Personally, the year 2009 has been a very bad year for me.  I even think that “bad” is such an understatement.  It is definitely the WORST year that I’ve ever had in my whole lifetime.  The gravity of the bad things that happened to me this year is purely unbearable and there are so many regrettable things that I did this year.  So if you would ask how I’m feeling right now, I feel nothing but excitement for the end of 2009 (given that my year is becoming worse with all the deaths of people I know personally occurring now) and hope that 2010 will be a totally different year and would be conducive for a new vibe.

Biases aside, I think we all Filipinos should look forward to 2010.  Not only because it’s gonna start with a total bang with Ne-Yo, Paramore and The Killers having concerts during the first quarter of the year.  But seriously, I think this year has been entirely depressing not only for me but for all Filipinos as well.

Who would easily forget the nightmares brought to us by the night of September 26, 2009?  This is the night that Ondoy, the worst tropical depression the Philippines had to date started to drown possessions, investments, dreams and even lives of thousands of Luzon dwellers.  A few days after Ondoy, another typhoon accelerated in the form of Pepeng–which devastated thousands of people from the North of Luzon.

On November 23, 2009, 57 civilians were mercilessly murdered in the Maguindanao Massacre that happened on the fateful place of Amapatuan, Maguindanao.  This horrible event is still being mourned for by millions of Filipinos around the globe aided by the fact that there has been a very slow investigation of the said crime. A myriad of concerned bodies all around the globe also scrutinized the Philippine state for the seemingly flawed methods of investigation it has imposed with regards to the Massacre.  Eventually, cases against the suspects like Andal Ampatuan Jr. (a candidate for the mayoralty position in the said area) have been filed–which gives all of us a fighting chance that this hideous crime will be given the highly sought-for justice at the end of the day.  Here’s me hoping that this case really be treated accordingly or else many people will get mad.  This is really such a horrible crime. And the government should stop treating its constituents like morons who would take knee scrapes in exchange of innocent lives and shattered dreams.

On the same year, the Philippines has lost its number one fan in the form of King of Rap Francis Magalona [44 y.o.] and its democracy icon President Corazon Aquino [76 y.o.].  Our country also lost a remarkable film-maker and actor in the form of Mr. Johnny Delgado [61 y.o.].

On the worldwide scenario, it has also been a remarkable year for the deaths of numerous celebrities.  The world has lost its King of Pop Michael Jackson [50 y.o.] which is most probably the hugest shocker of 2009.  Some of the other people who have left us this year are Brittany Murphy [32 y.o.] (Clueless & Just Married), Stephen Gately [33 y.o.] (Boyzone), Patrick Swayze [57 y.o.] (Ghost & Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights), Daul Kim [20 y.o.] (South Korean Supermodel), Lucy Gordon [28 y.o.] (Spiderman 3 & Serendipity) and Chris Henry [26 y.o.] an American football wide receiver.   For a list of celebrities who passed away at 2009, click HERE.

At the moment of writing, the Philippines’ most active volcano, Mt. Mayon is at Alert Level 4 already and is claimed to be ready to blast hazardous lava and ashes in days.  The predicted eruption date is on New Year’s Day or a day after New Year’s Day.  Albeit the residents around the volcano have already evacuated days ago, the activity of the volcano is still strong enough to reach beyond the estimated boundaries of lava.  I guess the best thing we can do for our fellow countrymen living around the volcano is to offer them prayers that Divine Intervention makes the volcanic activities relatively weaker for damages in life and properties be minimal.  It can be truly easy to be apathetic when it comes to this matter especially if you are residing outside the affected area.  However, I believe that it is already the least thing we can do for our brothers and sisters residing there.  Of course I know that we can always say that we serve as safeguards for them by being able to donate relief goods and clothes to them after the disaster.  But if you come to think of it, saying a prayer will just take moments of our time and all our prayers combined with really mean a lot.  This is so much better than relying on the presence of future relief goods for we give these people a fighting chance that their lives and investments will be less harmed.

I am pretty sure that the difficulties and pains of 2009 aren’t exclusive to me and to the people who have been affected by the disasters and crimes of this year.  Let me not forget to mention that the economy of this year hasn’t been really favorable–given that many people are still unemployed or underemployed.  If you’re a regular visitor of supermarkets, you probably noticed that the carts of people nowadays have significantly decreased in contents.  People tend to buy more basic commodities now unlike before where people could still afford to buy extra stuff.  It just proves that everyone is currently experiencing financial crisis.

Well aside from the Pacquaio-Mayweather fight and the concerts that I mentioned earlier, there are a lot of exciting things to look forward to in 2010.  One of these things is the FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa.  On June, we would be experiencing a partial lunar eclipse which will become a total lunar eclipse on July.  For a complete list of events to set on 2010, click this LINK.

And of course for Filipinos, we would be all experiencing the chance to elect new leaders of our state on May 10, 2010.  It is also going to be the first elections that will use the automation machines so I guess every registered voter is excited and very hopeful for a clean and peaceful election.  I hope we won’t be disappointed.

The year 2010 in essence is the materialization of the new beginning that we have been all waiting for.  It is the new chance for us to omit the mistakes we’ve done in 2009 for us to have easier and better lives.  It will bring a big heap of hope that life, despite so much trials and bumps is still worth living for.  It’s a new avenue for us to prove our skills, our strengths and show the people around us what we’ve got!

So that makes up for it.  In behalf of the whole Pinoy Teens Online team, I wish you a very happy Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year!  We hope you’d support Kevin’s newest venture which is Teens.com.ph and Pinoy Teens too. 🙂

Note: sorry for the misalignments of photos. Hindi ako marunong, evidently. No matter what I do, ganito pa rin ang labas eh! 🙁