BoringYetGraceful

Facing Reality

People have dreams about what they want to be in life, like the kind of life they want in the future. People start dreaming when they are children. I’m sure you once had a childish dream.

Something like wanting to be that superhero you watched on that TV series. Or wanting to be like that certain powerful person who has a lot of money or someone in your family.

Our old man’s trade for almost three decades was as a machinist. He started working in a machine shop in QC, at the former Ford Stamping Plant in the country, and later worked in the shipyards of Saudi Arabia and the UAE. His dream was to be an architect.

Big bro is a medical technologist and a pastor, but before that, his dream was to become a journalist. Although it was possible back in the day, our parents didn’t approve due to our country being a dangerous place for journalists. I’m happy that he’s still able to write lab reports and Sunday sermons.

I expected an electric guitar as a high school graduation gift, but it was three albums by Hillsong Worship. They are on VCDs, and I know they were expensive. It was only my third year of playing the guitar, but I daydreamed about graduating with a music major. It didn’t happen. I’m an R&D engineer today.

Creativity filled my high school days, as I learned to play the guitar, wrote songs, and completed a research paper. Big bro helped me with the research paper because it was a condensed version of what he did in Bible school.

Fast forward. In the second year of my working career, I found the blog Zen Habits. It was a time when I was into habits, productivity, self-improvement, etc. Then came the idea of blogging and writing. I started a blog and wrote it.

A struggling writer was born. Instead of dreaming, why not push the throttle, no matter what it takes? I know that reality is harsh, and this is the only thing I can do.

A Time Line

The goal of this blog is to achieve 100 chapters, and it’s only the beginning. If you’re a reader and follower who has been here since I started the journey, we are now past the half-way point of the goal. I know you’ve read the new installment of Book Thoughts. They will only appear once I’m done with the books I’m currently reading, so they will take a while.

As for those who read the previous chapters, you know that my English is bad, and I’m limited in the words I can use to express what I’m trying to explain or something. Kaya minsan code switch na lang para labo labo na. Yet, I found a quote that said that if a writer can’t express what needs to be written, then it means the writer’s mind cannot really express what needs to be written.

Practicing writing is hard work, and I’m watching videos and preparing myself to read the books that were highly recommended by writers. I’m shy about asking real humans, by the way. Yes, I’m afraid to be judged face-to-face even online. Baka hindi pa talaga ako ready sa mga ganitong bagay. Takbo na lang siguro akong barangay captain?

I gave myself ten years, hoping to master the craft and just write. Maybe I’ll continue doing this kind of writing for a decade, and maybe someone will notice what I’m doing. I’m bad at presenting or personally pitching myself. It’s not my personal brand to be part of the noise. Sometimes silence is deafening too.

Continuing the Groove

Successful people create habits that make them who they are, and they achieve their goals. Whether it’s about money, health, or anything about life. We can tell that this post would be a small manifesto that I’ll write until achieve some goals.

I’m excited when I think about when I started this blog. I was hoping to hit 100 chapters within a year, but it didn’t happen at all. We are now in the fourth year; 2025 was a busy year when you look at it. I only made two posts talking about music.

Showing up to write is not a joke because everything is a challenge once you face the blank page that needs to be filled with words. Words that can edify me as the writer or the reader who reads my work.

I’ve written several helpful essays here, but they’re only fine sand among the ocean of writings published online or printed, whether here on Write.as or on Substack. The less noise on this platform gives me some inspiration to write. The Substack publication was only an extension. Thank you for reading. See you in the next chapter.