Public Narrative Worksheet

Story of Self

Steve Jobs once said, “you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So,
you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something—your gut, destiny,
life, karma, whatever.” At 26 years old, in retrospect, it’s true especially when it comes to taking charge of your health
and wellbeing.

Both my paternal and maternal grandparents have already come to pass and all I can think about is how I wish I had
more time with them and how I wish they didn’t have to suffer so much. My paternal grandfather was a very
hardworking man. He was the breadwinner of his family, and he took it upon himself to rise the ranks in his banking job
in order to provide his wife and 7 kids a better life—a comfortable life. A comfortable life means many things to different
people but for my paternal grandparents, it meant getting to eat well. Eating well also meant different things to different
people. Especially for my grandparents who experienced war times, it meant getting to buy choice cuts of meat,
treasuring the canned goods, and rationing the imported chocolates. My grandmother was a home economics graduate.
She could be a posterchild of the ideal homemaker. Every meal was well thought out except that it left out one very
important food item that was key to ensuring that the food we eat consists of food that is alive and not dead. One
memory I have of eating with my grandparents was when I slept over at their home. She laboriously made lunch---
preparing a spread of salpicao and rice. I asked her why she didn’t have any vegetables on the table, and she replied,
“Meat is good for you. Eat more.” We have an inside joke in the family, where we say that my dad and his siblings
inherited a lot from their parents. Indeed, they did. It was a long list of health problems spanning from thyroid to
cardiovascular issues. Although they lived a relatively comfortable life, they still experienced numerous trips to the
hospital before eventually passing on.

My maternal grandfather, on the other hand, was a Chinese businessman from Xiamen. He escaped the Communist rule
and sought refuge in the Philippines. He then met my grandmother who came all the way from the province of Capiz,
they wed and bore four children. My grandmother was an ambitious woman who wanted a better life for her family, so
she fled the country and worked as a nurse in England—making history as being a part of the first group of health
workers sent to the country. While my grandmother was away, my grandfather took charge of his mini store and the
cooking at home. Leaving Xiamen didn’t mean that he abandoned the culinary knowledge of the region. He would cook
for my mom and her siblings authentic Chinese food. Based on my mom’s stories, it seems that my grandfather had a
proclivity for fermented black beans which he added in copious amounts in the dishes that he would make. For him, it
seems, that having a comfortable life meant waking up each morning to man the store and being able to feed his family
with good food. To him, good food was on the saltier side. My grandfather passed away when my mom was only a
teenager. It seems that what caused his death was the food that brought him joy.

Growing up, I already had to prepare myself for the possibility of me losing my dad at a young age. He underwent a
couple of heart surgeries and has his fair share of ailments passed on from his parents. Thank God, he was given a third
shot at life. I, myself, also had to deal with asthma which came with a starter pack-- the nebulizer and inhaler that made
breathing much easier for me. My mom, also a dedicated homemaker, loves food and loves to cook it. She would whip
up the most delicious dishes that made me not want to eat anywhere else. For her, a comfortable life meant being able
to serve good food to the family because she grew up in a home that served overcooked vegetables, Vienna sausage in
bread, and as mentioned earlier, salty Chinese food. She didn’t want us to experience what she experienced.

Despite getting to eat well, based on our own definition of eating well, I wondered why my parents still got sick and why
my grade school self was already bordering obese. It left me frustrated and depressed. After graduating from college, I
read books that delved into wholistic wellbeing, and it led me to understanding more about the food that we eat.
Watching a documentary on Netflix called “What the Health” opened my eyes and helped me to connect the dots
backwards. I now understood the crucial factor that shaped the lives of my grandparents and parents, and it begins with
the choices we make about what type of food we put in our bodies. I came to the understanding that we can take control
of our lives by starting with rethinking the food on our plates. We no longer have to be sentenced or enslaved by
genetics. This is knowledge that everyone needs to know which is why I use social media as my starting point to get the
message out and show people what eating truly well can look like.

Story of Us

We all have experienced the loss of a loved one or have seen others suffer through debilitating health challenges. The
Covid 19 Pandemic continues to impact our lives in ways that are both seen and unseen. We have witnessed how easily
lives of our loved ones can be taken away by a virus. Much attention has been given to the pandemic but even before
Covid 19, numerous diseases have been plaguing us and taking people’s lives. Diseases such as Diabetes, Heart Disease,
and kidney disease don’t get as much media attention, but that doesn’t make it any less real. The pandemic has given us
room to reflect and rethink the way in which we carry out our day to day lives. This experience pushes us to focus our
attention on what truly is essential in our lives and discard those things that don’t add value. Maybe for you, the
pandemic has driven you to an unending loop of hopelessness—finding life devoid of meaning. The pandemic, along
with the diseases that seem to be inevitable parts of our lives, continue to shake our being to the core begging us to
listen to the call of our bodies. It begs us to ask the question, “Why am I here? What is my reason for being?”.

We face thousands of subliminal messages every minute that try to influence and shape our desires. Many try to sell
happiness in a box, luring people to believe that happiness can be bought. Maybe a happy meal can save the day or
throw in a 2-piece chicken joy to make things better. Why do we eat in the first place? Do we eat to live, or do we live to
eat?

Man is in constant pursuit of happiness so we must ask ourselves what that might look like. It could be a quality life
instead of a long life that is filled with trips to the hospital. It could be a life where we are strong enough to play with our
children and our children’s children. It could be a life where we get to travel the world without losing our breath. It could
be a life where we’re simply sharing laughs with our parents and grandparents. Happiness means many things to
different people. So, what we must ask ourselves is, is the way we are living our lives or more specifically the way we are
eating helping us achieve that goal? Or is it providing only momentary happiness that comes with a food baby?

I envision a world where eating well comes naturally to everyone and the systems in place in our society make it easy for
us to make the right food choices. I envision a world where people are thriving because their food fuels them instead of
kills them. I imagine every single human being taking control over their destiny. We need to realize that what we choose
to put on our plates, alters the lives of those that come after us.

Story of Now

The pandemic is one of the many warning signs that are calling us to make a change. Our time is now. Collectively we can
do more—in our homes, workspaces, and so on. If we start the change with ourselves then we would have moved a step
closer towards a brighter and less sick tomorrow. Losing our loved ones is an inevitable part of life but it doesn’t mean
that we just let life happen to us. I believe in living our life fully with intentionality. We all have this extraordinary ability
to shape the present moment.

I found that I am reaching more people through my posts on social media where I post whole food plant-based recipes
that everyone can try at home. Living by example is where we can start so that our loved ones would see how a change
in our plates can ultimately change our overall wellbeing. You can do this too. It is not impossible. Anything that is worth
doing can be challenging but it will be worth it in the long run. All you have to do is do your part in your own little corner
of the world---you’ll be given many opportunities to choose life when you go to the grocery store, order food in a
restaurant, cook food for yourself or for your family.

I know that there are so many things that are not within our control, but the bright side is that there are still things
within our control. Let’s work together till we can say gone are the days when we would lose a loved one because they
sought constant joy in the likes of a happy meal.