The Return of eLf ideas

ideas of an eLven being in Canada

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Too Much Rhetoric Equals...

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Yesterday, we had a busy yet wonderful day. We had lunch at one of our favorite Filipino resto--Asia Bowl--then we went to Chapters Booksellers (bought Classic Pop issue 4 and NME's 100 Greatest Britpop Songs), had my haircut; and finally in the evening, we attended the Philippine Independence Celebration at Marlborough Hotel (as representatives of 'Filipino Journal,' which is a pillar in the community).

Funny and annoying detail was, the event's theme was "Celebrating Filipino Families," and then one of the organizers upon seeing that Inna and I were with our four-year-old son Evawwen, she gave us a look. And then when we were requesting for a high chair from one of the servers, the same organizer said that they could not give us an extra chair and commented whisperingly that we should not have brought a child with us.

This was the second time it happened with the same event and with the same organizer (last year).

For one, Evawwen is as always manageable and relatively behaved and does not stray far from our table and never cried or put a tantrum--ever. Second, there's no indication on the ticket or in the event program that children are not allowed; third, we were there not as gatecrashers nor hangers-on--we were there to represent Filipino Journal of which I am the associate editor; and last, there were also a few other parents there who came with children--albeit a bit older.

I am an understanding, well-mannered, and intelligent person so I didn't react untowardly to that stupid habit of some people to belittle children and uttering negative remarks at earshot.

However, the next time a similar incident occurs with that same narrowminded person, I will make sure that I stand up and confront that person right then and there.

Ultimately, that person in question was one of the speakers--and how I cringed in disbelief and disgust as she peppered her speech with idealistic but empty statements about how Filipinos' way of valuing their families and their community are one of the best in the world.

Such hypocrisy! Such narrowmindedness. Too much use of rhetoric equals hypocrisy and absurdity!

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