Pablo Neruda always have had exquisite choice of words, this poem probably one of my favorites from him that have helped me cope up with break-ups.
I want you to know
one thing.
You know how this is:
if I look
at the crystal moon, at the red branch
of the slow autumn at my window,
if I touch
near the fire
the impalpable ash
or the wrinkled body of the log,
everything carries me to you,
as if everything that exists,
aromas, light, metals,
were little boats
that sail
toward those isles of yours that wait for me.
Well, now,
if little by little you stop loving me
I shall stop loving you little by little.
If suddenly
you forget me
do not look for me,
for I shall already have forgotten you.
If you think it long and mad,
the wind of banners
that passes through my life,
and you decide
to leave me at the shore
of the heart where I have roots,
remember
that on that day,
at that hour,
I shall lift my arms
and my roots will set off
to seek another land.
But
if each day,
each hour,
you feel that you are destined for me
with implacable sweetness,
if each day a flower
climbs up to your lips to seek me,
ah my love, ah my own,
in me all that fire is repeated,
in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten,
my love feeds on your love, beloved,
and as long as you live it will be in your arms
without leaving mine.
It is not easy to be forgotten by someone. I learned to appreciate heartbreaks along the way. They taught me my real value and what I truly valued. Sad as it is to be forgotten by someone you consider important, it is part of life. You would not want to spend your life chasing after someone. These temporary let downs will bring you to the right place. You will eventually meet someone who will be there for you through thick and thin. Loving someone is always a risk that brings the best and worst out of us. Healing is not impossible, it just takes time. You just need to remember this:
If you should forget,
forget pain, resentment and judgement.
Should you remember,
remember the joys of loving someone and being loved.
Yesterday, I relinquished my crown, my journey ended as Miss SCUBA Philippines 2013. I got to meet andĀ find out which lucky woman will be flying to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia this November to represent our country. I would like to share the moment I hadĀ last night as I saidĀ goodbye. For those who weren’t able to witness it, here is the farewell speech that I wrote on a whim.
During Ms. Cebu
For as long as I can remember, I always had a love for the ocean but I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth. It was in Facebook where I first heard of Miss SCUBA and without second thoughts, I went to the screening alone with the dream of having the chance to get a diving license. I did not win Miss SCUBA Philippines 2012 instead I won as a runner-up, Miss SCUBA Philippines Marine Tourism 2012. Losing however did not stop me from what I wanted, I was lucky enough to have met the international organizer, Mr. Robert Lo and before 2012 ended, I was appointed to represent the country for Miss SCUBA International 2013. At first, I hesitated, thinking that it was unfair for the rest who would want to represent the country but I eventually knew it was the opportunity that I have been waiting for.
Just like a ship on a grand journey, I went against several waves to be Miss SCUBA Philippines 2013.Ā I had to sacrifice time and put effort to find sponsors and supporters. On December 8, 2013, I left Manila to with an almost empty wallet, a luggage bag filled with secondhand and borrowed clothes and my dive equipment. I knew that my life will never be the same once I board the plane. I was worrying about how my stay would be and what would become of me after. I left my country and only a handful of people knew what I was about to do.
My first official photo for Miss SCUBA Philippines 2012
Seeing Kota Kinabalu for the first time
First photo with co candidates
Posing with Ayaka and Umu during our welcome dinner
Cleaning up with a smile
All smiles
Sipadan is awesome
First time seeing reef sharks and sea turtles!
While waiting for another dive at Sipadan
Alyssa and me during our shoot for our national costume
Bengi waiting for her turn to be interviewed
Dwarf elephant at Langkawi Wildlife Park
Biking around was fun
Sea Turtle 101 discussing about their life cycle
Digging like a turtle
Proud of the nest I made
Getting advice from Robert Lo himself
Sunset cruise
My national costume designed by Edwin Uy
Backstage with the girls
Swimsuit competition
My gown made me feel like Dayana Mendoza
Awarding
with WWF-MMalaysia, they gave me a bag because I was top 2 in marine conservation
With little support, I felt like an unarmed dwarf forging a battle against giants.Ā The next day while I was patiently waiting for another flight, yellow lights started creeping in, slowly taking over the gray covered clouds hovering and just right out of the glass window of the airport, Mt. Kinabalu greeted me with her grandiosity. It reminded me to think big, that very sight gave me courage and made ready me for the start of competition. I opened my heart and my mind and got rid of my fear. Each day was filled with laughter shared not only among candidates but with everyone involved with the pageant. The whole competition seemed like a long vacation.
Fast-forward and I found myself standing together with four other finalist where I was the only one with no special award and in that split second, my name was called. It was a surreal unexpected moment of triumph when they called me as Miss SCUBA International First Runner-up. Since then I was able to help communities and contribute in protecting the marine environment. To my mother Noemi and sister Carrie for the unfailing love, to Sir George for helping me with my diving license, to Aquamundo for providing my dive gears and to Edwin Uy for letting me don his creations for the MSI competition, to my Miss SCUBA International Family, Ā SERALHCO, SAV Hospitality and to everyone who was with me during this journey, I am forever grateful.
I am walking in front of you now as a proof that failure is a natural part of success, road blocks are meant to test you and passion always gets you through. To the next Miss SCUBA Philippines, the dream is yours for the taking, be brave.
I was sad and happy that night because I knew a new door of opportunities will be coming. I will be part of the Miss SCUBA International 2014 at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia as a guest and a co-host. I am also looking forward to new projects with them in the future. Cliche as it may sound but every ending is just the beginning of something else.
Everyday, more than a thousand Filipinos and foreigners flock to the seaĀ for pleasure, work and food. The Philippines is one of the countries blessed with massive stretch of coastline. In fact, it has one of the longest coastlines in the worldāestimated at 36,289 kilometers. The coastlineĀ extends 2,000 kilometers from north to south, with 25 major cities lying on the coast.
The ocean provides us with the basic elements of lifeāit produces half of the oxygen in the air we breathe, and it is an essential part of the water cycle, helping to provide the water we drink. It is an important vein bringing life to our planet and yet each day we keep on destroying it.
Turtle Mistaking Plastic for Food
People know that trash in the water:
compromises the health of humans, wildlife and the livelihoods that depend on a healthy ocean
threatens tourism and recreation, and the critical dollars they add to our local economies
complicates shipping and transportation by causing navigation hazards
generates steep bills for retrieval and removal.
To be passive about this ongoing problem is like slowly committing suicide. With every trash we throw into our ocean, we our taking in poison.
A Movement for Trash Free Seas
Over the last 25 years, Ocean Conservancy has been bringing together passionate ocean lovers and helping them contribute to a vision for trash free seas.
International Coastal Cleanup is the largest volunteer effort for ocean’s health. Held annually every third Saturday of September, people around the world gather on beaches, coasts, rivers, waterways and underwater dive sites to remove trash and record information on the debris collected.
Results will aid in better waste management policies/plans, product packaging designs and in stirring environmental consciousness among the people.
Did you know?
Hooray For Philippines
The Philippines is the second largest participating country in the world with 182, 408 volunteers for the ICC 2013. Last year, volunteers collected 794,181.9 kilograms of trash and debris in 150,544 bags within 445.73 kilometers of beaches/shorelines, waterways and underwater areas.Ā
If you want to get involved this year you can visit the following sites:
Ā For two straight years, I have volunteer for Shore It Up Zambales. Ā You can even see me (or my back the least) in their video! Here is what has been happening for the past 2 years.
Cleanups alone canāt solve this pollution problem.
What You Can Do To Help
As the late John F. Kennedy once said atĀ the Dinner for the America’s Cup Crews on September 14 1962:
āI really don’t know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it’s because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it’s because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea – whether it is to sail or to watch it – we are going back from whence we came.”
Cleaning Up at Bantayan Island
The ocean is an vitalĀ part to our life. We should fight to save it. There is after all no planet B.Ā The oceanĀ needs your help to keep millions of pounds of trash away from it – your everyday choices can help keep it clean.
There is no recipe for a perfect relationship but we can enhance it with simple gestures that mean so much to a loving heart; a kiss when you leave, a hug when you come back, a text in the middle of the day that reads āI miss youā and the promise that you will make each other a priority when you are together. ā Brigitte Nicole, Lessons Learned In Life
Paniki Chronicles 