Tag: May 27, 2006

MEMORIES are fleeting. And that’s bad news because I have very poor memory retention. At 20, I think I’m already suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, acute amnesia, and quarter-life crisis, hence, the constant dramatic nostalgias and memory lapses. I’m resorting to mnemonics, the reminder function in my mobile phone, and sometimes capsules of memory enhancers to keep me on track, but so far, a piece of paper and a pen have never failed me yet.

YOUTH is but a fleeting thing, like a shining star that dies into a mere speck in the universe.

But for Palanca Hall of Fame honoree Gregorio C. Brillantes, the star of his youth continues to shine brightly in his short story compilation, The Distance to Andromeda and Other Stories (University of the Philippines Press, 2000), which features 25 stories he wrote in his younger days. The tales are more than remembering his childhood; they are glimpses of what by now is history–the Oldsmobile, Calle Simon de Anda, and World War II.

EXPERT lessons and premiere performances in dance are exclusive to the rich no more.

THINKING out of the box is ideal for many, but for the artists of Boxed, exploring the world within their own boxes is a better way of expressing their creative visions.

Conceptualized by CFAD instructors Jaime Pacena II and Buen Calubayan with Advertising alumnus Cos Zicarelli, Boxed features the works of 63 artists (34 of whom are Thomasians) from different disciplines, on display at the Big Sky Mind from May 3 to June 3. The pieces, due to the limited size of the exhibit area, are restricted to 10x10x10 inches, which the artist may interpret by their own.

AS PART of the annual French Spring Festival in Manila, an exhibit titled Major French Contemporary Artists: Etchings and Lithographs went on display at the Total Alliance Gallery in Makati City last April 19 to May 12.

CULTURE conservation may be the least concern of people preoccupied with the latest showbiz events and fashion trends. And that is exactly what organizations like the International Course for the Study Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization-Regional Center for Archaeology and Fine Arts (SEAMEO-SPAFA) plan to address. It is exactly with the aim to re-educate people about the importance of culture conservation that the international course, Collections Asia 2010 (COLLASIA), was born.

NOT ALL that is beautiful is good.

This is what Prof. Regalado Jose, cultural heritage consultant of the UST Center for Conservation of Cultural Property and Environment in the Tropics (UST-CCCPET), said of architectural imitations, like the dome of the Sta. Clara de Montefalco Church in Pasig.

“When you imitate something, what you produce is not good,” Jose said.

Aside from poorer results, Jose said that imitating designs results in the loss of architectural identity.

FR. RENIER Noel Llorca, former parish priest of the Santa Clara de Montefalco Parish in Pasig, once dreamed of a bigger place to hold mass for his parishioners. Today, his dream is almost fulfilled—but to a magnificent extent.

Currently standing at 57 meters tall on 11,230 square meters of land, the new Sta. Clara de Montefalco Church on C. Raymundo Ave., Brgy. Caniogan, Pasig City, although still unfinished, is already dubbed as the tallest church in the Philippines.

I will be telling this with a sigh,

Somewhere ages and ages hence.

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —

I took the one less traveled by.

And that has made all the difference.

— Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken

IN EVERY turn that we make in our lives, we come upon crossroads that can lead us to different paths, each unique and consequential to our next step. And with our choice on which road to take, there lies beyond yet another series of crossroads we have to choose from.

WEEKS ago I rummaged through the junk under my bed in an attempt to come up with a semblance of organization in my neglected quarters. I found the usual: unused textbooks, dog-eared test papers and other school projects, and old photocopied handouts, and, yes, an armada of dust bunnies.

As I examined each memento for any trace of value, I got myself thinking: from which of these courses did I actually learn something? From how many of the courses I took in my entire stay in the University did my parents get their money’s worth?