Brenda at Jamilla: Palaban?!?

SOURCE: The Daily Tribune

Among all the Pinoy Big Brother housemates that we have come to know, we could not help but be impressed with the teenage batch.

In a recent chat with the 10 evictees of the famous PBB Teen Edition, two young ladies caught our attention, not only because they were alluring outside, but more for their beauty inside.

Seldom do we get to talk with sensible young people whose visions and goals in life are crystal clear, direct and doable.

I personally like Brenda, the Amerasian who hails from Subic, Olongapo. She is barely 16 and yet she shows a passion and strength that belies her age. She defintely knows what she wants in life.

It is just so sad that we didn't see her showcase her talents and express her thoughts when was still with her housemates trying to perform the tasks Big Brother gave them.

Brenda has strong views about many causes and issues like the environment, animal protection, women issues like teen marriages, abortion, wife battery and so on. Whew, but this young beauty who just relinquished her Ms. Zambales-Tourism crown can with sense.

She told us that she has been a practicing vegetarian since she was 12. She had learned that eating meat somehow causes some imbalance in one's thoughts, so she decided to stick to eating vegetables and fish. "Besides," adds she, " I could not bear to imagine killing animals and have them chopped and cooked for humans to eat."

Brenda, who decided not to use her American father's surname, only has praises for her mother and stepfather (an Italian-American), who completely support her. "Typical kid din po ako na minsan ay naging pasaway sa magulang. But I know what my limitations are and my position in the house. Anak pa rin ako na dapat rumespeto at sumunod sa mga magulang at nakakatanda," she said.

She is an incoming freshman at the University of Sto. Tomas and plans to pursue a Tourism degree. She is bent on pursuing her education even if showbiz already gives her economic sustenance. "Iba pa rin ang nakatapos," she explained.

Another thing that makes Brenda far better than her fellow housemates is her being an artist. She knows how to use the camera and has, in fact, photographed practically just everything and saved and edited them in her computer. "I prefer to be the one taking the shots. I want to give life to the things that I take photos of. Iba ang fulfillment," she shared.

If there are things that her camera cannot capture, she puts them in words. She writes emotional and relevant pieces of poetry and song. I asked her to give us a sample of one her poems and she immediately recited one that talked of nature's effort to seduce humans. Nakaka-impress talaga. Instantly, we became her fans.

Big kudos to this 16-year-old Amerasian whose biological father wanted her to be aborted. Her parents, the people of Zambales and her friends must be very proud of her.

Teen mother Jamilla Obispo also captured our hearts as she related to us her mature views in life.

"I have to be (mature). When one is given the responsibility, he or she has to act on it no matter how difficult his or her ways would turn out," said Jam, who is called Mommy by her PBB housemates.

At 18, this half-Pinay, half-Puerto Rican beauty from Laguna is mother to a two-year-old boy who needs five operations to correct his cleft palate and cleft lip. This is why she entered the PBB Teen Edition. She wanted to stop working as a GRO in a famous 'men's' joint in Paranaque.

She was very brave to admit that she had a relationship with an older rich man to support her kid. "May mga bagay po tayong kailangang gawin at one time in our lives. Hindi ko po ikinahihiya pero tapos na po yun at mas gusto ko namang ako na ang magtrabaho para sa pamilya ko," said Jamilla.

Brenda and Jam are not the typical young people we see around. Their level of maturity brought about by their various experiences in life and probably their 'roots' are simply amazing, even commendable.

Yes, they are normal, too, as they swoon over their crushes and those 'young' people's music, sound and media exposures, but they all consider these stuff simply a part of the physical aesthetics of life.

"Mas mahalaga po talaga ang nilalaman ng loob at kung ano ang puwedeng abutin ng isip na maaari naman palang gawin," Jam and Brenda said.

Indeed, there is hope in the youth!