It was a great effort for the FPCUAE (Filipino Press Club UAE) to conduct this kind of competitions and I would like to congratulate them specially to Maricar (FPC President), Nikki, Elle, Butch, Quay, Jay, Ares and to all who supported this events.  I’ve got a copy of  the top three Essay’s and I would like to share it here.

The topic of this competition is related to what we are facing now the financial crisis.

Topic: How is the global crisis affecting your family?

Critera for judging:
Essay-Writing
A. Relevance – 50%
B. Communication Impact – 30%
C. Writing Style (Grammar, Spelling, Sentence Construction, etc.) – 20%

Painting
A. Relevance – 50%
B. Visual Impact -3-%
C. Originality – 20%

Global Crisis: How is Life Now?

By: Iyra Jurisprudencia
The New Filipino Private School-Sharjah

I believe in the saying “behind the dark clouds, there is always a silver lining.” But does that still apply to us now? Where is the silver lining in this global crisist? Life is becoming more and more difficult and stressful by the minute. Where is the bright side of this situation?

I remember my parents talk about their golden years when they were younger, how life was so simple and less complicated. They said one could buy lunch by spending not more than three pesos then. But now, you cannot even buy a piece of candy with that amount of money. Why has life changed so drastically? I believe that it is because of the selfish acts of our leaders who do not think twice before acting. Their notorious deeds help build the overwhelming problems of the world. Their acts can even affect us Filipinos abroad. We can no longer experience some privileges that we once knew. My parents are trying their best to dodge this crisis the best way they can. Our trips to the mall are now limited. We do not go out as much as before. They even cancelled our allowances which made me very, very disappointed.

But there is a bright side in this situation. I am not proud to say this by I used to be very lazy. I wan not fond of helping my mom with the chores. But due to my desperate need of allowance, I now help with the household chores and they give me a reward for it. I am happy to say that I am no longer lazy. At least, I have learned some good virtues out of this crisis. And that is not the only thing that I am thankful for. Even though problems are piling up and stress level is at its peak, I and my family are still living together under the same roof. And that is something worth smiling about. God gave us strength to overcome these problems. To Him, I owe my deepest gratitude…

But still, we should not lie around and do nothing about this Global Crisis. Stand up and fight for what is right! Hand-in-hand, we can turn this crisis upside down. Let us all be united and rise up as one to speak for our motherland. No more crises! No more graft and corruption! No more! Let us knock into the conscience of our leaders and tell them we had enough. KABAYANS, ACT NOW for the truth and accountability in the government. Let us be the change we want to see in the world. Let us all be an agent of change!

Materialistic

By: Frederick Michael Evidor
United International Private School-Dubai

The iPhone. It has always been my dream to grab one of those fancy gadgets. I was extremely impatient during the long wait I had to endure to finally buy one. Not only for its sleek design and its high-tech capabilities, but also for the bragging rights it would give me in school. For months before I discovered this phone, I have been complaining, moaning and hiding my embarrassment over my own pitiful, useless phone. And just when I almost had the chance to buy it, my mother stopped me and said something I would remember for the rest of my teenage life: “Sorry, son, but we can’t buy it yet. We’re cost-cutting.”

Cost-cutting? Oh! The fury, the sadness I felt when she said it! Since that infuriating event, I have stopped myself from daydreaming about my precious iPhone. I started to notice that my siblings were being refused of their favorite things as well. Also, my parents were trying to refrain from paying for anything else but the family’s ‘essentials’: food, electricity and water bills, and school supplies. Most sadly, my parents would drag us away from our most wanted computer games, books, jackets and shirts… (Not to mention iPhones!) I hated it. My siblings hated it. Simply because we were always exposed to a life of luxury and now we are trying hard to live and to adjust to a simple, cost-cutting one. It was only after I kept myself updated and read newspapers that I realized that my family was becoming a part of a crisis that was affecting the whole world.

The global crisis had a huge impact on my family. We had to make difficult decisions: from small decisions like reducing our mall trips, movie nights, restaurant dinners and shopping to big ones like whether or not we should all go back to the Philippines. The latter one struck me most because my parents don’t know if we can still afford our bills in the UAE. And if we would be going back there, I would be leaving my friends and my life here in Dubai. Even my siblings would be greatly affected by this. It will be hard for us to begin a new life all over again.

There are some good things this crisis has brought to my family, though. Now, we will be able to live a free, simple life and appreciate it without all the luxury. It would teach us to love the simple joys about life and to stop being materialistic. It would also help our relationship. Since there would be less mall trips, we would be able to spend more time together at home. It would also teach us to pray (“Lord, make us rich. Make us rich. We are rich!”) together.

Okay, so what about my beloved iPhone? Now my parents cannot afford to fit it in our budget. And I know that. So I approached my parents and tell them that it’s okay that I can’t get it even though inside I am secretly, fervently hoping that they would change their minds. They smiled sadly and say that they would buy me something else. Mobile phone load, perhaps?

How is the Global Crisis Affecting Your Family?

By: Clarisse Polintan
Philippine National School-Abu Dhabi

The news today is almost all bad. The media is constantly feeding us a doom and gloom, only serving to worsen our already hectic lives. Many people are becoming worries as they witness their friends getting fired from their jobs or being buried in debts one by one. We are all becoming victims of today’s dire economic crisis. But is it really a problem that we have to concern ourselves with?
During the few occasions when we hear about anything involving the global crisis, our usual response is probably to shrug and say, “It’s not my problem.” But this is not true. This crisis deeply affects our lifestyles, starting with our parents. Since they are the ones handling anything involving financial problems, it is natural for them to start feeling stressed. But this can be dangerous as too much stress can lead to a tense family life. It may even get to the point where our parents get so stressed that they start fighting with each other and that’s when the problems can really start. If something like this happens, there is no choice for us but to step up and do something. We can’t just keep feigning ignorance over something that can potentially destroy the relationship we have with our family.

Knowing this, we have started changing our ways for the better. This is one battle that our parents cannot fight alone. We have to do everything we can to ensure that we come out as winners. Doing small things like cutting back on our expenses, helping out more around the house, taking care of our siblings or cousins, or even preparing our own meals can make a big difference as this will give our parents less things to worry about. We can even minimize our usage of electronic gadgets such as Televisions or computers in order to lessen the bills that they have to pay. Whatever it is that we choose to help in, I’m sure our parents will appreciate our efforts.

All things considered, we realize that now is the time to start making better decisions. It’s time to stop turning a blind eye to every little difficulty that comes our way and to start doing things that will benefit us all. Today’s global crisis may not end as soon as we hope. But at least, now we know that we will be able to endure it, with smiles on our faces.