Tillandsia Lovin'

This weekend's project required minor effort and minimal equipment too! The mommy Tillandsias had babies and after several weeks of gushing over them young, I finally decided to wean them.

Pinterest had pretty good ideas for hanging and displaying airplants and one of my favorites was making a coil hanger from wire.

It's time to wean:  Mommies and babies!

To make the Tillandsia hanger, coil a wire like this.

Stretching the coil becomes like this.

And voila!  The Tillandsia has a home!

Sideview, this is how it looks.

Left is an S-Hook and right is the coiled-hanger.

Altogether, they look so pretty!

That's it! Tillandsias are fairly easy to take care. You practically just let them be! Lol! Kidding aside. I have lost several baby Tillandsias in the first few months since i got them.  I has high hopes then because they seemed really easy to grow and keep. I was wrong. They can get sensitive and wither too when overly misted.  I once went on a five day vacation only to come home and find my once healthy indoor tillandsia, dead.

For now, I keep 'em nice by spritzing them with water once a week atleast. I hardly dunk them anymore in bath because it's been raining quite often the past few weeks.  The air being kind'v humid makes my Tillandsias happy. 

So here's to hoping the babies will stay okay and grow to become happy mommies too!

Condemning Grace

My heart always go out to people who are discriminated against, ridiculed, and mocked based on the circumstances of their birth.  For one, not even Jesus Christ himself had the power to design the circumstances to which he would be born into.  Mary and Joseph, His earthly parents, weren't His choice.  Bethlehem was not his Choice.  Being a carpenter and a preacher and a teacher were not His choice.  And neither was being crucified His choice!  Jesus was the Son of God and yet He had no choice but to yield to the circumstances to which His Heavenly Father subjected him to.  And yet, at present, in the Philippine politics, a strong contender for the two highest political seats in the land, is being castigated for her questionable descent.

Sen. Grace Poe is said to have been a foundling abandoned in my native Iloilo.  A churchgoer found her and entrusted her to a rich haciendera who eventually gave her up to be adopted by Susan Roces and Fernando Poe.  Her parents being unknown makes her nationality questionable.  Some allege that one of her parents may not be a Filipino afterall.  As such, she meets the constitutional disqualification for being a non-natural born Filipino citizen. 

Source

Several other stories though have surfaced alleging that Sen. Poe is actually the daughter of former President Ferdinand Marcos and Susan Roces' younger sister, actress Rosemarie Sonora.  A version which makes me want to puke.

Source

People hurl so many accusations and allegations as if they know the truth.  But, seriously, what is the truth?  Or more precisely, does the truth matter at all?  

Sen. Grace Poe may bear a "stranger's" name, be the former president's love-child, or the foundling abandoned by parents who DID NOT WANT HER --- but does it matter where she's from?  Whom she's from?  How she came to be?

Is it not enough that she has emerged to be the person she is now: humble, selfless, dedicated, compassionate, God-fearing, conscientious, noble, and a public servant worth-emulating?  

Why must a person be bound by the sins of his father?  Or in the case of Sen. Poe, by the "sins" of her parents?  Granting for the sake of argument that Pres. Marcos and Rosemarties Sonora were indeed her true parents, SO WHAT?  Will that fact make Sen. Grace Poe less of a person?  Will that make her an inferior creature and make those who insist on such fact what, NOBLE? VIRTUOUS? SUPREME?

None of us has the power to design the circumstances of our birth.  We cannot choose our parents.  We cannot choose our family.  We cannot choose our race.  But there are things we are privileged to choose:  our spouse, our career, our community, and more importantly, the leaders to vote for come election time.  Sadly, the vast majority, almost always choose to waste such important privilege.  And castigate, mock, ridicule the likes of Sen. Grace whose only "sin" is not knowing (or uncovering?) her true lineage.

Void of a Loved-One Gone

It was exactly a year ago when I last held her hand like this... Has she really been gone that long already?

Does one ever transcend the void of a loved-one gone? Never perhaps. Because even in the sublest and most surprising way sometimes, the memory of that beloved visits us, accompanies us, fills us. We succumb to melancholy. But then we get consoled knowing our dear departed is in a much better place now...

Mama is in a much better place now. But, i miss her. Still.

Miracle Unfolding

To see things grow right before her eyes 

is a gardener's greatest reward.

My Commencement Address

Twenty-five years after I missed my own elementary graduation, I went up the stage as the commencement speaker. Twenty-five years from now, I wish the graduates I spoke to today will also be able to declare, "I am successful." - not because they have built a huge house, own a fleet of cars, receive a fat paycheck, or possess other superficial indicators of "success." I hope they will be able to say, "I am successful because I am happy with what I do, and I, being here, have made this world so much a better place than it was twenty-five years ago."

(Transcript of my 2015 Commencement Address.  

NO PART OF THIS PIECE MAY BE DELIVERED/REPRODUCED/COPIED WITHOUT MY CONSENT.  COPYRIGHT AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWS APPLY.)

When I received the invitation to be your commencement speaker, I initially refused. It felt I am just an ordinary person who, by the society’s standard, has not accomplished enough to be proud of, to brag about, or at the very least, to bring my Alma mater pride. But Mrs. A__ who extended the invitation explained that you chose me not because I am an accomplished alumna but because I could inspire. 

Then I remembered my idol, United States’ first lady Michelle Obama’s message when she addressed the graduating class of Oregon State University in 2012 when she said, “Success isn’t about how your life looks to others. It’s about how it feels to you. Being successful isn’t about being impressive, it’s about being inspired.” So I accepted the invitation and I am here with you today, not because I am impressive – but because I am inspired. 

As you all know, my humble beginnings in this town started when our tiny family moved here from Bicol where I was born, I was only five years old then. My father came from a buena familia in Albay and as such, he never knew how to work. It was our mom who ultimately became the family’s breadwinner with the help of course of our kind-hearted second parents in our Lolo Cenon and Mama Paring. 

As a kid, I used to help my mom sell her yummy peanut butter around town, peddling at the tienda, municipio and even the streets of this tiny town. It was always a delight to come home afterwards with my measly income or a kilo or pork or beef which I bartered with a jar of peanut butter. My sisters, all six of us, have been trained to work and to live within our means not as child laborers but as joyful co-workers who helped our sustain our family’s needs. 

So how was the knowledge of commerce and trade help us in our adult life? Well in my case, I never really liked numbers (you can ask Mrs. Poli and Ma’am Salmo [my math teachers then) so I shied away from trade and commerce as much as possible. But those childhood experiences taught some very valuable lessons: I am not afraid of the streets. I am not afraid of people. I am not afraid to be poor. I can be self-sufficient. 

I was a freshgrad when I went to the University of _____ in ____ City to teach in college. I was 20 years old. Having graduated from _______University, I had a culture shock in _____. Aside from the fact that many of my students were rich kids, I was further intimidated by a few foreign-borne ones. I swear their English was impeccable, their appearances, thwarting. Just barely a week of being there I received the invitation to teach at the University of _____where I eventually chose to spend the first twelve years of my adult life as a college instructor. 

There I gained so many more life lessons which otherwise, I would not perhaps learned from teaching rich kids. Many of my students were a lot older than me. Such fact taught me to have deeper respect for those who struggle to achieve a degree notwithstanding poverty, marriage, a challenged career, and other personal issues. I had students who were house-helpers, police-officers, office clerks, security guards. Each had a story to tell. 

One of my most unforgettable lessons was in Speech Communication. I was explaining how essential communication is so I asked them how many of them kiss their parents, bless them, say sorry when they did something wrong, or “iloveyou” when needed. In a class of 50, there’s hardly five of them who do. Isn’t that sad? I had to ask them, do you ever give your mom flowers on their birthday? Even ones which you picked from their very own garden? Hardly anyone does. So may I ask you, dear parents who are here, what kind of home have you created for your kids? Do you think of them when they are in school? Do you pray for them when they are out of sight? Do you hold them when they are afraid? Because you see, I learned our children will never outgrow their need for us. Never. If we create a loving and nurturing environment for them, that tendency to spread love and compassion around them will remain all throughout their lives. We don’t need a tragedy to learn that love is all that matters and our family will always be there for us no matter what. So if there relationships that we need to nurture, it should commence in the family. 

I left teaching to explore other career options in 2010. I’ve been blessed to serve the Philippine Mediation Center where I sit to help conflicting parties who have filed cases against each other resolve their issues. My most difficult cases are those of siblings fighting for a parcel of land and have declared severing their ties for all eternity if their demands are not met. It makes me especially sad to think how children born of the same parents, who practically ate from the same table, came from the same womb, would be willing to kill each other for some parcel of land. 

Do you remember the Disney movie, “Frozen”? It’s also one of my favorites. You see I realized that like Elsa, I am blessed to have several "Annas" in my life -- my five younger sisters. Time and time again they have showed me "acts of true love." Maybe not the kind that Anna did in the movie to spare her sister Elsa's life, but my sisters have expressed great acts of valor, of compassion, of understanding, of acceptance and of forgiveness which perhaps, in my lifetime, I could never ever repay. I will forever be grateful to have them in my life...afterall, they are also my true loves! Dear children, do you love your siblings? If you do, always hold on to that. Remember the dreams you wove with your siblings when you were young, the little promises you gave each other so that when you are adults, nothing, especially materialism should ruin your ties. 

After I left teaching, I was also happy to pursue one of my passions which is writing. I do content writing online writing e-book or e-zine articles. One time, one very close friend requested that I write an oratorical piece for her student. Modesty aside, I have trained champion contestants and wrote winning declamation and oratorical pieces even as a teacher. So when this teacher friend attended the competition with her student who memorized the piece I wrote for them, they were shocked to hear that the very first contestant who was from another town was delivering the very piece which I wrote for my the representative of San Miguel! My friend, the coach, complained of course and found out that the student actually only got the piece from the web and chanced upon my blogpost where I published such piece! 

The bottom line is, they never had an idea that the post they got from the internet and which they presumably presented as an "original" for the competition was actually written by someone from their neighboring town of San Miguel – supposedly for the contestant representing San Miguel! Anyways, the matter was settled. I did not bother make a formal complaint anymore on copyright infringement despite my copyright warning on my site because the coach, the faculty of said school approached me as well as the staff of our highschool to formally extend their apologies. Good thing our contestant for whom the piece was made won and theirs, the copycat, didn’t. 

Now why am I sharing this with you? With the proliferation of technology and the very easy access to information which is right at our finger tips, people seemed to have lost respect already for the printed words. Please understand that anything you copy from someone, even those which you copy from someone else’s diary, or to the teachers, from your student’s composition entries, all those should be valued and esteemed highly. When we lose respect for other people’s outputs, other people’s efforts, other people’s creativity, we lower our standards and treat everything around us with mediocrity. Nothing anymore becomes special, or spectacular. So what is left? A jaded existence. 

When I worked with the Department of Labor and Employment, there was an employer who came to the office complaining why they must be compelled to pay the minimum wage for their employees who have not even finished high school (or elementary). I was handling their case so consequently, I faced them. The minimum wage is 284pesos but they only give 100pesos to their employees. Their establishment was clearly violating the minimum wage law. Given that they intentionally picked elementary graduates only, they believed it’s unfair to include these “inferior” workers from the minimum wage bracket given their “inferior” qualifications. I was flabbergasted! How does one change another’s notion of fairness and equality? The minimum wage cannot even decently support a family of four, or of three, or of two! Do “unaccomplished” people need fewer meals in a day? Require lesser roof above their head? Lead lesser lives? 

Ladies and gentlemen, bigotry is a disease. And indifference is man’s most serious affliction. Sometimes when we feel we are supreme above others and treat the rest as lesser beings, priding in the thought that we are more successful, more powerful, more blessed, we wake up to realize we are afterall living a miserable life. True success isn’t about having everything. It’s about wanting everything you have. It’s about extending what you have. It’s about seeing a piece of yourself in everything you extend to others. 

My dear friends, I wish twenty five years from now, these graduates will be able to say, “I am successful.” Not because they have built a huge house, own a fleet of cars, receive a fat paycheck, and possess other superficial indicators of success. I hope these kids will be able to say “I am successful because I am happy in what I do, and I, being here, has made this world is so much a better place than it was twenty five years ago.” 

Congratulations my dear graduates, parents, and may we all lead good lives henceforth.

Journey to Wellness

I went to see my doc yesterday primarily for my very irregular period and seemingly rapid weight gain. Nope, i am not pregnant. Lol.

This is the biggest I've ever been at 70.05kgs. My good doc informed me that my ideal weight is only 56kg (or was that 52kg?).  Suspecting that I have far more (heaven forbid) serious issues other than my excess weight, she is subjecting me to a battery of tests.  Something I deliberately tried to avoid in the past few years.

You see, i "feel" normal.  If not for my bulging belly, flabby arms, frequent bouts with dizziness, acidity, migraine, ireegular period, and breathlessness in climbing up even short stairs or nearby distance, I could say I am "fit."

But i am all of those.  Approaching 40s now, i am slowly accepting the fact that my body has changed. So did my state of health.  And there are things I must seriously, seriously consider if i wish to remain fit and agile at 50, 60, or 70.

I start by being more wary of my diet: much lesser salt, more decreased sugar, lotsa veggies and fruits, and much much more physical activity.

I have no idea how to make this journey tenable.  But i am sure as hell I wanna get there!

Suicide

News about Jolo Revilla's accidental firing which resulted to a serious self-inflicted injury earned so much criticism in the social media.  Of course, many refused to consider his claim plausible. What bothered me though are the many who actually took time to post about their criticism of Jolo and of his story.  Many even called him stupid for even attempting to mislead the "intelligent" public by giving a false statement.

But you see, if a non-celebrity like me, tried to kill myself and failed, i will most probably tell the same story: that i was cleaning my gun and fired it accidentally. I know such claim will elicit disbelief but, isn't that the most "logical" recourse under the circumstances? The point is, so what if he's lying? If his life, or mine for that matter, doesn't matter to you (or to anybody)  so much so that you'd rather wish him/me dead, so what?  Why does news of failed suicide attempts enrage people?  

People who attempt to kill themselves have the greatest guts no other sane man will ever understand...that is, until he does the same.  

In the few moments I made such attempt, i was least proud of myself.  Over and over again, i came to realize that the more I try to end my life, the more weak I actually was!  I just did not have the courage to actually pull the trigger or slash my wrists.  I was a coward.  I was a weakling.  And ironically, I found myself confronting my issues not because I felt "strong" but simply because I was too weak to simply put an end to  everything -- in a snap.

So if I hear news about people killing themselves or making such attempt, my heart goes out to them.  No one, as in no one at all, knows exactly how it is to feel completely powerless and inept to face the issues that make life or mere survival, rational.

I should know.  I've been there.

The Invitation

Twenty five years ago, I finished elementary in the largest public elementary school in our quaint little town. Yesterday,  I got a call from them asking me to be this year's commencement speaker.  Politely, I refused.

At 30 something, I do not see myself as someone admirable or inspiring.  I have not achieved the aspirations I have imposed upon myself as an elementary graduate then.  I have wasted so many opportunities, failed so many people, made so many (shameful) mistakes, screwed up bigtime, and contented myself with just mere survival for so long a time.

But Mrs. A who personally extended the invitation changed my mind radically.  She explained that they want me precisely not because of my achievements but because of my "failures" which paradoxically, brought me my successes. She went on to explain that while I have not (yet) reached the zenith of my career and attained that which society highly esteems, they have seen me through my worst -- and as I rose from my brokenness to emerge victorious and unrelenting.  And that's what they want the graduates, the parents and the teachers to hear:  That while academic achievement can pave the way for so many wonderful opportunities, the victors are those too who, albeit bereft of recognition, material possessions, and accolades, still put up a good fight, keep their faith and despite all atrocities, simply refuse to give up.  That one need not belong as well to the top of his class, attend the most expensive school, or be endowed with great physical beauty and strength in order to triumph over adversities, achieve his dreams, and realize his true potentials.  So while I never saw myself as such, there are those who perceive me differently.

I was humbled.  I was in tears.  I never knew other people see me as one capable of inspiring or affecting others, especially young people. So yes, I accepted the invitation not because of an altered perspective but because I was convinced, I have a voice, and I have something to share.

As of now, I plan to speak of the things I wish I were told as a 12-year old, of the things I wish my parents knew then, and of the things I wish my teachers did too in the six long years I was under their stewardship. And I wish to make a difference.

Of Unwed Moms and Morality

https://ph.news.yahoo.com/school-t-sack-unwed-mom-000000754.html

The Supreme Court issued a decision very recently which vindicated a school teacher sacked on the basis of her bearing a child out of wedlock. The decision came as a surprise to many considering that the private school involved is a Catholic school.  According to reports, the teacher who was then employed by the school was single but got pregnant.  The teacher's affair had no impediments whatsoever but that she simply chose to proceed with the pregnancy without marrying her partner.

Her employer, the school, dismissed her on the basis of "immorality."  That as a teacher, getting pregnant without the benefit of marriage "scandalized" the institution and bred "controversy."  

But the Supreme Court decided it was unfair for the school to dismiss the unwed mom.  Given that there were no impediments between her and her baby's father and that the choice of non-marriage was purely personal, the Supreme Court saw merit in the teacher's cause.

Ahh.  It pains me so much to think how people can be cruel and spiteful towards unwed moms.  Society's standards esteem poorly a woman who bears a child out of wedlock.  Moreso if such woman is a teacher.  But for the bigoted, how many married couples succeed in marriage?  How many married couples have raised their children well?  How many married people can honestly and truly say they are happy to be married to their child's parent?  How many "perfect" families are there in your immediate vicinity?  How many married individuals have made positive contribution to the society at large?

I am not trying to be a cynic.  Neither am i trying to warp the society's standards.  Truth is, to be unwed (or deserted) isn't everyone's preference.  It's just that sometimes, there are bitter pills we have to swallow in order to survive.

And if one happens to emerge from the ideal --- a perfect marriage and a perfect family to boot, does that make him,

or her,

or you,

Holier 

than me?

The 5th Hearing: Senate Probe on Mamasapano Massacre

Enough is enough. What else do we need to learn from Iqbal and the rest of his constituents to determine the most prudent course of action that we should undertake as a peace-loving people? They DO NOT respect our laws, they do not respect our government, and everyone else na salungat sa ila kontra nila, so ano pa? They only insist on what's beneficial to them! They demand peace, respect, compassion...but shouldn't that be reciprocal? 

Iqbal is the most transparent hypocritical resourceperson in the senate hearing.  Some criticize Cayetano for lambasting Iqbal, for his sarcasm to Ferrer and Deles but goodness! They do not want to submit themselves to our justice system! They demand that the police/military coordinate with them during operations but deny having cuddled Marwan! On top of that, the peace negotiators seem to forget which side they are working for!

Do they think we are this stupid? Do they think they can insult us just like that? Why do we even have to listen to them? Or worst, to negotiate with them? Haisst.

"...the pursuit of peace must not be at the expense of our sovereignty." - Sen. Grace Poe's concluding statement, Feb. 24, 2015 Senate Hearing on the Mamasapano Incident

Spectacles

Just yesterday, i was very upset with my sidekick for taking a day off without telling me the kitchen sink is clogged. She got a good dose of lecturing when she got back. Afterall, she's seemed to make a habit of keeping things from me. Lost/broken/ruined objects are kept until I make the discovery myself.  But in fairness to her, her lapses are hardly intentional. Often, just a result of deliberate imprudence. 

But this morning, as she was cleaning the car...she found my precious glasses! I consider them precious because these were my most "pricey" purchase in my entire spectacle-wearing adult life! (Nah. These aren't even branded. The frames are ordinary but I did splurge abit on the lenses being Essilor Anti-Fatigue for my astigmatism and nearsightedness just slightly worsening.) 

Anyways, I thought i lost these last month at the mall. I felt I had to castigate myself for my recklessness in losing them so I did not get a replacement right away immediately! 

But my dear alalay found it! And I couldn't be happier.  :) She was also giddy when she handed it to me! (notwithstanding the fact that I have asked her many times in the past to check everywhere in the car to find my missing glasses). But oh well, she's the one who found them!  

Hahah! It's almost funny how circumstances can force us to see wisdom in the most unlikely situation. If i allowed that clogged drain to unleash my nasty irrational side, (and my kasambahay decided to leave me), i would have regretted it more than  i would have regretted losing my glasses. The drain got fixed.  And I founded my glasses.

Ahh. Thank you Lord for keeping me grounded. And for not "punishing" me even when i err often and bad. 

Happy monday y'all!

On the Importance and Dignity of Fatherhood

This is a response to a post I saw on Pope Francis' message on the importance and dignity of fatherhood:

Sad. Because ours keeps repeating his mistakes, won't admit he makes them, but enjoys demeaning and demoralizing his erring children instead.

Having been a prodigal father, we accepted him even after deserting us for 18 long years. But upon his return, he was still an unchanged man. Ironically, he expected to come home to "unchanged"children. Children he could manipulate, he could scare, he could scold at whim.

His children, now all grown up and with families of their own, could not recall having learned anything sensible from him. If at all, his children learned instead to choose a good man to marry and be father to their kids. Someone who was their father's complete opposite. 

Unlike a wise and mature father, ours hurt us and lambasted us when we made mistakes. None of us felt the "deep and discreet" affection which we hoped to get as a child. There were no fond memories, only hurtful ones. And after all these years, he still makes no attempt whatsoever to make up for those years gone by. Or to rectify his misdemeanors.

We even wonder if he's aware that he left us when we most needed his protection. He failed to guide us and support us. He was every inch a "softie, a weakling, and a yielding" man who allowed the circumstances to swallow him and rob him the opportunity to exercise paternity in its truest sense.

It is our prayer that no other child should experience this kind of a father.. No one, especially our own children, should have to lead a "fatherless" existence. 

I wish all fathers (especially ours) get to read this. I wish all fathers would finally start emulating the example of God, our father in heaven, whose image all fathers reflect.

Prepositions

I am INSIDE you.

I am BESIDE you.

I am BETWEEN you.

I am WITHIN you.

I am UNDER you.

And you thought prepositions don't matter? 

IN my opinion..

WITH my opinion...

FOR my opinion...

ON my opinion...

BY my opinion...

...they do. ;)

The Comfiest Shoes in the World

I am on my feet most of the time! 

Ever since i left government service to tackle freelance gigs, I knew I had to rid myself of my "pretty" uncomfy shoes: narrow pointy flats, pumps, wedges, sandals, etc. I realized I had no real need for them anyway! Living in a tiny home has its perks. And dealing with soo much stuff isn't definitely one of them.

So i was in search of the "comfiest" shoes in the planet. My feet aren't too pretty for flipflops (or Fitflops! For that matter! Everyone I know owns atleast a pair of those huuge chunky flops!) and Crocs can be boring (I have five pairs I wear in rotation). So the comfiest pair I don so far are the black Hush Puppy loafers I bought back when I was still an office gurl.

Anyways, i searched shoe fora, blogs, and even pinterest! The common shoe that was mentioned was this:

Source: http://pinterest.com/pin/195625177539514302/

Yup, i agree! It doesn't look very pretty in there! But at 37? I certainly know i can no longer compromise comfort for style! 

So yes, i yielded! After waddling through an array of colors and styles of Skechers Go Walk, i finally opted for this one. And take note, i got it on sale! ;)

Presenting, my Skechers Go Walk! ;)

While boxed, the pair indeed feels über light!

My first Go Walk pair in grey maryjanes.

The Go Walk logo at the heel part

With elastic band, nylon and suede top, and resalyte sole

Isn't she pretty?

Sole-mates!

Hot pink soles are made of memory foam!  That's why others claim they seem to "walk in the clouds" in their Go Walk!

Yup, they;re not only light!  They're also flexible!

And they can literally take you anywhere!

So yes, being comfy, they're mg everyday staple. I could walk and prance in them all day. And while the style i got seems kind've juvenile for my age, i don't fret. Afterall, nothing beats the satisfaction of having worn the comfiest shoes in the world all day long! ;)

Skechers Go Walk range from Php3,200 to php3,600 in SM department stores.  I got mine for php2,500(?) on sale. :)

Retwitted!

I am not exactly a heavy Twitterer albeit I have had that account since 2009.  Usually, I log on to it when I am out monitoring Pacman's game, the Miss Universe or similar events. I posted a tweet earlier about the crowd in Luneta and chanced upon a tweet of Dr. Raquel Fortun, one of the most famous and well-respected medico-legal experts in the country which read:

 

Raquel Fortun @Doc4Dead  ·  1h 1 hour ago

Is it too much to wish for? That this #PapalVisitPH spiritual experience will jolt us to our senses in 2016?

 

My reply was:

 

Just had to share how flattered I am.  To be noticed by THE Raquel Fortun?  Wow.  Simply wow! =)

Pope Francis is in the Philippines!

The Pope is here! The Pope is here!
Hallelujah! The Pope is here!

We will never forget this moment if our lives!
Thank you for coming to the Philippines Papa Francis!

A New Year's Tragedy

On January 1st, we learned that a friend and his son drowned in a freak accident at the beach nearby.  The son trued to save his wife but was hit a surging wave.  The father seeing that his son was in danger of drowning, took out to rescue his son too.  The current though and the waves proved too strong for them both with neither of them knowing how to swim.  What should have been a happy outing turned out to be a tragedy for the family.  It was simply heartwrenching to hear people talk about how seemingly unbelievable the turn of events were especially because the two seemed strong and able. (the father was only 41 years old and his son, 18).

What made the whole thing agonizing was the fact that the family was reluctant to divulge the incident to the victims' mother/grandma.  The latter is just recently recovering from stroke where half of her body is still being under therapy.  The kins were afraid that if she learns about the incident, she might have another breakdown which consequently may turn out also fatal.  Oh such dilemma!

Eventually, the truth was disclosed and she was able to accept it.. The incident however brought to mind certain realizations, to wit:

• Life can indeed be very uncertain.  One moment we frolic (or fight) with our loved ones and the next, they're gone.  Just like that.  Sadly, our loved-ones leave the least moment we expect it.  What do we do?

•  That when death claims us, there is no escape.  The younger victim was only 18yrs old and he was already abfarher to a six-month old baby.   If there was a way for him only to refuse death for the meanttime to e able to stay a lil'longer and be parent to his son, i am certain he would have stayed.  But no one, nibody at all can refuse to die.  When our moment comes, it comes.

•. That while it's good to plan longterm, we should also make allowance for the present.  We must make a conscious effort to make every moment count.  While others exhaust themselves planning about the future, the future is still uncertain.  There can never be a replacement for time and moments lost.

•. That a father's love cannot be fathomed.  May the boy's soul rest in peace but some people in town quip that he was always unruly.  He quit school and got a girl pregnant early -- but gis father was always there for him allthroughout.  One of my sisters even mentioned the father disclosing that fter his son had a child, he was more convinced to work harder even asking his son to remain nearby so he could guide him as the latter now faces the challenges of starting his own family..  He loved his son so much that when he saw the waves engulfing his son, his first instinct was to go and grab him forgetting that he couldn't even swim himself!  Gosh!  I am flabbergasted!

And so they were buried side by side, father and son.  Talks about the incident are now slowly fading away too.  But i know that to their loved-ones and to those who have had the chance to witness the accident, they will always be remembered.  It is my wish however that the folks in my little hometown have somehow learned to value their loved-ones more after the tragedy which left two widows, and two grieving mothers...

2015: The Best is Yet to Come

The best is yet to come.  I am embracing that.  This year I will once again undertake a journey towards the fulfillment of my childhood dream.  I made my countdown, drafted my schedule, and now brace myself for the longest, toughest year of my "pre-attorney" years.  I will take the bar and pass it.  That is a promise to myself.


The new year brings so much optimism and zeal.  I hope this enthusiasm will sustain me throughout the difficult months ahead.  You see, I am going back to square one: pretend I am a freshman law student who will be meeting all the legal concepts/terms/methods/etc for the very first time.  I shall be dusting off my books, appraising my reading materials, and maybe scouting for new ones in the process of my acquaintance.  It's been five long years since I left law school and the measly legalese I have earned in those four long years have seemed to eluded me completely already. 


I look at my former classmates who now joyfully engage in legal practice and console myself with the thought that God's delays are not His denials.  After all the frustration and heartaches I have had, I still hold in my heart this fervent belief that I was meant to be called an "Attorney." 


Mama is one of the first few people who motivated me so much to pursue my dream.  She is now gone but I feel that she still wants me to persevere.  While I might have felt slightly discouraged when she died with me still uncertain when and how I could pass the bar, the many years she spent praying for me to reach my dream should be enough to prompt me to never ever give up.


And of course, I still have my family beside me whom I wish to honor with whatever achievement I can further attain in this lifetime.  I do not wish for fame or glory.  But by becoming the best version of myself, I know that I will bring them honor and pride.


So like the New Years past, I now gather all the courage and inspiration I could muster and brace myself for the come-what-mays.  And I kneel down in complete surrender to the Great Creator to once again take charge and direct my path to wherever He wishes me to go. Afterall, He is the Only One I wish to please.


Happy New Year virtual friends!  See you around!