MEDIUM RARE My memories of Don Emilio T. Yap, whose 10 th death anniversary was marked last Thursday, precede my employment in this newspaper. No wonder, when I looked at the crowd gathered for the unveiling of his bronze bust, I felt ancient. The sculpture by Abdulmari (Toym) Imao Jr. shows...
MEDIUM RARE Once upon a time, the great sex symbol of the Western World was a certain Brigitte Bardot. Men desired her, women hated her even when they admired the audacity of her. She turned into a controversy when an advertisement showing her underarms was pulled out. The fault was not in...
MEDIUM RARE After the standstill of Holy Week, it took a while for the secular world to get back on its feet and revive the noise, the sounds of the city. On Saturday, aka Black Saturday, ChowKing could not serve halo-halo for lack of ice. Cinnabon ran out of coffee but not of...
MEDIUM RARE Holy Mother Church calls it Black Saturday. On my wall calendar, courtesy of a bank, the designation of Black Saturday is augmented with the declaration of “special holiday” (whereas Maundy Thursday and Good Friday are regular holidays). A “black” day, going by liturgical...
MEDIUM RARE In December we celebrate the birth of the Baby with all the joy and hoopla of parenthood. Dec. 25 is not one day but the highlight of a season of joy. We exchange gifts, put on our best clothes, share a part of ourselves with overflowing charity and compassion. Then we welcome the...
MEDIUM RARE Friends of Zenaida Seva, the only astrologer they know in the world and the Philippines, held a little memorial lunch in her honor last Saturday, now that she “continues onward on her soul’s journey” (in her own words). She has left us and must now be traveling toward Cassiopeia,...
MEDIUM RARE Fast and furious. That’s how she was. Cecile Licad on piano, playing Tchaikovsky in a slightly faster tempo than I’ve ever heard before, her fingers racing up and down the keyboard to empower her glittering glissandos and thunderous chords. Her audience was struck by lightning as it...
MEDIUM RARE If life is a dream, and because most trees live longer than human beings, there must be a message there somewhere from the Creator. As a friend used to say, “Trees are more useful than some people.” And now another friend is saying, “Donate to Gift of a Tree App” and help the...
MEDIUM RARE Easter Bunny. Easter eggs. What’s the connection between an egg and a rabbit? Rabbits don’t pop out of an egg, but since ancient times, the tradition of an egg hunt in spring, particularly after the somber season of Lent, speaks volumes of mankind’s concept of life, birth,...
MEDIUM RARE Somewhere between grade three and four I must’ve missed out on geography as a “must” subject, otherwise I‘d know more about Batangas and its scenic, painterly beauty. After a visit there last weekend, I can now describe one spot in the province as the place to escape to, away...
MEDIUM RARE Of all the places in the world to meet on a Sunday, it had to be in a mall. But exorcists need time out to relax and be in touch with the real world once in a while, too, don’t they? Fr. Joesy Syquia, well-known in the Archdiocese of Metro Manila as an exorcist authorized by the...
MEDIUM RARE When I showed up at lunch one day, there began immediately a smallscale debate on what color I was wearing. Salmon? Orange? No, I said, peach, or better yet, peachy. Color of the year, I added. Thereupon began another debate. Peach is not the color of the year, someone said, it’s...
