the birds and the bees... and the books

Kris: I did it for Baby James. Headline ng mga dyaryo ngayon. Asus! Ikaw talaga Tetay two days na lang moment na ng brother mo and yet ayaw mo talagang patalbog! Ibigay mo naman kay Noy ang spotlight! Ah well, hindi ko na sasawsawan yang paulit-ulit mong pag-iyak sa tv. I’d rather spend my (and my friends’) time in one of the hottest issues these days. And that is the raging war between Education officials and the Church about sex education. Napakagandang topic kesa sa mga ka-dramahang Tetay kaya let me dip my sawsawerong finger in this very sawsawable issue (hihihi)!

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Team Sex Ed ba ako o Team Church? Sex Ed syempre, walang kakurap-kurap. And I’d say shame on you church people for being so high-handed on this issue. At nag-file pa kayo ng kaso sa mga education officials? Bakit? Malaking kasalanan ba na turuan nila ang mga kabataan ng mga bagay na dapat matagal na nilang nalaman?

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Linawin ko lang: I ‘m not in any way connected to any education official. Ni wala akong kilala sa kanila ngayon. But they earned my respect because of this. At least, they’re trying to address the plight of our teen-agers particularly the students who are left on their own to figure out the myth of the birds and the bees. Something na wala namang ginagawa ang simbahan dahil hanggang ngayon, this subject is still taboo and can never be discussed in the presence of the priests and nuns or else you’ll get punished with 32 Hail Marys.

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But hey, wag na nga tayong magpaka-plastik. Gone are the days of Maria Clara. Ni hindi na nga kilala ng mga kabataan natin kung sino sya. And at the onslaught of the cyber age, we have no choice but to face the inherent problems it brings. Isa na doon ang mababang moral values ng kabataan who will engage in anything that young bodies and minds find exciting. Lalo na ang sex. And we have to face it head-on by educating our youth.

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Children of more advanced countries are being taught about the reproductive organs as early as grade school. Bakit sa atin hindi pwede eh high school na? Nire-regla na nga ang mga babae hindi pa nila alam kung ano yon. Tinutubuan na nga ng adam’s apple ang mga lalake hindi pa nila alam na pwede na silang makabuntis. Why don’t we address that ignorance by educating them.

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And educating them is far from condoning these acts. Hindi porke tinuturuan mo ng sex ang mga bata, you are encouraging them that it’s right to do it. Sa pagtuturo nga ipapaabot sa kanila yong message na hindi ito isang hobby. Bagkus, ito ay isang gawain na may kasamang mabigat na responsibilidad. Only then will these youngsters realize the true meaning of sex.

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Dahil hindi na rin natin pwedeng itanggi na ang mga kabataan ngayon ay maaga nang gumagawa nito. Sa dami ng social factors na kinamulatan at ginagalawan nila from their peers to television and the internet. Ayan nga at kahit 13 year old na mga bida sa teleserye paghahalikin. Ang mga soap opera karamihan ang tema puro sex. Kahit sa mga variety shows, puro hubad na dancers ang makikita mo. Billboard na nga lang ni Belo puro hubad din ang mga model.

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So let’s not turn a blind eye on this issue and pray that it will simply fade and go away. Kahit maghapon tayong mag-rosaryo, hindi ito mawawala. We need to do something about it. Nasa Diyos ang awa, nasa tao ang gawa, remember?

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Hindi ba kayo nanghihilakbot everyday na may nababasa tayong fetus na pina-flush sa toilet? Ng mga baby na nilalagay sa kahon at iniiwan kung saan. Ng abortion clinics na na-raid. It’s simply mortifying. And if we don’t do anything about it, statistics will just go up.

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A definitive solution to this is for our youth to acquire a strong sense of understanding and knowledge about sex. Para makaiwas sa teen-age pregnancies. Pati na ang unplanned/unwanted marriages dahil karamihan sa mga magulang, pag nabuntis ang anak, ang agad na solution ay ipakasal ang babae at lalake kahit gaano pa sila kabata. And that only lead to bigger problems, worse situations later on.

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If we do not educate them, we are just allowing ignorance exacerbate the already ugly situation. Hindi kasi alam ng kabataan ang dapat nilang malaman about sex. All they know is mag-date, mag-motel at gumawa ng bagay na sa kanila ay masarap. Paano mong pipigilan yon if they do not know and understand anything about it?

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By educating them, we can make them understand things that, at best, will give them the wisdom to avoid sex. Or, at the least, make them practice safe sex kung hindi talaga maiwasan. And they can only do that if they are informed. If they are educated.

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Kaya sa halip na mag-file ng kaso ang simbahan, what they should do is to support this campaign. Dahil sa totoo lang, sex ed in schools will only do 1/3 of the works. Dapat talaga kasama ang simbahan in waging war against this. Sa halip na makisawsaw sila sa pulitika na hindi naman nila dapat ginagawa, why don’t they focus on uplifting and improving the morals of the youth. Instead of wasting their time in areas they should not even delve into, gumawa sila ng mga activities sa simbahan that would educate and encourage young people to be responsible towards themselves. Lalo na pagdating sa sex.
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But aside from the schools and the church, may isang aspect na kailangang-kailangan din ang participation sa Sex Ed. The family itself. Moms and Dads should involve themselves lalo na kung meron silang teen-age kids. Wag daanin sa puro sermon. Wag daanin sa paghihigpit at pagpaparusa. More than anything else, ang kailangan ng mga batang ito ay ang tamang paliwanag at impormasyon sa mga bagay na nahihiya silang itanong. Dahil kapag sa iba sila nakakuha ng impormasyon at nagkataong mali ang natutunan nila, mas malamang kesa hindi, mapahamak ang bata.

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In short, educating our youth about sex is not just a matter for the schools to deal with. It should be a three-pronged approach where the school provides the hard facts, the church the moral guidelines and the parents the much-needed love, care and understanding to the perplexed, worried and even traumatized young minds confronted with the facts of sex.

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In the larger scheme of things, it is knowledge that will kill any monster being perpetuated by ignorance. Denying the youth the much-needed education is just like keeping them in the dark. And darkness is where evil lurks.

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(pls check out the latest poll on the left panel of this blog and vote about this issue)