The main obsession of our group here in school is how to lose weight. Everyone is always talking about how much weight she has gained since coming here. Even my friends who are quite skinny think they have to lose weight. We even compare methods or exercises or talk about what is the best weight loss product. My friends have been going to the gym to fight off those flabs while I have been going to Taekwondo classes almost regularly. So far, we haven’t seen any concrete effect of our efforts. However, we have one friend who manages to eat a lot but never gains weight. We all envy her and wonder where she puts all the stuff she eats in her small frame. I guess, it all comes down to genes and fast metabolism. Some people are just lucky.
According to Wikipedia, Mesothelioma is a form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. The first time I came across the terrible effect of asbestos on a person’s lungs was in the movie “With Honorsâ€. I cannot quite remember it but I think the character of the homeless man that Brendan Fraser’s character ended up helping suffered from lung cancer caused by asbestos. Brendan’s character took this homeless man to social services to get help for possible Mesothelioma treatment and the social worker was asking him to produce proof of his birth and he told her, “I’m here, ain’t I lady?†I really enjoyed that scene. I don’t remember much what happened to the guy after but that movie was one of my favourites. I think I’ll watch it again, one of these days and see if the disease was really Mesothelioma.
We were at the airport lounge waiting for 12:00 noon to arrive so that we can go inside the departure area talking about medicines. Our Korean friend, who was also our guide during our Jeju trip was suffering from what we believed to be gastritis. We were feeling very concerned and tried to think about an appropriate medicine to buy for him. Deki, a Bhutanese friend was telling us about this antacid that was popular in her country to treat gastritis. We were comparing medicines when she suddenly said that she wished there were appetite suppressant pills so that she would not be tempted to eat so much. She was also concerned about losing the extra weight she had put on since coming to Korea. I told her that there were pills like that but I don’t think she was really that serious about it. I’m sure if she really wanted to, she could look it up in the internet.
Napansin ko na ang mga matatanda dito sa Korea at maging sa Tsina ay maliliksi at masigla. Dito sa Korea, mahilig silang nakagrupo na lumalabas at gumagala. Nakikita ko silang kontodo porma para sa hiking at umaakyat sila sa mga bundok na nakapalibot sa Seoul. Minsan may dala-dala silang magagarang kamera at kumukuha ng mga litrato sa mga parke. Sa Tsina naman, nakakatuwang makita ang mga matatanda na nakagrupo sa mga parke at nagsasayawan o kumakante o di kaya tumutugtug ng mga katutubong instrumentong pangmusika. Sana sa pagtanda ko, ako ay magiging kasing sigla nila at kasing bibo.
(I noticed that the senior citizens here in Korea and even in China are very lively and active. Here in Korea, they go out in groups. I see them wearing complete hiking uniforms and climb the different mountains surrounding Seoul. Sometimes I even see them with professional-looking cameras and taking pictures in the parks. In China, on the otherhand, it’s fun to see groups of senior citizens dancing, singing or playing ethnic instruments in the parks. I hope that when I grow old I’ll be having as much fun as they have.)
Ang misyon ng simbahan at ng bawat Kristyano ay ipalaganap at isabuhay ang mga pangaral ni Kristo.
(The mission of the Church and all Christians is to spread and live out Christ’s message.)
