Badminton Friends

The competing teams of the first Lae Filipino Badminton Association tournament.

Boring, boring, bored! This has been my sister's regular chanting. That is why she is dead bored staying in this place. It is actually true if you will not find ways to make yourself busy and entertained. I have been living in PNG for over 16 years and I realized that getting bored is an attitude, it is not a situation. I found ways to make myself active and I fought boredom which is so easy to do. One of the ways I found to beat boredom is trying to become athletic.

Although I am not a sports-minded person, I tried to make myself fit and busy by learning badminton. Monday, Thursday nights and Sunday afternoons are fully occupied with my badminton training and practices. I met new friends in joining in and made my stay here in Lae a more active one.

Our president, Noel dela Cruz has become a very close friend. He is a very patient person (to me because I am not a sporty person so I do not learn sports that easy). Other officers of the Lae Filipino Badminton Association are Wen Dizon(vice), Joel Julongbayan(secretary), Jun Tolosa(treasurer), Adenie Bautista and John Reyes (Buss Mgrs). Other members like Edna Massingham, Denden, Zeny, Sally and Nilo Virtudazo, Dante Garcia, Pol, Japheth, Riches Christian are few of them that I could name.

Things are getting better for the badminton group. We will be having a Badminton Clinic soon. This is an area where Gopal, a badminton mentor will teach kids and adults how to play badminton properly. Gopal is a Malaysian-Indian who has 3 kids that are state players of Badminton in Malaysia. He trained them all and now he is very generous to train us, too. Who knows, maybe after extensive training with him, I can at last win a game. Dreaming and hoping I can be an athletic person soon.