圣诞快乐, Hong Kong!

Disclaimer: This post has been in my drafts for quite a long time... hence, the Christmas post in April. Haha :) 

(Read: Merry Christmas, Hong Kong!)

Christmas is a time for family - especially in the Philippines. It's a time for reunions and out-of-town trips. We start our Christmas early... very early. Preparations usually start when the Ber months come in (SeptemBER, OctoBER...). People start putting out Christmas trees, lights, and other decors during September, some even do their Christmas shopping already.

We're always around family, friends, gifts, and good food. This Christmas (since this has been a draft for so long, the Christmas here is in 2010), however, we decided to go out on our own and experience Christmas in another country, in another culture.

Read all about our Christmas in Hong Kong after the jump!

Black Saturday Musings

I've always wanted to be a writer. What kind? I'm not exactly sure.

Poetry has never been an option, most definitely. I suck at it. I have no idea how to write a good one. Heck, I don't even have an idea how to interpret and understand one. I've only come to appreciate it after my Introduction to Poetry class in College. That was one class I was dreading to take. I had a feeling I would suck at it. I had a feeling I wouldn't understand anything during group discussions. I would just sit there listening to my classmates, feeling dumb and out of place. In reality, well, I really felt dumb. Everyone sounded so intelligent, everything they said had depth. When it came to the written exercises, I didn't do well... But I didn't suck at them either. I got a 1.75 in that class. The highest in our Uni is 1. 

I also took an Introduction to Non-Fiction or was it Creative Non-Fiction? Well, whatever, I loved it.  I've been practically writing non-fiction my whole life. I had my first diary when I was 5 and my first blog when I was 13 or 15. I remembered being so scared in that class. The feeling wasn't the same as when I took Poetry. I was too scared to be evaluated and judged - especially since I grew up believing that I might be good at writing. I pushed myself during workshops, I took constructive criticism, and even gave out some. I got a 1.5 in that class. The highest is 1. 

That was when I realized that I made the wrong decision. I should have taken Creative Writing in College. Instead, I got scared and took a 'safer' path - a more 'academic' course. I thought it was better to suck at something I just memorized and studied for than to suck at something I created out of my thoughts. I'm not saying that I'm good at this writing thing. I'm saying that I dreaded those Poetry and Non-Fiction classes, but deep down, I was excited about them too. Those classes didn't feel like classes. When I was there, I felt like I was just having fun and learning a lot of things about skills that have always mattered to me since I was 5.

I've always been a bookworm. This may be why I got attracted to writing. I like the feeling that books give me and I want to be able to share that with others. Just so you know, when I read, I really READ. I immerse myself in the book and I usually don't stop until I'm done with it. I get stuck inside the world, the era, or the milieu of the story. This is also why I get stuck with piles of unread novels. It takes me a while before I get out of the worlds and emotions a book brings. It may sound weird, yes, but it helped me cope with the different problems I had growing up - no matter how simple they may be.

Now that I'm older, I should be wiser. I shouldn't be afraid to take risks anymore. Life is really too short to choose a 'safer' path. I should face my problems and not immerse myself in books, in the hopes of escaping whatever problem I have at the time. 

It's time to put myself out there and continue doing what I love. I have no idea how to do it. But I'm guessing this is a good first step.

Life is short. Live your dream, and wear your passion. 

♥ Anna