INSIDE THE BEEHIVE: MY JOLLY YEARS AT JOLLIBEE #1

Out of the blue,I just decided I'd write about my years at Jollibee while I can still recall them:-)

When I'm asked about what I did for Jollibee as it's Training Manager,(a post I held for over 11 years) my ready answer is:

"When I joined Jollibee in 1985 it had only 20 stores.When I left in August,1999 it had grown to 348 stores! So whether good or bad,I may have had something to do with the 320 stores that opened!"

I wouldn't have stayed that long if I didn't love the company.Fact is, I never really left because today,I still do work for the JFC group as a Training Consultant for one of it's brands,Chowking.

So what was it like inside the beehive? Maybe I ought to go back to 1985 when I joined Jollibee.

THE PRELUDE:OPPORTUNITY AT A TIME OF CRISIS

I was still working as a Training Specialist at Foodmine Inc.,the local franchise of KFC, when the opportunity to work at Jollibee presented itself.This opportunity though came in the form of a crisis that was facing the organization.

KFC under the Quesada's had just gone through a wildcat strike and so things were not good inside that organization. Morale of store managers was so bad that there was a mass exodus of managers starting late '84 (just after the strike) up to the 2nd quarter of 1985. The company President Efren Quesada,or EQ as we called him,was coddling the labor union so they wouldn't threaten to strike again. In doing so however,he alienated himself from the Store Managers who had sided with him all throughout the almost month-long strike.

Many of these managers left and looked for work at Jollibee,which was then starting to move up the ranks of the fastfood chains.

If I recall correctly,Leonie Antonio,Connie Mendoza and Jimmy Ramos were among the first ex-KFC's who were hired by Jollibee for it's expansion plans. The blow to KFC came when sometime in March of 1985 Jimmy Enriquez,who was then a KFC Area Manager,Raffy Selga (Training Store Manager),Meann San Juan(Store Manager and Jimmy's girlfriend) and a newly-hired Management trainee named Livia Pinggoy,all went to Jollibee. Their jumping ship gave a signal to everyone else at KFC then that things were going bad.

To stave off any further resignations, EQ and his VP for HR and Administration,Atty. de Leon, HR Manager Conrad Donato and Operations Manager Raffy Vallejo started having one-on-one sessions with the Store managers left pleading with them not to resign and promising them a better future at KFC.

Meanwhile, I had to contend with the problem these resignations were causing.

My boss then and former classmate, Joseph Hernandez,also resigned his post leaving me as the OIC of the training department. Since there were now vacancies for Store managers in about eight of the 12 KFC stores we had to fill up these posts immediately.

As a stopgap solution,some of the senior managers who had stayed behind had to manage two stores at a time. We at the Training department came up with a two week crash course for management trainees so that after that time we could field them immediately at any KFC store that needed a manager.

What made matters worse for us was that Raffy Selga,who was then our Training store manager,was part of the diaspora so we needed to have someone who could train these new recruits on actual store operations.Fortunately for me,there was one relatively new manager, Ma. Lourdes "Iyoh" Sordan, and Raffy's assistant manager at KFC Tomas Morato, who agreed to take on the role.

Sometime in February of 1985,I made a decision to start looking for a better option than KFC. I was just about a year and a half into my marriage and my wife,Jaja, was pregnant with our first child. I definitely couldn't afford not to have a job.

Jollibee was an option and since I was hearing good things about the company from the likes of Leonie and Connie who were already there I decided to send in my application. As luck would have it,the person in charge of recruitment, Susan Rosales (now de Guzman),was a friend of my sister in law. When she learned I was with Training,she informed me that Jollibee had plans of putting up a Hamburger University soon and had in fact hired a former professor,Dr. Butch dela Cruz, from the University of Maryland to spearhead the project.

I became more optimistic about my chances of joining Jollibee when I was interviewed by Ms. Fe Labayen,the HR Manager, who told me that my credentials looked good and that she would recommend me for a post in the HR Institute,as they called it.

Back at KFC,things were coming to a head. Many more managers were resigning so that EQ told his Vice Presidents that they were to do duty at the stores in order to keep operations going. I didn't like to work in our stores then since the employees were no longer in good terms with management specially after the strike. I told myself that if I was to be forced to work in the stores, I would leave and take my chances with Jollibee even as a management tainee.

My friends who were already at Jollibee (like Meann San Juan and Connie Mendoza)would call me time and again saying that I was needed there because their Operaions Manual needed revising and that they could use a guy like me in Training over there.

June of 1985, my wait was finally over when Jollibee called me up for a final interview with Dr. Ambrosio "Butch" dela Cruz,whom I think I impressed enough to give me the OK. WhenI finally passed my physical examination and submitted all my requirements, I was home free. The only thing left was to hand in my resignation.

Atty. de Leon tried to dissuade me from leaving,revealing to me that KFC had plans for expansion but which were just put on hold temporarily because of the current problems besetting the company. EQ didn't try to persuade me to stay but at one point sort of tried to make me feel guilty. Why was it that I was leaving when he needed my help most. He did wish me good luck though when he knew I was gettiing a better offer and couldn't match what Jollibee was going to give.

I said my tearful goodbyes to my colleagues and best friends in the Training department,Au Acosta and Chie Narvas. It was a sad parting but they understood it was for the better.

As a fitting and somewhat hilarious ending to my KFC stint I cooked KFC chicken.

It was a Saturday morning, and I had just come from my 1st day orientation at the Jollibee headquarters in Culmat building. On my way home I decided to pass by KFC Morato to say goodbye to Iyoh,who was on duty at that time. Coincidentally, one of her cooks hadn't reported for work yet and her chief cook needed to go on lunch break. She asked if I could take charge of cooking chicken for the lunch period until her cook finished his break.

I agreed to do this and I'm happy I did because it was a good way to end a chapter in my life.

THE INTERESTING PHENOMENON OF EVOLUTION

I caught a snippet of a National Geographic feature on how a type of ants called the Pelagius evolved into a slave capturing kind. Since their mandibles are built for killing they are useless when it comes to taking care of themselves so what these warrior ants do is pillage and capture another type of ants called the Formica. The latter class have cutter type mandibles used for foraging food and which are useless for battle. When the slave Formica ants grow old and die, the Pelagius go out and hunt for Formica ant nests. They ruthlessly attack helpless Formica ants and carry off the eggs. When these eggs grow in the Pelagius nests these become future generations of slaves!

Very interesting!

EVER NA MAY NINGNING PART 1

Part 1 of the cameo role of Ever in Bituing Walang Ningning.It's got the most views so far among my videos

EVER NA MAY NINGNING PART 1

This was the first part of the "Bituing Walang Ningning" episode showing Sarah Geronimo winning a singing competition and being awarded by Ever Espanol as Jollibee Marketing Executive(kuno) the 1M check prize

EVER NA MAY NINGNING PART 2

This is a video of the TV novela "Bituin Walang Ningning" which featured a good friend of mine Ever Espanol as the Jollibee executive signing the contract of Sarah Geronimo as a Jollibee celebrity endorser.

LESSONS FROM JAMES' APPENDICITIS

My second son James Benedict had a case of acute appendicitis last Friday so he had to have an appendectomy that same day.

It was completely unexpected. He was fine Thursday evening when he went to bed. Twelve midnight he started having stomach pains which he tried to bear until 1 AM when he couldn't take it anymore. When TJ,my eldest son, woke us up and told us about James' predicament,he was breaking out in cold sweat so I rushed him to the nearest hospital.

There were "lessons" I learned over the weekend when I had to deal with James undergoing his appendectomy and recovering from the operation.

1. It pays to trust your instinct and to be decisive: Although James wasn't feverish I knew there was something terribly wrong with him already because he was breaking out into cold sweat. I made a decision immediately to rush him to the nearest hospital where at least he was given temporary relief via antibiotics.

2. It helps to have contingencies ready: When the doctor in the emergency room diagnosed James as possibly having appendicitis I had to check on the cost of the operation in case they needed to do the procedure. The estimate given to me was 50K which would include both the hospital and doctors fees. Although I knew it would be a drain on my finances it helped that I knew I had money to cover the expenses. If I hadn't saved money I would be in a terrible bind.

3. Call for help---if you have other options use them: I texted my eldest sister, a doctor,informing her of the emergency. Since it was 3 AM,I didn't expect she would answer back at once. When she finally called me back in the morning she suggested I call one of her classmates who had done the procedure on her son, Johann last year. I'm glad that option was open to me because her friend didn't charge any professional fees which saved me a considerable amount of money.

4. Prayers definitely help and so does assurance from friends: I sent a text message to one of my former classmates about James' condition. I found out later on that he had emailed members of my egroup about it because I started getting text messages saying that they were praying for James and telling me things would be just fine. One message came all the way from Canada! The fact that James recovered quickly from the operation must have been the power of prayer at work.

5. Good things can come out of unfortunate incidents ---It all depends on your perspective or outlook: In all appearances the whole thing looked like one big hassle and one which any parent would not want to experience. Funny though,I didn't feel abit stressed by the situation. For one,I had a whole weekend of bonding with my son. It made me feel like a real father again! I was amazed at James' attitude towards the whole thing. He even seemed excited about going under the knife! He wanted to see how his appendix looked like and wanted to get the specimen after the operation (unfortunately they didn't give it to him.) We watched several shows on TV (like Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 and the World cup match between England and Trinidad-Tobago) and we enjoyed it. When his barkada and cousins visited him he was grinning from ear to ear and loving the attention.

SOME HEAVY THOUGHTS ON A HOT,SUNNY AFTERNOON

It's supposed to be raining 'round about this time in June but surprisingly the day's been hot! Some ideas crossed my mind as to things I could do to make a contribution to the organization.

1. Note to myself: Develop a series of 10 minute Lectures on my readings from John Seely Brown/Innovation and Impossible Thinking and share these during the Area Managers' monthly meetings.

2. While reading on JSB's discussions on 2 schools of thought for gaining competitive advantage namely: the core competency model and collaboration model, I realized that we've got to have both in Chowking.

For example, we have the competence in developing new, delicious products. However, these tend to be very costly because the raw materials are expensive or it will be costly for us if we carry the SKUs required to produce the new products. Following the thinking of collaboration perhaps it will be to everyone's advantage if our suppliers find a way to improve their processes so they can give their raw materials to us at a lower price so we can offer these new items in the market cheaper.

Because surely our sales will increase then demand for their supplies will also increase. Everyone wins in the end. Also, in the exchange of ideas on how we can keep improving our products we can learn together with our suppliers and they can improve themselves in the process too.

More and more I'm beginning to see the wisdom of sharing more in order to gain more!

MORE INSIGHTS ON INNOVATION

My recent interest in the topic of INNOVATION led me to clicking on related links about the subject. And reading these articles made me think about how I could put the ideas I picked up to good use,for example,here at Chowking.

One idea I got was to have a meeting with RDR and try to convince him that we ought to explore ways of encouraging NEW IDEAS GENERATION. Right now there seems to be no forum for this. New ideas that get translated into product improvement or organizational change seem to come from him. What if he's gone? What will happen to the company then.

Bill Gates is reported to take an idea retreat annually where he just reads thru suggestions of employees that can be put to use at Microsoft. Maybe something along this line might help.

I don't think our R&D is also doing R&D in the strictest sense of doing research into new products. If I were to list what really came from them in terms of new ideas that made it to the market I would say there was really none. Most came from RDR. Maybe R&D ought to be encouraged to do more experimenting & not be limited to their current way of thinking.

In the end,new ideas or innovation will have to come from people but these people who innovate must get heard by the main man otherwise their ideas just get forgotten or are eventually used by somebody else.

I realized too that the innovations do not really have to come from within the organization. The "Open source" mentality and practice of techno-geeks helped in the development of LINUX. This operating system was a product of many minds contributing to the development of a product.

Another insight I got was that INNOVATION that gets bought or used by customers is USUALLY SIMPLE and does not have to be a radically new idea. Take the case of the iPod (which I still don't have) which is simple in design and functionality. It's concept is similar to the Sony Walkman (portable music) but it allows it's users to customize music they want to listen to.

My challenge as a consultant now is how to help transform Chowking into an organization with a culture of learning, innovation and experimentation. Because only if we become nimbler than our competition in building our capacity to compete can we survive and thrive in today's business world.

BREAKING THE MOULD:NEW IDEAS FROM JOHN SEELY BROWN

I first heard the name John Seely Brown during the Marketing Conference I attended two weeks ago. The CEO of Ayala Land, Rene Almendras, cited JSB as one of his inspirations for instituting innovation in his organization. For example, at Ayala Land they encouraged people to band together based on common interests (e.g. photography, sports,or even drinking beer.) These "communities" helped break down barriers within the company and made working together easier. Why? Because they could relate with each other in an interpersonal rather than a functional manner. Trust levels were higher.

So I read JSB's works on the internet and I was fascinated by his ideas, not because they were new but because they were common sense...and obvious! And since he headed the PARC (Xerox's renowned Research center) he had experience to back his words up.

Among the ideas he put forth I was sold on developing communities of collaboration to increase the learning curve of organizations.

If I were to use Chowking as an example of the typical organization, the traditional approach is to rely on a Training Department to take care of implementing programs or conducting training to make sure its workforce is knowledgeable. It assumes that this central department is the seat of all learning and can best respond to the needs of the people in the work place.

But the reality is different. The people in our stores don't really learn because of all the training we provide. At best what they probably get is basic information and skill demonstration. All other learning they get by asking other people on the job.

I'm pretty sure that even if we have provided our cooks with manuals and training guides,they probably resorted to asking their fellow cooks for information when they needed to get something done.

So maybe what we ought to do is exploit this natural tendency of people to share information to speed up the learning process. If we could encourage collaboration, sharing of best practices more, then Chowking will probably be ahead of others in its ability to learn.

This just brought to mind a situation we had recently with a product, Yang Chow.

During the pilot test the feedback was that the rice tasted bland inspite of the many ingredients. This was because R&D, in the effort to "idiot-proof"the operations, had prescribed a specific amount of rice seasoning similar to that used in our Garlic Fried Rice.

One of our trainers,Choi Palermo, pointed out that this did not seem right because the amount of ingredients in Yang Chow would easily neutralize the taste of the seasoning. But since he was not R&D, he did not get a hearing. The functional unit's expertise had prevailed. If only he had been listened to, then we would not have had the problem in the first place.

JSB's thinking might seem revolutionary but he also is cautious about going overboard. He says that there must be a balance somewhere.

FASCINATING THINGS I LEARNED FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Last Sunday I chanced upon a National Geographic feature about caterpillars, elephants and the emperor penguin from which I learned the following:

1. In the transformation of caterpillar to moth (or butterfly,) two different sets of DNA are operational. Once the caterpillar is ready for metamorphosis it's hormones activate the butterfly DNA. The caterpillar "dies" in the process while in the cocoon to give way to a different being.

2. Before it can even fly & feed the newly emerged butterfly must stretch its proboscis so that the two divided parts lock in like a zipper. It's crumpled wings must also stretch to allow oxygen to pass thru (since the butterfly doesn't have any lungs.)

3. The male emperor penguin takes care of the newly hatched egg,keeping it warm by balanceing the egg on it's toes and sitting on it for about 6 weeks. Meanwhile,the female goes to sea and hunts for fish which it will feed the chick when it hatches. The males huddle during cold days to keep their bodies and eggs warm and because they don't feed all this time they start to grow thinner. Just in time, the chicks hatch and the mother penguin has to be back by that time because the male might,in his hunger, go out and feed,leaving the chick to die from the cold. Once the females arrive they give out a call which only their partners recognize! When they finally reunite, the male passes the chick to the mother quickly so that she can feed it with regurgitated fish. The male then leaves to feed.

4. The elephant mother carries her baby for 22 months. The reason for this long period is that the brain of the baby elephant must be fully developed before it can come out.

5. Baby alligators must feed themselves once they hatch because like all other reptiles they don't rely on mother to feed them.

Whenever I watch fascinating things like these I can only believe that there is a God!

MY FIRSTS

I got to thinking about what I have really accomplished so far in my life. One thing I noticed is that in my "professional"(i.e., work) life I have been known for having achieved or accomplished many "firsts." So if I were to boast about my accomplishments I can probably cite the following:

1. Created the first videobased orientation for Jollibee ( a slideshow production which we fondly called the "Gotta Bite" production.)
2. Designed and implemented the first systematized Management Development Program for Jollibee. (the BOTP)
3. Co-wrote and illustrated the first updated Operations Manual for Jollibee.
4. Produced the first SMART (Marketing) manual for Jollibee and launched the first training program for marketing officers.
5. First to extensively use video training at Jollibee.Produced the first in-house videos on conducting P.A. discussions;Crew Training and Crew recruitment & Selection.
6. Organized the first Managers' Convention for Jollibee.Emceed the first 5 conventions.
7. Set up the first MDPs for Assistant store managers & store managers.
8. Was among the first in-house facilitators of SMA, the longest running in-house MDP of the Jollibee group.
9.Launched the first Managing Director's Training Program for Jollibee.
10. Implemented one of the most effective organizational development initiatives to have an impact on the Jollibee system: Managing Service
11. First to set up a Training Kitchen for Jollibee.
12. Training manager with the longest tenure so far(12 1/2 years) and opened the most number of stores during his term (320 stores)
13. First to implement Equipment and facilities training for managers.
14. The Jollibee Beeline, a short-lived Management Digest
15. First to ever use line trainers in the system
16. First Training Manager to speak in a Learning session for PSTD & first to be Board Member of PSTD
17. First Training catalogue and training database for tracking/monitoring training programs attended by employees.
18. Organized the first Jollibee Operations Sales Rally in 1999.
19. Set up the training system for the first Jollibee Drive thru
20. Composed the Chowking Hymn and Chowking Pledge
21. Organized the first sales rally for the new Chowking
22. Published and managed the first FSC Update for Chowking.
23. Launched the first seires of management development programs for Chowking
24. Set up the cooks certification program for Chowking.

MUCH ADO ABOUT THE DA VINCI CODE

With the Da Vinci Code about to be shown in theatres soon, it seems there are, what I would call "overreactions," starting to take place particularly from the Catholic Church.

One example was from a priest whose sermon Jaja shared with me because she thought it was a great critique against the Da Vinci Code. I think it had to with the question of whether one should watch the movie or not. The reverend father's response was something like:"Would you watch a movie that ridiculed or made fun about someone you love?"

I pointed out to Jaja that the priest might not even know what he was talking about! (Of course,this elicited a raised eyebrow from her!) I said this because in the first place, the da Vinci code was a fiction novel which was based on a specific premise,i.e., the Catholic Church was out to protect a "secret" which if known by everyone would undermine the whole foundation of Catholicism. Rome would go to the extent of killing people to prevent this secret from leaking out. There was nothing in the da Vinci Code about "ridiculing or making fun of Jesus." I had read the book in fact and just found it entertaining like any well -written mystery novel.

Instead of overreacting, the priest should just have told his liteners that the movie is fiction, entertaining but nothing to doubt their faith about since the basis for the story anyway is apocryphal. Of course, it would be a different thing if one's faith was weak and one was gullible...but that's another story.

RECENT HAPPENINGS...RANDOM THOUGHTS

1. There was a heated exchange of emails recently in one of my egroups. It all started when a private exchange of emails among members leaked out,and other members who felt offended by those who allegedly were talking behind their backs,retaliated. Moral lesson: "Never ever have an exchange of private emails with egroup members about a sensitive issue lest you push the wrong button."
2. I was finally able to mail my secret to PostSecret. While I was working on it,for some strange reason I started trembling,either from fear or excitement. After I finished with it though I felt a sense of relief...a feeling of catharsis! Just by bringing it out of my system I had unburdened myself. I now realized the good that Post Secret was doing.
3. Recent news about organizational changes in the JFC group somehow bothered me. But then I caught myself starting to worry and changed my frame of mind...and voila things didn't seem bothersome after all!

THE MYSTERY OF MEMORY

There he was at the hallway talking to some Marketing Officers of Greenwich while members of his Creative staff waited by the elevator.

I recognized the big eyes and the features. He caught sight of me but apparently didn't show any signs of recognition.

He was Ramon "Mon" Jimenez, now President of Jimenez Basic,one of our ad agencies, and a classmate of mine back in kindergarten.

It's strange how the memory recalls pictures of the past. The only memory I have of Mon is him wearing one of the SBC caps sold in our bookstore holding a hotdog in one hand and a bottle of Coke in the other! Maybe the reason I remember him was because he told me how much that hotdog and Coke cost.

Back in kindergarten I only had 25 centavos for my baon,and since I was rather shy, I didn't want to buy stuff at the canteen fearing I wouldn't know how to count change or afraid I wouldn't really have enough money.

When I learned from Mon that the hotdog and Coke combination cost 25 centavos, I was able to pluck up enough courage to buy these over the counter.

I never saw Mon after kinder. This was the first time I've seen him...after about 46 years! But what an amazing flashback it brought.

THE REENERGIZING POWER OF ACCOMPLISHMENT

Last night I was finally able to finish the drawings for the Reunion Souvenir program of my San Beda batchmates. These had been literally on the drawing board for about a year and I had been putting off finishing them since there was really no pressure to complete them. I felt more excited though as I was doing the finishing touches of the illustrations. Then finally they were done and I felt inspired to get started on the other drawings.

Accomplishing something carries with it the power to create more and do something better.Maybe that's why I enjoy being involved in the creative process.

A ROCKER IN THE FAMILY

Last night the whole family went to the Indo's Strip Bar at Orosa (Malate) to watch James and his TB (Tacho Band) perform with 14 other "amateur"bands. It was his 3rd gig at a bar and the second time for me to watch him perform in public. For Jaja it was the first.

We waited for over two hours before the show started.Thankfully, James' band was third in line. The first two groups were Lourdesians from lower grades and obviously needed more practice. Specially the 2nd band which was really trying hard to sound like a reggae band.

When their turn came,TB warmed up with a series of riffs before breaking into their first song. I really didn't know what their songs were but they sounded very good compared to the first time I heard them perform. They were still rough around some edges but they were playing together.

James started out cooly at first but when they were into their 3rd song he was putting in some showmanship!

They got loud applause not only from their friends but also from the other bands who recognized they had just seen a very good performance!

Tacho Rocks! TB Rules!

GROWING IN WISDOM

I just had an insight this morning.

As I grow older I realize more and more that being wise does not mean knowing all the answers or having all the answers.

Wisdom is realizing that there's a lot I don't know and that I must therefore be humble and learn.

That's why I believe that old dogs can still learn new tricks!

FEEL GOOD MOVIES FOR "NOT FEEL SO GOOD" DAYS

I had a bad case of the flu during the past three days. It wasn't so much the pain in the joints that bothered me. What I couldn't stand were the recurring,head-splitting headaches that prevented me from getting a much needed rest. Good thing was that a dose of paracetamol provided me with relief.

The only other thing I could do besides eat,sleep and pee,was to watch TV. Fortunately,there were some "feel good" movies on the tube that helped me make it through the 3 day ordeal.

One feature on the Hallmark Channel was "The Magic of Ordinary Days." Set against the background of World War Two,the story was about Livy,a pretty,educated single and pregnant woman who got herself in a marriage of convenience to Ray Singleton,a simple farmer,who agreed to the arrangment because he believed it was God's will. Livy,who was city bred and raised,gradually finds herself being drawn into and loving the simple country life. She meets and befriends two Japanese-Americans who are working Ray's farm and gets to know about their butterfly-watching hobby.

All this time,Livy has been sending letters to the father of her child,an Air Force instructor. Ray finds out about it toward the end o f the film and professes that he has fallen in love with her and wants her to stay. He gives her a ring...something he wasn't able to do,when they got married and she accepts.

The other feel good movie I saw was Big Fish. It reminded me of the 4 Antiques,specially Uncle Peds who was well known for his fish stories. It made me appreciate that I belonged to a family of storytellers,who, in their effort to make history interesting by embellishing the details, were somehow in fact,telling reality as it was!

MUSINGS ON GRADUATION DAY

Yesterday, my second son James graduated from High School. I didn't pay much attention during the ceremonies,which consisted mainly of presentation of awards to achievers in the academic and non-academic fields. I guess my behavior was understandable because James wasn't going to receive any medals or plaques.

I'm sure that if he had only excelled in academics and was going to receive medals,Jaja and I would have been very attentive. I could not help but mention to her that when I was in elementary,High School and College,my parents,specially Mommy,was probably on top of the world seeing her son going up the stage to receive recognition and even deliver Valedictory addresses (since I was class valedictorian in High School and College.)

Jaja jokingly asked how come none of our kids inherited our abilities. I pointed out to her that we did have Tasha who got medals...only it was in the field of athletics and not academics!

I replied that if we had really wanted them to excel in academics,then we should have spent more of our time supervising their studies and driving them to achieve like my Mom did to me. But,I pointed out (maybe as an excuse...or maybe out of experience),I didn't want to push them at the expense of them not enjoying their childhood.

I also remarked that from my own experience with my batchmates,it wasn't really the brightest who turned out to be the richest and most successful in life. There are in fact many from my Bedan batchmates who were not in the star section but are now rich individuals because of either business savvy, sales acumen or just plain hard work and luck! On the whole,though most of us who were above average performers did well in life and are living in comfort, some of our brightest are struggling.

Personally, I have very high hopes for James in spite of the fact that he almost didn't pass high school and doesn't show the flair for academics that his siblings show. I even predict he will be the richest among them mainly because of his business sense and people relations skills.

Yesterday, when his name was called, there was a big round of applause. When we asked him why, he said it was probably because his photo,which was projected on screen looked funny. But I would like to believe it was also because he was so popular with many in his batch!

Time will tell whether I am right or I am wrong. Maybe I'll have the answer when I'm finally driving my BMW and basking in the Caribbean courtesy of my rich son, James...the son who almost failed High School...but made it with honors in the school of life.

AN OLD DOG LEARNING NEW TRICKS

During the past week I've been using Adobe Photoshop to include faces of ex-Juvenists who joined our grand reunion but weren't included in the group photo. After learning thru experience I finally finished "Photoshopping in" 12 people and it didn't look bad. I asked my daughter to pinpoint those I had added and she missed about 4 so I must have done a convincing job.

I've also experimented on using the other Photoshop tools to create a poster of my son James playing bass guitar. This time around I intend to learn all the possibilities I can create using this fantastic software. I'll even extend the learning to using Adobe Illustrator for the SBC Souvenir Program.

I'm getting excited about learning something new...and something creative at that! It really proves that "old dogs" can still learn new tricks. I guess it depends if one thinks he's an old dog or not.

THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGING

Just read some announcements recently coming from JFC Corporate about the changes taking place in the Jollibee organization.

Gina Navarette is moving to Red Ribbon as its GM,and Erwin somebody (I haven't met him) is replacing her as Greenwich CEO. (That should get some tongues waggling!)

People have also been identified for different posts in the new Finance organization and the newly formed Jollibee Worldwide services group,the Shared Services arm of JFC. Ces Landicho has been named the head or Team Leader of the Training Services group.

I'm still just a spectator to all these changes since I'm technically not an employee anymore of Jollibee. I am concerned of course, because I feel the changes are happening too fast and maybe...just maybe a lot is being left to chance by the think tanks of this project.

Maybe I'm becoming a "writer and critic who criticizes with (my ) pen" as Bob Dylan puts it. I just hope the transition works out for the company I can't help but love because I helped build it! I just hope the individuals running the show are not intiating the change for change's sake..(or worse...for their own personal glory.)

Time will tell. But I'm just preparing myself...just in case my services will be needed...to troubleshoot things in case they make a mess of things! Ha! Wouldn't RDR be vindicated after all!

"Blessed are the meek...for they shall humble the mighty!";-)

TRANSITIONS atbp

I got an email last Friday from a friend saying she has found her "significant other" (S.O. in today's lingo) and that we,her close friends,keep this a secret in the meantime.

I know what she's been through and I do wish this relationship works out well for her and her growing daughter's sakes.

It just made me realize how people are going through transitions everyday and the way we handle those transitions really make an impact on future outcomes.

Take Tasha for instance. She competed last Saturday in the International School Goodwill Gymnastics Competition at the new IS facility at Global City. Jaja and I recounted Tasha's first IS competition when she was about 6 years old. She didn't win anything then but she made a resolve then to do better. Now, almost seven years later she is competing at the highest category...the Open category. Since there were only two of them competing,they were both assured of medals. But,looking back,if Tash had been discouraged after that first experience she would not have even gotten this far.

This past week I've been obsessed about getting things on my "to do" list done. One of them was to learn Adobe Photoshop. First, though I had to be able to load the software onto my PC. I had borrowed pirated copies from Marketing but wasn't able to install it because of an activation security code. Yesterday, I bought another pirated version hoping I could finally get it going in my PC. Turns out I only needed to install a "crack" code and it worked.

My realization: if I really put my mind and heart to something I want done...it gets done. Now, I'm another step closer to achieving something I wrote on my list.

Bench pressing 160 lbs.,is another item on my list that will soon be crossed out by June.

Because of these small successes I'm now putting my mind and heart to:

a) Organizing the tour to the USA for my family and ex-Juvenists
b) Setting up websites for my own family and the Oranditan which will feature a composite photo of the Mendoza Progeny from Lolo & Lola Iqui to the latest additions.
c) Being able to play the acoustic solo version of the Beatles' "In My Life" which became our Reunion's theme song

A CLAMOR FOR THE NEXT R&R

Recently,there have been email exchanges in our ex-Juvenate egroup about the next R&R. I participated in the discussion expressing my view that a reunion in the United States would be a great idea. I know for a fact that there are quite a number of ex-Juvenists who have migrated to the States and who would probably want to reconnect with other brother Juvenists if only the reunion were held there.

Today Bobby Demigillo sent an email saying that Fr. Ron Murray had just returned to Mariposa after having been hospitalized for...of all things...chickenpox! But the reality that at anytime anyone of us can go is being recognized by the now aging ex-J's...so maybe that's why there's a clamor to have a reunion more often (while everyone is still alive.)

I sent a message that assuming everyone stays healthy,then we ought to have a Grand Golden Jubilee of the Juvenate in 2011. That would be 50 years from the time the frist Juvenate was opened in Baclaran. It's not far off...just 5 more years!

Meantime, I suggested we hold more get togethers to plan for this big event and to also look for more ex-Juvenists so next time around there will be more of us reliving the good ole' Juvenate days.

NEW MILESTONES

My only daughter, and youngest child,Natasha Marie, graduated from elementary at St. Paul's College,Pasig last Saturday. Two weeks from now,my second son, James Benedict will also be graduaing from High School at Lourdes School Mandaluyong. So this year is a banner year for producing graduates as far as the Millbrae Mendoza's is concerned.

So next year,I will have two kids in College and one in High School. How time has really flown! Or is it really that the kids have grown so fast!

It seemed like only yesterday that I was accompanying my kids to their respective classrooms to attend their first day in school. Then, I was more concerned about whether they'd like school and by any chance, also excel in school like I did.

TJ, my eldest cried during his first day in nursery school. He did pretty well in elementary,sometimes finding himself in the Top Ten of his class, and sometimes doing pretty well in extra-curricular activities,like his famous "Dirty Hands" elocution competition. He didn't have any problems in High school though he could have done better. There were ups and downs in College all because he can't get himself to focus on his studies. But, in a year he'll be finishing College hopefully.

James,enjoyed nursery school...passed elementary grades without really studying hard(that's why we called him "The Amazing James") and just barely made it through High School.

Tasha,surprised us all.She only had several months of nursery and made it to Kinder at St. Paul's. Then considering she was into gymnastics she still managed to do good in school.

So whether they'll like school and survive is moot and academic now.They've all shown that they can pass the grade...although none of them really excelled academically.

Now,it seems my concern is how soon will they be able to finish College and be able to fend for themselves.

I can't wait for the next milestones in my kids' lives.

MY TOP TWENTY MOST MEMORABLE R & R MOMENTS

Watching the videos of our Grand reunion that Tom Borja shared over YouTube brought me back to the event and got me recollecting what for me were the top twenty "most memorable" moments.

20. When we (Edwin Guevara, Gerry Luistro & I) put up the humongous photo backdrop that showed the Juvenate and it looked like the building had been resurrected.

19. Seeing the USA and other internationals happy with their experience and hearing from them that it was worth their trip.

18. Getting the picture of OMPH as a token of appreciation from the guys.

17. Trading stories with the batch of 67 & other guys after the "Tribute" program

16. Being able to announce that 51 participants out of 57 expected showed up for the Reunion.

15. Fr. Reg's "Tink you!Tink you" & his formal announcement of Chito Desuasido's being a graduate.

14. Fr. Ron Murray singing the "Green Green Grass of Home"

13. Jorge Emmanuel's "You are being honored" skit

12. Gerry Luistro's & Jorge Emmanuel's recitation of Lord Byron's poem'There was a sound of revelry by night..." Jorge still knew every line of it!

11. The meals that were highly appreciated specially the buffet and the Casa Rap lunch

10. Clem Bautista's speech and his choking at the memory of his co-teachers and his experiences in the Juvenate.

9. The group photos session. The weather held up until we were done with all the groups.Then it rained!

8. The closure that individuals shared during the Get To Know You Night

7."Because of you I was able to write speeches for 3 Presidents,Cardinals etc." Archie Inlong paying tribute to Fr Reg during the intro night.

6.The sign of peace during the Day 2 Mass

5. The response after the showing of the "Back to the Juvenate" video

4. Fr. Reg Ahearn's "Was it a waste of time?" sermon during the Mass

3. Tied for 3rd: Fr Reg Ahearn's arrival( it was like a celebrity had just arrived!) & Fr. Nonie's the "catalog" faux pas which Fr. Reg corrected..& got laughs during the Day1 lunch

2. Merienda (Day 1) I was seated at table with Fr. Nick Abella, Lito Palapal,Joe Vergara,Rodel Macasaet & we were just exchanging stories like it was during Juvenate days...no boundaries of seniority.What was memorable was the most senior(Joe Vergara 1961) and the most Junior(Rodel 1975) were seated together.

1. "Joe Vergara is that you?"

"Nonie, its me Nick"

"Bobby Castro!" followed by a smile...a handshake or an embrace...

---for me this was the essence of the R&R.

"Long lost brothers" seeing each other after a long time and still recognizing each other...

...the embrace was like once again"embracing one's past."

...when I saw a lot of this in Day 1, I knew the reunion was already a success!

GOALS FOR THE SHORT TERM

I figured that I have a lot of time to fill in nowadays so I'm setting some short-term goals for myself (achievable within 3 months) so I will check if I've achieved these by June 15.

1. HEALTH: V-tapered look (160 lbs.) 39 in chest;31-32" waist; 15-16" guns; bigger calves &
forearms; Bench press; 160 lbs
2.WEALTH: Regularly make 3% in AMWAY or better;Additional 300K savings=2.5M
3. Learned Adobe Photoshop
4. Mastered use of my CanonA620 & taken portraits/creative shots using it
5. Developed & posted the Millbrae Mendoza webpage
6. Completed 50% of drawings for the SBC Souvenir Program
7. Read new books
8. Painted the Creation mural
9. Fixed the files/documents
10. Renewed my passport & outlined a plan for travel to the USA

TAKING MYSELF TO THE EDGE & OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE

I invested 100K in a 1 year time deposit this morning. My relationship banker, Claire Guiao, suggested I invest it in a mutual fund (much of which I couldn't really understand) but when she said the words I could understand:"no guarantee on the principal...risk of the principal" my reaction was to be risk averse again and just go with the low risk but low return time deposit.

The story of my life, I guess.

I don't know if when someone writes my biography the basic theme would be:"His life was predictable...and boring." And it would be true because unlike others my age, I've basically kept to a safe pattern of existence, and not thrown caution to the wind & done crazy things one reads about in novels.

I've not travelled on a backpack or hiked mountains or lived on the edge. Nor have I planned many vacation trips with the kids because my first priority has always been about saving money for the rainy day.

Not that I have not had my thrills...but I wonder what it would be like to just live it up a little!

UPDATING MY LIST OF GOALS & SOME OTHER THOUGHTS

The saying that "Life is short" was brought to fore last week when one of the members of our San Beda egroups,Simon "Tos"Santos Jr.,died of a heart attack. I think he was 52 or 53 years old. He left behind a wife and 6 kids.

It got me thinking about the hypothetical question:"What would you do if you knew this was going to be your last day?" There were a lot of things I wanted to do which I wished I could do in my lifetime. So one thing led to the other and it ended up with me looking at my list of goals and ticking off those I had already accomplished (e.g the Reunion of ex-Juvenists) & adding new ones.

Added to my list were those about improving my skills and potentials...like learning Adobe Photoshop,going back to my hobbies & interests (like photography, illustrating) ,to new sports: like aikido.

I also wrote down additional places I would like to visit (like the Bahamas,Rio de Janeiro) for a romantic weekend or an enjoyable vacation with the kids. Just imagining myself achieving these was enough to get me excited and alive again.

I know the only thing blocking me from getting these things done were my own mental blocks and the amount of money at hand.

But as I've already experienced time and again,if I really put my mind and heart to it,the resources seem to just come.

SOME OTHER THOUGHTS:

A funny thought just came to mind while I was thinking about why remain faithful to one wife. What is the promise in heaven for this? I thought maybe, the reward would be that because I was willing to put aside my sexual urges (and not to sleep with the women I've been attracted to) and be faithful to Jaja...perhaps in heaven, my reward would be I get to sleep with all those women with no guilt at all & have the most wonderful sex everyday!

How about those poor Islamic suicide bombers? I heard they were promised 72 virgins in heaven if they die for their faith. An idea for a cartoon would be to show that the virgins they were going to make love to are old spinsters or fat women...after all, Mohammed did not really qualify what these virgins would look like!

THE 2006 EX-JUVENATE GRAND REUNION AND ITS AFTERMATH

Finally, the Grand Reunion of Ex-Juvenists, which had taken over a year of planning and only about three weeks of "fast -paced - sleepless night worrying- last minute cramming" preparations, pushed through last February 17 to 19 at the Redemptorist Retreat Center in Lipa City. Judging from the accolades, but much more, from the "wish we had more time" sentiment of the reunionists, all in all it was a huge success...and well worth all the trouble.

Fr. Reg Ahearn,who came all over from Australia to attend the reunion, said so himself in an email sent to the group."It was worth the trip from Australia."

Having been in the thick of the preparations for this "once in a lifetime event", I can only conclude that really, if God wants something to happen...then it will! And from what I experienced, heaven and earth will cooperate to make God's wish come true!

For how can I explain why almost mysteriously,the work load at the office seemed to be at its lightest...allowing me a lot of time to think and plan out the details of the reunion.

How come,providentially I may say, Fr. Ernie turns out to be the Rector of the Retreat House and he makes it available for all of us as the venue for the reunion?

Was it by some unseen design that the Chowking Conventions, which I regularly host, were two weeks apart of each other allowing me to be present at the reunion which was sandwiched in between?

If I push the questioning further and see things "in the light of faith" then I understand there was a reason why certain things happened in the past. For example:

1) Among the reunion organizers,I was one of those who stayed in the Juvenate the longest and was right smack in the middle of the Juvenate's life span. Therefore,I knew a lot of the older groups and also knew those who entered much later in the 1970's before the Juvenate closed down. I became the "logical" choice as coordinator of the reunion.

2) This is the eerie part. Years back when I was in Theology and based in Antipolo, I came across a lot of old photos and negatives lying about one of the elevator shafts of the Juvenate. many of the photos had been ruined by rain and the negatives had been left in utter neglect. I recognized many of these photos because I had arranged them in a Juvenate photo album when I was in 2nd year high. For some strange reason, I retrieved all that were still good and kept them in a photo album.

When the ex-Juvenate egroups was born and time came to share photos of the past, I had a lot of these photo memories to share because of a chance occurrence in the past!

3) Even Fr. Reg's presence was a God send. He was originally scheduled to be in the Philippines in October,2005 but could not make it because of a change of plans. However, because of this he was now more available this time around to attend the reunion in February.

4) Even the weather cooperated! During our group picture taking,there was threat of rain. But it turned out perfect for taking photos...no squinting of faces...no light streaking on camera lenses...just the right amount of haze. Then after we were done, that's when the rains fell. And it provided us just the right amount of coolness while we enjoyed our lunch at Casa Rap!

What did I get out of the Reunion? After all, I was so busy attending to the details that make for the perfect show, that I didn't really get to reconnect with everyone as I would have wanted.

But looking back, I did get my personal rewards from the experience.

One, of course, were the words of "thanks" from the reunionists specially those who hadn't seen each other for a very long time, and now got in touch because of the reunion.

Then, there were the smiles, the never ending laughter,the banter among old friends,the recollections...

There was a point during the afternoon of Day 1 when I was sitting at table with Lito Palapal, Fr Nick Abella, Joe Vergara and Rodel Macasaet, enjoying afternoon coffee and Elmo's pan de sal while exchanging stories. It was just like the Juvenate days when seniors would sit with juniors and be comfortable with each other. What was significant about that scene was we had the "oldest" member (Manong Joe) and the "latest" (in Rodel Macasaet) seated together,and behaving as if they were old friends. The only common bond each one had was we once lived in the Juvenate,though at different time periods.

Sadly, the reunion had to end. But what an ending! We were able to give tribute to Fr. Ron and Fr. Reg, who both got into the spirit of things by cracking us up with jokes and anecdotes. Then as we alway ended our gathering during Juvenate days, we sang the "Salve regina" and got Fr. Reg's & Fr. Ron's blessing.

It's been over a week since the R&R and I'm getting back to my daily grind.Before the event when preparations were at its height, I was all keyed up and sharp...visualizing what was to happen in my mind's eye. No wonder that after the reunion, I felt so tired that when I got to Boracay for our Franchisee's Convention I had a very deep and restful nap.

I miss the action and like the others wish we had more time..but maybe it was right we didn't overextend to the point that we would have wanted to get home away from each other.

The sentiment now is that we ought to continue keeping in touch...keep the flame alive. The northern Americans are planning something hopefully in Las Vegas.

God willing...that if it pushes through..I'd like to be part of that get together...not as an organizer but as a participant this time!

51 YEARS YOUNG AND LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT 50!

Yesterday I turned 51! When I was younger I never imagined how I'd look like at 50 years plus...I was so engrossed at being young and solving the problems of the world I didn't think it important to visualize how I'd look when I'm old.

Good thing I didn't because when I look at myself in the mirror, I don't look like your typical 50 year old. Thanks to a regimen of exercise and diet and clean living, I think I managed to turn back ageing some notch back.

I read Late Lifer's recent blog on how at 83 + he's still engaged in active work. I guess that's the secret..never to retire and not to think I can't learn new skills and new tricks. Furthermore, I have the advantage of experience.

I still have a lot to look forward to in the next 50 years after all!

NOW ISN'T THE FUTURE THAT WE PICTURED IT TO BE...BUT ITS PRETTY CLOSE

Just read an interesting blog from Mike Wieringo. He was born in 1963 (just 8 years younger than me) and when he was growing up, his images of Year 2000 was of flying cars and stuff we probably saw in Star Wars.

He makes an interesting point: what made terrific advancements in technology was not about the way we travel but the way we communicate!There aren't too many flying cars around but boy are there so many ways to bring someone who's in another part of the world right to your living room!

When I was a kid, Dick Tracy was a popular showing on TV. I was quite fascinated by his wristwatch communicator. Some toy manufacturer once offered it on the market but I never got to have one. Many years later, Samsung came up with something like Dick Tracy's watch...which just goes to show that if you can imagine it...it can come true.

Then,the sci-fi series on TV (Star Trek,Lost In Space) always showed futuristic families dressed in tight fitting costumes. They also ate food that came in the form of pills. The dress hasn't caught up but if you look at all the food supplements available in the market today, you wonder if the writers of these TV shows had a gift of predicting the future.

I still have yet to come face to face with aliens who are out to conquer the earth. (This was how the future state of earth was often depicted by these futuristic shows. ) When you come to think of it though...their vision of what today would be like comes pretty close!

HERE'S TO A BRAND NEW YEAR!

New Year 2006 didn't come in with as much BANG! as previous New Years. It's understandable considering that prices of fireworks have really gone up.

For instance, for P 2,750, I bought myself imported pyrotechnics that just fit into one plastic bag! And it was only good for about 5 minutes worth of fireworks display.

The noise around our place also didn't last long. By 1:00 AM there weren't too many explosions from fireworks anymore, unlike in the past when this would go on up to almost 2 AM.

As I have been doing every New year, I updated my diary and browsed thru my entries of the past year. Reflecting on 2005, I was thankful that I survived a difficult year. The country was in a political & economic mess. Our company suffered some setbacks but in the end, we pulled through with a sales performance that was better than expected. In spite of plans that would put my job in jeopardy, I got my contract renewed.

2005 to me will be remembered as the year I turned 50. Although I didn't really feel a year older, my body started experiencing aches and pains that just told me I am not as young as I used to be.

I will also remember 2005 as the year for reconnecting with my past. This is mainly because I got in touch with former colleagues in the seminary at least thru the internet. Now, we're looking forward to February when we will actually see each other in a Grand Reunion. Then just recently, I had a reunion with my former Jollibee staff.

My work has not been as hectic as before, since much of my workload has been taken by somebody else (e.g. the FSC Update.) I also started getting more involved in matters not related to the Training function (e.g. sitting in during discussions about concepts for advertisements.)

I look forward to 2006 with a more optimistic mindset. The furor over an inept President will soon die down and we will get down to the business of building the economy.

I plan to keep making myself better as a person and making a contribution to making the world around me better. I plan to achieve the following goals I have on my list:

1. Organize a successful Grand reunion of former Juvenists and our formators this February.
2. Complete the payments for our house by the end of January.
3. Achieve significant growth in my second income stream (Amway) and start getting checks from this.
4. Attain my dream physique from my bodybuilding efforts.( Wide shoulders, full chest, blasting guns, size 31" waist,proportionate legs and calves) Bench: 160 lbs.
5. Travel to USA with the kids (See Disneyland, be in touch with our relatives there)
6. Reach 2M mark in savings & investments by June 2006 and be within range of 3 M by end of the year. (I should be in the other room at the Citibank office)
7. Illustrate pages for the Juvenate Souvenir Program & the San Beda Reunion Program. I should have developed skill in the use of Corel Draw or Adobe Photoshop.
8. I will have seen Tasha and james Graduate from Elementary & High School respectively.
9. I should have installed more traditions for building the family: Date Night every Friday, and Kids One-One every week.
10. Achieved something spectacular!

A LESSON ON LEARNING & A REFLECTION ON AN "OPRAH" FEATURE

I've been meeting lately with a former colleague from the seminary, Tito Alcala. He's got a very successful design and ad services company and listening to him and his stories of how he grew his com pany, I picked up a lesson on what it means to be continually learning.

Tito goes around different countries picking up the latest technologies and trends in advertising. Then he goes ahead and tries to bring the technology in or adapt it to the local needs. He does not seem to be afraid of failing because even if a concept does not click he has learned and is ahead of everyone else in the learning curve!

That's an insight I'm going to apply...never fear failure because you learn something from it.

I watched Oprah yesterday and she featured women who were once successful and confident but "let go",i.e., gave up on life somehow and started looking and feeling miserable! All of them went from gorgeous to fat and looking at them now, I just couldn't help but feel pity for them.

Their reasons for "giving up" were varied (some even gave up because they had to raise their kids and family first)...but common to all was they somehow lost their self-esteem and with it their drive for life.

Another example of how mindset and attitude can change and turn one from being a winner to a loser.

THE ORIGIN 0F THANKSGIVING CELEBRATIONS & COUNTING MY BLESSINGS

I read from Early To Rise an account of Benjamin Franklin on how the whole idea of Thanksgiving got started. In a nutshell,the Pilgrims once made it a habit of fasting during Thanksgiving,but this usually got them in a depressing mood. So one of their members who had a lot of common sense suggested they celebrate instead of fast! That got everyone in a better frame of mind so the practice of celebrating stuck. I guess they took it a lot of their depression on the turkeys!

The article recommended that we count our blessings so I thought I'd list mine:

1. I'm alive & so far God has blessed me with good health
2. I'm loved by my wife & kids
3. I've got the proverbial roof over my head,clothes on my back & food to eat
4. I've got a job.
5. I've got friends.
6. I've got dreams I want to fulfill.
7. There are things that get me excited like the prospect of new business & earning more.
8. I have been blessed with talents.
9. I've got money in the bank,
10. The kids are in school & they are doing relatively well.
11. I have accomplished some things in my list of things to do in my lifetime.
12. I've managed to reconnect with people in my past.
13. I know I've influenced certain things/events & have mde a difference & contribution to society.
14. I have become a better person than what I was before.
15, I am at peace with myself.
16. I am hopeful and am looking forward to more exciting opportunities in life (dreams of travel. making more money, being happy)
17. I am able to laugh at myself.
18. My brain's working fine.
19. I still look & feel good for a man of fifty!
20. I still have good sex!
21. I don't worry much about much nowadays!
22. I am able to appreciate the little gifts I receive in life & thank God for them.

LEARNING THE MAGIC QUESTION

I read a piece from "Early To Rise" about a guy who admitted that 14 years ago he was at his lowest point but made a breakthrough by learning what he calls the magic question:"What's the Worst Thing That Could Happen If I did this?"

By asking the question he got rid of his own psychological barriers that prevented him from realizing his dreams (one of which was to be a ballroom instructor.) Once the barriers were out of the way the living of the dreams was easier.

I realized this (being afraid of failing) was what has been holding me back about some of the unfulfilled dreams I've had like: my hit song...my million peso business...vacation trips.

Maybe I ought to un-block myself more so I can get more out of life!

MY ORIGAMI LEGACY

Last night, my daughter Tasha chanced upon an old book of mine on Origami while she was looking for some colored paper. She started working on one of the models (the jumping frog) but was stumped when she was folding the frog base. I helped her out a bit then after some time she showed me the finished product.

She didn't realize that it could be inflated until I showed her so. Since she had used paper that wasn't really for folding, the frog didn't jump as expected. So she made another one,this time using better quality paper and voila, she had a jumping frog.

Seeing her taking interest in something I used to do made me really feel wonderful inside.

This is one of the small rewards I get from being a parent!

IS LIFE ALL ABOUT BURSTING WITH ENERGY OR BEING AT PEACE?

Just had one of those profound thoughts while "meditating" in the john during my morning ritual. I visited my parents' graves yesterday and thought to myself that is this what beign brought into the world is all about? To finally just rest in peace?

As far as I can recall, my life (& everyone's life for that matter) has been about bursting with energy...movement...action...in getting the thrills & adrenaline rush...that is why we say one is alive!!! He moves...he breathes...he lives!!!

And yet I know there were moments in my life when I was just still...and felt most alive!!! These were during moments of prayer...of deep calm...of just sitting watching the sun set or taking in the majestic view of Nature...or just observing my kids or my wife while they were asleep.

I guess that's why they say there are always two sides to everything...for life is both about living as well as dying.

TIME TO STOP DREAMING & START DOING

My former College buddy,Jimmy Enriquez, sent a congratulatory message to all his downlines in the Amway business who had made it to the 3% to the Top Gun Category. Most were from Chowking and most had entered this business later than I did. Yet they've gone ahead to where I never even reached. So what made the difference?

They worked more than they dreamed...and instead of figuring out the obstacles they just went ahead and showed the plan or sold the products.

I, on the other hand, found excuses why I couldn't do it! The irony is that most of these people are from Operations...have 9-5 jobs while I'm supposed to have a freer schedule to grow my business.

So the moral lesson is: Stop figuring out & wishing...and start getting my nose to the grindstone!

But inwardly I really feel happy for Jimmy...he deserves to be rewarded for his hard work...now he's living his dream!

CREATING YOUR OWN FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH

I just read an article by Miniong Ordonez, one of the pillars of Philippine Advertising and Chairman of Publicis, an advertising group. He's 69 years old but when you see him in person he really does not look it.

He attributes this to attitude. He remarked that as one ages one must take pride in aging, but also do something to maintain one's zest for life. For him one of his latest sources of youthful attitude is a Suzuki Motorbike. It makes him feel like the rebellious Marlon Brando when he's on it!

His message is clear... if we just settle for being sedentary when we grow old then we really age.

There is a fountain of youth but it is within us!

DREAMING AND DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE

Our CEO has been exhorting us to aim for "no unhappy customers." I can understand the skeptical looks on the faces of our managers whenever he says we should do this...after all, this seems to be an impossible goal to achieve.

But what I like about it is that it's something worth going for. I'm sure that if we just get close to achieveing it we will not only have set a benchmark for our sister companies..we will have improved ourselves along the way.

Who would think that Jollibee would beat McDonald's at it's own game? It seemed impossible then...but if one convinces many to believe it can be done...it happens.

MINDSET: THE BIG DIFFERENCE

I watched the second part of National Geographic's INSIDE 9/11 last night, and although I couldn't help think it was US propaganda versus Al Qaida (after all the story was being told from an American's point of view,) still I believed it was wrong to take away lives indiscriminately, whether for revenge or whether in the name of Allah. ( So I would also not approve of the Crusades or the Spanish Inquisition for that matter.)

The episode ended with a striking parallel between the US mindset and the mujaheddin's, and it somehow explained why they weren't afraid of blowing themselves up (and others with them.) There was a shot of Osama Bin Laden making his way up a hill with another Al Qaida member. Tha narrator said that against the background of US artillery bombings, Osama Bin Laden was supposed to have quoted that:"We (the Al Qaida) love death. The US love life. There lies the big difference."

Some of the so-called "expert" commentators interviewed remarked that the success of 9/11 galvanized the Muslim extremists to carry on their jihad not only against the US but against the world. The movement would continue even if Osama were captured or killed because as they showed from footages of bombings in Spain and London, the movement has already spread worldwide.

THE TREMENDOUS POWER OF FAITH

I watched a documentary the other night on the inside story of 9/11. It revealed that as early as 8 years before the attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, there were already indicators that radical Muslims were already plotting something against the USA in the belief that they were launching a jihad against the devil.

What really struck me was what the power of commitment to a cause or even one's faith could do. The men who carried out their suicidal mission believed they were doing something right and were willing to give up their lives for it. Except for one, the three others who flew the planes to their destruction went to the extent of learning how to fly planes. They found ways to get things done in spite of difficulties it involved and the danger of getting caught.

Because of commitment they got it done!

Another documentary I saw this time featured how the early Christians, by their faith in Jesus and his teaching on loving even those who persecute you,eventually shut down the Colosseum, the center of gladiatorial fights and Christian executions.

The story goes that because of the admirable faith the Christians had in rising again with Christ, the Emperor converted and did away with the games.

GIVING HAS ITS OWN REWARDS

Read from Late Lifer's blog about how he's been mentoring a 29 year old guy named Marcos set up his business and how it's taken off. Prescott revealed how he felt fulfilled about this experience and suggested to late lifers like him to engage themselves in mentoring.

I was rather inspired by this and resurrected the thought of teaching in College when the opportunity presents itself...or maybe I ought to start pursuing it. But I know what Prescott meant when he said he felt a sense of gratification. Seeing his mentee succeed most likely gave him a strong sense of usefulness at his age!