2021 Monthly First Post

So, we have come this far. I am happy to be alive and blogging. Grateful for a wonderful year despite the losses. The grief. The heartaches. This is what my 2021 looks like according to the first blog post made every month.

January - On Instagram, I posted seven photos of books I plan to read for 2020 around early January. Of the the seven books, I have only read one book in full, which is Liwag and Brion's In Their Own Voice (ADMU Press), a book of essays by young people in a journey of understanding themselves and the world they create and inhabit. Proust and the Squid and The Gutenberg Elegies are books I munched on. These are non-fiction titles which fill in my need for functional reading. All three titles serve a purpose for professional growth. 

February - Cross post from my IG account a poem I wrote for library work.

March - I am glad when I get feedback from children and young people. This group of readers are the people I write for. Their comments, questions and replies to my books or author visit sessions affirm the work I do and inspire me to improve and to continue writing. 

April - Here is part two of the blog interview with Mr. Joel Donato Jacob. He is the author of the 2018 Scholastic Asian Book Award winning novel Wing of the Locust and the Best Asian Short Stories 2019 Editor’s Choice, Artifacts from the Parent. He lives in Bay, Laguna with his mother and dogs. He enjoys the outdoors, cooking, and fitness.

May - The first four months of 2021 have passed by so quickly! Schools that follow the regular academic calendar are on break and many have streamed their online graduation ceremonies on YouTube and Facebook. In our school, we are counting the days till June, then we will bid academic year 2020-2021 goodbye. We learned so much this year living through the Pandemic of 2020. I will be reserving a series of posts for this topic next month. For now, I reckon, as published author of children's books, the Online Author Visits I have had since January 2021.

June - At the beginning of 2021, my copy of Trese Bloodlines arrived in the mail. My kids and I, hubby included, were glad to read another spin off of the Trese series (Tan and Baldisimo, 2005). Yes, we are fans and we enjoyed how its creators have engaged readers and the fandom for years. 

July - Episode 143 of Run BTS is such a delight! The Bangtan Boys wrote stories for children and they told/read them aloud after. Needless to say, it pushed me farther on to the BTS rabbit hole. 

August - This pandemic challenged and inspired me to develop modules and training programs for teachers, librarians and parents on Bibliotherapy. I had several online sessions last year with teachers of Saint Pedro Poveda College, students and scholars of the De La Salle Greenhills and with the online learning community of The Learning Revolution. 

September -  Reading Gives Hope Book Drive Reading Guide Contents by  Zarah Gagatiga Design and layout by Eunice Quero

October - Today is World Teachers Day. 

Today, I remember my father, a retired public school teacher who served in the public school system for thirty years, more or less. He is 72 years old now and is recovering from a stroke from four years ago. Such things recur when untended. With the pandemic barring him from regular medical check up, therapy and consultations, the symptoms seem to be compounding. We keep faith and hope afloat. We pray and dream of better days to come.

November - Inspired by the art of Jose Torres Badelles. Another cross post from IG.

December - What Makes Kim Seokjin Amazing 

 He does his homework and delivers it exceptionally well. For someone who claimed to having no talent for singing, Jin earned it the hard way. Nor was he a dancer but he worked triple time not just for himself but for the group to achieve efficiency and precision.

Keeping a positive outlook. Hanging on to hope! More grace to be had!