Bakla 'yan

Bakla 'yan.

These two words, even just the first, never fail to grab our feeble attention. There are always different ways of perceiving those two words, and they always boil down to how positive or negative your views are. But often times, it's the bad things associated with being gay we see or think of. 

I remember last night when my family and I were watching a local primetime news program, my grandma blatantly said those two words to a fashion guru designing fine Barong Tagalog for the most powerful man in the country. She said it in the most regretful way possible. My aunt stood up for the designer upon hearing, saying how skillful the designer is and elegant his creations are. Maybe because she already have had her share of my reaction toward such explicit disgust for gays.

A few months back, my aunt told me why my nephew was not enrolled in any dance workshops - his grandpa, my uncle, feared of him being gay. I know. What's dancing got to do with it? And the more irritating thing, what's wrong with being gay?

Some people have been living blindly. Or I've just been living with my eyes and mind open - open enough to understand and see them for who they are, for who I am. 

I'm currently taking up a gender course, and I'm happy to learn more about gender and sexuality issues not only in the local setting but also in different cultures. Through this, I hope to understand better society's complexities toward us, and to broaden my perception of it. To those who haven't had any gender course yet, enroll in one. My friend who underwent a gender workshop this week doesn't regret it. According to him, there are many things many of us need to learn. 

I agree, we need to learn. And I hope that everyone could learn it. I know we will always hear, some of us will even say, those two words and that's a sad reality. But I hope the next time you say it, do it proudly with an ascending tone not otherwise.

Try it. Bakla 'yan.

Time Management

"I haven't slept nor eaten yet" has been her usual line whenever you see her walking to her next class or organizing matters for the college's student council.

Gail Orduna is a junior journalism student. She is also the Journalism Representative in the College of Mass Communication, and an active member of four organizations.

That explains then why she deprives herself of the basic necessities of life: food and rest. But according to her, she does not neglect herself but only practices time management.

True enough, with the piles of papers required in journalism classes combined with those of the electives and GEs, the busy schedule of a student council member, and the time-consuming activities and tasks in her four organizations, she would have very little time left for herself in her hands. And I literally mean little.

Sign in on your Yahoo Messenger at 9 p.m. and you'll see the familiar yellow face next to her name. Come back seven hours later and you'll still see her online finishing up on whatever requirements due that day. Call her a crammer as you may. But what is there to do if only during those hours she could do her academic requirements? Like she said, it is just time management. She just forgets to sleep and sometimes eat.

No one can blame her. She focuses on her every responsibility to make sure they are of prime quality. For one, she sees journalism to be "human flourishing" as she puts it, an "i-learn-from-you-you-learn-from-me" concept. This is why she tries to excel in the field so she could contribute and learn from it. She also makes sure her role as the Journalism Representative and a member of organizations to be as effective as that of a good leader.

But don't think she doesn't get to have fun. Just hope she has slept and eaten already when you see her.