A diplomat’s farewellOne afternoon late last year, just before the holiday hustle and bustle, I sat in the drawing room of the US Ambassador’s Residence in Makati waiting for Ambassador MaryKay Carlson. But, as she narrated in her farewell speech last Jan. 16 – as her three-and-a-half-year posting in the Philippines came to an end – preparing for her assignment here took more than experience and diplomatic skills. To her surprise, she was advised to select a song she would be willing to sing in public. “In the Philippines, contacts become colleagues; colleagues become friends and friends become family,” she said. “To me, that’s diplomacy: building relationships of trust born of mutual respect to achieve common objectives based on shared values.

Source: Philippine Star January 19, 2026 16:35 UTC