Every day, my e-mail and cell phone inboxes collect stories from Manila to Machu Picchu, as friends recount things like slamming back Tanduay in Siargao or rubbing elbows with Hollywood’s hottest Australian actor over scrambled eggs. Whether they’re mundane or mind-blowing, each story compels me to assess my life by comparison. I miss many things I used to have: living out of a suitcase, Parisienne Milds, the African sun, beer and karaoke on a Magic Sing, weekend road trips to the beach and clubbing in Makati every night. Yes, I have had my share of adventures and plenty of great memories. I would be a liar to say I don’t miss that life at all, but I have made a decision now to commit to something much greater than myself. While reconciling with this sometimes seems to put Waterloo to shame, I know that I have made the right choice. It is when I stand by this choice that I feel truest to myself.
When Aimee Marcos first informed me of the plans that had long been brewing in her head, I was intrigued. While the typhoon victims of Quezon province were overshadowed by the tsunami tragedy in Indonesia and its surrounding neighbors, she decided it was high time to replace remorse with action. A conviction that has not once faltered since the very beginning of her quest slowly saw her become the bravest 20-something I know. While the rest of our contemporaries moved on with their lives and on to the next bar, boutique or country, she decided to put her little foot down and take matters into her own hands. Soon after, The Princess Bato Group emerged, a non-profit charity events organization composed of young and extremely talented individuals, fueled by a shared yearning to make things right. Although they were few, they decided to take on the Herculean task of promoting charity amongst their peers, using the arts as a formidable platform that managed to bond them, despite the seemingly impenetrable indifferences between them all. What they lacked in experience, they made up for in passion. And though their enthusiasm would dwindle at times, they never once lost heart. By the time I graduated from college and returned to the Philippines in December last year, heads were starting to turn.
"You can help out by helping," she said, "It doesn’t matter how much you can do; what matters is the fact that you’re starting to do something." This has become a maxim emblazoned on my mind, reminding me during trying times that the hardest part is already over.
My first venture with The Princess Bato Group saw us partnered with the International Museum of Women, a San Francisco-based organization that has made a thunderous impression on the world. We were approached to represent the Philippines for "Imagining Ourselves," an online collaboration of global representatives defining their generation of women. Our efforts laid the foundation for Sigaw ni Maria Clara, an event intended to liberate the Filipina from all the preconceptions that had prevented her from realizing the many facets of her true self today. It was a long and tumultuous journey that required all those involved to leap over the cynicism of the masses, but the result was a memorable production that we will forever hold dear to our hearts.
With the help of Lulu Castagnette, PLDT, Yabang Pinoy, San Miguel Beer and many other brave souls, Sigaw ni Maria Clara finally unleashed itself last April. Hundreds gathered by the Baywalk in Manila to witness a legion of shouting, proud Filipinas showcase their talents. This was a victory cry the world had been waiting to hear, a merging of voices celebrating today’s Filipina and the journey she has made. A fashion show featuring collections from Lulu Castagnette and Kate Torralba kicked off the program, followed by performances by writers featured on the Romancing Venus poetry CDs. The sounds of Cynthia Alexander, Isha, Matilda, The Late Isabel, Reklamo, Narda, The Dorques, Helen and Imago echoed into the night as we proudly watched the culmination of our dreams and struggles finally take place. The majority of the proceeds were used to provide inmates with necessary toiletries, considered a sparse luxury at the Correctional Institute for Women, located in Mandaluyong.
It is not easy running a non-profit organization (especially when you have to balance it with jobs that actually do pay the bills) and coping with the struggle of finding yourself in your 20s. It is not easy living in a world that is numb and fickle, wherein the first people to shed tears for your cause are the last to let go of a buck. It is not easy to ask others to support a greater cause when you know you will have to struggle with your own imperfections to eventually achieve your goal. But it is too easy to give up. That is the sad part. People do not realize that it takes so little to initiate the change we need to set things right.
"I do it because I finally realize what it means to fight for something," says Aimee, "My motto in life is ‘nothing worth it ever came easy.’ If only I can help alleviate the country’s state in the small way that I know how, through rock and roll, good music and the arts, then so be it. That is what I’ll do."
The Princess Bato Group is not placing itself out there for fame or fortune. It aims to spark the passion needed for things to change. It exists to blare social awareness and national pride at hi-fi volumes, to inspire contemporaries and at the same time give them a voice. It thrives on the passion of the underdog, a renegade amidst the complacency of the masses. We are rebels in Chuck Taylors, flashing the peace sign, carrying the faults and strengths of our people with pride as we moonwalk to tomorrow.
Next to shake up the system is Rock ng Republika, an event redefining Filipiniana for the next generation, through the fusion of Pinoy fashion, art and good old rock and roll. Rock ng Republika joins the powers of The Princess Bato Group, Yabang Pinoy, RockEd Philippines and Manila’s Five Loveliest Foundation. Watch for it on December 2, 2006, at the Rockwell Loft, Makati. Sound the alarm and break all the levers, ‘cause you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Wisdom and wisecracks are always welcome at whippersnappergirl@hotmail.com.