(Composed and posted on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021)

It’s been more than a year since we’ve been locked down but God’s love cannot be shut away. God’s love never fails, it never fades.

He never gives up; He is the reason for our hope in the midst of all this chaos. In the middle of a breaking glass sea, we are steadied by His gracious hand.

For Love in the time of COVID-19 is not found in superficial things, but in Him who lived for us, suffered for us, died for us, and rose again for us.

I pray that every time someone asks, “Why are you still so optimistic with all that’s happening around us?” we would all point to that ancient Cross, that Cross that was the source of so much suffering and so much love. The same Cross that would transition into the breakthrough of His light and love.

In a Garden we broke our relationship with God. In a Garden He trembled and sweat blood for our sake. Today, in a Garden He rises again more powerful than ever. And as He shows us His scars, Jesus tells us: “This was all for you. I love you.”

That is the reason. God is Love in the Time of COVID-19, and in Him we place our trust, our hope, and our faith in a brighter tomorrow.

Have a Blessed Easter Sunday 2021 everyone! Rejoice in Him!

He has Risen!

A Concept Paper by the author’s English for Academic and Professional Purposes subject re-posted on WordPress

Films are considered by many to be art, and while many of them are considered to be so, for me the Dark Knight Trilogy is a masterpiece on a different level. This observation got me wondering about the classic mimesis principle, that is, art imitating life. In this paper, we’ll be zeroing in on the threesome of superhero movies that changed the genre long before the Marvel Cinematic Universe got to where it is today. 

The theory is formally called Mimesis, a Greek word that means “imitation”. Plato and Aristotle spoke of mimesis as the re-presentation of nature. According to Plato, all artistic creation is a form of imitation. (Mimesis, Britannica.com) 

Art imitating life is evident everywhere. After all, one of the main tenets of my identity is an example of this as I was named after the Jedi Order in the world-famous Star Wars films. 

To come back to the main topic of discussion, we must first introduce the Dark Knight Trilogy. The Dark Knight Trilogy was a series of three films released in the years 2005, 2008, and 2012 respectively, with Christopher Nolan directing and Christian Bale starring in all three. 

In the first installment entitled Batman Begins, the young Bruce Wayne is forced to turn into the vigilante known as Batman to solve the crime brought about by the numerous evil elements in the city. As the film progresses, he has to face his fears in order to defeat his former mentor Ra’s al Ghul, the leader of the organization known as the League of Shadows. 

This film’s central theme was certainly fear, defined by Merriam-Webster as “an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger”. It is seen clearly when Bruce Wayne adopts the bat–the creature that he’s most frightened of–as part of his persona in fighting crime. Dr. Jonathan Crane, the villain known as the Scarecrow, also uses fear to his advantage by utilizing his psychopharmacological expertise in crafting a toxin that spreads panic. In the end, Batman learns to fully take on his persona and move past his fears to save the city he so desperately wants to cleanse.

Fear is truly an emotion that everyone has experienced. Whether it be fear of ghosts, terrorists, or the unknown, life is filled with things that humanity has a dread of facing. Batman Begins truly highlights this, pushing one to realize the importance of bravery; doing the right thing despite being afraid.

Moving forward, we have the 2008 film The Dark Knight. The second film was possibly the most popular of them all due to the press publicity it got with the untimely death of Heath Ledger, the actor of the Joker whose performance was critically acclaimed. In this film, Batman struggles to balance his role as Gotham’s “Dark Knight” as the insane Joker threatens to upend the entire city and send District Attorney Harvey Dent (Gotham’s “White Knight”) spiraling down to the abyss of chaos as well.

The second film’s central theme is a little less clear than its predecessor but it ultimately boils down to chaos. Merriam-Webster defines chaos as “a state of utter confusion”, and that was the case for the Joker’s maniacal plans for the city. In the end, while he may have lost in the battle for Gotham’s soul, he succeeded in turning Dent into an unpredictable character–Two-Face, a murderous villain who relies on the flip of a coin for his decisions. 

He also succeeded in bringing a little chaos into the main character, with Batman breaking his “one rule”, that is, never to kill. This leads to Batman’s disappearance after taking the blame for Dent’s death, resulting in the simultaneous loss of both “Knights” but leading to the rise of Lieutenant James Gordon.  

Here, we see life’s madness on full display. In one of the most iconic quotes in the film, Wayne’s butler Alfred Pennyworth describes the Joker and people like him likewise: “Some men just want to watch the world burn.” Life has indeed shown many people who spread disorder simply for the fun of it, and the Joker was the ultimate representation of that. 

Harvey Dent’s turn to Two-Face was also enthralling, with his obsession with fairness and bitter realization of the unpredictability of life. Once more, we see art imitating life in a film that was equal parts disturbing and exciting; a tribute to the brilliance of the people who worked to bring the story to life.

Finally, we have the final film in the trilogy, 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. This film shows Bruce Wayne pushed to his limits as he comes out of retirement as Batman to face the anarchist Bane and his army of followers. It is Nolan’s highest-grossing film, and it features Anne Hathaway as the fickle Catwoman and the returning Joseph Gordon-Levitt as young police officer John Blake.

For the concluding movie, the central theme is most definitely despair, a term that Merriam-Webster defines as “utter loss of hope”. Despair is a deeply draining emotion that many people feel, especially during moments of great loss. 

It is given a central stage in The Dark Knight Rises, especially during Bruce Wayne’s ordeal in the underground dungeon. The sadistic Bane even forced him to watch via a television monitor as he completely derailed justice in Gotham, exiling or killing the rich and powerful of the city while setting up a nuclear bomb to completely destroy the city. 

The feeling of helplessness could be felt through every word and every action. Nolan truly uses the film as a canvas to paint the most excruciating feeling of paralysis, with hope lost due to the volatile situation. Eventually, however, the rock bottom of despair meant that there was no way to go but up. For Batman that meant both literally and figuratively as he escaped from the dungeon, a Dark Knight rising from the depths of hopelessness.  

Through the lens of the three films and their respective themes–fear, chaos, and despair–the realities of life are examined. Each feeling or state that plagues humanity is given the spotlight; art, in the form of film, imitates life in a way that is simultaneously intimate and detached from us viewers. “After all,” we say, “it’s just a fictional story.” 

Perhaps that is why we are so drawn to art, to stories, and to the media. We realize that it can reflect back to us our own daunting experiences, our own deep hurts, and our own flawed visages, and we can realize that one can rise above these. So maybe art imitating life isn’t just a cheap rip-off; it’s a way for us to represent and subsequently study ourselves in a very real way. 

Art is not just something aesthetically pleasing. It is there to guide us to think, to appreciate, and to feel. And what is more important to think about, to appreciate, and to feel than the realities of life and ourselves? 

Art can help us rise from each dark night; it is a mirror to ourselves, and a window to the soul. All it takes is creativity, skill, and a certain knowledge of everything that is around and within us.

Bibliography

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (Last edited November 22, 2011.) Mimesis. Britannica.com. https://www.britannica.com/art/mimesis

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Fear. Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fear 

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Chaos. Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chaos 

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Despair. Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/despair 

Rotten Tomatoes critics and contributors. (n.d.) Batman Begins. Rottentomatoes.com. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/batman_begins

Rotten Tomatoes critics and contributors. (n.d.) The Dark Knight. Rottentomatoes.com. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_dark_knight

Rotten Tomatoes critics and contributors. (n.d.) The Dark Knight Rises. Rottentomatoes.com. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_dark_knight_rises 

Rhys McGinley. (n.d.) Christopher Nolan: All Movies Ranked By How Much They Grossed, According To Box Office Mojo. Screenrant.com. https://screenrant.com/christopher-nolan-movies-ranked-by-gross-box-office-mojo/ 

Wonder Woman 1984 is a superhero film directed by Patty Jenkins. It stars Gal Gadot as Diana Prince, the titular Wonder Woman. The movie takes place in the heart of the bright pop-culture wonder of the 1980’s and sees Wonder Woman take on challenges on many fronts: bringing down the dangerously ambitious and powerful Max Lord, dealing with an insecure gemologist named Barbara Minerva, and facing the struggle between truth and lies, further complicated by the shocking return of her beloved, Steve Trevor.

Wonder Woman 1984 is a film that many have been anticipating since the release of the first movie in 2017, myself included. Many of us who love superhero flicks wondered what was the next chapter for Diana Prince; upon watching, we got treated to an interesting but cliché sequel for the Amazonian warrior princess.

This review will have 10 points as criteria. The 10 points of criteria are the setting, plot, characters, cinematography, musical score, special effects, editing, script, and moral lesson.

Each point will be represented by a full star for the rating system at the end of the review. Excellent work will earn a full star, good quality will earn 0.75, average level will earn half (0.5), needs improvement will earn 0.25, and unsatisfactory quality of the aspect involved will result in the deduction of the star altogether.

 For its setting, the film takes the superhero movie genre and tosses it back into the bright and bustling era of the American ‘80s. It was an inspired attempt, but in my opinion it fell a bit flat. There were hardly any references to events of that time (save for the semi-mentions of the Cold War), no celebrity cameos, and barely any music that matched that decade save for one Duran Duran song and “Welcome to the Pleasuredome” (no Michael Jackson, Prince, or Madonna, three of the most iconic stars of the time? Really?). This was their chance to go all-out on the sentimentality of the past, and I don’t think they capitalized as they should have. Star grade: 0.25.

Focusing on the story itself, Wonder Woman 1984 takes the classic “be careful what you wish for” trope and ups the ante, with the desperate Max Lord turning into a crazed wish-obsessed version of himself. I applaud the effort for adding a fresh twist with the addition of the “truth against lies” conundrum, but unfortunately I couldn’t find myself wholly invested in such a classic but overused concept. (I rank “be careful what you wish for” alongside ideas like time travel and love at first sight.)

Plenty of it also seemed very far-fetched, like the [SPOILERS ALERT] turning of Max Lord into the Dreamstone itself, Wonder Woman’s defeat of Barbara despite her turning into an apex predator (read: top of the food chain), the ancient plane still having enough fuel to fly to Cairo, Wonder Woman’s sudden mastery of cloaking the same plane despite her only using invisibility once before, and the world going back to normal in the snap of a finger. The film also seems distracted in its target audience, with childish themes but violent and at times sexual scenes interspersed throughout. Star grade: 0.25.

For the character aspect, it was a pretty well-rounded variety of personas. The strong and confident Diana really played off her foil, the socially awkward Barbara. Steve’s return is also a welcome one, as he serves as both Diana’s beloved and a comic relief during his wonderment at the modern world. Max Lord’s character was also pretty well-crafted, with the desperate father who just wanted his son’s love and admiration turning into the disturbed villain. All four main characters were well-defined, which is always something you love to see in a world filled with one-note personalities. Star grade: 1.

In terms of acting, I was very pleased. Gal Gadot plays her role as Wonder Woman phenomenally, and it was plain to see that she really embraced and became Diana Prince. Chris Pine also worked well in his innocent amazement at the world’s advancements, Kristen Wiig played a very convincing Barbara in both her awkward and confident stages, and Pedro Pascal’s portrayal of the unstable Max Lord really balanced out the sometimes goofy wish gimmick. Star grade: 1.

For the cinematography, I thought that the film also excelled. The quality was superb and the shots fit in nicely. However, they weren’t as impactful as, say the Dark Knight or the MCU movies. Star grade: 0.75.

The musical score was good, too. The background music was suited to each scene, and I especially loved Mozart’s Voi Che Sapete during the scene in which Diana was showing Steve the rockets in the museum. With that being said, as I mentioned before, the film sorely lacked pop music from that time. The absence of stars such as Lionel Richie, Cyndi Lauper, and Chicago made the film miss an added boost to its attempt at conjure up the nostalgia for the older audience. It’s a shame, because in my honest opinion the 80’s were the richest time for pop music. We haven’t even begun to talk about Hall and Oates, Bruce Springsteen, Eurythmics, late Queen, The Police, and Air Supply–at least use a better Duran Duran song than “Rio”. Star grade: 0.75.

Moving on, we have the special effects department. I enjoyed the fireworks in the plane-flying scene, but that was the exception. I was not at all pleased with the CGI in this film. The sequences with the Lasso of Truth looked overly bright; as a result, it definitely looked artificial. A certain someone’s transformation also resembled a copy of the Cats movie, the animations of which were universally panned. The fighting sequences looked messy and fake, and even Wonder Woman’s flight in the blue sky looked odd to me. Star grade: 0.

In the editing department, there isn’t much to say. The transitions were clean and straightforward, with no distracting effects. Star grade: 1.

For the penultimate point, the script was actually written well. Steve and Diana’s few flirting moments were in-character, and Barbara’s introvert lines were on point (I could actually relate to her from time to time). The emotional exchanges between Diana and Steve was especially great, with Gal Gadot’s delivery shining through. If the screenwriters had the Dreamstone and wished for a great script, nothing would change. Grade: 1.

Finally, the moral lesson. When I was younger, I used to write movie reviews from 2015-2019 and I always incorporated the take-away insight: Did I learn anything from this movie? If so, what was it and is it important and/or timely?

As previously stated, this film is strongly centered on the consequences of uncontrolled wishes as well as the contrast of lies and truth. The moral lesson can be summed up in Wonder Woman’s desperate plea to the deranged Lord: “This world was a beautiful place just as it was, and you cannot have it all. You can only have the truth, and the truth is enough. The truth is beautiful.”

It is indeed a true insight, although one that has been repeated over and over again that it has become a watered-down maxim. If I had one wish from the Dreamstone regarding this film, it’s that I would like it to have a more unique and fresh insight to share to the world, one that may speak to the people of this time in a resounding and eye-opening manner. But as our heroine has said, we can’t have it all. Star grade: 0.5.

Now that I have broken down the eight points, it’s time for the 10-star tally, possibly the most important part due to its instant and final verdict that the readers, such as yourself, will scan to help you decide whether or not to watch this. The concluding score is: 6.5 stars out of 10.

And there it is. Hopefully my review will help you make an informed decision if you’ll watch it or not. My honest recommendation? Overall, it’s good entertainment. It’s not going to be in my favorites list any time soon, but I still had a fun time watching with my family. I suggest you try it out yourself and see if you might disagree with some of my points.

That concludes my movie review on Wonder Woman 1984! Cheers, dear readers! May this 2021 be filled with more high-quality movies for us to enjoy. And that’s something I truly wish from the bottom of my heart. Stay happy, healthy, and safe!

-Jedi

The year 2020 surprised us all with the unpredictable plot twist in March. While the world found itself in a whirlpool of fear and chaos, many turned to social media for comfort, myself included.

For all those past months of lockdown I simply sat there and used hours upon hours of my waking life to scroll endlessly in a sea of stories, memes, and news. My most visited haunts were Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (what I liked to call the Social Media Unholy Trinity), although I also visited numerous other sites and even stumbled upon accounts made long ago that I had previously abandoned. (Ex. Tumblr, Reddit, and Discord)

While it was great the first few months, I found that it had many negative effects on me. First, I was so attached to my phone. Every single time there was a vibration (or even when there wasn’t one!) I instantly checked it out. If I were to make an estimate of how much time I spent on social media in total, I would honestly say I spent around a couple of weeks on there. (And I’m not even factoring in the video-watching on YouTube, which some classify as a social media platform.) It was extremely time-consuming, and looking back I wish I had spent that time on something more constructive. But I digress. Moving on–

–secondly, I had a serious amount of bad vibes whenever I hopped on the ‘Gram or the two other platforms. On Instagram I would see my fancy friends having fun despite being on lockdown and while I knew that these were only their highlight reels, I still felt pangs of envy whenever they showed off their pictures of video chats with friends (yeah, being left out sucks), new consoles, and great TikTok skills. I felt lonely many times and I found myself comparing myself to the people who were coping so well with the quarantine.

This is not to mention the constant slew of fake and negative news, with so little good mixed in. Social media is an instant service, and to get the clicks I guess the best stories are the tragic/controversial ones. (I swear every time I saw a “#___IsOverParty” I immediately logged off Twitter. Cancel culture is quite frankly immature and does not foster a culture of understanding, instead hastily condemning people in the court of public opinion with a jury that refuses to believe or listen to anything else from what they say.)

Another thing about social media in 2020 for me was that I became kind of self-obsessed. I had a sort of mania about myself, picturing and videoing every little thing I had going on. Somehow, social media brought out my narcissistic side and showed itself to others. “They’ll want to see what I watched,” I thought. “That food on the table looks great, my friends should know I ate it!”

And so I over-exposed myself. Every little thing I did (that was aesthetic enough for the camera)–eat pizza, watch FRIENDS, play with my pet dogs, take a stroll in the neighbourhood, even praying the Holy Rosary–I showed in my stories as well as my tweets. And–confession time!–my goodness, the hits of dopamine I got whenever I got a “__ replied to your story” or “__ replied to your Tweet” notification were so pleasurable that I practically had a story for every day.

This self-obsession was made evident when I did a social media detox in November. I completely logged off and uninstalled Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (I still kept Messenger though in case an important message came through like from schoolmates or relatives). I managed to do the 30 day detox for IG and Twitter, but Facebook was too valuable to me and I settled for a one week break instead.

Going back to my point, without my crutches of posting and talking about everything in my life, I found myself having withdrawal symptoms from it. Yes! Withdrawals from not being able to constantly show everyone what I was doing. Every time I hunkered down to watch How I Met Your Mother or I ate a delicious dish courtesy of my parents, I couldn’t help taking a picture or a video. But of course, I couldn’t post it, so I was still not sated. Luckily, I got through it.

In December, I went back to using social media. I didn’t reinstall the apps on my phone for fear of falling back into my old habits, but I still accessed the platforms on the desktop browsers on my laptop and on my phone’s browser. It was obsessive, and once again I found myself peeking into the lives of other people. Only this time it felt different. This time I actually felt a bit nauseated.

“Why am I looking at their stories/tweets/posts to see how they’re doing?” I asked myself. “Why don’t I have a genuine conversation with them, ask them what’s really up and have a true connection?”

And so I decided in late December, around Christmastime, to quit social media for 2021. I was a bit scared but also excited, and I found myself readying myself for it. I constantly listened to TedxTalks criticizing the superficiality of social media, and I took time to list down things I could do with the free time I had without it.

Now here I stand, on the evening of January 2, 2021. I still haven’t hopped onto any one of the Social Media Unholy Trinity, and I can honestly say I feel better. There is still stress, for sure, because it doesn’t only come from social media, but I feel like I actually get to focus on what’s happening on my own life. Social media made me show a superficial side of me and made me do things I didn’t even really feel like doing. (Example: I was watching a movie, then I pictured and posted it. After a bit I stopped watching. I wasn’t actually invested. I just “did it for the ‘Gram”.) Social media also, as previously mentioned, made me look into other people’s “lives”–as we all know, social media for the most part is perfectly sculpted, with filters and captions that were thought about for a long time. (At least in my case HAHA)

I’m turning 18 this year, and I have a lot of goals planned. I plan on reviving this blog of mine, for example. I also want to graduate Senior High school with flying colors, and my quest to get into my dream school for college is picking up steam. I want to learn how to dance. I want to learn sign language. I want to finish all of the writing projects I have procrastinated on, and I’m even aiming to submit manuscripts to a famous publisher of children’s books this year. I plan to grow spiritually too, with my ongoing Bible Study set to come to a close within the year, and I am still gunning for six-pack-abs in my fitness goals.

All of these are possible with the removal of the stress, time-consuming, and stripping away of self-obsession that comes with quitting social media. And while I’m not sure when I’ll come back to it (I can’t even guarantee I won’t EVER use one of the 3 within this year), I know for a fact that this is the right choice for me. My word for this year is “Breakthrough”, and I truly think that without the superficial showcasing of “my life” (No, I don’t always watch NBA Live, nor do I always snack on high-end Swiss chocolates) I can achieve growth in all aspects of my life. And while I can’t say that quitting social media cold turkey is for everyone, I suggest you try out a detox like I did (maybe 7 or 30 days). See what happens.

And that wraps up this free-writing article. I won’t edit this at all, because it defeats the purpose of what I just talked about. I just wrote this in one sitting, and I poured out my heart’s insights on this digital screen. I guess new technology also has its benefits. (Imagine using a typewriter these days!)

Here’s to a year with less wasted time and more productivity! Don’t forget to take care of yourself. Drink water, pray, rest well, and be kind. You were loved, you are loved, and you will be loved.

Cheers this 2021!

The Okir motif is a Maranawon artistic design. It encompasses multiple artistic designs, usually making use of hardwood, brass, or silver. It has multiple subjects/elements, including (but not limited to) dapal (leaf), todi (flower), and piowas (betel nut seed).

This picture shows three different okir designs that show the diversity of the motif.

This shows the okir motif being used as artistic additions called panolongs to a structure. This one appears to be a torogan, a traditional house built by the Maranao people. The name literally means resting place or sleeping place. Interestingly, its Tagalog cognate is “tulugan”, also literally meaning sleeping place or resting place.

This picture shows a craftsman working on an okir design in the present day. It is an intricate process that dates back to many, many years ago.

This specific okir design was done in paint on a flat surface, showing once again the flowing, swirling, and lines of the diverse yet traditional design. At the top is shown the traditional Moro sword, the wavy-bladed Kris, a reminder of the warrior-filled history of Mindanao.

Once again, the okir design is used for the panolong, the distinctive ornate eaves that add a flair and tradition to otherwise relatively simple structures. The beauty and shocking blend of colors is a beautiful sight to architects, artists, and simple art-appreciating people alike.

In our modern world, people tend to dismiss folklore as outdated. We tend to believe it’s simply nonsense, strange myths from a time past. What we don’t remember is that it has inherent value, especially to our cultures as people.

One of the questions that many ask is “does folklore allow the people to escape from societal consequences?”. In my personal opinion, if taken literally, yes, it allows this. Blaming everything on such myths as enchanted beings and the like can be like making air a scapegoat for certain things.

However, if we use folklore to learn and realize our values as a people, it can be a tool to actually face ourselves and our consequences.

Another question is “does folklore validate their established culture?” For me, yes, it does. Despite the official separation of church and state, many still believe in higher powers, like God. When the Spanish came, we made a relatively smoother transition from believing in folklore to believing in Christianity.

Finally, the last question is “does folklore transmit their culture’s values system?” Again, my answer to this is a resounding yes. Taking a look at all the stories, you can see veins of our culture throughout them, as evidenced by the table I filled up. Many of the characters are practically plucked from real life and made to act in our culture’s norms. Therefore, when others read our stories and learn our folklore, they can see a glimpse of our society, in the past, the present, and the future.

Folklore truly has a contribution to our society, whether we see it or not.

Pro wrestling is a form of sports entertainment that many enjoy, including myself. This means that there are more than just one company that wish to promote it. Examples include World Wrestling Entertainment, which is the largest and most popular one, All Elite Wrestling, a new promotion, and New Japan Pro Wrestling, a promotion based in Japan.

Literature has always been a big part of my life. The first novel I read was Mattimeo by Brian Jacques. I grew up reading many different series, including Redwall, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, The Fire Thief, The Secret Series, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Mysterious Benedict Society, and Goosebumps. I enjoyed adventures a lot, and read 9-12 books advanced for my age.

I fell in love with basketball in 2014 and I have never stopped since. Basketball is a sport that involves shooting a ball into a hoop and has millions of fans across the world. I watch many different leagues, including the National Basketball Association, the Philippine Basketball Association, and the ASEAN Basketball League.

As the family joker, I always found myself gravitating towards comedy. I loved making my family members laugh, and I especially love puns. Lately I’ve been very much into stand-up comedy which I view on YouTube and Netflix. Examples of comedy I love are The Office, Saturday Night Live, and Kaguya-sama: Love is War.

I consider myself a member of many different fandoms. I love geeking out over things, especially movie series. (Maybe this ties into the fact that I was named after an order in an extremely popular film series. Maybe.) I am obsessed with Game of Thrones, Big Bang Theory, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Carribean, and many different anime, including Clannad, Erased, and Food Wars.

One of the greatest wrestlers of all time Chris Jericho once said, “If Shakespeare was alive today he would be writing wrestling shows.” I think that perfectly sums up the bizarre hybrid of entertainment and sport that is professional wrestling.

Pro wrestling is not a legitimate contact sport. I think that every wrestling fan over 10 realizes that each match is scripted, choreographed, and predetermined–it still doesn’t take away from the enjoyment of it.

It tends to move people in ways that are inexplicable. Grown men in the crowd can start crying hysterically, all because of the “fake stuff” people mockingly call it. And that’s because of the story.

It involves competitors who have feuds with one another. Of course, every feud has its reason, and every feud has to have a victor. That’s what keeps people glued to their screens–who’s going to win? Will good prevail? Or will evil have their way?

Is professional wrestling scripted? Yes. Is it predetermined? Definitely. Is it fun? Absolutely. 

Have you ever felt trapped? Have you ever thought, “I want to break free”, like in the Queen song? (Sorry, I’m just a huge fan.) If so, minimalism is for you.

Minimalism is a philosophy and a lifestyle that involves loving people and using things, not the other way around as modern society would have you think. Minimalism can help you save, declutter, and prioritize the things that are truly important in life.

Many complain that they are not earning enough to buy the things that they want. However, minimalism makes one realize that life is not about what you own but rather by what you do. This leads you to realize that if you minimize your spending, you can live within your means and spend your money wisely.

Minimalism also helps declutter. Many houses have certain areas for unused things that they store away. This limits your space, and you don’t get the value out of both your items and area. With minimalism, you only keep the things that add value to your life, things that you really, truly need and use.

Finally, minimalism lets you focus on the true “finer things in life”; what are you passionate about? Who do you want to spend more time with? What experiences do you want to tick off your bucket list?

I’ve recently become a convert to minimalism. Material goods do not define us. They help us, but compulsory consumption is not healthy at all. Buying something just to fit in or go with the trend is not going to benefit you in the long run.

A counter-argument would be this: “What if I want to own a lot of things? I’ve worked hard to get where I am and buy the things I want.” In that case, of course, the phrase “you do you” comes into play. Minimalism is simply a call to let you own your objects rather than letting your objects own you.

Minimalism is something everyone needs to hear about, whether they are into it or not. After all, life is not defined by what we own, but what we do, who we love, and what we experience on this earth. We only have one life; let’s value experiences over things.

Badminton is a sport with many benefits and it may yield many positive points for those who try it. I truly believe that badminton should be taken up or at least tried by more people. We need this more than we know.

Many people today are looking to lose weight. Playing badminton is a great solution to this, whether it be for fun or in competitions. It burns a lot of calories and the movements involve basically all of your muscles, helping to burn more fat.

Studies have also shown that playing badminton can increase one’s bone density. It alleviates stress on your bones and helps in the growth of cells crucial to the promotion of bone growth as well as maximum accumulation of calcium.

Playing badminton can also help one’s reflexes, intelligence, and productivity. Because the style of play is so rigorous, it helps you keep alert and constantly improving your reflexes. This allows you to concentrate better on work, makes you agile, and develop strength which helps get rid of stress.

Badminton also helps improve one’s social skills. Of course, one cannot play alone, and playing against the same opponent over and over again can get pretty tiresome; therefore, you’ll constantly seek out new competition, earning you opportunities to make friends.

Finally, badminton helps in keeping someone in a good mood. It helps in making you strong and motivated, and lets you enjoy better sleep at night, thus minimizing the risk of any illness getting aroused within your body because of poor sleep.

Badminton truly is a great sport. It not only helps in the physical aspect, but in the mental, social, and emotional aspects as well.

Let’s go play!