On occasion, this panda engages in self-exploration and writes whatever comes to mind naturally, like breaking bamboo. Through travel, intercultural engagement, and deep reflection, I record my thoughts, relating them to my personal experiences and how they might connect to other people—or pandas.
Selected Creative Writing
The essay explores Filipino superstition surrounding the word “paalam” (goodbye), which is believed by some to carry a sense of finality or even death, shaped by linguistic evolution and cultural belief. Through personal anecdotes, I reflect on how language, fear, and love intersect, ultimately choosing alternative ways to say goodbye.
My musings after a visit to Davis, California. I found unexpected appreciation for its quiet, “ordinary” character, walkable downtown, and slower pace compared to major cities like San Francisco and Sacramento. Through experiences with food, transit, reading, and exploration, I come to value Davis’s simplicity and became its biggest fan.
Memes are more than internet humor. Through examples from college culture, language, and social media, this short piece shows how memes facilitate intercultural understanding and learning while also influencing public discourse and perception.
As a digital native, I reflect on spring break travel and contrasts the freedom of student life with the constraints of full-time work. Through critiques of workplace culture, my piece questions whether time and rest should have to be “earned,” emphasizing the importance of self-determined leisure and work-life balance.
How does acquiring a personal laptop transformed from a symbol of independence into a constant tool for academic and professional labor, blurring the line between work, school, and leisure? Through my experiences as a student and intern, I explained the heavy reliance on digital devices and the resulting exhaustion, while questioning how technology has made screen-centered work unavoidable in modern life.