Some 180 subsistence fishermen in the island-province of Catanduanes, who lost their boats to storm surges triggered by Supertyphoon “Uwan” on Nov. 9, 2025, have been thrown a lifeline. A coalition of civic organizations has gifted them new outrigger boats, restoring their shattered livelihoods and pushing back the constant threat of hunger stalking their precarious...
Category: Life
Post
Relapsing into phone addiction, and getting out again
Last August, CoverStory ran a piece I wrote on three simple ways to lessen screen time. That was six months ago and, like a dutiful patient out of rehab, I am reporting on how it has been, some losses and some gains, since I weaned myself off my phone. Suffice it to say that it...
Post
Me and my 21-year-old car
When I turned 50, my wife gifted me with a compact SUV. More than two decades and close to 380,000 kilometers in the odometer later, it is still with me. And my wife seems to be truly, finally resigned to my not parting with it anytime soon. More than my oft-stated reasons for keeping it—like...
Post
Life in the slow lane
“Welcome to the slow lane.” This was a message I received from a friend, an ex-colleague who had left before me, on the day I left the only company I had ever worked for. Fourteen years may not seem like a long time, but the bank was where I started my career just two months...
Post
When our all-Filipino choir sang Christmas carols at Martin Place
SYDNEY, Australia—Our all-Filipino choir, Himig Sandiwa, was invited by the City of Sydney Council to perform at Martin Place for its annual Christmas event, “Choirs in the City.” This is the first year the choir has sung at the event, and, according to the organizer, we are the first Filipino choir to be part of...
Post
Making memories: Sticky rice and unfettered bonds
Among my vivid childhood memories is making bilo-bilo. I remember the sensation of rolling between my palms a dollop of cold malagkit (sticky rice) to about an inch round until smooth, putting the ball on a plate, and repeating the process, putting the balls one beside the others on the quickly filled plate, until there...
Post
I’m only happy when it rains
My wife and I woke up one Wednesday morning and I hit the snooze button on the alarm clock. It was raining and the air was cool. In the additional five minutes of sleep, otherwise known as negotiating with myself if I should get up or not, there was a quandary in my head: With...
Post
Ibalong Festival celebrates epic origin of Bicolano ‘oragon’
LEGAZPI CITY — Bicolanos are known to be “oragon” (slang for brave, feisty, resilient, and steadfast in beliefs). It’s a description gleaned from the epic of Ibalong and its warrior-heroes. Legazpi is celebrating the Ibalong Festival not only to highlight the traits enshrined in Bicol folklore but also to provide a fun challenge for those...
Post
Addicted to your phone? Here are 3 simple ways to lessen screen time
It’s ridiculous to me that I’m writing a list article in the year of our Lord 2025. But my excitement over finding the cure to my cellphone addiction demands that I employ the listicle’s simplicity. Friends, I have found a way out! It’s totally doable, and it doesn’t require anyone to download an app that...
Post
Wrestling with cerebral concerns, such as the nature of Nature
It used to be my golf swing that kept me up at night. I would find myself awake at past midnight and crawling out of bed in order not to wake my wife, going to the living room (where I once nicked the coffee table with a golf club while practicing indoors) or the yard...