Not Just Another Case of Parental Negligence

 

Not all parents are protective of their children. Some of them are even the reason why their children are hurt and abused today.

It is a natural dictum that parents love and care for their children. It is a conviction that people have confidence in. Of course, who would not believe in that? They are the reason why the basic unit of the community exists. The father is known to be the stronger person in the family; he is the guide, inspiration and disciplinarian of the basic unit of the community. The mother conceives their child for nine months, gives birth to it and nurtures it into adulthood. Without them, a family will never be called and considered complete.

In the contemporary times, however, this statement is a failure in proving its essence. Cases of child abuse, sexual assaults and physical and emotional brutality are rampant in the society today. The alarming part in all these is that some of the cases involve the parents of the victims, not as complainants, but as culprits.

Negligence is defined in the Oxford dictionary as the failure to give somebody or something enough care or attention. Put it together with the word parental and it could be inferred from here that it is the failure of a parent to give his/her child enough care and attention. Nowadays, plenty of children around the world are harassed and abused by their parents. This is not just a case of simple parental negligence. It depicts an even bigger conflict in the society today.

In a survey conducted by Child Protection Unit Network posted in childprotection.org.ph last 2007, the largest part of the pie of the child abuse cases in the Philippines is comprised of the 77% Sexual Abuse element. Other parts of the graph were Physical Abuse (16%), UVA (4%), Physical with Sexual Abuse (2%) and Neglect (1%). The age group with the most number of victims belonged to those aged 13-15. The more perturbing part here was that 306 of the victims were aged 0-3 years old. Infants, innocent little newborns, were victims, and in some cases, fatalities in the crime. The 2007 UNICEF report on child abuse declared that the probability of a child being injured or killed is because of parental drug or alcohol abuse, weak family ties, single-parenthood, low maternal education, low maternal age at birth, poverty, and poor housing. In most cases, the young father or stepfather was the perpetrator.

The norms and beliefs of the people define and control the society. But when these standards fail to prove themselves, it creates an atmosphere of confusion and disorganization in the society. Child abuse is one example of standards that continue to disprove themselves. It must not be ignored. It is a case to give attention to and not an issue, like the children, to neglect.

Revised Edition of Counting Airplanes

Counting Airplanes

With eyes impassive and an expression so unreadable, I stare at the enigmatic soul sitting by my side in a hanging swing beneath the moon and the stars. The thumping of my heart is very much deafening that I swear he could hear it from inches away.  I move a little to the right and feel his hand brush against mine. Even in the cold January wind, this mere touch generates an electrifying rush all over my body. The sensation feels familiar, so familiar that I cannot be inaccurate about it; it is that same exact feeling I had thirteen months ago.

He was my block mate in College.  Fresh from High School, I was as timid as a five year old child crossing the highway at the first day of our classes. I kept my head bowed but when he passed by my seat, I cannot help but take a glance at him. He had evocative eyes; eyes powerful enough to let my gaze stay longer than a minute. He had an adorable nose, dark skin and contagious smile. He was only a few inches taller than me – this is a surprise to me for I am typically attracted to those with towering heights. He was good-looking in general and I knew that day that I had this thing they call a crush on him.

As the days passed by, I became closer and more attached to him. He was a trustworthy friend, an open-minded listener and a light-hearted companion. He was also good in the English language and I had a weakness for fluent tongues. Every moment spent with him was like riding a rollercoaster – exhilarating, invigorating and thrilling. I knew that there were other people waiting in line to take the ride, too, but I was selfish. I wanted to keep the ride to myself; I wanted to keep him to myself. The desire to call him mine was just too intense, too passionate that I was willing to do anything to have him.

I kept admiring the way he makes everyone feel comfortable with his jokes. I liked talking to him in the wee hours of the morning albeit there is a 7:00 AM class later that day. I kept seeing him everywhere – even in my dreams and my imagination, places he should not be dwelling in. I avoided missing him in every possible way, but I raised the white flag eventually.

It was bizarre the way he would cross my mind a billion times a day. It was even stranger when I started drawing hearts on any kind of paper within my reach. In time, he made me fall faster than a meteorite crashing down on earth. He made me feel superhuman - I could do anything I wanted to do just as long as his hand was holding mine.

When he finally told me one day that he felt the same way that I do, I was plain ecstatic and euphoric. Images of bliss and affection started weaving at the back of my head. The future looked brighter just knowing that he was finally here to fill the empty seat beside me.

I was very happy until he changed his mind. Impermanence was a term I strongly avoided but a proposition he decided on without me. He gradually grew cold towards me until he said goodbye. I got disappointed in the end. He gave me false hopes and I ended up with nothing. I got hurt but I was thankful. He taught me to put up walls around me so I could discern reality from expectations. I became a stronger, wiser and rational person.

Tonight, he might be coming back in my life for unknown reasons, but I am sure of one thing. This time, I am using my head to save my heart from wounds and bruises. Who knows, maybe a second chance is coming for us. Until then, I am staying here, counting airplanes with him.

Counting Airplanes

With eyes impassive and an expression so unreadable, I stare at the enigmatic soul sitting by my side in a hanging swing beneath the moon and the stars. The thumping of my heart is very much deafening that I swear he could hear it from inches away.  I move a little to the right and feel his hand brush against mine. Even in the cold January wind, this mere touch generates an electrifying rush all over my body. The sensation feels familiar, so familiar that I cannot be inaccurate about it; it is that same exact feeling I had thirteen months ago.

I remember gushing over his attractive eyes and contagious smile for the first time. I like talking to him in the wee hours of the morning. I avoided missing him in every possible way, but I raised the white flag eventually. 

It was bizarre the way he would cross my mind a billion times a day. In time, he made me fall faster than a meteorite crashing down on earth. He made me feel superhuman - I could do anything I wanted to do just as long as his hand was holding mine. 

But I got disappointed in the end. He gave me false hopes and I ended up with nothing. I got hurt but I was thankful. He taught me to put up walls around me so I could discern reality from expectations. I became a stronger, wiser and rational person. 

Tonight, he might be coming back in my life for unknown reasons, but I am sure of one thing. This time, I am using my head to save my heart from wounds and bruises. Who knows, maybe a second chance is coming for us. Until then, I am staying here, counting airplanes with him.

Of Certainties and Doubts

I take a last look at the university I dreamt of for years. I smile as some students pass me by and I envy them, laughing as if oblivious of the world around them. As I walk down the path memorable to me for the past five months, I think of the consequences that might result to what I was planning to do. Chances are at stake. I can either win or lose, but I only have one shot at it.

A few days later, I stood in front of the ST gate of Adamson University. I did not know if my decision of transferring to this school was a good resolution to the dilemma I faced. I took up BS Biochemistry in my former school, because of my plan to pursue Medicine someday. One semester passed by and I felt that it was not the course for me. I longed for papers and pens, not scapulas and test tubes. I yearned to deliver impromptu speeches, not predict outcomes of experiments using the sulfuric acid. The desire to shift courses grew stronger each day. By the end of the first semester, I decided on shifting to Mass Communication, not thinking of anything else but my happiness. I transferred because my former school did not offer a degree in Mass Communication. It was painful to part ways with my dream university, but my happiness is more important than the name of the school I’m attending. 

As it turns out, it is the best decision I have made. I am ecstatic to be where I am right now. I am just certain that someday, I will be waking up smiling to realize that the job I have is the one I want for the rest of my life.

1-1-11

So before the first day of 2011 ends, here's to an awesome year ahead. I know there will be more laughs, smiles, jokes and friendships coming this year. There may be mistakes, problems and conflicts, but they will all be for the better. Thank You, Lord for another year of blessings. Family and friends, I'm looking forward to sharing my life again with all of you this year.


♥,
Jianne

The Missing Puzzle Piece

It is when you know the answer to the question yet you cannot find the right words to say it. It is when you already know what you are looking for but you do not know where to find it. It is when you are already eager to complete the puzzle; however, one piece to the puzzle is missing. It is that giddy, wobbly feeling when you truly want to solve a baffling riddle. That is the feeling you get in writing. Writing is a tedious problem-solving, puzzle-disentangling, riddle-answering task.

Writing is similar to solving a problem because writing is basically described as expository. You are explaining something when you write. What you are explaining might be a process, a method or even a story. It is the nature of writing to be explicative, descriptive and interpretative.

Comparable to a pirate’s quest for treasures, writing intends to find answers to difficult and puzzling queries. The process in finding the answer though is not a walk in the park; it requires patience and determination to be able to get out of the park. There are certain steps to follow to be able to write systematically and efficiently.

When solving a complex problem in Algebra, you initially find the given components in the problem. With the given factors, you create or derive an equation to solve and calculate the problem. That is also the first step in writing – generating ideas to develop the topic. There are several ways in generating ideas. Most people use free writing in framing the topic. This is the most comfortable way in developing the topic since the writer is letting all her knowledge on the topic flow into the paper. Another method is through clustering ideas. You group the subtopics and other related ideas in a manner that would make the topic easier to understand.

Research is essential in the writing process to further expound on the topic. Providing arguments and counterarguments are surefire ways of making the readers believe in what the writer is saying. Moreover, questioning is also effective since you are not limiting your ideas inside a box. If more questions are asked, interest in the topic is increased.

As Nathaniel Hawthorne says, “Easy reading is damn hard writing.” The way to solving the problem is as excruciating as it may seem but the reward is priceless. There is nothing more fulfilling than being able to impart efficiently your knowledge on a topic to your readers. When you reach that point in writing, you finally find that missing piece you have long been searching for and finally, complete the puzzle. 

Sense of Direction

A woman and her child were strolling at the mall. The place was crowded as usual. The child clutched her mother’s hand, showing her fear of losing the way. The mother smiled at her daughter and held her hand. She reassured the child, “Do not worry, I am here. I will not leave you. I will show you the way.”

In most things in life, people need a sense of direction. There must be a guiding factor that will lead them to the right path. The same goes in writing. There should be an element that will lead the progression of the written piece. This element is the Thesis Statement.

The Thesis Statement is a very significant part of an essay.  It is the main idea presented in the whole piece. It is the subject of the discussion. It is the core of the article. Without the Thesis Statement, the essay will be pointless, meaningless and senseless. It is basically because the Thesis regulates the flow of the essay. It sets the limits and boundaries of the discussion and decides on how wide or narrow the scope of the debate is.

One must learn first how to correctly formulate a Thesis Statement. Etymologically speaking, of course it must be a complete sentence and not a fragment. It must be a statement that declares an opinion from the point of view of the writer. It must be taken from the viewpoint of the writer and not just a mere recollection of facts. It is usually written in the last sentence of the first paragraph.

There are three vital parts in making a Thesis Statement: topic, controlling idea and predictors. The topic is the central point of the essay. There must be one controlling idea in the Thesis Statement because otherwise, the details given will be irrelevant to each other. The predictors are clues and details given in the Thesis Statement that connect the topic and controlling idea to each other. It establishes the relationship between them.

With the Thesis Statement, the writer is putting forward an argument. He is claiming something in his essay that he believes is true. That belief in oneself is enough power to put into paper whatever it is that is in his mind. And with that confidence, the writer leads the direction in his essay. After all, the Thesis Statement is a contract made by the writer with his readers. 

Logical Arguments

A famous Eminem quote goes like “You have enemies? Good, that means you stood up for something.” Conflict arises between people with contrasting ideas and opinions. It goes without saying that everyone has different point of views and thoughts. What one sees as beautiful may not seem as pleasing to the eyes to another. However, conflict is not negative all of the time. It may actually benefit the people involved in it. A dialectic writing process is one good example of an advantageous conflict.

How does the writing process become dialectic? It happens when synthesis happens between two contrasting theses. In writing an essay, the writer posits a thesis statement. This thesis is the writer’s own argument. It is a claim that the writer believes in. He supports the thesis with evidence, examples and details to further emphasize his point. It must be discussed in a logical manner to prove that it is indeed true.

But as a writer, one must be unbiased. This is the part where the antithesis comes in. The antithesis is the counterargument in the issue. It opposes the thesis and shows a different angle of the matter. A discussion without the antithesis is pointless because there will never be a synthesis without it. Synthesis is the combination of different and contrasting ideas to form a comprehensible understanding of the topic. Hearing different angles of the discussion on a topic gives the reader many views to look at. It is always better to be open-minded rather than to be single-sided.

Logical arguments are weapons that a writer must never fail to carry to the battlefield. Coupled with well-reasoned counterarguments, he is sure to win in war. When the writer achieves synthesis in his essay, it is assured that his message will be carried effectively to the readers.  

A New Perspective

High School and College. Two different worlds. When one chapter ended, another one started. High school was filled with fun, care-free days. It was the days filled with worries of puppy love, Geometry problems and peer pressure. Then came graduation and shocked the teenagers out of their wits. College was different from high school, far too different. It was tedious, serious and stressful. It was true when they said “Real life starts at college.”  Many things changed, like the mediocre assignments that were converted into the hardcore thesis projects. Along with the changes made was the improved version of essays. The high school was upgraded into the college essay.     

There are several differences between the two essays. One is their structure. It is expected that an essay written by a college student is more grammatically correct than the one made by the high school student. Aside from the literal structure of the essay, it must also have good substance. The content is more important than anything else in the essay. To be able to have good content in the essay, the writer must present intellectual argument in the piece. If the high school essay usually focuses on only one point of view of the topic, the college essay gives different angles of the matter. It has one point but two conflicting ideas. With this kind of writing, the essay reaches synthesis.

The college essay is also conscious of its audience. It is written according to the kind of readers it will have. The jargons used are appropriate for the people who will leaf through the piece. Another vital part of the college essay is its length. While most high school essays are lengthy and wordy, college essays are preferred to be comprehensive but thorough. It is but wise to be economical with the words used because one does not need plenty of words to expound on a thought. Oftentimes, more words bring confusion to the readers. Rewriting is also essential in the writing process of a college essay. Reevaluation, revising and copy reading are necessary components in the rewriting process. The writer must check his work before letting other people read it to correct mistakes and improve the piece. Finally, ideas must be expressed more clearly in the college essay.

College is different from high school in many ways.  College offers a new perspective of things. The same must be with the college essay. It must offer a new and improved perspective of the topic.