NEVER TOO LATE TO DO THINGS RIGHT... Let's do this!

April 30, 2013 ---we are celebrating the 157th (OR SO WE THOUGHT!) Foundation Anniversary of the town of Lopez. But twelve years ago, we found out that it was not the date of our township. Based on the Spanish Records from the National Archives, Talolong (now Lopez) became a town by virtue of a Decree signed by the Governor General of Philippine Islands Fernando Norzagaray on 30 June 1857. Will the officials who will be elected on May and be sworn to office on 30 June this year finally correct this and the other mistakes in our local history? I hope so! Read more about this inquiry in my little book "ABC BEGINS WITH H!"    

BUHAY-LINANG, only in Lopez!

BUHAY-LINANG, that would be our commodity. It is envisioned to uplift the living condition of the community engaged on HERITAGE and GREEN TOURISM. This would be one of the projects of Lopez Quezon International. 

"Everything created by God is useful," that was the opening statement of Sir Joe. When we have a place where there's a spring of water, the plants around it should not be removed. Agroclimatic condition of the place has to be preserved. It has to be a sanctuary of plants and animals. Life should be taken cared of. Even ethnic names of our flora and fauna should be used. There's got to be an attractive name for every product, and a monthly seminar on ecotourism. A directory of producers of local products should be kept, and supply chain should be organized. These were but some of the matters discussed during the first meeting of LQI volunteers attended by Drs. Virgilio Villancio, Jose Sargento, Crispulo Alarde, writer Julianito Villasanta, and the mother and daughter team of Gemma and Queen Sroges Rochelle Suguitan San Jose on 23 April 2013 in UPLB.  

Target site is Lalaguna. We are going to seek permission from the Veterans Federation of  Lopez whether they are willing to enter into an agreement that we are going to put up a site for heritage and green tourism in one  portion of the 3 has. that has yet to be developed for the Veterans Park and Guerrilla Shrine. Hoping that they would allow our group, the second option would be to look for willing family or families who would partner with us on this endeavor. 

Everything 'LINANG,' or barrio life will be showcased on this site. A bahay kubo that is authentically Lopez-made which would not be like the bahay kubos sold along the highways but those which look like real ones put up by Lopenzes in the old days. There will be activities where both the tourist and the local residents will benefit from. It would be an educational and satisfying experience for the traveler who would see customs and traditions practiced in Lopez, buri and anahaw weaving, coconut dehusking, lambanog sa irok-making (and tasting), fishing, cooking and savoring local food, trying to do things like pagyuyubak, stringing local beads like adlay, etc. Lopez is one of the towns with the most non-wood cottage industries. There will be demonstrations and selling.

Ka-may-ari and Ka-batch principles will be utilized. Lopenzes will be our co-owners and alumni of all schools will be encouraged to invest. Even willing individuals or families. This project will be done as soon as possible in order to start and encourage more barangays to use a portion of their respective places for ecotourism. It is hoped that Lalaguna would just be a pilot project which would later on become a model for other barangays to follow. 

HUNTAHAN para sa KAUNLARAN--- SIMULA ng ATAGAN! 

Name of organization would be reserved at the SEC, even to DTI. Then on October 7, 2013 there will be an organizational meeting. Those interested to be members should fill up the registration from and pay Php 50, those who would like to register as lifetime members should pay Php 2,000 or $ 50; and institutional members are supposed to pay one-time registration of Php 5,000 or $125.

Today, November 17, 2013 is the second meeting of LQI. More LQI concerns will be discussed, particularly the Gift-Giving Project for the Christmas Season. It will be held at Kainan sa Dalampasigan in Los Baños, Laguna.

BUHAY-LINANG is the long-term project, Gift-Giving is one of those which will be done annually, starting this year.     

"PLEASE, LIKE MY PHOTO" ...YES, there is such a request!

I used to think that joining contests by asking people to like one's own picture was weird. Imagine calling people's attention to get more "likes" for one's entry? It is as if requiring people to like the photo even if they don't really feel like hitting that like button. But...

Joining the first-ever contest of our hometown's page had been an eye opener for me. During the first few days I merely wanted to know who would voluntarily like my entry so I never asked those eligible to vote. My interest was focused on discovering who would appreciate it. But suppressing my urge to campaign did not last long. On the third or fourth day of the competition I started calling friends to like my picture. What made me do it? Of course, the prize was beside the point. That was never the purpose of the contest. It was a prize, all right, but the objective was to test how the members would react to a "like votes" competition. So what prodded me to call my friends at first and even strangers later, to vote for me? I thought that if I didn't do it, I would later feel guilty for not having supported our very own project. Second, I thought that being one of the administrators of the page, it was okay not to be the winner but still I had to try my best to have more "likes" and not land on the bottom spot by doing nothing. If I tried and still got the last position that would have been alright... at least I did participate. Those were the reasons why I tagged as many names as I could to like my picture. And...

I learned in the process! I learned to shed off my pride by asking for votes. We are having the contest for fun and camaraderie so I might as well not be ashamed by asking people to like my entry which was not a good quality picture at all. It was meant to be a sample entry so I didn't really mind if it was a poor copy that didn't clearly show the faces of three generations of women in our family. I could have searched for a clearer picture but didn't have the time to do so anymore. All that was left was to ask for more likes. And more. And more. Until the last possible vote could be counted. Well...

In the entire duration of the contest, I did not hit the highest spot at all but it was okay. It was also hard to call people to share their time by liking your entry. Those whom you call may not be available on the contest period. As I was not a regular contestant, winning was merely secondary. I also thought it might not be good for admins win big time. In the final analysis...

What was important was that the nine-day contest had been enjoyed by the members. I did enjoy, too, especially when somebody heeds to my call and my "likes" were rising. I saw how friendships were formed, tested, and strengthened when they supported respective candidates. I also saw how candidates dealt with competition but the negative effect was trivial compared to the positive ones that we had. I never told my family about it. I merely did it for fun, and support to our group's project. I loved joining, I really did. It had been like calling strangers and friends for a taste test. I wanted them to like my product (which is my picture), so I had to approach them all.

I am not sure if other candidates feel the same way that  I do, but I think we all won. I have overcome my shyness to call people to like my poor-lighted picture. That, to me, had been difficult but I did it! I gained new friends and I did not make enemies, so I am thankful for the wealth of experience. This had been my first time, and it had been worth it! I guess it drew more members to check the page and we had new members who will read the posts about our hometown, making them love it more and encouraging them to make a difference as better citizens, the very reason why that page was created!