A Timeout Year

How will we remember 2020?

It was the year when the earth healed. The sky cleared, the waters became bluer, wild animals  revisited their original habitats, bird species thought extinct were seen in city streets, and aquatic animals once again swam freely in waterways.

It was the year when music stopped in arenas and concert halls but emerged in balconies and homes as people found community in singing and making music. 

It was the year of reconnecting as multiple families, old friends and previously neglected relationships got together to update, to converse, to wine and dine virtually, to dance.

It was the year of reflection as the hassle and bustle of daily existence turned to quiet calm. 

It was the year of renewal, when the demand for distance and isolation brought forth stark reminders of one's priorities and what really matters.

It was the year for expanding one's horizons -- virtually-- as webinars, podcasts, talks by experts, museum tours, travel documentaries as well as streaming movies and dramas transported us to worlds we didn't have the time to explore before.

And yes, it was also a year of righteous rage, constant grief and good trouble, the intensity of which has led to significant changes that should usher in a better tomorrow.  

Despite the pain of the pandemic and the sorrow of lost lives, we end the year with hope for a better 2021 and with faith that the cycle of life will continue as it has through the ages.

Our Stories This Week

It’s Not About That Imelda By Esther M. Chavez

Read Agains

Lulu’s Fifty-Peso Christmas Gift By Elizabeth Ann Quirino

Banana Leaves, Rice, And Coconut By Leah K. Sicat

Delicious Dishes For Your Christmas Table

Video of the Week: Parol Making Workshop

In The Know

Cebu Simala Shrine – Lindogon: The Miraculous Castle Church

https://sugbo.ph/2019/simala-shrine-church-cebu/?fbclid=IwAR3rKPuPLrje0VOaNUkzzuBKqFFTG50rIsc2kjkUIg7Thn5ZRMiZjC4sOjY

LOOK! This curvy, sexy, modern building is Marikina’s hidden architectural gem

https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/spotlight/12/13/20/look-this-curvy-sexy-modern-building-is-the-guggenheim-of-marikina?fbclid=IwAR2Z8CnjflUVOw-vQ0g1o-CfrAyxROI5LLeevsw2WMTifhMISM3HNfG1ZRs 

Independent int'l probe on alleged human rights violations in PH launched
https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/17/20/independent-intl-probe-on-ph-human-rights-violations-launched?fbclid=IwAR0Viuv7kEiXD7h7ZSU95noKDuf9q07VMdVMIXQxao7BuyQ8tyLY1gueWDU

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Chill

Three months of intense political campaigning, and Filipinos have made their choice. Whether you are rejoicing or mourning right now, it's time to calm down and return to what's truly fundamental and good.

May is the month of celebration and commemoration -- from Flores de Mayo and Marian Month, to Asian Pacific American Heritage, Mental Health Awareness and Memorial Day in the US. And then there was Mother's Day, which is pretty much universal, and to mark it, we have stories on mothers and motherhood:

From Switzerland, Cherry Malonzo, a young mother, writes about the unexpected joy of natural childbirth with a midwife assisting, in "Where Midwives Are Worth Gold."

Rosa Quirino Eugenio is a little known lady who played a big role in nurturing a president. The eldest sister of President Elpidio Quirino, the sixth president of the Philippines, Rosa took over the mothering of her younger siblings when their mother died. In "Little Mother, Big Sister," Positively Filipino Contributing Writer Elizabeth Ann Quirino reveals some family stories.

Hotel executive James Tecson Lim offers a touching tribute to his late mother, Lourdes De la Cruz Tecson, who raised him singlehandedly.

And our Read Again feature in this Marian Month, a brief guide to Marian shrines in the Philippines by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo, from the book Pueblo Amante de Maria.

In Los Angeles' Echo Park and Historic Filipinotown neighborhood, The Park's Finest BBQ Restaurant is catching attention because of its innovative approach to the well-loved Filipino barbecue. Positively Filipino Contributing Writer Anthony Maddela takes us there.

Chef Johneric Concordia of The Park's Finest BBQ shares a recipe of his mom. Our Happy Home Cook feature for the week is aptly called Mama Leah's Chicken Drummettes.

For our Video of Week, we present Anthony Bourdain's feature on the Philippines in "Parts Unknown."