The 2007 Journey from Manila to Davao: DAY 6: Bike Ride Around Bacolod City

Statistics:

Distance covered: km

# of Intentional Rest Stops: 1

# of Unintentional Rest Stops: 0

# of Core Riders: 5

# of Tatay Bikers: 5

# of Flat Tires: 0

# of Mechanical Problems: 0

Start Time: 7:10 am

End Time: 9:15 am

Since the B4L team only made a city tour of Bacolod on their bikes, let me share a snapshot of what we have gone through as of yesterday... (Alabang to Iloilo)

Highlights:

The B4L team woke up early and headed to the Public Plaza of Bacolod city to meet up with the local bike groups. We were welcomed by Dr. Joel Yap of Medtrek Bikers, a group doctors who are also bike enthusiasts. DansBikes indeed made its presence felt in this gathering... I've never seen so many Specialized Bikes in one place!!!

There were about 100 bikers all in all. The peloton headed to the Bacolod plant of Pepsi where we were all treated for morning snacks and unlimited drinks! There I met, 2 lady bikers. One is a Korean studying at Bacolod while the other is a member of B3 (Bacolod Biker Babes -- cool name! Parang mtbbabes!!! Hihihi).

The forum was held at the little theater of the University of Negros Occidental Recoletos. In today's forum, Fr. Henares shared his views on cancer and the ten commandments:

Thou shalt regard the word “CANCER” as exactly that: a word

Thou shalt love thy chemotherapy, thy radiation,and other treatments even as thyself, for they are thy friends and champions.

Thou shalt participate fully in thy recovery; Thou shalt learn all the details of thy ailment, its diagnosis, its prognosis, its treatments, conventional and alternate.

Thou shalt regard thy ailment as a temporary detour in thy life and shalt plan thy future as this detour had not occurred.

Thou shalt express thy feelings candidly and openly to thy loved ones for they are stricken; Thou shalt comfort and reassure them for they, too, needest comforting and reassurance, even as thou doest.

Thou shalt be a comfort to thy fellow- Cancerites providing knowledge, encouragement, understanding , and love; You shalt give them hope where there may be none, for only in hope lies their salvation. And by doing so, thou providest comfort for thyself, as well.

Thou shalt never relinguish hope, no matter how thou may feelest at the moment, for thou knowest,in the deep recesses of thy heart, that your discouragement is but fleeting and that a better day awaits thee.

Thou shalt not regard thy ailment as the sum total of thy life but merely a part of it; Fill your life with other diversions, be they mundane, daring, altruistic, or merely amusing; To fill your life with your ailment is to surrender to it.

Thou shalt maintain, at all times and in all circumstances, thy sense of humor, for laughter lightens thy heart and hastens thy recovery.

Thou shalt have enduring and unassailable faith, whether thy faith be in a Supreme Being, in Medical Science, in thy Future, in Thyself, or in whatever.