Thank You Niña

I made it to the papers today and a news program last night. I have “Niña Corpuz”:http://ninascoops.blogspot.com to thank for it.

I met Niña through common friends. A friend of mine was celebrating her birthday and we were supposed to eat out. I couldn’t make since I had something to finish that night. However they decided to pass by the house on their way home from dinner. Niña was with them. So our paths crossed.

She asked if she could do an interview with me. Of course I said yes. Why? because any chance I get to talk about Pompe is a welcome one. Although she wanted to do a story on me as a person with Pompe as opposed to just the disease.

So a few weeks after our first meeting Niña came by the house to do an interview. It was a short but interesting interview.

She didn’t know when the T.V. interview would come out since it would be at the mercy of the producers of the shows. Finally it came out last night. The program it came out on was ANC’s “The World Tonight”. I didn’t know it was coming out on that show until several friends of mine sent me text messages to say that they saw me on T.V. Good thing there’s a replay. So I caught the replay at 2 a.m.

For the T.V. interview it was Lee Quisumbing who did the report but it was Niña’s story.

Niña also wrote an article about me for her column on “The Philippine Star”. It was a coincidence that this came out a day after the T.V. interview. As a friend of mine said, it was a media blitz. Hahaha.

The article came out in the entertainment section because Niña is really an entertainment reporter. She veered of her regular niche to write this story. It was quite amusing to see an article about me in the entertainment section. Surrounded by stories of celebrities. Something I’m not..

Niña did a great job. I liked the article. Not because it was about me but she presented the story well and it was a light but good read. I loved the first paragraph which goes..

bq. I’ve been told there are two ways of looking at things. Is the glass half-empty or half-full? I’m usually guilty of the former until a guy named Dickoy showed me that even if the glass is broken, it’s just, well, glass.

As a result of the T.V. interview and the article I received several emails and messages from people. All the messages were good and very much appreciated. Thanks to all the people who took time out to write to me.

Thanks Niña for writing the story. You’ve helped a lot in the Fight against Pompe. By doing the interview and writing the story you’re helping create awareness for Pompe. For that I am grateful.

If you want to read the article you can find it at “Philstar.com”:http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200606091704.htm or at “Niña’s web site”:http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200606091704.htm.

7 Replies to “Thank You Niña”

  1. Hi Juan, i am Jeevan from India, i was searching for some intersting blogs, and came here. You have explained your feelings and Happiness in a good way here. I am a Muscular Dystrophy patient; I was blogging for a year. This blogging gave me a refresh, with lots of good friend. Me too was very active up to my 10th age, slowly my muscles powers were down, even though I was walking with Caliper and using wheel chare to go out.

    I read your article For Dickoy, the glass is always half-full and liked the 3 sentence. Wonderful. I go though some of the post in your FightPompe, nice to see your Family and friends have a great Love on u, very happy. My family members are also very helpful for me. I am very Happy with what ever I got. 🙂

  2. Good pm Juan,
    I was one of the many people who has chanced upon the article of Nina yesterday. Honestly, the first thing that grabbed my attention was the fact that we share the same surname. (My father is originally from Daraga, Albay.) Then came the value of your life story. There is no doubt that it is really an inspiring story of strength and perseverance. I hope you are aware of the meaning of our surname in Bicolano. I was told by my father that it means “always a winner” or “someone who always win” or something to that effect. I don’t know if my father is just just pulling my leg to be proud of my “unusual long surname” but after I have read your life story.. you have simply made us proud of our bloodline. Ours, I believe, is a bloodline of survivors and yes of “winners”. You have definitely won the hearts of the people who have read the article. We are one of them. Nina was right on her last paragraph. We need real-life heroes. Hope you wouldn’t mind if you would be one of my real-life heroes? Actually, the article could be the answer to the question of one of my officemates. His 6-month old son has a nervous system disease. I don’t know the real story but what I do know is that his baby doesn’t have the ability to control anything. Cannot control his own saliva that it floods his lungs. I would definitely be sharing the information that you have on your website. Hopefully, it could shed light to the real situation that his baby is facing. Stay strong & focused ok? May the good Lord bless you always. Until then, Jun

  3. Hi Dickoy,
    Puri Magdaraog is a former classmate from nursing school. Actually we go way back – all the way back to our kindergarten days. She emailed us (our smartgroup)quite awhile ago asking us to pray for you that you may be considered for the trial drug. I, for one, was happy to find out that you finally got chosen for the trial. Puri and the rest of the Magdaraog clan are very proud of you. And now I see even more why they all have a reason to be. After reading the article in the “Philippine Star”, I was filled with admiration for the courage and strength that you possess. You are truly an inspiration not just for people battling Pompe or any other debilitating disease but even for those who may just be going through a tough time. I loved how the article ended with Bishop Villegas being quoted as saying, ” We do not need celebrities.. but heroes!” And that you certainly are! You have been a part of a litany of peple I pray for and will continue to pray for. Good luck with the trial and keep us posted about your progress. Best regards, Suki

  4. Hi Dickoy! No, thank YOU. So many people were inspired by your story and were congratulating me for writing the article (even Kris Aquino! =)). I told them I won’t be able to write that if not for you.

    They say we should choose our battles wisely, unfortunately you didn’t have the choice with your fight against Pompe.

    But you chose to fight it well and just reading your blog is a testament that you’ve already won the fight.

    This may sound corny (oo na talagang corny, hehe) but I’d like to share one of my favorite quotes which came from former President Bill Clinton’s 2nd inaugural speech in 1997:

    “But let us never forget: The greatest progress we have made, and the greatest progress we have yet to make, is in the human heart. In the end, all the world’s wealth and a thousand armies are no match for the strength and decency of the human spirit.”

    Btw, the reason why Lee Quisumbing voiced my story in The World Tonight was because I was already out of the office when they decided to use it. Anyway, the report is going to come out again soon in TV Patrol World and News Central on Studio 23.

    Again, thank you Dickoy for sharing your story. It reminds me why I chose this profession in the first place.

    See you around 🙂

  5. Hello there. We watched you on TV and we think we can share something that you may find interesting. Can you please send us your contact number or email so we can speak to you directly. God bless you and have a great day!

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