid mandates were lifted. For the longest time, I had been decreeing for a place where I could just refill all these consumer products which we use daily. This is a dream or an advocacy that I would like support in whatever way I can. This is mainly to help reduce the plastic containers that end up in the trash, which eventually end up in landfills and worse, in the rivers and waters, which endanger the lives of marine life.
This is to congratulate and commend Body Shop which is now selling refillable shampoos and body wash. They say that it is still in the experimental or pilot stage. But I doff my hats off to them for doing something concrete to help solve in some way this huge, world- wide environmental problem. So I bought several containers and will definitely support them in this worthwhile project. Yes, it is business for profit but with the added element of social responsibility. I am all for that. Looking forward to their expanding to other products like lotions and other product lines.
Perhaps the manufacturers of laundry and dish detergents could follow suit. Just our household alone uses up quite a number of those plastic containers for detergents on a monthly basis. Multiply that with the number of households even just in Toronto, or even just Ajax where we live. I don’t have the statistics for this but even without checking, I am sure the numbers will be mind-boggling.
I am glad to say that even as early as maybe 5 or 8 years ago, while still living in Manila, some of the major supermarkets like SM Supermarket or SM Department Store and Rustan’s Supermarket were already using paper bags instead of plastic ones for the customers to use. For a while, I had to get used to it, especially when you get caught in a sudden downpour, which is common in Manila. I used to just walk to the grocery which was a block away. But the good thing these days is that people are now into the habit of carrying their own re-usable bags, thus minimizing the use of disposable plastic bags. I guess the alarm raised regarding the ”islands” of plastic bags and other trash found in the ocean and seas are propelling the citizens of the world to do their part. Hooray for the news (what a relief to know that some news have positive effects) and to the vigilance and care of all of us human beings who do what we can to preserve the planet earth, which ultimately redounds to our own benefit. I cannot say this too often. We are all interconnected, whether we believe it or not. This principle can work for us or against us. It depends entirely on one’s behavior, which ultimately depends on one’s aggregate of thoughts (or call it consciousness).
Speaking of consciousness and related things – There is one more thing I am grateful for these days. “Salamat naman” sa internet. There are so many views out there for one to see and digest. Sometimes palatable but oftentimes jarring. Constant food for consciousness. Be careful. Garbage in, garbage out. And yet it has taught me to be more independent in the sense that, at first, although it is quite difficult to discern who or what is fake and who or what is not, you somehow, eventually find your own way through the maze, and come out unscathed, unbowed and more caring and wiser in the process.. Of course, you pray that your thinking process is healthy and founded in both common sense and in the principles of spirituality. Be careful though, one’s ego is sometimes quite deceiving. The ego is so powerful that it will make you come to a conclusion only for purposes of control. If I remember my religion classes correctly (Religion in a Catholic school was not my forte), ego was the downfall of Lucifer, who, I believe used to be an angel. Did I understand that correctly? That is, in so many words.
Now, for my last, but not least, “na pasasalamat” – As of now, while writing this piece, my current favorite Korean drama “Business Proposal” has aired 8 episodes already on Netflix. 4 more episodes to go. It has only been 4 weeks since it debuted but I have watched the whole 8 episodes 4 times already. Am I deranged or so bereft of anything else worthwhile to do? No way. This single drama so far has made me laugh out loud with genuine glee and afforded me a much needed ray of sunlight breaking through the gray clouds of winter and the chilly, wet, still-gray early spring. See! I am waxing poetic. Thanks to this K drama which someone (spoilsport) said was cliché and unrealistic. That is why it is so refreshing. I like cliché and unrealistic at this time. Better and saner than the so-called realistic world of geo-politics, and conflicts, one-sided Western media, Islamophobia, Sinophobia, Russophobia, and all the maddening phobias and biases proliferating around. In short, this is the perfect time for a delightfully refreshing Asian drama like “Business Proposal”. By the way, it is based on a manga and webtoon. And the director captured the essence of its being a webtoon to a T. By the time this April Fool’s issue of Balita is out in Blue Sky or Pacific Fresh, where I get my copies of Balita, there would have been 10 episodes already. Boo hoo! 2 more “na lang” after. I will miss Shin Ha-ri and Kang Tae-woo. For followers and fans of this K drama, you know who they are.
For now, “magpapaalam na muna ako. Hanggang sa susunod nating pagtatagpo dito. Maraming salamat” and Happy April Fools’Day! May you keep your pranks wholesome and kind, “mga kaibigan”.
Tessie Ochangco Taylor
