Category: Essays

Free writing is an exercise designed to stimulate writing. It is not related to freethinking although they sound the same. I use this exercise from time to time when I have a hard time coming up with something to write about. The idea is to write whatever comes to your head, without stopping, filtering or editing.

Well, that’s the idea, but I find it very hard to turn off my inner editor. Some of these sentences went through 2 or 3 revisions before I even completed them (including this one). Many people do not realize this but writing — or at least, good writing — is often a two-step process. Sometimes, it is even a three, four or five-step process. The first step consists of writing the first draft. The second step (and onwards) consists of revising and editing.

The point of free-writing is for you to come up with enough material for your first draft so that you have something to revise. After all, it is quite difficult to edit a blank page. The great artist, Michelangelo once said, “Every block of stone has a statue inside and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” However, it is quite difficult to create a statue if all you have is a pebble, or worse, thin air.

In the same manner, I believe that every block of text contains a bestseller or a Pulitzer-prize winner, or at least something memorable and meaningful. The task of the writer is to shape it as such. As with the pebble, It is quite difficult to shape only a few words — unless of course you are meaning to write short poetry, haiku, or the like — and even then those skilled in that art will tell you it is not an easy task to write them. Since one does not have the luxury of hundreds of words to make a point, then every word must count. Each word must be the right word. Some poets even labor over whether to put a comma or not.

I digress, but then that happens a lot in free writing. You just have to keep going and going. Yet, you need not be stuck with any material you don’t like. You can delete entire paragraphs if you want. You can delete the whole piece if you want and start over with an idea you got while typing the last paragraph of the first draft that you free-wrote.

The beauty of free writing is that it is very possible to generate a large amount of material in a short amount of time. That is, if you do it right. If you’re like me, however, who tends to mix editing and revising along with writing, then it will possibly take longer, but you spend less time on final revisions since you have already done most of the work anyway.

The danger of doing what I do, however, is getting stuck. You now have an idea of where you want the article or story to go but you become obsessed with perfecting it, with using the right words. Sometimes, that will cause you to just stare at the screen and think, until you realize that an hour has passed and you still haven’t progressed. That actually defeats the purpose of free writing in the first place.

So when I catch myself pausing for a long time, I just force myself to type on. I mutter things like, “Press on. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The battle is won by winning each war and each sentence you write is a war won.” And so on and so forth.

And then comes the magic. You type a word at the end of the line and your word processor automatically bumps you to the next page. You can hear angels (or Hell’s Angels, whichever you prefer) singing.

You have now reached the second page.

Of course you do a quick check to make sure that you haven’t cheated (like typing in double-space, or things like that). Sometimes, this experience is enough encouragement for some to just keep going and going, like runners getting a second wind.

However, don’t get too carried away. It’s not the length of your article that’s important but also its substance and value. Remember to revise and rewrite as necessary, and cut away anything irrelevant. Be a cruel and merciless editor of your own work. Your readers will thank you for it.

Samuel Johnson said, “What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure.”

So, do use free writing as a technique but remember to review and revise your work to make it meaningful and a pleasurable read.

Originally published in Sunstar Davao.

Andy Uyboco reads and writes for pleasure. Contact him at andy@freethinking.me. View previous articles at www.freethinking.me.

Every once in a while, the anti-vaccination scare-mongers rear their heads and make the rounds on the internet. They have been around for a long time, making their first appearances in chain emails and the gaudy, twinkly websites of the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

Currently circulating on social media is a CBCP News article entitled “The Truth About Vaccines” (http://www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=32904), which is quite ironic given that it is mostly a lie. The article relates the recent talk of a Dr. Eleanor de Borja-Palabyab, president of the Doctors for Life, Philippines, who claimed that vaccines contained mercury and formalin that are harmful to the body and brain, as well as causing autism.

That claim is inaccurate and misleading. While it is true that vaccines contain mercury and formalin (or formaldehyde), they are only trace amounts and pose no danger to the human body. Anyone with a basic understanding of chemistry or pharmacology will tell you that it is not the substance itself which is deadly, but the dosage at which it is administered. Thus, a known poison may be safely ingested at a very tiny dose but something beneficial (such as Vitamin A) may be poisonous at high doses.

The link between vaccines and autism comes from a 1998 issue of the British medical journal, The Lancet, which published a study by a certain Andrew Wakefield connecting autism and the MMR (Measles-Mumps-Rubella) vaccine. That study was later discredited and retracted as an “elaborate fraud,” but not after it had done its damage, which we feel more than a decade later, as evidenced by the misinformation perpetuated by this medical practitioner and many other celebrities and personalities as well.

If mercury is your main concern, then you will be relieved to know that since 1999, the US FDA, along with other health organizations, have asked vaccine manufacturers to remove thimerosal (the compound containing mercury) and the manufacturers have complied. Thus, if you or your child was vaccinated after 2002, there is a very large possibility that there was zero or only minute traces of thimerosal in those vaccines.

Even then, there have been numerous studies showing that there is no link between autism and thimerosal. For example, the August 2003 issue of the American Journal of Preventative Medicine contains a study which documented autism rates in Denmark and Sweden, where manufacturers stopped using thimerosal in vaccines in 1992. If there had been a positive link between thimerosal and autism, its occurrence should have also dropped but the opposite happened as the rate continued on an upward trend from 1987 through 1999. This strongly points to other factors contributing to autism and not thimerosal.

Now, regarding formaldehyde, the usual tactic to scare people is to mention that this is the same compound used for embalming corpses. Yet, what most people don’t know is that we are regularly exposed to formaldehyde every single day. It is in car exhaust fumes, latex paint, nail polish, plywood and particle boards, fiberglass, carpets, laminates, grocery bags and some paper products. It may even be present in some of the food that we eat, but note that these are all in very small amounts and are not harmful at all. In the same manner, the formaldehyde found in vaccines are not harmful either.

That an influential doctor should resort to such unscientific, sensationalist and irresponsible statements is a cause for concern. How many mothers and fathers would take this advice to heart (coming as it were, from a “reputable” source) and refuse to vaccinate their children, risking not only their own lives but others whom their unvaccinated children might also infect should they contract a deadly virus?

One local doctor put it quite plainly, “ I would really like to see [the anti-vaccine advocates] look at the parents of kids who died of measles straight in the eye and tell them that not vaccinating their kids was the right decision.” I am thankful that most of the doctors I know, like this one,  are better informed and more scientifically grounded.

But please, don’t take my word for it. I have listed my sources below. It would be best for you to go through them thoroughly for a better understanding of the issue. In the meantime, be wary of headlines which purport to tell you “the truth” about anything. Do your research. Use your head.

Sources:

Toxic Myths About Vaccines: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/toxic-myths-about-vaccines/

Thimerosal in Vaccines: http://www.fda.gov/biologicsbloodvaccines/safetyavailability/vaccinesafety/ucm096228

MMR Vaccine Controversy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MMR_vaccine_controversy

Autism-Vaccine Link: http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/searching-for-answers/vaccines-autism

Vaccines and Autism – Separating Fact From Fiction:
http://www.babycenter.com/0_vaccines-and-autism-separating-fact-from-fiction_1470554.bc

Retracted Autism Study an “Elaborate Fraud”: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/01/05/autism.vaccines/

Originally published in Sunstar Davao.

Andy Uyboco is happily vaccinated. Contact him at andy@freethinking.me. View previous articles at www.freethinking.me.

My 7-year old asked me, “Daddy, are all the stories in the Bible true?”

I said, “What do you think?”

She said, “I don’t think so.”

I said, “Why?”

She furrowed her brow and was silent for a few seconds. Then she said, “I don’t know. But I think some of them aren’t real. I’ll think about it some more.”

I said, “Okay.” Then she ran off to play with her brother.

And that, in a nutshell, is what I think about raising freethinking kids. For those who want more than a nutshell, read on.

If “freethinking” or “freethought” is an unfamiliar word for you, let me give a brief explanation. Freethinking does not imply that you are free to think whatever you want. It is a “philosophical viewpoint which holds that positions regarding truth should be formed on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism, rather than authority, tradition, or other dogmas.”

“Freethought holds that individuals should not accept ideas proposed as truth without recourse to knowledge and reason. Thus, freethinkers strive to build their opinions on the basis of facts, scientific inquiry, and logical principles, independent of any logical fallacies or the intellectually limiting effects of authority, confirmation bias, cognitive bias, conventional wisdom, popular culture, prejudice, sectarianism, tradition, urban legend, and all other dogmas.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freethought)

My desire to have freethinking kids is really a desire for them to be able to think for themselves, to be able to express their thoughts in a logical, reasonable fashion. As much as possible, my wife and I avoid being dogmatic to them. If full, detailed explanation is yet inappropriate or too complex, we just tell them we’ll explain when they’re older and they’ll understand better then.

In matters of religion, I rarely tell them what to think or do. I just ask questions and let them think through the answers.

My kids go to a Christian school. Sometimes, they want to go to Sunday School as well and I take them there. If they would rather stay at home, then I allow them to do so anyway. Sometimes I ask, “Why don’t you want to go?” and listen to their reasons. Most of the time, they’ll just say, “It’s boring,” and I’ll leave it at that. Sometimes, I’ll try to probe deeper and ask, “Well, why is it boring?” and other such questions until they get tired of me asking. And when they do, I am content to let them do something else and play. I will not push the issue right there and then. They have plenty of time to come back to me when they have thought about it or when they have another question.

Sometimes, I’ll offer my own opinion, but I won’t force it on them. I remember when the aforementioned 7-year old was still 6, I told her, “I don’t believe in heaven or hell. I don’t think they’re real.” She said, “Why don’t you believe in heaven? You should believe in heaven. You’re sinning. You will go to hell.”

I smiled and said, “Well, how do you know they’re real? Have you seen heaven or hell?”

“No, but you should believe in them,” and she said that with all the conviction she could muster.

“Well, just think about it,” I said.

“Okay,” she said.

Just a while ago, I asked her what she now thought of heaven and hell and she said, “I don’t know but it seems like a fairy tale.”

I don’t know what they’ll grow up believing and I don’t think I’d really mind as long as I know they’ve thought hard about it, they’re not afraid to question it, and they have good reasons for believing whatever they do. What’s important for me is the process they go through to reach those beliefs, but otherwise, their journey is their own to discover, explore and enjoy.

As I am enjoying mine.

Originally published in Sunstar Davao.

Andy Uyboco welcomes comments, gifts and tithes. Contact him at andy@freethinking.me. View previous articles at www.freethinking.me.

 

I dropped by my old Toastmasters club last Friday – The Davao Noontime Toastmasters Club.

For those who don’t know what Toastmasters is, no, it is not a drinking club. It is a club devoted to the art of public speaking, communication and leadership. I joined Toastmasters fresh out of college around two decades ago and until today, I am still reaping the benefits of lessons well-learned and earned.

Every Toastmasters program has a portion called Table Topics, headed by a Table Topics Master. The purpose of this activity is to train people in impromptu speaking — the art of speaking with minimal preparation. The Table Topics Master prepares some topics, usually in the form of questions or quotations and then calls on anyone in the audience to react to the given topic. The goal of the speaker is not just to answer the question any which way he wants, but to do so in a structured 2-minute speech complete with an introduction, body and conclusion.

I was called to react to Table Topics last Friday, and the question I got was, “What was the craziest piece of advice that you have received in this club?”

I racked my brains as I walked towards the front to deliver my speech. Then I began by saying, “The craziest piece of advice I got in this club is to come up and talk even if I have no idea what I am going to say. The idea is that you just have to start talking even if you don’t know what your next sentence is going to be, because hopefully, as you’re talking, something will pop into your head.”

At this point, I had no idea how to continue, but then an idea DID pop into my head, so I continued.

“I could have just sat there and passed on speaking, or made excuses about how I was unprepared, or that I have been absent for so long. But I took the challenge and came up to speak even if I haven’t fully formed my ideas yet, and look, I have already managed to say more than 10 words without even knowing how this speech will end.

Learning public speaking is something one does experientially, not just theoretically. I am experiencing speaking now, and the learning is much more powerful than if I had just read a book on public speaking. Because of this, I can be more confident next time I am asked to address a crowd on short notice. I just have to begin speaking and the rest will follow.

That advice was not so crazy after all.”

What I wrote up there is not a word-for-word transcription of my speech but I think it captures the gist of what I said that day. I did not learn public speaking by reading a book, or by attending a seminar — much like I didn’t learn swimming or biking that way. I learned speaking by speaking, and the more I did it, the more I got better at it — of course with proper mentoring, guidance and coaching as well. After all, if you keep practicing the wrong way, then you will end up becoming a master of the wrong way, and that probably isn’t something anyone wants.

I found the same is true of writing. Many people have asked me for advice on how to write better. My advice is simple – write. Even if you have nothing to write about, just begin writing. Sooner or later, you will discover a hidden gem that you can develop into a full-blown story or essay, but you have to jumpstart the process. You have to write the first few words or the first few sentences, or even the first few paragraphs before the magic takes over and you find yourself stumbling over the keyboard because the words are coming out faster than your hand can type them.

When I was offered a chance to write a weekly column just over a year ago, I jumped at it even if I wasn’t sure I could regularly think of something to write every week. But my experience in Table Topics taught me that I just need to get started and things will be easier from then on.

My eldest cousin once said that life is like riding a bicycle. The point is to get moving. Changing directions and improvising is easier when one is in motion than when one is standing still. I found that analogy very true especially in writing. I actually began this article with a very different topic in mind. I wrote three whole paragraphs before deleting all of them and starting over.

Sometimes, writing comes easily and the words just flow. Sometimes, it is difficult and I find myself staring at a white screen and a blinking cursor. But I try not to stare too long or even to just shut down and forget the whole thing. I force myself to get started by typing a few words. Before long, I am typing whole sentences. Pretty soon, ideas are popping into my head and it’s now a matter of managing them, rather than lacking them, of herding them into one coherent stream of thought instead of a jumbled mess.

And then, before I know it, I’ve typed more than 800 words. I compose the concluding sentences and earn a short reprieve. Next week, the process starts all over again.

Originally published in Sunstar Davao.

Send me a message at andy@freethinking.me. View previous articles at www.freethinking.me

No, this is not about the Idina Menzel song from “Frozen.”

It is about one of my favorite stories which goes like this:

There were two monks who followed a strict vow of chastity that forbade them even the slightest touch of a woman.  These two monks were walking through the woods one day and were about to cross a narrow river when they heard someone calling them by the riverbank. They turned and saw a young, attractive woman sitting in the mud.

“Please, kind sirs, I have stumbled and turned my ankle. I cannot walk and go back to my village across the river. Can you help me?”

The first monk was about to convey his regrets due to their strict vow when, much to his astonishment, the second monk promptly lifted and carried the woman in his arms and began crossing the river. The first monk had no choice but to stumble along.

They reached the woman’s village where the second monk entrusted the woman to the care of local physician. The two monks then resumed their trek through the forest in silence.

After two hours, they had returned to the temple where they lived. The first monk then turned to the second monk and said, “Brother, I am sorry but I have to confront you. I am so shocked and disturbed at your actions. Without hesitation, you broke our most sacred vow by touching that woman. How could you do that? And how could you act now as if nothing has happened? You should be beating your chest with your fists. You should be kneeling on the ground in guilt and shame. Yet I see no sign of remorse or contrition from you. I am afraid I have no choice but to report you to the Abbot.”

The Abbot happened to be standing not far away, and hearing the commotion, came to see what was the matter. The first monk then proceeded to repeat the story, complete with the wavering of his voice and the wringing of his hands.

When he was done, the Abbot turned to the second monk and said, “You have done well. You are dismissed.”

Then he turned to the first monk, who could not believe what he had just heard, and said, “Brother, your brother left that woman in the village two hours ago. Why are you still carrying her?”

It is a beautiful story because it encapsulates the values of intelligence, wisdom, compassion and letting go. Many people, myself included, are inclined to be like the first monk. We like to cling to our sob stories. We like to play the blame game. We like others to be as miserable as we are. Next time you have a conversation with your friends, try to be aware of the stories you share. Are they stories of being hurt, victimized, or abandoned? Are you carrying a woman on your back as well?

I once had a sudden visitor who popped in and began talking about how he despised and loathed the woman he was living with, the mother of his child. He was there for hours and as we weaved through different topics, he would inevitably keep circling back to the woman and his hatred of her. I could see it as a giant weight on his back that threatened to flatten him if he didn’t learn to get rid of it.

People who share victim stories are sometimes unaware that they are doing so because they derive an emotional benefit from it: sympathy and attention. The Abbot showed enough wisdom not to be drawn into the first monk’s victim story and mentally slapped him out of that mode of thinking.

The second monk understood that the rigidity of vows and rules need at times give way to simple kindness. His is the true art of living in the present and letting go of past mistakes. What good does it do to keep beating yourself up for the past? It is like driving while looking at the rearview mirror all the time instead of the road ahead.

Learn to let go.

(And for Idina Menzel fans who are disappointed that this article isn’t about her: Don’t let the cold bother you.)

Originally published in Sunstar Davao.

Andy Uyboco can ghost-write your sermons or speeches. Contact him at andy@freethinking.me. View previous articles at www.freethinking.me.