Effective Communication and Sonia Roco

I got an email from MiranaMedina about my reaction about Sonia Roco:

I forwarded your email to ASP President Dang Koe -- NAIYAK SIYA.

I forwarded it to Sonia ROco -- bumalik ang email, permanent failure daw. Siguro sa dami ng nag react sa sinabi nya, napuno na....

I forwarded it to ASP Founding President Cecile Sicam, at ito reaction nya--

"Sa totoo lang, ako I would still vote for Sonia Roco - maybe now more than ever. Why? because she's still one of the most credible people in the roster of candidates (as against the traditional politicians, jocks and celebrities who are running), because she put autism on the political map with her "innocent" comment (at least she knows what autism is) and because now that she knows us, we will have leverage for legislation in the senate (in case she gets elected). Let's turn her booboo into our advantage, right?"

Best regards to you and your Mom! and Hugs to Dale!

Ako? I stand by my decision not to vote for her. I do not know Sonia Roco. I am not judging her whole personality with just one remark on TV. I am judging her sincerity with 2 remarks she said on TV and one she wrote.

I am a graduate of Communication Arts from a respectable college. We studied Effective Communication like crazy. We watched movies and were asked to answer a lot of questions, make endless reviews and compose summaries.

"why did the white handkerchief fall?"
"what was the significance of the white dove?"
"why was it necessary for her tear to fall from her left eye and not the right?"

In the four years I have been in college, 2 years in graduate, a year in a university, 3 seasons of House, and in the 32 years that I have breathed, I learned that EVERYBODY LIES.

I watched her apology on TV, I read her letter.

She might have apologized, she might have known and could grasp a fraction of what it feels like to be one of us.

But she lied.

Her lies were written. Her lies were in her eyes. You cannot fake sincerity. Genuine sincerity is felt.

"The problem with life is that unlike movies, it doesn't have a background music. We never know how we're supposed to feel..."

When we watched her on TV, all we said after was--that's it?

When we read her apology, I noticed her ending--

If there is any way I could be of help just in case I make it to the Senate, with your support which I pray you will bless me with, please feel free to contact me anytime.

Sure, you will. With Dang's support? Goodness me, is this for real?

Let's take a moment to reflect on that.

400,000 affected families have been rallying for a more autism-friendly country. 20 years of bringing everything into perspective. Yes, there was the Magna Carta. Yes, there were special schools. Yes, there were politicians who helped us. But it's not enough. You know it's not.

Let's say you're the President. You only have a limited budget. Which sector will you prioritize?

C'mon. Let's be realistic. The government will prioritize the schooling of the 'normal' kids. You know why, don't you? Because it will cost lesser, and the reaping, sooner. Everyone likes the easy way out. They will choose to finance the kid who can be a corrupt senator sooner, than a child with Autism who can paint (and wish that he can be a dreaming, foul-mouthed, corrupt senatoriable so much later?).

When I learned that Dale has autism, and that there is nothing that this government can do to make him better, I decided to take action on my own. The first thing I did was to accept it. If you do not accept the situation, you can never help the child.

The next thing I did was go online and read. I read a lot about it, the definitions, characteristics, the journals, the experiments. Then I read the stories of other people. I read their heartaches, their triumphs, their truths. And as if reading on my own wasn't enough, I enrolled in a university.

While I was doing those, Dale was in a special school. When he gets home, I teach him what I learned.

We didn't go to therapy. We didn't follow the special diet. We just bonded as mother and son.

I am not saying that other parents have not done what I did. I know that all parents did what they could to help their children. Some were successful, others weren't. Or maybe they still were, but were not just aware of it.

My point is, I learned to choose my battles. A battle with the government is a battle with no evident outcome... just empty promises.

And I'm not going to waste my time wishing they could prove me otherwise.


"Clever is when you believe only half of what you hear. Brilliant is when you know which half to believe."



p.s.
quotations are text messages from a good friend--Basti.

I believe that it's all the more better to continue 'talking' about what Roco said NOW. All the more ASP should talk and comment. it's true that we have been 'heard'.. but it shouldn't stop there. People said that we should take this to our advantage... why aren't ASP taking it now? Sandaling media coverage lang nangyari... walang TV commentary about Alyana, about what Autism is, how many families are affected, how they can help us. Ewan ko. Sabi nga nila, 'Strike while the iron is hot.'