ANOTHER year has passed and hopefully I have turned out wiser. I don’t know but it has made me think that I will turn a year older again. Age suddenly becomes an issue. It must be my insecure homosexual hormones acting up again. When somebody asks me how old I am, I just say I am turning…around. I then talk about how Catriona Gray slayed in the recent Miss Universe pageant, or how my friend Allan is seething in jealousy over the recent photos of his twink crush, actor Kyle Echarri with his costar in Kadenang Ginto Andrea Brillantes, or how it’s all Gwen Stefani’s fault why the US has Donald J. Trump as its president and is now suffering for NBC’s mistake. I make my age a mistake—and riddle the answer to which depends entirely on the need of the moment.
It’s actually fun. When someone says I look like I’m about to turn 30, I turn pale and allow the lie to slink into the deepest recesses of my psyche. I hold my breath for a few seconds and smile like a Victoria’s Secret model who’s dating a rockstar.
When some bruha blurts an age—one year more than my real age—straight to my face, I use all my strength to muster the dark side of the force so I can do what Darth Sidious did to people who oppose him: obliterate them to smithereens. Just to remind you, Sidious trained Darth Maul and Darth Vader, so you can imagine how dark this force we’re talking here.
But what the heck! Everyone turns 31! (Charot!)
Anyway, back to writing about the new year and since this is the first weekend of 2019, I would like to thank everyone who was kind to me in 2018. I hope I was kind to you too last year and hopefully we can continue being kind to one another. For 2019 I promise to open my heart to the gifts of the universe.
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Piolo Pascual, JM de Guzman, Maymay Entrata and Edward Barber led the Star Magic artists that came to support the relaunch of the Bantay Bata 163 Children’s Village on December 1 in Norzagaray, Bulacan, where they welcomed the first batch of residents of the newly renovated halfway home.
The opening of Children’s Village coincided with “Star Magic Gives Back,” the annual year-end activity of the country’s premier talent agency, where Star Magic artists and staff visit different institutions to bring early Christmas cheer.
Joining Piolo, JM, Maymay, and Edward at Children’s Village were Ysabel Ortega and Sharlene San Pedro, who along with JM serenaded the children with song numbers; Vivoree Esclito and Heaven Peralejo, who led the children in fun games; and other artists including Eric Nicolas, Enzo Pineda, Luke Alford, John Bermundo, Yasmyne Suarez, Gerard Acao, Karl Gabriel, Luis Hontiveros and Mark Rivera. Meanwhile, other ABS-CBN stars visited the Good Samaritan Nursing Home for the Elderly in Marikina, the Craniofacial Foundation of the Philippines in Manila, and St. Maria de Mattias in Marikina.
Earlier this year, over 300 Kapamilya artists came together to support the relaunching of Children’s Village through raising awareness on the issue of child abuse and pledging donations at the ABS-CBN Ball 2018. Bantay Bata 163 also received support from other donors including the Quezon City local government led by Mayor Herbert Bautista and Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte.
Bantay Bata 163 Program Director Jing Castañeda-Velasco once again expressed her appreciation to the stars for taking time from their busy schedules to support their advocacy. “Star Magic is no stranger to making dreams come true, as it has nurtured its talents into the brightest and most recognizable faces in the industry today. We are truly grateful to have them with us as we rebuild lives and fuel the dreams of future generations,” she said.
The Bantay Bata 163 Children’s Village provides holistic healing for children at risk through physical and psycho-social means, and a structured, therapeutic, family-like environment. It serves as a place where every child can recover, thrive, and develop before being reintegrated with their families and molded into productive members of society. The first batch of new residents include children previously under the protection of the Quezon City Social Services Development Department’s Reception and Action Center and the Microgeo Network in Filinvest.
Those who would like to donate, volunteer or participate in Bantay Bata 163 activities may call the 1-6-3 hotline. Donations can also be coursed online on www.abs-cbnfoundation.com or through the Bantay Bata 163 cans placed in establishments.