Last Quarter

Fourth quarter was great indeed. There are things that I have learned such as web design. There are also problems that I encountered like lack of understanding. I addressed this by looking for tutorials for the things that I don't understand. Moving on, I'll do my best in applying my learnings in different things so that it won't be wasted.

Reference:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.technologyreview.com/2020/02/17/844747/chinas-students-will-now-study-online-because-coronavirus-has-shut-schools/amp/

Restoration of Ecosystem Campaign

For too long, we have been exploiting and destroying our planet’s ecosystems. Every three seconds, the world loses enough forest to cover a football pitch and over the last century we have& destroyed half of our& wetlands. As much as 50 per cent of our coral reefs have already been lost and up to 90 per cent of coral reefs could be lost by 2050, even if global warming is limited to an increase of 1.5°C.

Ecosystem loss is depriving the world of carbon sinks, like forests and peatlands, at a time humanity can least afford it. Global greenhouse gas emissions have grown for three consecutive years and the planet is one pace for potentially catastrophic climate change.

The emergence of COVID-19 has also shown just how disastrous the consequences of ecosystem loss can be. By shrinking the area of natural habitat for animals, we have created ideal conditions for pathogens – including coronaviruses – to spread.

With this big and challenging picture, the World Environment Day is focus in the ecosystem restoration and its theme is “Reimagine. Recreate.Restore.”

Ecosystem restoration means preventing, halting and reversing this damage – to go from exploiting nature to healing it. This World Environment Day will kick off the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030), a global mission to revive billions of hectares, from forests to farmlands, from the top of mountains to the depth of the sea.

Only with healthy ecosystems can we enhance people’s livelihoods, counteract climate change and stop the collapse of biodiversity.

World Environment Day 2021, which counts with Pakistan as the host country this year for its official celebrations, calls for urgent action to revive our damaged ecosystems.

From forests to peatlands to coasts, we all depend on healthy ecosystems for our survival. Ecosystems are defined as the interaction between living organisms - plants, animals, people - with their surroundings. This includes nature, but also human-made systems such as cities or farms.

Ecosystem restoration is a global undertaking at massive scale. It means repairing billions of hectares of land – an area greater than China or the USA – so that people have access to food, clean water and jobs.

It means bringing back plants and animals from the brink of extinction, from the peaks of mountains to the depths of the sea.

But it also includes the many small actions everyone can take, every day: growing trees, greening our cities, rewilding our gardens or cleaning up trash alongside rivers and coasts.

Restoring ecosystems carries substantial benefits for people. For every dollar invested in restoration, at least seven to thirty dollars in returns for society can be expected. Restoration also creates jobs in rural areas where they are most needed.

Some countries have already invested in restoration as part of their strategies to bounce back from COVID-19. Others are turning to restoration to help them adapt to a climate that is already changing.

Reference:

https://www.un.org/en/observances/environment-day

https://internationaleventday.com/event/world-environment-day/

Independence Day

Independence Day is a public holiday. It is a day off for the general population, and schools and most businesses are closed.

In 2021, it falls on a Saturday, and some businesses may choose to follow Saturday opening hours.

Independence Day is a day when many people, including government officials, employees, and students, participate in nationwide parades.  However, the main highlight is the police and military parade in Manila headed by the country’s incumbent president, followed by a speech and a 21-gun salute.  Many Filipinos spend the day in parks and malls. Many Filipino communities in other countries also observe the nation’s Independence Day celebrations.

The Philippine’s Independence Day is a national holiday so government offices are closed. There are absolutely no classes in all schools. Many business establishments are closed except shopping centers. Public transport such as buses, passenger jeeps, and tricycles still operate but their routes may be limited due to the closure of streets used for parades.

The annual June 12 observance of Philippine’s Independence Day came into effect after past President Diosdado Macapagal signed the Republic Act No. 4166 regarding this matter on August 4, 1964.  This Act legalized the holiday, which is based on the Declaration of Independence on June 12, 1898 by General Emilio Aguinaldo and Filipino revolutionary forces from the Spanish colonization.  The Philippines’ flag was raised and its national anthem was played for the first time in 1898.  However, liberty was short-lived because Spain and the United States did not recognize the declaration.

The 1898 Treaty of Paris ended the war between Spain and the United States. Spain surrendered the entire archipelago comprising the Philippines to the United States.  The Philippines started a revolt against the United States in 1899 and achieved national sovereignty on July 4, 1946, through the Treaty of Manila.  Independence Day was officially observed on July 4 until the Republic Act No. 4166, which set out to move the holiday to June 12, was approved on August 4, 1964.

Reference:

https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/philippines/independence-day https://nationaltoday.com/philippines-independence-day/

Mother's Day

It’s a well known fact that celebrating a Mother’s contribution in our life cannot be celebrated in a day or two. But a day has been so dedicated to make all mothers out there feel proud of themselves and can understand that life would not have been what it is today, had they not been there. It comes in the month of May every year and reminds people of the courage of a mother that she shows up in order to make our life a brighter one. She is so patient that she listens to all of our problems and gives the best solution to each one of them. Even if we get wrong somewhere in life, she never backs off her hands and keeps us motivating till the time she is alive.

Every child celebrates this auspicious day of Mother’s day to show love to their mother. It’s observed as one of the significant events of the year and is observed on second Sunday of the month of May every year. It has become a new trend in schools that Mother’s day is celebrated by children in front of their Mother on Mother’s day. Children gift to their mother Mother’s Day cards and other gift items and makes their mom feel special. Some families also plan for dinners and go out together to celebrate Mother’s day.

A mother is everything! She can alone handle all the relationships and give one the taste of all the love one gets from different members of their family. She is the best friends you can share your life with without bothering to be judged and be caught for something which we not right in your life. It is her selfless love that a mother showers upon her children which makes you and your mother an inseparable entity. She laughs when her children do, she is happy when her children are and she cries when her children do. A mother is only the person who will not leave their children alone whatsoever may be the circumstances. She cares for her children whole-heartedly without asking for anything in return.

A mother without being bothered on her own health and comfort takes care of all the responsibilities of her households and all the members of the family. It’s the grace of the God that a mother is empowered with which makes her strong enough that she works for so long and that too without getting tired for a while. When she finds her children in pain she literally forgets about all her own pain. She is such a satisfied creature that she takes up a huge responsibility on her shoulders and that too without being paid for it. Though, her contribution is so very much bigger that we cannot compensate for it but at least we can show our gratitude to our gorgeous mother by wishing her on Mother’s day.

Reference:

https://www.mothersdaycelebration.com/mothers-day-essay.html

Binatbatan Festival Amidst the Pandemic

Go back to where the festival came from, and understand the miracle that saved the residents in December 1882.

Viva Vigan Binatbatan Festival of the Arts celebrated from the last week of April to the first week of May was originally the Feast of the Natives that began on May 3, 1883, according to the writings of Damaso King, a well-known Vigan historian.  

The festival began when an epidemic killed 934 residents in a month in 1882. The epidemic started November 12 and ended December 15. This happened 30 years after a chapel was built in 1852 in the cemetery of Vigan.

The huge number of death in such short time alarmed the ‘naturales’ or native inhabitants and ‘mestizos’ or residents with Spanish blood that they asked Dr. Evaristo Abaya, then the parish priest, to request for the visit to Vigan of the Santo Cristo Milagroso of Sinait town.

The Santo Milagroso was venerated by the people with a nine-day novena. When the novena progressed for days, the number of death decreased, and on the last day, the epidemic stopped.

The people glorified God for the miracle. Almost all residents attended the Holy Mass in honor of Santo Cristo. In gratitude, the naturales of Vigan chose the third day of May as thanksgiving day for Santo Cristo whom they call ‘Apo Lakay’. This is the feast day of the Holy Cross and the Santo Cristo of Sinait town.

Since then on Fridays and third day of May, people have been going to the cemetery chapel called Simbaan a Bassit to hear Holy Mass, and continue their devotion to Apo Lakay.

Viva Vigan Festival is the fruit of the reunion of residents staying in Metro Manila who formed a group called KaiVigan in 1993, said Antonio Florentino, descendant of Leona Florentino, the first poetess of the country, when he was still the secretary to the mayor in the early years of the festival.

Yearly, they celebrated Tres de Mayo for two to three days. The longer they stayed in their hometown the more they promoted it as an interesting tourist place.

In 1995, former Mayor Eva S. Medina continued the group’s campaign to promote Vigan and so Viva Vigan Festival of the Arts was born. However, in 2002, Binatbatan Festival was introduced to celebrate one of the industries that kept residents alive – abel Iloco hand-loom weaving. Binatbatan is the process of beating cotton pods to remove the seeds. This is shown through the Binatbatan street dancing and showdown.

This is the third festival of this city this year, the first is the Vigan Cityhood anniversary featuring the Longganisa Festival on January 22, and the Vigan City fiesta on January 25 in honor of the city’s patron saint, Saint Paul the Apostle.

It may not be as fun as it was used to be due to this pandemic but still, it's best to be safe to just stay at home rather than risking ourselves just to participate on it.

Reference:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/pia.gov.ph/features/articles/1021193.amp

https://www.vigattintourism.com/tourism/articles/Viva-Vigan-Binatbatan-Festival-of-the-Arts-2012