posted by Nk. at 8:23 PM

grabe, today (March 4) would have been Jung Da bin's (Noreen of Attic Cat) 27th birthday, had she not died of an apparent suicide last month. i saw her funeral pictures and i teared up a little. i know di ko sya kaano ano and there are probably other issues more worthy of this space pero nakakalungkot lang. In Asia, 1st na ang Korea sa dami ng nagsusuicide. and to think na Korea is probably one of the richest countries in the world now, ironic lang di ba, shouldn't life be better compared to life well, in countries like ours? siguro dahil nga sa economic success ng bansa nila a person's worth may have become measurable by the material wealth that he or she has, and siguro nga those who commit suicide are those who cannot take the pressure to live up to society's expectations. ang lungkot di ba?

i looked up the Philippines' suicide rate and i was relieved to know na we have one of the lowest in the world, so far. siguro it is mainly because we are a predominantly Catholic nation thus most of us have been raised na "may takot sa Diyos". as a matter of fact, isa pa nga ata ang Pilipinas sa happiest countries in the world. o di ba, ang taray?

kanina napag usapan namin nina Kiten, Kay, and Jo yung suicide. sabi ni Kay, mataas daw ang suicide rate sa Korea because of too much stress and pressure. grabe daw kung magtrabaho kasi. tama nga coz i read somewhere that sa isang araw typical na yung magtrabaho sila ng 16 hours. kahit yung students, after school, they just can't go to gimmicks or muck around the house ng basta basta. when they get home they have long tutorial sessions pa, with private tutors (i know this for a fact because nakapagtutor na ko before online). samantalang dito sa Pinas, sa school pa lang, ang iba bulakbol mode na. we all agreed na too much pressure to succeed is pushing many Koreans to take their own lives.

Si Kiten, she raised a good question. dito daw sa Pinas bakit di na lang mag suicide yung mga tambay sa kanto at yung mga sunog baga na walang magawa sa buhay?

honga naman, come to think of it, sa dami din ng mga taong walang trabaho at "walang silbi" (Jung Da Bin was said to have died of depression kasi matagal daw na di nakakakuha ng trabaho after her last project) dapat marami na din nagsusuicide sa Pinas. But no. masaya pa ring nag iinuman ang mga tambay at patuloy pa ring nabubuhay ang mga "walang silbi".

bakit kaya?

is it because sanay na tayo sa hirap and that another day of hirap makes no difference? is it because hindi pa naman ganun kayaman ang Pinas and most of us are not pressured enough to be something, to live up to something? or is it because we are a naturally optimistic people and the future, though often bleak and scary, does not make us buckle down and take that rope and hang ourselves in the comfort room?