By Ba Ipe
(April 4, 2024)
ON TURNING 70
In my case, I’ve encountered serious introspection. Now that I’m 70, what follows? What’s next? This introspection is tantamount for setting goals in the last quarter of my life. Frankly, I want to end everything not with a bang like the suicide bombers of some Middle East countries or the mad assassins in the U.S., who shoot and kill every person in sight for no apparent reason. I want to end it my way, so the old song goes.
I’m healthy at 70. Except for back pains caused by sciatica when I had an accident in mid-20s, I’ve no other health issues. My heart is pumping well. My blood does not get sweeter unlike others. I urinate well because my prostate is not huge to block its flow. I savor the sweet sound of my favorite songs and ogle at the beauty of every passing woman. Except for the loss of hair in my mid-20s, I’m a winner of the genetic lottery.
Moreover, my thought process is intact. I still remember the many details that have happened in my life. My memory remains keen – almost pornographic, er, er photographic. I am always proud of my functioning and intact memory, which I ably used in my journalistic career. I can still use it even if I settle for a second career n retirement.
In my estimate, I’m good for another ten or 15 years. If I am a little lucky, I could follow the way of my Ingkong Nick, my diminutive maternal grandfather, who took life at his own terms. He did not get sick all through the years. When he felt it was time to go, he just quit living and died in his sleep at 96. He was never a burden to his kids. I don’t intend to reach the sweet centennial age and earn a windfall of P100,000.
Frankly, I have come to terms that I’ve reached 70, an age that could be the start of being a real senior citizen. They say it’s the “senior of the seniors,” or just “very senior,” to be exact. Hence, I’ve set goals, which I expect to fulfill in the coming years. Since writing is my training and skill, I intend to use it to fulfill my objectives.
I intend to focus on bookwriting, aiming to finish at least three books this year. I’ve finished the first and printed copies came out in December last year – “KILL KILL KILL Extrajudicial Killings in the Philippines; Crimes Against Humanity v. Rodrigo Duterte Et Al.” My first book is a documentation of the bloody but failed war on drugs of the madman from the South. It is now undergoing second printing and new copies will come out in May.
I am finishing my second book – “BUMPS Fifty Years of Dictatorship and Democracy in the Philippines (1972-2022).” I expect to complete it by the end of this month. My second book chronicles the events that transpired on the conflicting themes of authoritarianism (or dictatorship) and democracy over the last 50 years of our political history. Printed copies could come out by July this year.
Immediately after the completion of my second book, I intend to work on the third book, which is the compilation of my posts – serious, sarcastic, humorous, or borderline – over the last 15 years I was in social media. The materials are readily available. All I have to do is to sort them out in the three or four months and a book is in the offing. It has no title yet.
I intend to write two or books for 2025 and one of them could dwell on the peace talks between the Philippine government and the outlawed National Democratic Front (NDF) and the various forces under its wings. It is an open and close negotiations and I intend to document the peace process. It is still up in the air. Nothing is final yet.
There is an old adage that the prize of life is when a person does the things he loves most. I love writing. It’s the only thing that I know best. My thinking at the moment is to use my skill to document what has happened in this country. Since so many people are obsessed to document a big part of our history. I intend to fill that gap.
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