The Boy Who Stutters

            If you are to choose between mobile devices that are run by different operating systems, one offers wide customizability and the other one do not, one offers exclusive features and the other one has become common, one offers more convenience and the other one only becomes practical for some, what would you choose? This is the battle between Android and iOS, the top operating systems used in mobile technology. Android is developed by Google and the latter is created by Apple. These two have become the competition among the preference of mobile phone users. They have evident differences and don’t have many similarities. From customizability, availability, and usability, to innovative features and convenience, each boasts what they have to offer.             On our first entry, Google’s Android . It is an open source model, which means mobile device manufacturers can...

            Which are better as pets: dogs or cats? Dogs and Cats were domesticated by humans thousands of years ago. Both had aided people: they help farmers as cats control rodents and dogs control herds. Over time, several different breeds have populated and people finally pet these domesticated animals.   Cats and Dogs serve as companions to people. However, which makes a better pet? Generally, people, especially pet owners, have long debated whether a dog or a cat makes a better pet. Differences between these two outweigh their similarities, but that doesn’t mean they don’t possess any. Factors that are usually argued upon are the difficulty of care, their interactivity, and functionality.               Both pets demand care. However, they require different difficulty of maintenance. Dogs need more frequent grooming than cats, especially those longer-haired...

Image by krystianwin from Pixabay             Why is Tagaytay a place to visit? I must say, this place has a lot to offer. Tourist spots in Tagaytay are mainly the charm of this place: from nature and parks, outdoor activities, sights and landmarks, food and places to stay at, to its cool climate condition. Tagaytay is truly a place to visit!             Tagaytay tourist spots include nature and parks, outdoor amusement parks, and landmarks. To name one, Picnic Grove is a place to relax where you can find the view of Taal Volcano and its surrounding lake. If you’re into nature, then this is a perfect place for you. Not only you can enjoy the view of the famous Taal Volcano, but Tagaytay also has a couple of zoos. If you’re into fun and games, Sky Fun , located at Sky Ranch , will perfectly suit you. It is an outdoor amusement park where you can find rides, food ki...

Image by silviarita from Pixabay             Should fresh fruits be sold in school canteens? I think school canteens should introduce fresh fruits to students. Since most school canteens don’t serve any, it is only time to start introducing fruits. Not only because fruits can provide vital nutrients, but are also healthier than junk foods that are prevalent in the counter. Students usually miss the daily recommended fruit intake. Serving fresh fruits will add up to the students’ meal , hence it will help to add more revenue to the school canteen.             One of the key reasons why fresh fruits should be sold in school canteens is that fruits provide vital nutrients. Vitamins and minerals are only some of the nutrients that we could get from eating fruits. Students need these essentials to help maintain a healthy body condition. It is a fact that fruits are goo...

I sat along the dike, having the scenery of a sunset. I stared. The sun finally set and I wondered why it does. The sky was covered with darkness and I wondered why it has to replace the amazing light. And so I thought, people only appreciate the light when darkness is about to come. We knew that anyway. I then thought that we only appreciate something when it is now too late. We love to see the sun sets but hate it when it finally does; we only appreciate something when it’s there but regret it when it’s completely gone. -TBWS February 9, 2016 Creative Writing - Final exercise: Write a 101-word story. Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Another chapter of my life is about to come. Another year full of lessons and mistakes, failures and progress, and happiness and sadness. It’s guaranteed. The New Year had begun and I have a long journey ahead. I have new goals to set. These are the things I wish to happen this year: - Before January ends, I need to clean the mess I made. - By February, I need to stop being a jerk. - When March comes, I want to make my parents proud again. - When summer approaches, I hope to learn an instrument. - Before the summer ends, I wish to finish my book. - Before June starts, I have to decide what path to take in life. The first half of the year is affirmative. I can possibly guarantee those things, but I can’t for the other half. I don’t know the half of it. I lost my plans. I lost my purpose. I wanted to stop my schooling. I am unsure if I still want to continue. I might be ruining my future now from the decisions I’m making...

     "You know yourself better," as they say. People usually believe that one knows himself better than anyone else. I guess it may and may not be true since one has undergone the struggle of trying understanding oneself. I have been there, we all have been there: a situation where you could not figure out who you are and ending up asking, who am I?      I am not a self-proclaimed person who entitles himself with anything that sounds good and just to make himself feel better. Like the others, I am flawed, perfect with imperfections. I have asked what other people's impression of me and there's something that stood up the most: serious and snob. However, that doesn't speak completely about me as it serves only their impression about me. But then I figured that I will be able to know myself better with the help of the people around me, so I asked them the same question I asked myself, who am I?      "You're responsible, or...

“Unless and until our society recognizes cyberbullying for what it is, the suffering of thousands of silent victims will continue,” quoted by Anna Marie Chaves, CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA (Chapter 3 Understanding Cyberbullying) . It is a fact that there are still lots of cases of cyberbullying happening as you read this. According to different organizations and research centers, … approximately half of the young people have experienced some form of cyberbullying, and 10 to 20% experience it regularly, and more than half of adolescents and teens have been bullied online, and about the same number have engaged in cyberbullying… (GuardChild) . Current bullying statistics may not be accurate as they may not report their bullying because they feel that no one would believe them or do anything to help them. People just choose not to speak anything about it in the reason that they have considered it as a norm, but I will not endure and pretend that it isn’t as important as other form...

I thought it was just my imagination - or some sort of fantasy - or maybe just fiction. But it wasn't. It changed when I woke up one morning. At first, I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't believe it. I mean, who would? Who would believe you have a trait of the impossible? Who would believe you were painted with a never existing color in a world of black and white? Who would believe you could see reality in more than one perspective? Just who? How about you? Would you believe me? It was scary. It was new. It was also fun. It was scary because you were definitely unique from the others and you knew it yourself. You're not normal; you're not ordinary. You're not like the people around you anymore. It was new as it affects your whole life, changing your everyday one way or another, how you think, how you act; and you couldn't just control it entirely. It was fun because you experience something different, the most different among the different...

“Good day everyone! Now, I am standing right here in front of you to deliver a speech to my fellow stutterers. I once imagined myself delivering a speech to my fellow stutterers and right now, I am definitely sure that this is a real one and not an imagination. I don’t know where to begin with but there’s one thing I’m sure about; to share my experiences in having this kind of condition to the people I always care for and to the people who need an inspiration, as well. When I was a child, I have no idea that I have this condition, stuttering. I am not aware that I speak that way until the people around me started to tease me, to make fun and laugh at me. As a child, I had many burdens to the people around me but of course, it was a childish act. I encountered several people and most of them teased me after hearing how I speak. I had a hard time coping with situation like that but as I grew up, I learned how to handle situations like that, and I realized that I’m different. I just ...

Ace, Congratulations! Oo, congratulations sayo! I am proud of you. You have been through a lot of things and you didn’t give up. You have sacrificed almost everything and helped others selflessly. What kind of person are you?! I know that someone has already told you that you’re an IRON MAN. Maybe you are. They say you are a very talented person and that you deserve every blessing that you earned. Maybe you are. They look at you as a leader, as their “boss”, and as the boy who stutters. You never settle for being mediocre. You have compromised a lot of things and yet you always give your best shot. You’re such a perfectionist and meticulous that you intimidate others but you still managed to help them along the way. You have helped several people and I hope you help yourself now. Prioritize your health more than anything. I thank you for being you. I know that you are flawed but you keep dealing with those, if not perfectly, exceptionally. You are amazing! Keep on inspiring others...

PHILOSOPHY If a friendship lasts longer than 7 years, psychologists say it will last a lifetime. Our friendship has only reached a year last February 14. I won’t say that our friendship will last because I am confident enough that we will –last. How can I say it? I just know. Even if there’s no guarantee, I want to believe my instinct that ours will last. Well, I am hoping; I’m wishing. The future is just yet to come and no one has ever have a glimpse of it. That is what we are; we keep on hoping and wishing for something to happen. We keep on dreaming and aiming for what we want. And that is what they give me, HOPE.  That is how friends should be like. They should keep their hope within themselves so you could also keep yours. Friends give you hope even you have lost it. Friends don’t only give you happiness, they also give you sadness, not a depressing sadness, but a sadness of remembrance and longing. Friends make you laugh when you feel bad. Friends make you smile when ...

ANALYSIS “Friendship is the hardest thing in the world to explain. It’s not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.”  –Muhammad Ali  I have valued friendship that much that I would take a bullet for it. That is how much I treasure the value of friendship that I have now. Indeed, it might be the hardest thing in the world to explain. It is because you are making an extraordinary connection between and an incredible bound within. How could you explain that kind of connection you have towards the people you treasure the most. I think no words are close enough to exactly define what it actually is. Only real friends could somehow understand what it really is and only genuine friends could read what is inexpressible in words; Real friends understand each other even behind their eyes and without speaking a word. We have made this ordinary connection like the most usually have and yet we managed...

MAJOR LIFE EVENT There are times in our life when things happen unexpectedly that it can create an incredible impact. An event that may be defined as a fortunate phenomenon that may bring us beyond our comfort zone. I have gotten to the point. To the point wherein I entered a different and incredibly new phase of my life. A phase that would affect me in so many great ways that I didn’t imagine myself.  Serendipity. I didn’t find what I was looking for, instead I have found the improbable. What are the chances of creating a strong bond between three people who happened to have different personalities, peculiar tastes, and uncommon traits? Serendipity. I found them and they found me.  I didn’t like them. I would never have needed them. Too casual as it may sound, but unlikely to the belief I thought that I would never do and things I thought that I would never wish, it happened; they happened. I usually know people until I meet these two. One that was conceited and w...

            “It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything,” said by Tyler Durden, the antagonist in the film Fight Club . That is one of the remarkable quotes in the film. Although it is a 1999 film, I still happened to watch it and when I did, it became one of my favorites and later became my all-time favorite. The first time I watched it, I was mind blown.  It may sound exaggerated, but I actually am.  I had an overwhelming feeling and was confused, enlightened, and shocked by the movie itself as I watch it. So why do you need to watch this film? Let me share my personal outlook about the film and offer you these three things: It is not any cliché movies that you watch, it has created controversies when it was released and this would make you wonder why, and it depicts a strong message which cannot be easily understood by the usual audience, but you are not supposed to be ‘usual’, you are supp...