Orangutan Nose, Elephantine Ears and a Big Stomach ..

A couple of years ago I went on an Indochina Invasion.  On separate occasions I was in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.  In my trips I was a skinhead.  I would usually be my paranoid self in my trips especially whenever I over hear locals say "Buddha, Buddha" as I pass them.

Now I do not understand a word they say but intuition tells me that they were talking about me.  Being a foreigner and looking like it.  Though I am Southeast Asian, I am bigger than most.  I wear 12's on my feet, enough said right?

That Buddha thing kinda stuck to my head.  I thought "Man, I gotta lose weight, some punks might provoke me with that Buddha thing again when I go to Buddhist places"..

Fast forward a few years, I had this opportunity to be nominated as a local partner for a Taiwanese company.  The preliminaries were promising.  The principals had one condition though.  I had to meet with them for dinner so that their Feng Shui master could check me out.

I was like "Is this some kinda joke?".  My lawyer friend doing the deal told me they were serious about it.  So I go to this crowded, multi-course meal, round table place which translates to fine dining with metal chopsticks that really means this place is expensive Chinese food.  I get there in business attire. Nothing GQ-usque fancy - loafers, a shirt, chinos and my ever reliable knock off Paul Smith cuff links for accent.

At the table, the principals welcomed me.  My lawyer friend was there and beside him was the Feng Shui master.  Jet Li himself in his younger years, with the matching outfit and zero English and just a bit of everything but smiling in silence.  This guy was not a local practitioner.  They FLEW him in from Taiwan for this.

Dang. They were serious.

In the course of dinner, the principals advised me that the Feng Shui master a.k.a. Jet Li was to examine me.  I acquiesced and wondered what I had to do.  I was thinking they were going to ask me to do something like twirl a chopstick, eat a monkey or maybe pick a card, any card.

Jet Li, stares at me.  Utters some inaudible babble in Chinese to the prinicipals.  No more than three (3) sentences.  I hear my name more than once though.

My Taiwanese counterpart then turns to me as I was eating some pork and noodles using fine chopstick cutlery, barely managing and says in a smiling face:

"Feng Shui Master already examine you.  Feng Shui Master say you have big nose, ears like elephant and big stomach.  Same like Buddha.  Good for business.  We sign contract.".


My lawyer friend was nudging me with his foot.  He saw my jaw drop.  I was still mouth agape at what I just heard.  I was waiting for them to break out in laughter.  My grip on the fine metal chopsticks was in transition, from fine dining to tactical.   A few  seconds passed, no laughter.  Only genuine pleasant smiles.  My friend still was nudging my foot for me to be cool.  I was still on the chopsticks.  Scenes from "The Matrix" flashed before my eyes.

It dawned on me.  "These guys are Buddhists.  They should not be taking their God's name in vain. Right?" 

They meant well.  My grip on the cutlery was not as tight.  It all made sense.  Dang, to them or the Buddhist world in general I LOOK rich and it's good for business.  I got that Chi and not just Chi as in Chinese food in me.  I got that "I look rich and prosperous" vibe thing going.

I shook hands, signed the papers and bid Feng Shui Master Sayonara.  My guys then further confirmed what I thought.  Even with the bulge, the Dumbo ears and Orangutan Nasals, I look rich, to them and "lucky" for the business.

Looking back at my life and wondering, I got a lot of friends, I got a lot of haters.  Yins and Yangers.  One thing I did recall was that I have always ended up in some position that does not take much experience, qualifications or a fancy education.  It was more of a trust and confidence thing for the most part.  In fact, my income is based on such as of this writing.

Maybe it is true.  I bring luck, somehow.  It rubs off on people I hang with.

In my major engagements and friendships, my friends would just want me around.  One job I did was just be with a friend, sign stuff, help entertain his guests and hang out.  Many times I was kidnapped to tag along trips at a moment's notice, even overseas at times.   Another friend once said that somehow, when he hangs with me, he scores with the girls.  Good for him. I am so flattered while he is swooned and I am at the bar, solo.

I wonder if it is really true about resembling the Buddha.  I sure hope it is.  Hey, I don't mind......  I say, "if you can't play, display".

At least I look rich, prosperous and "lucky" to some people.  Better than trying to look chic and just  looking homeless.

Everyday I wake up.   I thank Him.  I am blessed.  With or without the Orangutan nose, Elephantine ears and the big stomach.

I am so lucky.

Poems dela Soul

July 2, 2014 
Laiya, Batangas (with PGH)


Everything happens for a reason.

As I sit by the beach under the starlit skies, the darkness makes the heavenly bodies shine so much brighter.
The crash of waves on the shore serve as music to my soul.

I found out who my real friends are.  The tried and true.
Relieving my angst.  
In my 45th year, I know again the true colors of people "shining through" like the stars above.    The ebb and flow of waves, like the vicissitudes of life in the sands of time.

Everything happens for a reason. Oh, what a splendid birthday gift.  45 years and the realization I had while enduring. 

Life will go on. The bus wheels keep rolling......



Happy Day (May 2014)
Oh happy day
Rain has come in the summertime
An old man was given a visit and rewarded it with a smile
An old friend came to town unexpectedly and time was shared over cheer 
A friend in need was comforted with the value of the bond of friendship even  more appreciated .
In life he space between may be far and wide but the memories in between cherished and kept alive by such a simple gesture  
In such simplicity lies the grandest joy in life that plagues one's soul
Oh happy day...... 

THE DARK SIDE
"Never abuse a person's kindness. Never take one's humility for weakness. There is night. There is day. Like Shakespeare wrote "the evil that men do is interred in their bones". Fear the dark side of men. Some are darker than the caverns of the deepest abyss. Fear the macabre wrath that the humble and kind can unleash. Fear what a man can do when pushed to the edge. For this is the human condition.''


BRUSHES WITH DEATH
Doing the walk of life
Strolling by death's valley more than one time
6 hours to live because of pneumonia
a brawl
a prank
Sickness
Stress
By accident?
By design?
Only God will say "It is your time"

SERENDIPITY
Beg all you want
Demand
Force
Things that a person can do for want of
something or
someone
An act of Serendipity?
Hope
Pray
The only way

FRIENDSHIP

Cast by time

Come and they go in life

The true stay

Beyond distances they remain

Some betray

Others merely fade away

Lost to wives

Lost to money

Lost to contempt

Others return even better than before

Some simply just don’t matter no more

HAPPY OR SAD

Happy, Sad

Happy, Sad

Life is lived

Happy, Sad

God has given us trials and chances

God has given us the choices

What will it be?

Happy or Sad?

SOLITUDE

Eternally alone

Since birth

Alone even among family and friends

Betrayed

Mocked

Scorned

Surviving

Life is good

Lonely

Life is good, nonetheless

My path

My destiny that I accept

LONELINESS

Together with a partner

Lonely a person can be

​Dealing with it each time

Hardly ever getting used to it

Longing for love
Maybe just a little company

Loneliness in life is key
To realize one is still part of humanity

TIME

Flows like water

Runs dry in the sun

Gone forever

Like time

The past can never be changed

It haunts a person

What counts is today

The now

Per deum

The only way to live

Per Deum

WHAT OLDER MEN CAN’T HAVE              

One last fling

One last battle
One last fight

A true love,

An affair

A partner for life

A child

The years have gone

Time has passed

Withered, older

Nearing to be ash to dust

What can they do?

Alone I they are or have become

For life

Their  destiny

Their world

THE DREAM OF ROMANCE

Always there will be a woman in a man’s life

The one that got away

The true love

The perfect girl

The player

The one that never even knew him

Always there is one that fits that mold

Some look back with relief

Some look back and wish or even dream

Some never look back

Just knowing that they are a memory

Forever lost in the sands of time

HOME

Where is home?

In a mansion with 3 people

In a shanty with 18

In an apartment alone in a bad part of town

In the valleys of your heart

In the depths of your mind

Where is home?

Family and friends

Where the home lies

SAVE THE SECRET

Lips be still, no matter the urge

To brag

To fret

To reveal

Sensitive matters of the heart

Thoughts from the soul

Not all ears are eager to listen

Not all care

Some pretend to do and spread the words to those not supposed to know

Sugar coating at times

Violating trust

Spreading rumors

Treachery is around us

Caution should there be

Lips be still, heart be not broken

PURPOSE

What has God set me to do?

To be a friend?

To be a warrior?

A  brother?

Maybe juts simply to be?

Purpose is the mission I seek

Sadly only in death will I know

THE LUCKY ONES
Lucky are the ones
That find the right one to age with
To be their friends
To raise families    
Not all are blessed
Not all get the same
Lucky are the ones that know  

TRUE FRIENDS
True friends are hard to find
Acquaintances are five for a dime
Known only thru time
Filtered by memories of stunning sunsets and
the changing of the tides
Treasures they are that no money can buy
Aged like the finest of wines 
True friends are hard to come by

MOVING ON
Be on the move,
Push on thru
Forget the bad
Move forward, come through
No looking back
Cherish the good
Have faith
Life is just a path we are all passing thru  
So much to loose

Life is short, move anew

For Paul H

A man with a smile so bright
A heart radiant
A giving hand
Human
Thriving in this imperfect world
With him he carries his own dark side.

For Cristina Trinidad
A woman toils
embarks in another adventure
Another path
Another trip
Into the abyss of the unknown she dives
Deeper
The adventure continues
Her day has come

FOR INA FROM RAOUL
My angel has flown back to her world and I remain in mine
The pressure has been relieved
I am fine
I know you will be too
Until I see you again
If not in this life
Perhaps in the next
Goodbye my Queen
Goodbye

A MOTHER'S LOVE (for Zaida Asis)

The wind blows when the mother's talk

Her babies are now boys
Time is passing quicker than she wants
Before her eyes she sees the progression
Time remains constant.
Like her love
These boys will continue to grow to be men
Her love will also grow
She is their mother
No matter what and with time
Her love will continue to grow for these men
She is always their mother