Netnet Camomot ORMOC City has the most handsome mayor and vice mayor in Pinas. But I don’t think that’s the reason 32 drug pushers and users “surrendered” to Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez. There’s only one reason why they’re “surrendering.” So they can escape from the ultimate punishment that the country’s new president has prepared for them. Change has definitely arrived in Pinas, with Mandaluyong City’s drug addicts and pushers dancing Zumba every Sunday as part of their penitensya. We can only wish that this will last till forever. As long as the change is for the good of the country. We always prefer good over bad. Who doesn’t, huh? Whether it’s for the country or for Cagayan de Oro or even for ourselves. Thus, July 1, 2016 became kind of the perfect day to start all over, along with Pinas’s new prez who was also starting a new life outside of his comfort zone within Davao City. I posted a Batman Lego mic drop on July 1. It was past 3 am, which was my usual time to start working once upon a time when I was still a Rotary club prez. My mantra now is, Me first. Because I can only share what I have with others. What I don’t have, I can’t share. Simple, eh? The new prez of Pinas has a lot to share with Pinoys based on his Davao experience. Pinoys may not be following his example of throwing invectives around but they’re implementing his Davao rules even before he can say, Go ahead, make my day. But I don’t know if he’s still allowed to say, Me first, now that he’s president to more than 100 million Pinoys. It’s PNoy who’s now relaxing, after six years of serving the country. His frenemies may say he has done nothing for the country, but the truth is he has done much good. If only his presidential candidate had more charisma than the Davao City mayor in winning votes? Hmmm. It’s too early to tell if Pinas can morph to a bigger version of Davao City. Pinoys are the type who would grab a trend in its early stage, only to abandon it once they’re bored with the idea. You must have noticed this with the way we, Cagayanons, troop to a new resto or store once it’s open, out of curiosity. A few months later, the curiosity goes pfft and we’re off, discovering another new place. The business owner here has to be resilient, so he can always move forward to the next venture, with no sentimental attachment to what’s already gone. Or even to what’s still there, so he can give it up, and move on. There are so many things the business owner can do, why limit himself to one corner of the world. And he must emulate Dory: What would Dory do? Well, Dory would have her fins fixed if they’re damaged, and would find the place where she’ll be truly happy. I guess that’s where I am now. Each change requires facing reality so you can start from there. For example, if this is your reality, what are going to do with it? The denial stage is the worst of all, since you’re only hoping for better days instead of actively making those days happen. Avoid negative people, especially those with dark clouds hovering above their heads, and who focus on problems instead of solutions. They build mountains out of your molehill of a problem, until you end up like them--so sad, so depressed, so dark. Even their faces have the color gray. If you see them around, flee to the opposite side and don’t look back, lest you’ll catch tidbits of their negativity and you’ll also wallow in darkness along with them. Avoid people whose happiness requires millions in the bank, travel around the world, cars in the garage. Because they can’t be happy on their own. They need accessories to prove to the world they’ve made it. And they bask in the glory of having people fired, they celebrate your failures, they belittle your success, they share with you only the good things happening in their lives to make you believe everything is perfect in their world, and woe to you for not having that perfect life, and for not having that car and that house and the millions, and so on and so forth. Avoid people who convince other people to go to their side of the fence. And they’re not even politicians in the campaign trail, but ordinary mortals who simply love to show they’re honest, true, real, genuine, kind, loving, thoughtful, even if they’re not. There are times when you have to draw a line, for the before and after. Before on one side, after on the other. July 1, 2016 was the best time to do that. If you haven’t yet, draw the line now if you need to. What parts of the before do you need to include in the after? Operative word: Need. There’s a huge difference between need and want. The new Philippine prez surely has already chosen the parts of his Davao experience which he could implement throughout Pinas, and he seems to have the full support of his cabinet members and the other brilliant minds he has appointed to join his administration. The political weather in Pinas is shining brightly despite the La Niña weather as we look forward to less drugs, less crimes, less traffic. The question that may banish from Pinas, though, is this: Are you drugs? If you don’t know its meaning, go ask Kim Daguman because that’s one question she asks whenever someone is hopelessly confused. But before you can ask Kim, I think that’s the question you ask someone who’s constantly neither here nor there, who can’t make up his mind, and you can’t read his mind, he always remains undecided and has to listen to the advice of so many people before he can make his own choice, that is, if ever he will arrive at that point of making a choice. Most probably, he will be undecided forever and ever. Look at his eyes--the confusion is so there, you can’t miss it.