A TIME FOR EVERYTHING UNDER HEAVEN
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
A time to be born and a time to die,
A time to plant and a time to uproot,
A time to kill and a time to heal,
A time to tear down and time to build,
A time to weep and a time to laugh,
A time to mourn and a time to dance,
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
A time to embrace and a time to refrain,
A time to search and a time to give up,
A time to keep and a time to throw away,
A time to tear and a time to mend,
A time to be silent and a time to speak,
A time to love and a time to hate,
A time for war and a time for peace.
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 22)
I almost didn't do this column. Weeks ago, I was almost decided (isang langgam na lang ang di pumipirma ng consent niya) to drop the EIC-ship and have myself reduced to being mere article contributor/news correspondent and maybe the paper's layout artist. Don't ask me why I am letting go of something I started while in midair. Yes, it isn't me. Whenever I had something take off the ground, I see to it that it lands on the ground (if it had to land at all) safely too.
But lately, I think I have exposed myself to so many things than I should. Things are starting to get into me and it has affected the way I think, feel and sometimes act and speak. Odd as it may seem, I wanted to simply vanish into thin air or give everyone the proverbial "ma and pa" ("malay ko't pakialam ko") reply. Yes, again, this isn't me for most of the time, I am always a "concerned" person (but aren't all Trinitians always "concerned" persons?) and always have a ready answer for everyone.
And then, I was never a quitter. In 1990, Death played Let's-See-Who-Blinks-First with me and I won! I get rough when the going gets tough and it has been my nature to see what my abilities could do and where my limits would end. However, for the first time, I am thinking of morphing into a totally different person and have a different attitude (an indifferent attitude?). So what happened to my decision? Well, after seeing the sleepy towns of Batan and Sabtang Islands, I realized that it pays to stick to who you are and where you are… tough it out, ika nga.
A former mentor asked me not very long ago if I would ever change because it seems the world around me has and it is evident I am having difficulties existing in my changed world. Without batting an eyelash, I told her I cannot change. Not that I don't want to strengthen my weaknesses but I know she didn't mean that. For me, to change would be to totally forget who I am, what I am, and why I am where I am. Like the Ivatans who braved the unmercifully harsh weather just to preserve themselves, the land they inhabit, and the rich culture they have, so would I brave to be the "unchanged one" in a changed world.
I would admit, there is the great temptation for me, as Editor-in-Chief, to radically change the paper so it shall "cope with the changes". Since Trinity University of Asia has changed, why not change the nature of the paper too? But that would be going against the very reason why the paper was published. The paper was started to inform, enlighten and give a venue for the employees of the institution to learn skills and share the abilities they have, and not for it to be a freedom wall where personal opinions are aired. And this is why the Link doesn't have an Editorial Section.
"There is a season for every activity under heaven…" the Bible says. Well, this is not the season for me to turn my back on my peers who have just found their passions for writing for Link, nor is this a season for me to "disappear" and be tele-transported in another office in another company. "There is a time for everything under heaven…" it adds. The time for changes has come in Trinity University of Asia… unprecedented changes, if I may say so. But this is not a time for such change… not for me, not for the paper… not yet.
So, without further ado, on behalf of the publication advisers, editors and staff of Link, I welcome you all to the second year of the paper.
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
A time to be born and a time to die,
A time to plant and a time to uproot,
A time to kill and a time to heal,
A time to tear down and time to build,
A time to weep and a time to laugh,
A time to mourn and a time to dance,
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
A time to embrace and a time to refrain,
A time to search and a time to give up,
A time to keep and a time to throw away,
A time to tear and a time to mend,
A time to be silent and a time to speak,
A time to love and a time to hate,
A time for war and a time for peace.
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 22)
I almost didn't do this column. Weeks ago, I was almost decided (isang langgam na lang ang di pumipirma ng consent niya) to drop the EIC-ship and have myself reduced to being mere article contributor/news correspondent and maybe the paper's layout artist. Don't ask me why I am letting go of something I started while in midair. Yes, it isn't me. Whenever I had something take off the ground, I see to it that it lands on the ground (if it had to land at all) safely too.
But lately, I think I have exposed myself to so many things than I should. Things are starting to get into me and it has affected the way I think, feel and sometimes act and speak. Odd as it may seem, I wanted to simply vanish into thin air or give everyone the proverbial "ma and pa" ("malay ko't pakialam ko") reply. Yes, again, this isn't me for most of the time, I am always a "concerned" person (but aren't all Trinitians always "concerned" persons?) and always have a ready answer for everyone.
And then, I was never a quitter. In 1990, Death played Let's-See-Who-Blinks-First with me and I won! I get rough when the going gets tough and it has been my nature to see what my abilities could do and where my limits would end. However, for the first time, I am thinking of morphing into a totally different person and have a different attitude (an indifferent attitude?). So what happened to my decision? Well, after seeing the sleepy towns of Batan and Sabtang Islands, I realized that it pays to stick to who you are and where you are… tough it out, ika nga.
A former mentor asked me not very long ago if I would ever change because it seems the world around me has and it is evident I am having difficulties existing in my changed world. Without batting an eyelash, I told her I cannot change. Not that I don't want to strengthen my weaknesses but I know she didn't mean that. For me, to change would be to totally forget who I am, what I am, and why I am where I am. Like the Ivatans who braved the unmercifully harsh weather just to preserve themselves, the land they inhabit, and the rich culture they have, so would I brave to be the "unchanged one" in a changed world.
I would admit, there is the great temptation for me, as Editor-in-Chief, to radically change the paper so it shall "cope with the changes". Since Trinity University of Asia has changed, why not change the nature of the paper too? But that would be going against the very reason why the paper was published. The paper was started to inform, enlighten and give a venue for the employees of the institution to learn skills and share the abilities they have, and not for it to be a freedom wall where personal opinions are aired. And this is why the Link doesn't have an Editorial Section.
"There is a season for every activity under heaven…" the Bible says. Well, this is not the season for me to turn my back on my peers who have just found their passions for writing for Link, nor is this a season for me to "disappear" and be tele-transported in another office in another company. "There is a time for everything under heaven…" it adds. The time for changes has come in Trinity University of Asia… unprecedented changes, if I may say so. But this is not a time for such change… not for me, not for the paper… not yet.
So, without further ado, on behalf of the publication advisers, editors and staff of Link, I welcome you all to the second year of the paper.
(INDEX)
