Arnel Francis

" Time, time... just when we're starting to think that we have it, a fraction has been gone " - A.F.V. Morales "What day is May 5?...how 'bout May 13?". My unending recall of deadlines and activities gave me the urge to refer to a calendar. Being in the middle of a jeepney ride, I resorted to a pocket calendar which I remember I had from a shop in SM. To my dismay, the calendar was of no use. It was 2008, still crisp from being kept long on a wallet section... Funny, I said to myself, it seems like I had this last January 2010. It was an instance again that I really felt TIME passing so quickly... Have I taken for granted the nonchalant onset of it? I wondered. What have I done all these years? I esteemed teaching very late. It was only six years ago. I juggled my MA classes, earned Summer units in Education ...

THE REAL ESSENCE OF LEARNING On the last meeting in our Philosophy of Man class, my first day of pondering began. I never thought that at the very last hour the ultimate LEARNING would come. It was so strong that it still remained resounding in my heart up to now. My usual idea of "just-read-and-you'll-never-fail-the-course" attitude paved the way for me to rummage on books at the Ateneo library. The question of "Why Philosophy?" was more of a question to be answered rather than a topic to be discussed. "Why do I need to take this course when I had it in College before?", was a reluctance I have to abide. Days passed and our supposed "journey" has to conclude. Since I swam over the vast ocean of PHILOSOPHY and "learned" about great philosophers, their precise philosophies, I presumed it was adequate enough to close the books. Our teacher then asked, "Who am I?" Everyone was quiet. After that, she associated this q...