A Christmas message
A BLESSED and Merry Christmas and New Year to all of you! For my column this Christmas, I’d like to quote Bishop Robert Baron in one of his Advent reflections….
Category: Lifestyle Columnists
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All about Christmas
I CAN never quell a stir of fascination, dread and longing, when the house lights dim and the curtain parts in every Filipino American Symphony Orchestra (FASO’s) gentle riot. It…
The legacy: A house full of daughters
Thirty-two years ago, my husband left me. He died, leaving a house full of daughters, young and adorable, innocent, with the world on their side. In the face of adversity,…
The gaiety, frolic and freedom in the Castro
SAN FRANCISCO – You think they’ll go away. They didn’t, they haven’t and they won’t. They are not just a passing phase with cultural mileposts. They are here to stay…
Frailties and strength
It is not Christmas fever or holiday blues, but a full spectrum of a human condition of what is to be sick, to be cured, to lose and to triumph….
The world meets Miss World Philippines 2016 Catriona Gray
While everybody’s feeling jolly and bright, the world of beauty pageants is gearing up for the Miss World 2016 event which will be held on Sunday, December 18 in Washington D.C. It is with…
Simbang Gabi masses: Our testimony of faith
THERE were a lot of people at the LA Cathedral on Thursday, December 15. The rain did not stop them, mostly our kababayans, from coming to the opening Mass of…
Looking through the lens of ace photographer Filbert Diego Kung
If the world is a stage and each has to play a part…easily then, a camera is one imperative device that will capture every single facet of one’s performance. Its…
Appetite regulators
IN this day and age of health consciousness and the appreciation of the value and role of weight on longevity, interest in weight control and dieting is greater than ever,…
A celebration of Christmas and Filipino culture
It was an unbridled celebration of sound and scenes last Saturday at the International Celebrity Center for the Philippine Institute of Language, arts and culture (PILAC) in partnership with the…
Fall in love with these fall makeup trends
SOME weeks ago we welcomed the fall season with an article on hairstyles. Today, we tackle another one of my fortes—and a sought-after subject for women—the latest makeup trends. I…
To be prophets of hope
“THE Lord gives sight to the blind; the Lord raises up those who were bowed down. The Lord loves the just; the Lord protects strangers.” – Psalm 146:8-9 Archbishop Gomez…
Anorexia nervosa & bulimia
What is anorexia nervosa? This is a “psychological” disorder where the person has a disturbed sense of body image. He/she has a morbid fear of obesity, refuse to maintain a…
The interview: A delightful minuet
INTERVIEWS come in many ways. Some regard them as battles, others call them theater pieces — even as delightful minuets. But for showbiz interviewing, which tends to elicit mere entertainment,…
December 7, 1941: The Pearl Harbor moment
HOW could it have happened? Pearl Harbor — and its awful treachery and death — is one of the worst battles and defeat ever suffered by the United States. It…
A ‘hero’s burial’ and the path to forgiveness
The late Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the…
Our longing for peace
THERE are many things happening in the world and in our lives today that trouble us. They are the constant killings of innocent people in many countries, the never-ending violence…
Mark Bautista emboldens career image as he (still) sings on a high note
The moniker “Mark Bautista” has persistently been a household name since his emergence in the Philippine music arena via a local reality TV talent search, Star For A Night, where…
The Wonders of Super Gene
All of us want to live a long and healthy life. The search for the Fountain of Youth has been an obsession of man from time immemorial. More than ever…
November to remember
IT was a month of passion, erudition and of past times, but mostly politics and government at every turn both here and across the country. In a trove of bemused…
Club Balai Isabel: A Paradise at the heart of Batangas
There is no better place than to be than in your own country. I realized that there are a lot to discover in the Philippines. This is my most memorable…
A profound look at gifts and blessings
I WILL always remember Fr. Anthony Lee’s homily last week in the seminary when our community celebrated a Thanksgiving Mass. To start his homily he shared a “culture shock” he…
The startling resurgence of Archie D’s music
THE soul of a great music never dies…but merely fades to oblivion, takes a brief respite after a top-chart supremacy, and resurfaces anew with a recharged dominant influence geared up…
Laughing matters
“Neither of us would ever die of love, we will grieve, part and separate. For we were not meant to be tragedians. We were meant to be comedians.” – Graham Greene,…
Allergies 101
What is an allergy? An allergy is a condition where the body overreacts following “contact” with an allergen (dust, molds, pollen, flower, dander, fur, animal protein from hair, perfume, cosmetics,…
Vina Lelim Nacionales: A beauty queen with a golden heart
Everybody has a story. Each story bears a fascinating reason that explains why the characters are the way they are. I’ve always believed in how our past could mold our…
Proclaiming the kingship of Jesus Christ
“HE is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in Him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible…”…
Thanksgiving: Gratitude and appreciate of life
THIS great holiday of thanks and giving is not a date on a calendar, but a state of mind. It is about our capacity to realize things that we can,…
Calcium is essential
What is calcium? Calcium is a hard, silvery metallic element with an atomic number of 20 and an atomic weight of 40.078. It is a mineral found in bones, teeth…
War is a filthy tragedy
WAR is a filthy tragedy — but it has always been like that. The violent age that was the Renaissance, then the Roman Empire, while the golden age was in…