Day of the Dead: Collecting Bones
November 1st, 2010 by Lydia
Harvesting Death
The Day of the Dead is one of my favorite holidays. Celebrated the day after Halloween, it’s a time for communing with those who have passed on. In the Philippines, families head to the cemeteries and tend to the graves of loved ones. It’s not uncommon to spend the day there picnicking with the...
Pinay Self-Image and Acceptance
October 20th, 2010 by LydiaI had the honor of being invited to be a guest speaker at a Pinay Symposium at UC Davis. It’s being organized by the Pilipina interest sorority Kappa Psi Epsilon and the theme is self-image. It’s not only limited to beauty standards, but also the image of being perfect in order to bring honor...
Dreams and Gross National Happiness
October 11th, 2010 by Lydia
Dreamer
I went missing for the past few weeks because I was busy creating my other not so secret dream life as a visual artist and have taken up dancing, neither of which I really have much experience in. On a total fluke I got into an art exhibit. I thought at first that I...
The Price of Perfection
September 17th, 2010 by LydiaThe answer that cost Miss Philippines the Miss Universe crown says a lot about the price of perfection, or rather being seemingly perfect. It’s painful really to lose the grand prize opportunity of a lifetime, honestly, because you can’t acknowledge your shit, even if just a smidgeon. Ah, if only it could be easier....
A Response to Huffington Post’s The Philippine Bus and Miss Universe
September 8th, 2010 by LydiaThe Huffington Post published an article by Daniel Wagner on August 25, about the recent debacles involving the Philippines: the hostage situation and Miss Philippines’ answer that cost her the Miss Universe crown. It stirred up some controversy among fellow Filipino-Americans in my Facebook network, with one relative calling for a rebuttal. After reading...