Cory brings people back to Edsa

Some lives are like that. They do not die. They do not die in ways that go beyond their thoughts continuing to influence people, their example continuing to inspire people, their memory continuing to cling to the minds of kin and friends. They do not die in ways not unlike those who are visited daily in their resting places by those who loved them indelibly deeply, who are kept company, who are caressed with words. They do not die because they remain a throbbing reality. They do not die because the detonation of the gigantic solidity of their lives scatters their atoms into the interstices of space, filling it, suffusing it, making themselves part of it. They do not die because they are, in every sense, still there.

Cory is one of them. What can one say?

Quoted from Conrado de Quiros' There's The Rub/By way of goodbye

What happened before and in-between?

When Ninoy Aquino was assassinated and the subsequent People Power that followed, we proudly declared to the world that we are proud to be Filipinos. We wear shirts declaring that or some sort.

That declaration suddenly died down.

When Manny Pacquiao took all the boxing crowns, the emergence of pride in the form of slogans came again.

After that- nothing.

Now that Cory Aquino died, another onslaught of those proud Filipino slogans is seen in Facebook.

What happened in between? Are we not a proud Filipino when we had a dictator? When a Filipino film director slayed the more stable and established directors at Cannes? When we are poor as ever? When we were considered as inventors of yoyo? When rampant graft and corruption has become a way of life of President Arroyo? When some unknown child become an ice skating champion somewhere even if we don't have snow here?

But what about you? When have you become a proud Filipino?

(Pic from anton.blogs.com)

Cory will always be my President

I would rather die a meaningful death than to live a meaningless life. - Corazon Aquino

I remember her when, many years ago, she came home to the Philippines after that dramatic Ninoy assassination. I saw her as a small woman, timid, so calm despite the troubles the Philippines was (and is) undergoing.

I was full of idealism then when Marcos declared an election. Fresh from high school and has been attending rallies and other movements to make Marcos step down, the elections gave me an opportunity to make my voice be heard. And it was my first time. Iba talaga pag first time.

I remember my room was full of Mr&Ms and pictures of Ninoy and Cory were pasted all over. Even in my bed. I was literally sleeping with Cory at that time.

One voice of Cory and I followed. She was my first President and will always be.

Rest in peace Cory.

María Corazón Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino, widely known as Cory Aquino, was the 11th President of the Philippines, serving from 1986 to 1992. She was the first female President of the Philippines and was Asia's first female President . She is a world-renowned advocate of democracy, peace, women's empowerment, and religious piety.

A self-proclaimed "plain housewife", Aquino is the widow of Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., a leading figure in the political opposition against the autocratic rule of President Ferdinand Marcos. After her husband was assassinated upon his return from exile on August 21, 1983, Aquino, who had no prior political experience, became a focal point and unifying force of the opposition against Marcos. She was drafted to run against Marcos in the 1986 snap presidential elections. After Marcos was proclaimed the winner despite widespread reports of electoral fraud, Aquino was installed as President by the peaceful 1986 People Power Revolution.

Aquino bio from wikipedia.org

Aquino pics from senatorpiacayetano.com and boston.com

And this, from time.com

Whenever the country appeared to be in a crisis, Cory Aquino rose above the bureaucratic procrastination that had always bogged it down, reminding her people that they once astonished the world with their bravery — and that they could do it again. But Filipinos must now take stock. Whom will they march with now that their saint has gone to meet her God?

ECT Launching Stage Backdrop

The End

Your hair reminds me of a time when we once were
Your fingernails that marked my back now rot in earth
The sheets we slept in blew away and now the storm is over
The taste of you inside my mouth remains but still I'm hearing

There's no love everybody's crying
There's no truth everyone's misguided

And now the end is here
There's no more pills to swallow
The bitter taste I feel won't lead me to tomorrow

Your scent reminds me of a place we used to go
The kisses placed upon my neck show signs of no return
The bed we fucked in smells the same and now the stench is fading
The taste of you inside my mouth remains but still I'm hearing

There's no love
Everybody's crying
There's no truth
Everyone's misguided

And now the end is here
There's no more pills to swallow
The bitter taste I feel
Won't lead me to tomorrow

Cries for anger, lies for power
Fighting for nothing is what you were born for
Cries for anger, lies for power
Fighting for nothing is what you were born for

Yeah!!

Cries for anger, lies for power
Fighting for nothing is what you were born for
Cries for anger, lies for power
Fighting for nothing is what you were born for!

(Bullet for My Valentine)