"Island—land because it is earth, but isle because surrounded by water. On land we plant roots, build homes, pave roads that take us from one land to another. But it is water that nourishes, refreshes, sits in the horizon and promises freedom. On the other hand, water is our source of life—sustenance, navigation, and imagination. But it is land that holds us steady, embraces us, keeps us together when we become almost untethered by possibility.

In other words, land is important because it is not water. And water is important because it is not land.

In many ways, this Yin/Yang relationship fits the Filipino experience. Ours is a country, after all, of contradictions. We are at once united by colonial conquest and divided by remnants of pre-colonial tribalism. Overseas work makes families whole and splits them apart. Faith is both our anchor and, at times, the very thing that drowns us in guilt or despair. We thrive in hardship but are burdened by resilience. We celebrate freedom but remain bound by cycles of history that we cannot seem to break. [...]"

Words by Nicole Soriano Lao and Gian Lao