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How many of you saw the Beatles perform live in concert?

Author/poet Marra PL. Lanot did and she has the original ticket stub to show for it. Marra, sharing her thrilling memory of "The Beatles in Manila," considers that stub one of her guarded treasures, something she will not part with despite the persuasiveness of souvenir hunters who have offered her substantial amounts of money in exchange. I completely understand her stubborn refusal. Indeed, why part with proof of a slice of teenage heaven?

Speaking of persuasion, do you know what it takes for foreign media to publish stories about the Philippines, no matter how compelling or important they are? Our regular contributor Aurora Almendral, who had flown in a C-130 cargo plane with fully armed soldiers on their way to fight in Zamboanga and waded through debris and rotting bodies in Tacloban after Typhoon Yolanda, reveals the travails of a freelance journalist trying to get the Philippines covered in "'Selling' My Story."

It doesn't take much persuasion for us to feature two Filipinos who have made their marks in two different spheres: Grace Nono, compleat performer and cultural icon, is the subject of "She's On A Mission From the Ancestors" by first-time contributor Dusty Cooper; and the late Jose Formoso Reyes, the Harvard-educated craftsman whose handmade Nantucket baskets have become widely sought collectors' items that command thousands of dollars each, is the subject of Myles A. Garcia's "Love Baskets for Betty." 

In this issue, award-winning writer Lotis Key regales us again with her delightful take on our cultural quirks. In "Feeding My Filipino," our favorite ex-movie star talks about learning some valuable life lessons from their family cook.

We also urge you to read again "When Lolo's Debating Team Vanquished America" by Liana Romulo whose esteemed grandfather Carlos P. Romulo led the Filipino debaters who made mincemeat of their American counterparts in the 1930s.