Mada Mada Da Ne

The Principle of Equivalent Exchange

I recently acquired a new car---a Nissan Maverick, small, convenient, inexpensive. It's a darling little car and not at all like your hi-end luxury cars (though it does come with automatic transmission, glory be!) but I love it and I even christened it "Shinkumi" (as you can see, I'm still in a Gokusen hype ^_^). But my car is not the main topic of today's post. I will just use it as a forerunner for another one of my "enlightening" anime ramblings.

I recently finished watching Full Metal Alchemist and although the ending didn't quite suit my highly romantic idealist side, I believe the manga would (if it ever ends that is). Anyway, what really attracted me to FMA was not the animation, heaven forbid, nor the characterization, nor even the plot though admittedly all these elements were balanced quite formidably by the creator to come up with a non-mainstream yet attractive series. What drew me to the series was how a single episode managed to engrave in my heart permanently the principle of "equivalent exchange." Who would've imagined that I would find answers to paradoxical queries in anime?

Going further, FMA centers on how the Elric brothers came to know the fearsome powers and even more frightening limits of the power of alchemy. "In order to obtain, something of equal value must be given in return." Thus, alchemy is not based on actual creation of a thing out of nothing but rather on the "reconstruction" of one thing to another. In order to create, you must first have something to deconstruct and recompose. Such is the way of alchemy that the Elric brothers, losing their mother at tender ages, decided that the theory of equivalent echange would work to bring their dead mother back to life. Gathering up all the components that make up a normal human's body and shedding drops of each sibling's blood, the two called forth to life their mother, only to find out one very important thing: equivalent exchange can never apply to humans. "We were mistaken Al. After all, nothing in this world could be equal enough to mother's life." Thus, they learned that human life is not only fragile but priceless...it cannot be replaced by mere elements of nature just as one human being can never substitute another. Each is unique and should be appreciated as such.

Applying this to my own life's experiences, the principle of equivalent exchange generally rings true in this seemingly unfair world. When you work hard enough, you get rewarded, sometimes not really in the way you want to be rewarded but something is really given back to you. When you do the right thing, things turn out they way they should. The results may not exatcly what you hoped for, but they turn out "as they should be." However, there are times when we give something in order to obtain, we feel like victims of highway robbery when what we obtain is not proportionate to what we gave or when we obtain nothing at all. I don't really understand this myself but one thing's for sure. Perhaps we seek with jaded eyes that's why we cannot uncover the "true thing" which we obtained. What we seek with jaded eyes is often clouded in boundless mystery, thus, we must look further and most of all...we must believe.

In my case, I remembered the many times I was kicked so hard even though I was down...false, scandalous sex videos, hellish life at my previous office, mixed-up romantic relationships. In the end though, all the sacrifices I've put in helped me obtain certain strengths more than the equivalent of the pain I've undergone. Hmm...equivalent exchange huh? Of course, there are certain things that could never be with any equal...life and love to name a few. The Elric brothers learned that their mother's life had no equal. I learned that being yourself and believing in who you are and what you can do could never be traded for anything.

But as it stands, FMA's theory on the principle of equivalent exchange bears much truth. I've endured a lot this year. I'm still enduring the hateful jealousy of certain people. I do not seek vengeance. I just remain who I am. In the end...I've been a good girl and the return I get? I have friends who love me for who I truly am, wonderful family, wonderful work associates, and John2 who's the best icing in the whole huge cake of blessings. Add to that ANIME to last a lifetime and my brand-new car---how's that for equivalent exchange? ^_~

To my beloved...prepare to die!

Mwahahahaaa! Cloud and I are watching Basilisk right now and man did this line totally zonk me out! "To my beloved...prepare to die." Yeesh! Basilisk is kinda similar to Shinobi...or so Cloud says. The thing is, the only question you'd bother to ask throughout the entire series is: who's gonna die in the next episode? Oh, and imagine giving a love letter to your beloved that lists the ten top people in her clan that you're going to wipe out---and vice-versa. Hmm...maybe we should do warfare that way. There could be less bloodshed and it's a very practical way of doing things (Haha!). List the top ten warriors on each side and have them slash each other silly and the one with the most members left over wins the war. Convenient, a brilliant time-saver, and exciting as well. Anyway, there's nothing much to drabble about today. I'm just hella bored after all the adrenaline rush for The Play's The Thing had worn out. Next time, I wanna do Gokusen (oh yeah I'm still into the Matsumoto hype and it'll take months to wear down so bear with me). Ja!

Yankumi's Way

I knew I made a post titled "Yuuri's Way" before and I did resolve to learn Yuuri's Way one way or the other. Well, just to let the world know how wonderfully inspiring anime really is (especially to the genuine otaku ^_^) just wanted to make a rush post about this totally sugoii message Yankumi (Yamaguchi Kumiko...still in Gokusen mode here minna) gave to her 3-D Shirokin Gakuin students. It goes something like this:

"3-d may not be the best students academically. People think they're trash just because they don't get good grades and they look different from all the other students in school. But during the time I spent with them, I learned what they truly are, who they really are. Everyone of us makes mistakes. It's just that they make more mistakes than others. So, it is our duty as teachers to guide them towards the right path. Remember, the most important thing is that these guys' hearts are in the right place...and I am proud to say that I'm their homeroom teacher."

Ahhh...to be a romantic idealist is really a beautiful thing ne? Yep, yep, we all make mistakes every now and then and some of us make more mistakes than the others. I could totally relate. A lot of people "condemn" me for my strong character. But I've always truly believed that I am not a bad person. My heart is in the right place...and that's what's important. I guess those who know me...who truly know me could vouch for that ^_^. That's why I love anime so much. It has taught me to see the substance beyond the shadows of forgotten dreams...to truly see...to truly believe ^_^.

Lordcloudx: Live Actions are based on anime or mangas-turned-anime brother dearest so though it's in a quite different package,the soul is entirely anime...you should know that, ne?

Ga-Ga over Gokusen

Ok, so I haven't been active for several months but that doesn't mean I kicked the bucket. I was swamped with work and going to and fro to Manila to give John2 lots of love and moral support for his Bar exams. But that's not why I'm posting right now. I only post when my hormones are in an uproar about something and boy are they in overdrive today!!!

I recently finished watching the Live Action version of Gokusen and came upon one of the most delicious living, breathing males I've ever seen in my whole life (sighs for emphasis). His character in the series is Sawada Shin but his real name is Jun Matsumoto from a J-pop group named Arashi. Actually, I've seen Arashi MTVs on Animax a lot but I never really recognized Jun...not until he played Sawada in Gokusen. Let me tell you that if there was a heartbeat-meter around, it wouldv'e popped after taking mine...hehe! Anyway, I've noticed that I have this really vulnerable tendency to fall in love with the character, not with the actor and I don't know if that's the case with Jun. You see, he plays the brooding, quiet, and coolest-guy-in-campus role in Gokusen but offsets all that with his underlying manliness and what I call "suavely rough yet polite" demeanor (is there even such a thing?). In any case, I noticed that I tend to gravitate towards guys of this type haha! Oh well, I'm drooling nonsensically now. The thing is, Gokusen illustrates the exact feelings that I have as a teacher. It consists of simple one-shot plots that show the relationship growth of teacher Yankumi with her "hooligan"-type students, Shin included. This teacher doesn't stop just at the four walls of the classroom. She'd make Dangerous Minds look like crap. Of course, the fact that Yankumi came from a Yakuza family helps a lot in dealing with her rowdy students but what really got me "here" was when she told her students that it doens't matter if they don't do well academically just as long as they try their best and "their hearts are in the right place." The students said Yankumi never judged them by their looks or language or grades alone. She saw through them. I could relate a lot to Yankumi. We both teach in an all-boys school but unlike her, my kids are fairly well-disciplined. I have a Shin Sawada in class too *smiles mysteriously*. He has so many walls built around him but I'm trying to put cracks in the foundation. Maybe someday, I can be a real Yankumi to him...a teacher he'll always trust. Ahhh...the drama! Hahahaha! I'm being weird as usual. Anyway, Jun Matsumoto is gorgeous and he's perfect as Shin. I pray to God I get lots of Shin-dreams every night. Ha!