Article
Of course you don't die. Nobody dies. Death doesn't exist. You only reach a new level of vision, a new realm of consciousness, a new unknown world.
- Henry Miller
"I'm very sorry ma'am. He's gone..."
As my mother heard those words from the doctor, she sat down at the nearest chair from where she was standing and began to cry. My grandfather looked at the clock located at his left. 9:03 PM. February 15, 2014.
To those who don't know yet, I am suffering from hypertension. At an early age of 19, this condition is quite odd for a person with the same age bracket as mine can have. It's quite disturbing actually. I have a sphygmomanometer inside my room. Whenever I feel uneasy, I always check my blood pressure. I was self-trained to use the device in case of emergencies. I have a year worth of medicine in one of my cabinets, mostly Atenolol and Catapres.
The problem is, aside from e-Sim stuff, I am graduating at one of the best universities here in the Philippines this semester. So as my last term as an undergraduate student nears its end, there are plenty of requirements to accomplish, especially THESIS. Being excellent in those two separate worlds is a very daunting task to take, but I must do it. My RL family is trusting at me that I can do it. My e-Sim family is trusting at me that I can surpass it. I was able to do it, until came Valentines Day (February 14).
I attended a concert inside our campus grounds called the "UP Fair". I was accompanied by my close friend and his colleagues from work when something happened to me. My breathing became a little bit weird. My movements became a little bit abnormal. Another attack? I became separated from them among the screaming crowd due to my situation, then after a few minutes, I have decided to go at my room to take a rest. I contacted them that I was going home, yet I got no concrete response.
To make the long story short, I collapsed a couple of hours after due to a heart attack. I was immediately rushed to the university hospital with the help of the landlady of the boarding house I was staying after she heard a loud thud inside my room. I was transferred to a private hospital several minutes after. As soon as my relatives learned my situation, they endured a three-hour journey from our province to the private hospital I was currently confined. My younger brother became in-charge on disseminating the news, including to those who are playing e-Sim in my phone contacts.
As the agonizing hours tick by, my friends in both sides (RL and e-Sim) waited patiently for any progress about my condition. I was sound asleep for almost 12 hours in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) then suddenly my heart began to fail. The doctors and nurses rushed to my room to take immediate action, but with through all their strength and intellect, we lost the battle for my life.
As the doctor uttered those words, my grandmother almost fell to her knees and fainted. She was immediately treated by the nurses who were accompanying the doctors who were assigned to check me. My mother didn't believe that I was declared dead at that time. She didn't want to. As my status became final, the news broke out at the e-Philippine e-Sim IRC channel through Ate
Jaiace ("Ate" means "older sister" in Filipino). Many did not believe that I died on that night. Most of them were skeptic at first, but as the situation synced in, their worst fear for me became true. DEAD. As my mother continued to ask the doctors a way to revive me, the news spread like a contagious disease. My immediate family's phones were ringing off the hook. Messages flooded in.
"What are you doing here? It's not yet your time! Go back to your body right now!"
It was almost 10 in the evening when I was, miraculously, REVIVED. And to those who are questioning if the above sentence is true, YES, IT IS TRUE. Be skeptic if you want to, but I stand to what I believe what happened. There might be some things that cannot be explained fully, but with full understanding, it will be okay.
As I continue to fight for my life, an article was published by Ate
Jaiace named "a humble plea... ". An overkill at the seventh round of the battle of Turkey Mediterranean Coast was ordered by our ePH CP 
Rec in memory of me as a form of a 21-gun salute.
To all the persons who commented to Ate
Jaiace 's article wishing for my fast recovery, to those who continued to show their care and support to me, and to those who have prayed, especially to those who are in Nashville (as shown at the picture below), I CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH. Your prayers and well wishes will not go in vain, for I will continue to get better in my end.
Who says one strategy game cannot reunite other people in terms of a tragedy? Who says one illness can put out the fire in someone to fight against all odds?
I remembered a saying from one person when he made a speech at a funeral that I attended a couple of weeks ago. "You will know the attitude and the behavior of a person by the number of persons who attended on his/her funeral." Even though not in terms of a funeral, I have realized that there are many people who believed in me that I will conquer this obstacle. There are many people who became concerned at my condition and they continue to get updates from me. And there are many people who cared and loved me, both in RL and in e-Sim.
I also remembered a promise a person made to me before he banned himself at this game by request. LEAVE A LEGACY. Based on what I've seen and what I've felt for the past few days, I guess I have fulfilled that promise. But that will not end there. I will continue to be in this game, not because to have more evidences to fulfill the promise, but because I want to show to them how committed I am to serve ePH well. No matter what happens, as long as my health and RL responsibilities permit me, I will be a loyal citizen of ePH, and will do whatever I can in order to protect the common good of my country and my fellowmen. And to my hypertension, YOU'RE JUST AN ILLNESS. I am way stronger and tougher than you, for I have everything and everyone that I need around me to be able to defeat you. And of course, I have HIM, who game me a second life, to have a new level of vision, a new realm of consciousness, and a new unknown world.
^_^
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The Heart Invasion (12 years ago)
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About the game:
USA as a world power? In E-Sim it is possible!
In E-Sim we have a huge, living world, which is a mirror copy of the Earth. Well, maybe not completely mirrored, because the balance of power in this virtual world looks a bit different than in real life. In E-Sim, USA does not have to be a world superpower, It can be efficiently managed as a much smaller country that has entrepreneurial citizens that support it's foundation. Everything depends on the players themselves and how they decide to shape the political map of the game.
Work for the good of your country and see it rise to an empire.
Activities in this game are divided into several modules. First is the economy as a citizen in a country of your choice you must work to earn money, which you will get to spend for example, on food or purchase of weapons which are critical for your progress as a fighter. You will work in either private companies which are owned by players or government companies which are owned by the state. After progressing in the game you will finally get the opportunity to set up your own business and hire other players. If it prospers, we can even change it into a joint-stock company and enter the stock market and get even more money in this way.
In E-Sim, international wars are nothing out of the ordinary.
Become an influential politician.
The second module is a politics. Just like in real life politics in E-Sim are an extremely powerful tool that can be used for your own purposes. From time to time there are elections in the game in which you will not only vote, but also have the ability to run for the head of the party you're in. You can also apply for congress, where once elected you will be given the right to vote on laws proposed by your fellow congress members or your president and propose laws yourself. Voting on laws is important for your country as it can shape the lives of those around you. You can also try to become the head of a given party, and even take part in presidential elections and decide on the shape of the foreign policy of a given state (for example, who to declare war on). Career in politics is obviously not easy and in order to succeed in it, you have to have a good plan and compete for the votes of voters.
You can go bankrupt or become a rich man while playing the stock market.
The international war.
The last and probably the most important module is military. In E-Sim, countries are constantly fighting each other for control over territories which in return grant them access to more valuable raw materials. For this purpose, they form alliances, they fight international wars, but they also have to deal with, for example, uprisings in conquered countries or civil wars, which may explode on their territory. You can also take part in these clashes, although you are also given the opportunity to lead a life as a pacifist who focuses on other activities in the game (for example, running a successful newspaper or selling products).
At the auction you can sell or buy your dream inventory.
E-Sim is a unique browser game. It's creators ensured realistic representation of the mechanisms present in the real world and gave all power to the players who shape the image of the virtual Earth according to their own. So come and join them and help your country achieve its full potential.
Invest, produce and sell - be an entrepreneur in E-Sim.
Take part in numerous events for the E-Sim community.
