Staying in Philippines for 22 years has its ups and downs. I was born in this motherland of ours, I was raised there and I was educated there. Living here in Europe is no bed of roses as well. It's always a different feeling to be at home and feel at home and just do the normal stuff I have been doing before. I tell you guys that it's no easy thing to go against what you have been doing for 22 years: culture, customs, weather, climate, people, language, race, beliefs and many other things. I really need to be adaptable, which I am lucky I am, but I still tell you that here is NOT my home.

Here, I have to obey everything. Here, I have to feel so much cold. Here, I have to do a lot of bureaucratic procedures to make one thing. Here I do not have a clue where to see bargains, which store is for the right budget, etcetera, etcetera. Here they speak Dutch and I speak English. There's always the difference here but here it's also cleaner here and people are making their nature livable, not only today but also in the future.

Although I never went abroad before 22 years, I had a lot of Korean buddies back in the University. And I quote one of them (Lee) when we talked about rivers: "We are not as stupid as you Filipinos to pollute our rivers." That was a piercing statement but that was true. What could I tell him? Should I tell him what he noted was not true? I could not! Why? Because the evidence was slapping my face right in front of us when he made that statement.

I was Lee's tutor for English conversations and proper usage of words and anything to have him pass the TOEIC examination. We made lessons in the hotel suite he rented until the examination time came. Such hotel is beside the river and the river stinks at certain hours of the day... more specifically, when we made lessons at around 3-4 in the afternoon. Outside that time frame, I don't know if the river still stinks because I'm out of the place already.

Lee explained that he took the hotel expecting a great river view and a good contact with nature. He noted that when he reserved that place, the photo he saw from online was clean. He did not expect that Philippines could be so dirty with thrown garbage and plastics right in the river as during low tides, these thrown objects rush to the river banks and the residue make up the stinky waters.

Why do we Filipinos are so selfish? Why are we not thinking of the future? Why do we throw garbage anywhere whenever we get the chance to? I don't know why! Maybe we are indeed stupid that we cannot understand what lies ahead in the future. We are so stupid to understand that we cause our own floods, we create our own land slides, and flash floods. That's for today and we just imagine the exponential effect to our next generation because of our irresponsibilities.

It's time to be properly educated. At least a little by little. If each one of us, around 100 million, just throw a single candy wrapper in the correct place, can you imagine what big improvement it already makes? Imagine those wrappers where thrown not in the trash cans but in open places? When rainy season comes, these wrappers will be carried by the water to water ways, drainage and rivers and would eventually cause clogs and floods.

Be a real Filipino who thinks of the Philippines. Be responsible at least for the little acts that can save our nature and save our future.

Honestly, you can just be left open-mouthed at the simplicity of idea. But before that, I would like to note some things.

First, my country, the Philippines, has this outstanding clamour that its people just go out and work abroad rather than help the country improve.


The overflowing trash...
Second, scholars have been sent out to observe and share their ideas back home to give way to improvements, comparisons and better practices.

Third, I am sharing my ideas what I see from out of Philippine territoty/bounday and I am sharing through blogging for I cannot be personally there to make it happen.

Fourth, even if I am present in the Philippines, who would hear me if I don't have money? Not a politician, not an actress and not the one who can pay people to listen to me? Now this is the problem! We cannot really tell that those scholars do not go back or did not go back! It is also possible that they are/were back in the Philippines full of enthusiams but those ideas were just sprayed with malicious preventions from those who are in power and do not want change. However, it is also possible that those scholars and abroad workers, the creams of the crops, just choose to settle away in order to avoid a lot of disappointments that are currently going on in the Philippines.


How nature and beauty is damaged by these garbages...
What I am driving here? Ideas. Yes, ideas. Ideas are many. I have seen them in my friends back in the university supported by the entre Filipino tax-payers. Yes, the Iskolars ng Bayan (The Nation's Scholars) as they say and I was/am one of these people. I have to apologize however to my countryment for I am not there to burden the sufferings you are currently encountering. Plus, I want to admit that if indeedI was there, as I was a couple of years ago, I was only a slave of a multinational organization making me work 24 hours and draining my brain and body with pleasant thoughts and energy. So what is the difference? Nothing eally much... but in my opinion, much is the difference. I can blog and share my views and really see our own short-comings as Filipinos, admit it, and make move for the change. Moreover, since the value of money here is greater when spent there, a little savings from here can help me help my feelows in need in the future back there.

Back to the "move" I was talking about on top, it actually refers to minimizing the garbage. This is not just plain criticism but I have to admit that the cities in the Philippines are dirty! And so are the provinces, though the latter is not that obvious since they are not as crowded as the cities. One reason? Plastics! Yes, even that alone can constitue a lot of garbage!


Believe it or not, this grocery trolley can contribute hugely more than we realize how much...
Here, where I currenlty stay, plastics in department stores are sold. It is actually ranging from €0.30 - €2.50 depending on the quality and style and usability and durability and a lot more factors. This means, if one just throw his/her plastic bag, another expense would be made if there is another grocery purchase. And that hurts a lot! I mean the buget and the pocket!

What I am sugesting, is, since Filipinos are very difficult to discipline in terms of garbage, why would this plastics be sold instead of being freely given? This way, Filipinos would value these plastics better and not just throw them. A move from the congress making all stores put costs in the plastic bags would be a good "preventive" move to lessen garbage. Can you imagine 90 million individuals throwing at least 1 platic per week? Isn't that disturbing? It can be seen actually during low tide how dirty the seas get and the rivers and creeks are clogged due to garbage. I saw it myself in so many places in the country!

I know what will be the reply to this: A rally of opposition from the masses... but of we think of our future and the ultimate effect, this is for our own good. If you don't want to spend for plastic bags, buy one cloth or real bag for groceries and use it for years! It is just a matter of mind set how people can make situations to their advantage and not just oppose every move for progress everytime.

You dream of a clean environment for your children? So make this happen! Support and do not oppose! Plastics if burned are dangerous and it is really a thing that do not deconspose just on time... it is a very damaging material and we need to prevent the mutiplication of this kind of garbage (or any other garbage in the Philippines for that matter).

They say don't just complain unless you have a better solution. My solutions are set out in this blog and I do hope, people and some policy makers can discover this someday and they just stop dreamy beefy amounts in their pockets and bank accounts!

Please help a clean Philippines, try at least in your part. No littering, proper waste segreaìgating and use of recycled plastics will greatly help.