Thursday, October 21, 2010

MDG Congress to be Held in Philippines

this is good news...full article below from the Facebook page of the UN Millenium Campaign. Websites below:
http://www.EndPoverty2015.org
http://www.standagainstpoverty.org


MDG Congress to be Held in Philippines
by United Nations Millennium Campaign on Tuesday, October 19, 2010 at 4:41am


MANILA, Philippines, October 18, 2010—In a bid to accelerate the achievement the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) before the 2015 deadline, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the United Nations (UN) System in the Philippines will lead a gathering of high-level representatives from national government agencies to give an overview of their respective breakthrough plans.

The MDG Congress follows results of the MDG Review Summit held on September 20-22 in New York. It serves to commemorate the October 17 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty and United Nations Day on Oct. 24. The Congress will be held at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Makati City on Monday, October 18.

UN Resident Coordinator Jacqueline Badcock, Socio-Economic Planning Secretary Cayetano Paderanga Jr. and DFA Secretary Alberto Romulo will lead the opening activities.

President Benigno Aquino III is expected to deliver the keynote address and join the other heads of departments to participate in a ceremony signifying commitment to the MDGs through their integration in the country’s Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP).

The Department of Health will report its Breakthrough Plan on Reducing Child Mortality, Improving Maternal Health and Combating HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases (MDGs 4,5 & 6); the Department of Education on Achieving Universal Primary Education (MDG 2); the Department of Social Welfare and Development on Eradicating Extreme Poverty and Hunger (MDG 1); the Department of Environment and Natural Resources on Ensuring Environmental Sustainability (MDG 7); the Philippine Commission on Women on Promoting Gender Equality and Empowering Women (MDG 3); and the Department of Budget and Management on Financing the MDGs (MDG 8).

The closing remarks will be delivered by Sec. Jesse Robredo of the Department of Interior and Local Government to give emphasis to the importance of localizing the MDGs.

The UN Millennium Campaign success stories publication, “Accelerating MDG Achievement,” also the theme of this year’s MDG Congress, will be distributed during the MDG Congress. The publication features stories on how various stakeholders are contributing to achieve the MDGs through their own programs and activities. For the first time since the September 17-19 global mobilization against poverty, Stand Up, Take Action, video will be shown during the Congress to showcase partners’ activities calling for concerted efforts to make the MDGs a reality for every Filipino in the next five years.

In the afternoon, the annual wreath-laying ceremony for United Nations Day will be held at the tomb of Carlos P. Romulo, a Filipino diplomat who served eight Philippine Presidents as a representative to the UN, at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. This will be followed by a UN Diplomatic Reception to celebrate the founding of the UN, hosted by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs. Representatives of the UN Country Team, the Philippine diplomatic corps, accredited international organizations and other representatives from the government will attend the reception.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

The Perfect Heart...

a beautiful story...I think the hard part is giving love a chance and having that love unrequited or thrown back at you. Yet the heart remains open so that they who deserve your love may one day return and fill the empty space. Though that one day may turn out be too late, the heart should remain open...

via Paulo Coelho's Blog... sent by Priya Sher

A young man was standing in the middle of the town proclaiming that he had the most beautiful heart in the whole valley. A large crowd gathered and they all admired his heart for it was perfect. There was not a mark or a flaw in it.

But an old man appeared at the front of the crowd and said,
“Your heart is not nearly as beautiful as mine.”

The crowd and the young man looked at the old man’s heart. It was beating strongly but full of scars. It had places where pieces had been removed and other pieces put in … but they didn’t fit quite right and there were several jagged edges. The young man looked at the old man’s heart and laughed.

“You must be joking,” he said. “Compare your heart with mine … mine is perfect and yours is a mess of scars and tears.”

“Yes,” said the old man, “Yours is perfect looking … but I would never trade with you. You see, every scar represents a person to whom I have given my love….. I tear out a piece of my heart and give it to them … and often they give me a piece of their heart which fits into the empty place in my heart but because the pieces aren’t exact, I have some rough edges.

“ Sometimes I have given pieces of my heart away … and the other person hasn’t returned a piece of his heart to me. These are the empty gouges … giving love is taking a chance. Although these gouges are painful, they stay open, reminding me of the love I have for these people too … and I hope someday they may return and fill the space I have waiting. So now do you see what true beauty is?”

The young man stood silently with tears running down his cheeks. He walked up to the old man, reached into his perfect young and beautiful heart, and ripped a piece out. He offered it to the old man.

The old man took his offering, placed it in his heart and then took a piece from his old scarred heart and placed it in the wound in the young man’s heart.
It fit …. but not perfectly, as there were some jagged edges.

The young man looked at his heart, not perfect anymore but more beautiful than ever, since love from the old man’s heart flowed into his.

Friday, October 01, 2010

45 LESSONS LIFE TAUGHT ME…

45 LESSONS LIFE TAUGHT ME…Written by Regina Brett, of the Plain Dealer:

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.
35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative – dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come…
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.