Layang Bilanggo

Last Saturday, my friends and I went to Shang Cinemaplex to see an indie film. We intentionally wanted to watch one at the 5:30 pm schedule but the tickets were sold out so we went for the next one: "Layang Bilanggo."

This movie touches on the issue of "prisoners for hire" (assassins). It centers on the life of one inmate who does this task so as to protect the daughter he left behind some twenty years ago. To do this he went on a run as a fugitive to a Home for the Aged where his now grown-up daughter teaches drawing.

I was reminded of my growing up years at the Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa where as a kid I would brush shoulders with the prisoners and would eagerly listen to their life stories. They really are not what they seem to be from the outside. There's a lot more I could learn from the experiences they encountered in life.
Deep down they too have a heart (probably much larger than mine).

Bosco Hall - Guam

We Salesians are almost a year (around ten months) here now in Guam helping out in Father Duenas Memorial School. We called our residence (part of an old small structure near the school) Bosco Hall. It's our refuge after a long day's work in the hustle and bustle of an all boy's High school and everything that comes with it...

It is a place where we could rest and relax, eat and pray together, and even share stories and enjoy each other's presence.

You know, this experience reminds me of a particular Psalm (133): "How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in harmony." Hey, wasn't that one of Your final prayers? Remember- that "Ut unum sint"-ish thinggy (Jn. 19:28)?

A Tale of Two Cities

The year end brought me exploring two cities in Mindanao- Dapitan and Dipolog.

Dapitan is a sleeply town which has deep historical roots since this was the place where Dr Jose Rizal was exiled and did his last works prior to being sent back to Manila for his martyrdom.


Rizal made a map of Mindanao outside the Cathedral of St James. This church has a unique ceiling.


Dipolog is the commercial city where the airport lies and near the city itself a port which connects sea trade with the Visayas. This city is famous for its sardines.