JOEY

There are countless stereotypical ways of defining the person, some of which are as follows:

By her zodiac sign: Aries – pioneering, enthusiastic, quick-witted, quick-tempered, and impulsive.

By her animal year: The Ox – a born leader; never gives up when something is half-way done; knows how to give an order and how to make others follow it; is not swayed by her emotions; has a strong sense of morality; does not easily change her mind because she is stubborn and sometimes prejudiced; her courage, logical thinking, and nimbleness are covered up by her simple appearance; faces danger fearlessly; can be an eloquent speaker when an opportunity is presented; believes that only those who have a down-to-earth style of work may never be defeated.

By her birth order: Youngest - usually the one who wants to do it all--paint and produce a movie, all in a day; believes that tears are the only way to get what she wants and because of this, is an excellent actor; is usually brainwashed by her siblings to think that she was adopted as a baby and found in a trashcan; loves to make people laugh or take center stage; a great storyteller.

By the etymology of her name: Josefina – Spanish feminine form of Joseph, which was from the Hebrew name Yoseph meaning "God shall add."

By the school she goes to: Miriam College – students from this school are affluent, articulate, and ma-arte.

However, none of these fits her perfectly primarily because she’s not your typical girl.

One look at her and she’ll return it with her seemingly perfunctory scrutinizing gaze behind the spectacles. She is this sickeningly stubborn pain-in-the-ass individual who is confident enough to say “no” when everyone else says “yes” and vice-versa. She has 150-75 vision, but you’ll be surprised by how she sees through you. Commonly misinterpreted as one who complicates things, she believes that every little thing is too important to just shrug off. She always has something to say about the world, because she believes that when people cease to complain, they cease to think.

She’s more than what the supercalifragething spells and means. Reflective, intuitive, sensitive, and manipulative rolled into a woman. She’s a child who sees it as a holy duty to continually make her parents proud, a friend who sincerely tells you if you’re ugly and helps you feel beautiful, and a maverick who’s too busy to care about the rules.

In this world of woes and wars, she keeps a vision of changing society through education empowerment. She is an idealist who, according to Henry Ford, is a person who helps other people to be prosperous. But sure enough, she will not live long to witness the change, for she herself is yet to win the greatest battlefield in the world, which is simply winning over oneself (which is hardly simple).

But behind her façade hides a daddy’s girl who talks and walks in sleep, frolics in her train rides while enormous billboards along EDSA leave her openmouthed, has gargantuan appetite and her figure doesn’t show it, treats crying as her source of rejuvenation more than what the spa can do, and ironically has this everyday fear of writing, which is denied by her journalistic prowess.

She has the mind of a great lawyer, the keen eyes of a filmmaker, the influential voice of an activist, the listening ears of a friend, and the gentle heart of a child. She’s like philosophy – dynamic: every practice of it changes its meaning.