I feel so proud of this young lady, though I don’t know her and I never even heard of her cause until seeing this video early morning on Sunday. She sends a powerful message though – that we have it in all of us to effect change. When we make a stand–specially on a potentially controversial issue-it’s inevitable that not everyone will agree with us, but so what? Take a stand anyway.
Haters will hate.
So what did she campaign about? She had a younger brother who was really interested in cooking and so the family thought it would be great to give him an Easy Bake Oven. Now we don’t have those locally, so not everyone may know what it is, but I believe it’s a toy that allows kids to actually bake something. I would have loved one as a kid!
The problem was that McKenna’s brother was hesitant about getting an Easy Bake because it was “for girls.” All the marketing for the toy was aimed at girls.The colors were pink and purple, and the commercials always had girls. It was as if they were perpetuating the stereotype that the place for girls and women is at home and in the kitchen.
So she started a petition to ask Hasbro, the makers of this toy, to use gender-neutral colors for producing and marketing the Easy Bake.
My work-in-progress (WIP) craft is a knitting project. I finished my crochet ripple blanket a few months ago and quickly took on my second blankie project. Unfortunately, it has taken the backseat since after Yolanda hit the Philippines in November.
No, my family was not among the victim/survivors. But like many people out there, we were struck by the tragedy and had wanted to help. There was (and still ongoing) a relief project at Mom’s work so she was involved in that. As for me, I chose to come up with my own fund raising program with the latest hobby I took up. The Rainbow Loom.
I enjoyed my Loom Bandz so much that an idea immediately came to me: why not encourage kids/young people to donate by letting them buy the bracelets for 20 pesos each, where 10 pesos is guaranteed to go to a fund for crayons and coloring books for kids who survived Typhoon Yolanda. Thanks to friends and colleagues who thought it was a good idea, we sold over 300 rainbow bands and bought enough crayons and coloring books for 110 kids!
Here are some samples of the bracelets we sold:
My two helpers: Esban and Michal. They were making bands with me during the SATS fiesta on 11/30. They also came by the house after school to make bands that their classmates ordered.
Supportive family and friends
It was really important to me that kids and young people were involved with the project, because the intended recipients were kids too. In the midst of tragedy, we should always think about them first. Since there are already a lot of efforts in providing the necessities, I wanted to make sure that fun stuff – stuff that would help them heal too – were also included.
My niece/goddaughter Hanna accompanied me to the National Book Store that morning of December 21. I was probably the first person she talked to upon waking up, and I’d asked her to dress quickly and accompany me. What a way to start her off on her holidays. Hehe.
After buying all these stuff, we spent an hour in my car removing price tags and packing them into brown envelopes.
That same afternoon, the kits were packed into a bus to Aklan where the volunteer distributor was bound for his Christmas holiday with his family. I was so thankful that he was around to make sure these items reached happy little hands.
This year, I hope I can embark on another meaningful project, and be a real blessing to others. I still have people ordering the bracelets but I’m taking a break for now. Also not sure if I’ll continue it with the charity pledge or make a little profit from the bands. I had zero profit from the November-December project, hehe.
Anyhoo, doing this project has really kept me busy the last several weeks of 2013. Busy, but in a very delightful way too.
Ever heard of Rainbow Loom? Apparently it is a popular product for kids and adults and I have seen it mentioned in several family-oriented blogs. Of course I just couldn’t resist checking it out, and so I’ve been watching tutorials for rainbow loom friendship bracelets.
Honestly, reading up on this product and watching the videos was an ultimate throwback to when we were kids. Back then we didn’t have brightly colored rubber bands, but I would go in debt buying the ones available!
We didn’t use them as bracelets or anything though, we just joined them together to make skipping ropes.
So then I began thinking why would anyone spend on a loom when this can be done with just the bands and one’s own fingers? No need for c clips either, we would just tie them off. After watching the vids it began to be clear that with the loom, design options became limitless! Check out this more intricate design. I can also understand how making them can be addicting for adults and not just the kids. The young ones really just want to wear the end product, while the bigger ones may find making them a little therapeutic and keeps their hands busy.
The creator of the Rainbow Loom was a former crash-test engineer with Nissan, and a father of two girls. Read their story of success as told by the New York Times. Fantastic, isn’t it? I love how an idea just blossoms into something really special.
So amazed I was with the bright and cute bands that I went in search for it locally. I found sellers, but they were about twice the retail price on Amazon, and very expensive. There is a knock-off, a different brand, Loom Bandz, at a very low price. I’m ordering and we’ll see if it’s fun to make. Haha. If they’re any good, might give sets as gifts too, or whatever. It is after all, the time to start Christmas shopping. I’m thinking of giving gifts that encourage imagination and creativity. This seems like a good one, and definitely more pocket-friendly for a ninang like me than those exciting student guitars at guitar center. Hehe.
I can’t resist, here’s another video of a design I liked, chevron:
Do you find yourself getting hooked to the latest craze like myself?
A month goes by very quickly; whether you’re busy or just chill it doesn’t matter, time still flies. It’s been a month and a week after my back operation!
I posted this on Instagram after my doctor’s appointment on May 25th. It was at that appointment that I was proclaimed fit to work and ready for the world. Hehe. So I’m going back to work full-time beginning this Monday, June 3rd. Yep, all in time for back-to-school rush.
It was only while we were having brunch that I realized it’s my back’s one month anniversary. That day, I went up and down the stairs at Il Terrazzo in Tomas Morato, and then again to get to Shmily Arts & Crafts Store in Sta. Ana, Manila. The girls were excited enough to go along with me for a drive and to buy some craft materials. Oh we didn’t know exactly where the store was, the iOS map was pretty helpful and we didn’t get lost or anything. Hehe.
The girls are selfie addicts, so we had our customary shots while in the car, and right before food was served.
Just now though, I realize more how crazy fun these girls are, look at all these photos they left for me to find on my Photo Stream (taken on the iPad):
Pretty young ones, aren’t they? Hell’a crazy too. And I’m just really glad they spent time with me that day. I may have given them an awkward talking-to about the birds and the bees but I just really love these girls and I want them to make the right decisions in life, young as they are. They were still toddlers when I was their age now, and back then I spent a lot of time with them too. I love that they still like being around Tita Vera, even when there could have been a hundred and one things they could do on a Saturday. 🙂
Last Sunday, kids at Church had the culminating activity for their theater arts workshop which was held the week prior. A niece and two of my nephews attended the course. I didn’t get to see them perform live, but thanks to technology, this video has already been posted in Facebook:
I am so proud of the kids. They performed more after the Mass, during coffee time for the congregation at the Cathedral Hall.
When I was their age, starting at around ten years old, I was also active in theater arts activities. I must say I wasn’t that much active in our own Church, but I did sort of represent us in a group of children from various churches. I belonged to the Ecumenical Children’s Theater group of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines. We performed at events of the NCCP, and we also participated in PETA’s children’s theater festival for three consecutive years. I loved that time of my life.
The song featured in the video above was a theme song that the NCCP used many many years ago. We interpreted it too, and performed at the UP Church of the Risen Lord. Our teacher/choreographer at the time was also from PETA. He was very strict, and rehearsals were like workouts. It wasn’t the first time I performed (in fact, I think it was one of the last times I ever danced onstage), but it was the first time I had done anything like it. He made us crawl, not just on the ground, but over and on top of each other. Talk about loosing inhibitions. Those rehearsals were probably the most exhausting ones I’d attended ever. I wonder if anyone had bothered to take a video of us? I don’t even recall having any photos from then. Oh well.
The message of the song, Buhay na Kasiya-siya,seems to be quite timely. Election season is when national issues are at the forefront. This is when we focus on what’s to happen in the future. What’s to be left for our children, and our children’s children. It’s also the time to think about how decisions in the past (when choosing leaders) affect the quality of our lives now. The song tells us – Kung uunahin muna natin, ang kailangan ng lahat. Ang masaganang lupain ay higit pa kaysa sapat.Kung uunahin muna natin, ang sa Kanya’y mahalaga. Sama-samang daranasin, buhay na kasiya-siya. My rough translation: If we prioritize the people’s needs, an abundant land is more than enough. If we start with what’s important to Him, we will all enjoy an abundant/happy life.
It is nice to be reminded that if we focus on what’s really important, we would learn that most of the time, if not always, we have more than what we need. We just need to look around us.
