I realized that one way I could help my Philippines is by supporting the Reproductive Health Bill.
It hit me when I had a conversation with a 23-year old Belgian who seemed to have vast intimate knowledge of what's going on in my uterus.
And I took no offense because I kind of had an idea why.
The Belgians have one of the best educational systems in the world.
The moment they hit puberty, their teachers are obliged to tell them what hormones do to you, and how they change your body.
As a result, they are smart enough to know when and when not to fool around.
They also know what to do when they do fool around.
And they now what's going on in their bodies.
And so the Belgians are able to plan their lives - when to settle down, have babies and juggle family life with career.
So the Kingdom of Belgium sits comfortably somewhere in Western Europe, with a population of over 10 million and a GDP of $466 billion.
The government does not need to worry about hungry mouths to feed, homeless families, and what the church will say about family planning.
Belgium is also a predominantly Roman Catholic nation, just like the Philippines.
I am no genius and have not conducted a study on whether the RH Bill will improve our lives and consequently the Philippine economy, but maybe it will.
Squeeze it into the curriculum.
Welcome questions.
Give people options.
We hear of families having too many babies because they couldn't afford condoms or pills, so they kill their babies or make them work before they could even go to school.
They're lucky if they could.
So what's wrong with a few free condoms being passed around the slums?
What's wrong with having options other than despair and death?
Let's give RH a shot.
Come one people.
We gave Erap a shot.
We will never ever be Belgium, but we can be a better, less hungry, less ignorant, happier Philippines.
Now where to start.