and was surrounded by tons of relatives mostly on my dad's side. we all live 5 minutes from each other. as a result - being filipino was pretty effortless. it wasn't separate from any other part of my life. as battousai said - it's like breathing. even living in brooklyn now - it's still effortless. now i don't jump and go to every filipino event (i'm not as involved as i used to be), but i don't think that makes me any less pinay than those who scream and shout it.