Unity in time of tragedy

As I’ve mentioned last week, having a Bisaya friend like Jose Mari Chan is one of the nice things about being well, a Bisaya.

After reading that write-up, he called me right away to thank me. Of course,I still intend to interview him one of these days.

Jose Mari Chan is known for his beautiful love songs. He couldn’t miss singing for fans especially on Valentine’s Day. I can’t wait to attend that event. This will be my first time ever watching him perform. Well, it will actually be my first time ever watching a show on Valentine’s Day.

Usually, I just stay home and watch DVDs or have a nice dinner with some of my closest single friends.

This year, I celebrate my second year of being single. I say celebrate because it’s nice to be single. Being one doesn’t necessarily mean being loveless.

Love has no meaning of its own. The emotion only defines itself in our hearts. It’s one of the most powerful things in life that can make or break us.

It’s nice to love and be loved. It’s just a matter of distinguishing the thin line between love and obsession. That’s one of the things people get confused about. Some of my friends seem very happy with their partners. But having disagreements often shows they may be having what we call a "dependent relationship." They’ve gotten so used to each other they can’t do without one another.

It’s very unhealthy at times when lovers spend so much time with each other and forget all about living their own separate lives. This may sound good at first, but in most of the cases I’ve heard of, the persons concerned end up in a dependent relationship.

Giving each other space to grow, I guess, is the best way to prevent this type of relationship.

Anyway, that’s not really something I should be concerned about because I’m happily single right now.

A few weeks back, my bestfriend Adriane and I talked about spending this special day together. Adriane, or should I say my "conscience" and "better half," has been my best friend ever since I got here in Manila.

Having a friend like him is pretty much like having a partner. He’s someone I can discuss a lot of things with before making big decisions.

In spite of our busy schedules, we still manage to find time to have dinner even just for a few minutes and talk about all sorts of things.

He keeps me grounded and makes me feel that loving and being loved don’t necessarily mean having a "boyfriend."

So, I’m pretty much looking forward to spending this Valentine’s Day with him for the first time.

After all, Valentine’s Day is all about spending that special day with those you love, right?

Speaking of love, I feel that this Valentine’s Day should be extra special because the stampede tragedy that took place in ULTRA clearly showed that there "is" still love in the community.

That very tragic event happened on a Saturday, but I only decided to turn my TV on to watch the news the following Monday. I was so devastated. Like they say, everything happens for a reason, right?

This may have been one of the most devastating events on TV, but something good came out of it.

It was heartwarming to find the other network, GMA 7, reach out to those in need as well.

The thing that got to me the most was seeing ABS-CBN CEO Gabby Lopez delivering his statement on GMA 7.

That was when I realized the forces of love can be strong enough to put the network war aside. I think this unity should be celebrated as well this Valentine’s Day.

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