Lumaktaw sa pangunahing content

Breaking Promises


Breaking a promise leaves a bad taste in the mouth. But there is something about a promise that makes us want to break it. I bet everyone has broken a promise at least once in their lives.

Three days ago I made a promise to write at least 100 words a day on this blog. Yesterday, I broke that promise. And it left a very unsavory feeling inside me.

I remember a Danish proverb about eggs and promises. It says that both are easy to break. Hannah Arendt once said that making promises is a uniquely human act. It allows us to order our future.

Unfortunately, humans are supposedly predisposed to break a promise. Take it from the great author and humanist Mark Twain. Somewhere in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, he contemplated about this uniquely human flaw: that when someone promised not to do a thing, it is actually the surest way for that someone to do that thing.

Well, enough of promises. I guess we just have to stop making them and start doing what we ought to do.

(This post was first published at http://blogging100.wordpress.com/)


Mga Komento

Mag-post ng isang Komento

Mga sikat na post sa blog na ito

Mga Kuwentong Bayan ng Bukidnon

Introduksiyon UPDATE: Ang librong Mga Kuwentong Bayan ng Bukidnon ay maaari nang mabili sa lokal na online shop ng JMP Creative Media. Sundan lamang ang link na ito: BUY NOW: MGA KUWENTONG BAYAN NG BUKIDNON.   Ang pagbabasa ng mga katutubong kuwentong bayan ang isa sa pinakamabisang paraan upang maunawaan ang kultura ng isang bansa. Ayon kay William Bascom, isang kilalang Amerikanong kuwentista at antropolohista, ang mga kuwentong bayan ay salamin ng mga katutubong kaugalian, tradisyon, ritwal, at kultura. Nilalaman ng mga katutubong kuwento ang buod ng pagkatao ng isang partikular na grupo sa lipunan. Ang paglalathala ng e-Book na ito ay isang pagtatangka na maibahagi sa buong daigdig ang ilang piling kuwentong bayan ng tribung Bukidnon sa Hilagang Mindanao, sa wikang madaling maintindihan ng kabataang Filipino. Sa gayon, magiging mas nakaaaliw ang kanilang pagbabasa. Marami na ang nalimbag na mga kuwentong bayan ng tribung Bukidnon. Subalit kadalasan, ang mga kuwento ay nakasu...
Mag-post ng isang Komento
Read Complete Post

Anatomy of Vote Buying in the Philippines

Vote buying has always been a regular feature of Philippine elections. It has been successfully used by moneyed politicians, often belonging to political dynasties, local gentry classes, and traditional clans, to entice the electorate to vote or not to vote for specific candidates. In the recently concluded mid-term Philippine elections, quite a number of independent poll watchdogs observed that vote buying has become rampant compared to previous electoral exercises. Some analysts pointed out that the automation of Philippine elections forced many candidates, especially at the local levels, to buy votes to ensure victory. That is because with automation, the avenues for electoral cheating became limited and more expensive. Thus, moneyed politicians were compelled to re-focus their so-called “black operations” through vote buying.
Mag-post ng isang Komento
Read Complete Post

Remembering Jesusa Teodoro Martin (My beloved Lola Nena...)

Today is the 106th birthday of my favorite Lola, Lola Nena.  I am posting here a reprint from our Martin Clan Book about Lola Nena. Lola Nena died when I was in 4th grade, that was way back in 1984.  But I always have vivid memories of her (Lola Nena always cooked sweet delights for us)  Here's the reprint I'm talking about.  I think this was written by my cousin Mayo Uno and his Tatay, my favorite Tito Boy. (Excerpts from the Martin-Teodoro Aklat Angkan...): NENA Jesusa was born on January 19, 1903 in Tondo, Manila . Like Dominador, she was the youngest of two children by Santiago Naguit Teodoro ("Iliong") of Bulacan and Elena dela Cruz ("Enang") of Tondo. The eldest was Sergio ("Ikong"). Jesusa was only six when her mother passed away so her aunt Petra ("Pitang"), sister of her father, brought up the two children up. Santiago 's second wife, Leonora Pantanilla ("Nena"), produced six more children:...
Mag-post ng isang Komento
Read Complete Post