A Father to my Son

My time was already eaten by my work that sometimes I have already forgotten that my family needs my presence and quality time. Last week, I ponder things and I realized my shortcomings when I was at the hospital holding my son while he was being injected with syringe to control his high fever. I felt his heartbeat pounds so hard as he struggled to escape from the medical procedure. I told myself that I should took that pain instead of him for he is not supposed to be prone from pain and hardship. My heart seemed to break from pity especially when my child uttered the word "Papa, Papa!" Try to imagine that, and you'll probably feel what I feel.

The dextrose had slipped-out of his hand because he tried to escape from the grip of many hands holding him. I suggested to stop the doctor from doing it and instead lull him to sleep first before he do the procedure again. With his tender age of 1 year and 8 months, he still couldn’t control his emotions for total strangers.

We decided to rush him at the UDMC hospital by 2:00 a.m. because the medicines didn't help to subside his high fever. Though he is still active, his eyes is a little fussy, a sign that he is not in a normal condition yet. This is his 2nd time to be confined in the hospital since his birth. His first was when we left him in the nursery care due to infection and jaundice. And with these people in white uniform made him scared. My baby got an infected toe that triggers his fever. It reaches to 42 C and according to the doctor, with that temperature it could trigger a convulsion. I was thankful then that he was blessed with a strong immune system so he could overcome the dilemma he’s in at the time. It is my consolation that I have a wife who is very diligent and full of patience to be there to take care of him.

So, after his confinement, I have devoted my weekends to my son and my loving wife. We went to Mall of Asia and let Chad enjoy the biggest branch of Toy Kingdom. From there, he rode his favorite bike and remote controlled cars. What he liked most were the kiddie cars of all sorts which were replicas of a true car. But I feel sorry for not giving this perk because of lack of enough money.



After strolling down the mall, the following day we went to Quezon City Memorial Circle and Park so Chad could experience the ambience of the surroundings, enjoy the fresh air, lush greeneries and amenities. We also attended the mass and thank the Lord for the blessings he gave unto us.I drove them in a bike with a side car along with the other kids at the park. We also brought him to the kiddie area where he could play with fellow kids while they ramp up and down the slides.

Now, I feel relieved seeing my son back to his norms. The saying is true, "Any man can be a father , but it takes someone special to become a dad.

An International Bookfair for Filipinos

With the theme "Make it a habit", The 27th Manila International Book Fair culminated last August 30-Sept. 3, 2006 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. This is an annual event for book lovers and a big show for all book publishers. Everyone has its own strategies and way to attract book lovers to visit their booths, attend special events and a showcase of their respective products and services. One of them is Vibal Publishing House - one of the big publishers who has free story telling for children. They have children's story and coloring books that are bestsellers. They have invited Ms. Cha Chua and her group from Alitaptap Storyteller's Club to conduct storytelling session at the Function Room B of the bookfair. It was a success and needless to say that it had attracted not just kids but also adults because of their theater-like presentation. It is now the modern approach that is used by storytellers to gain attention and let the listener fully understood the stories being featured.

After that, I went around and take a look on their booth. I was greeted by a presentation showcasing their new multimedia products. These are nominated to the World Summit last year. As I turned around I see more product showcase and glad to know that some of them contains my contribution on photography and other creative stuffs. Some of them are the multi-awarded Regions of the Philippines interactive DVD, the Book Award winner for best in Trave Writing Murada: A Walk to the Historic Instramuros and also I am doing a website project for their coloring books based on the popular TV series "Super Inggo". Their booth is very well designed that it gain as third placer in the booth competition.

The World Trade Center in Pasay City was the venue of this international event. There are more than 80 exhibitors who had joined and it caters all types of books from kiddie books to professionals in all levels. Some of them consist textbooks, educational supplements, general references, religious and inspirational titles, self-help books, management books, Filipiniana, coffee table books, popular novels, children’s books, art books, graphic novels, rare and hard-to-find titles, magazines, audio and e-books, multimedia, teaching supplies and services, publishers’ technology, and travel materials. Giant bookstore chains of National Bookstore and Powerbooks covers the largest part of the venue and it lures the public with big discounts and other surprise gifts.

I scrambled through their isles to look for some books on electronic publishing and other reference books. I'm into book on blogging, wiki's and other computer jargons such as AJAX and XHTML. I need these because I have a huge site being develop. These are new tech-terms that surface and getting popularity among web masters and I think these books has not yet been published. Some of them are just available as documentation online. What I really wanted was a book on actual project implementation and in-depth experiences from several companies who had applied these technology.

This year's event really attracted book lovers and to my conclusion, the event was a big success and more innovations will hopefully be seen next year.