YOU know you're FILIPINO If...Part 2

The book You Know You’re Filipino If… by Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz pays tribute to all that is Filipino. The statements started as forwarded messages on emails as a tongue-in-cheek list of quirks and traits that made Filipinos stand out in a crowd. “You know You’re Filipino If…” became popular with Pinoys in the Philippines and abroad.

The author has come up with eleven categories detailing the unmistakable characteristics that make Pinoys stand out in a crowd. It’s like a test where you have to check boxes of any statement that applies to you or you can relate to. Depending on how many items you’ve checked you get a score on how truly Pinoy you are. Let me share to you the statements that best apply to me.

Have fun getting to know what a real Filipino is.

Family Matters

Your middle name is your mother’s maiden name.

Your parents call each other “Mommy” and “Daddy.”

You have uncles and aunts named Boy, Girlie, or Baby.

You have relatives whose nicknames consist of repeated syllables, such as, Jun-Jun, Ling-Ling, and Mon-Mon.

You call the parents of your friends and your own parent’s friends “Tito” and “Tita”

You greet your elders by touching their hands to your forehead.

The prospect of sending your elderly parents to a nursing home is inconceivable.

You abide by your parents’ house rules even if you are over 18.

You live with your parents until-and at times even after-you’re married.

You think nothing about hosting a houseful of balikbayan relatives for weeks on end-and can still smile about it.

You demand that your children sing and dance to amuse your friends and relatives.

Where we live

You decorate your living room wall with your family’s framed diplomas and certificates and plaques.

On your living room wall you display a shield bearing “The weapons of Moroland” alongside a giant wooden rosary and wooden tinikling dancers or Ifugao heads.

You decorate your dining room wall with a giant wooden spoon and fork and a picture of the Last Supper.

You keep a Sto. Nino shrine in your living room.

You keep a statue of a big, fat, laughing Buddha-with those pesky little kids crawling all over him-for good luck.

Your house has a “dirty” kitchen and a “clean” kitchen.

You recycle plastic shopping bags as garbage bags.

You use a bolo to cut grass in the yard.

You keep a tabo in your bathroom.

You used a halved coconut husk to polish the floor.

Health and Hygiene

You prescribe a ginger brew and a salt mouthwash to treat sore throats.

You use Vicks Vapor Rub as an insect repellant.

The way we eat

You eat with your hands.

You think a meal is not a meal without rice.

You use your fingers to measure the water you need to cook rice.

You can’t eat a meal without using a spoon with your fork.

You don’t need a knife to cut your food.

You think sandwiches are snacks, not meals.

These are Filipino BBQ. These are grilled and sold in the streets. These are dipped in vinegar before these are eaten.
Addidas – chicken feet
PAL – chicken wings
IUD – chicken intestines
Helmet – chicken heads
Betamax – chicken blood
Walkman – pig’s ear

You recycle bottles into water containers and store these in the fridge.

Your pantry is never without Spam, Vienna sausage, corned beef, and sardines.

You love to eat what others mistakenly refer to as “rotting fish.”

You prop up your knee while eating.

You can’t enjoy a meal without patis, toyo, vinegar, banana ketchup, or bagoong.

You eat fried chicken with ketchup and unripe fruit with giant salt crystals.

You eat fried Spam and hot dos with rice.

You like sweet spaghetti.

You like “dirty” ice cream.

You eat purple yam ice cream.

The way we drive

You hang your left arm out the window and wave your hand to signal a left turn.

You hang a rosary on your car’s rear view mirror.

You can squeeze 15 passengers into your five-seater car without a second thought.

The way we pray

You spend Holy Week either performing acts of penitence or vacationing.

You get together with family at a cemetery on All Saint’s Day to eat, drink, and tell stories by your loved ones’ graves

You can crack jokes, play cards or mahjong, and drink beer at funeral wakes and not feel irreverent.

You think the Christmas season begins in September and ends in January.

Christmas isn’t Christmas without a parol and a belen.

There are at least 50 people on your Christmas gift list.

You unwrap Christmas presents so carefully, so you can reuse the wrappers and bows for next year.

You touch your chin with your thumb every time you make the sign of the cross.

You make the sign of the cross every time you pass a church.

The way we travel

Your second piece of luggage is a balikbayan box.

You collect items from airlines, hotels, and restaurants as “souvenirs.”

You feel compelled to give “pasalubong” to all your friends and relatives each time you return from a trip.

The way we shop

You can’t make a purchase without haggling.

It’s an absolute must to go to duty-free shopping even when you’ve come home with several balikbayan boxes.

You use paper foot outlines when buying shoes for friends and relatives.

Pinoy body language

You point with your lips.

You scratch your head when you don’t know the answer.

You smile all the time for no reason at all.

You ask for the bill at a restaurant by making a rectangle in the air.

The way we speak

You can use ambiguous words like “kwan” and “ano” and yet be perfectly understood by another Filipinos.

You love to use the following acronyms:
CR for comfort room
DI for dance instructor
DOM for dirty old man
TNT for tago ng tago
KJ for kill joy
KSP for kulang sa pansin
OA for over reacting
MU for mutual understanding
TL for true love
BF for boyfriend
GF for girlfriend

You say “Uy!” or “Aray!” instead of “Oops!”

Instead of “I beg your pardon?” you say “Ha?”

You refer to power interruptions as “brownouts.”

You “open” or “close” the lights.

The way we are

You’re always late

You cope with serious situation by turning it into a humorous one.

You’ll go into debt for a celebration.

You like everything imported.

You always prefer to sit in the shade than bask in the sun.

You use an umbrella in fair or foul weather.

You love ballroom dancing and karaoke.

You hang your clothes out to dry.

You love to laugh at yourself and at others.

Whoosh! Now that’s a long list! I didn’t even include some because it’s gonna be boring. You know what’s my score? It’s 136-170 points. I am a bonafide Pinoy, truly deserving a trophy.

The thing is I never realized this until I came here in America. I may have already adapted to some ways here, but I cannot deny that I’m a true-blue Filipino and I will forever be no matter where life takes me.

Someone told me that if you decided to stay in a different country you should be open minded and be able to fully adopt into a new culture and try not think too much of where you have come from because that will keep you from moving on.

True in some ways, but in my case, I need to keep something that truly defines what I am and be able to take it with me wherever I go. It will keep me real and not trying hard to be someone that I’m not. I am open to new ideas and am always respectful of other cultures. A simple memory of your own culture in a foreign land will give a bit of comfort in times of loneliness and isolation because that’s the closest I can get from home.

There is no place like home, but there is a big universe out there. I have yet to see the world, so I am here to stay, but wherever I am I will never forget where I came from. Joy Y. thanks for giving me this book it sure have kept me smiling every time I miss home.

YOU know you're FILIPINO If... Part I

I was inside a cab driving around San Francisco, California with three Spanish men. One is Miguel and the two other were his friends from Spain, visiting. In a group consist of two or more nationalities conversations about your own counties are inevitable. So there I was prepared for the question “What can you tell me about the Philippines?”

Let’s rewind two years back, it was my first time here in America. I came here with my best friend, Patti, to take an international program at University of California, Berkeley, Extension. I have classmates from different parts of the world, but America. Yes! It’s quite ironic, but our teachers are Americans. Anyways, in a diverse environment like this I was force to have brief history refresher about my own country and be able to tell people of the real identity of Filipinos.

Growing up I read books in English, watch movies in English, listen to English songs, read direction and instruction in English, listen to my teachers lecture in English, English is our -second language and it is widely spoken in the Philippines. I grew up admiring anything that is American. Everybody in our class were surprised to hear us (Patti and I) speak fluent English (at least better accent as compared with our classmates). But what is a real Filipino like?

Let me quote an author, Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz, who wrote a book entitled: You know you’re Filipino If…

Survivors of a medley of colonial influences, many Filipinos were uncertain of
who and what we were. We confused ourselves and others. It seemed futile to even talk about nationhood or nationalism when we had been so hopelessly
“Coca-Colanized.”

Perhaps this would be the best explanation I can think of when someone asks why we, Filipinos, are the way we are, everything in English and always copying something from other countries.

Now, back to my first story, so I told the Spanish guy that in terms of economy I can say as many bad things as I can about the Philippines, such as a poverty and corruption. But I’m proud to be a Filipino. We don’t have spectacular ancient monuments such in Rome or the rest of Europe, but as Filipinos we are known as cheerful, resilient, warm and hospitable people. We have the best beaches in the world and of course being a third-world country everything is cheap.

Then another line from the book has struck me, saying:

“Perhaps it is in the company of non-Filipinos where Filipinos truly stand out.
The last few decades have witnessed a great migration of Filipinos in search of
a better life. Even in strange lands and far from home, the indefatigable Pinoy
spirit often prevails, thanks in the great part to an optimistic outlook that is
deeply ingrained in our culture.”

Guess you will never know what a real Filipino is until you’ve lived with them.