Happy New Year!!!

 Just a few hours left and we’ll soon say goodbye to 2022, and say hello to 2023. When we were young, our  mother always told us to jump as high as we could, so we can grow taller, make noise, while the boys are lighting fireworks outside. As soon as the noise and the fireworks stop, we will gather together and share the food on the table, boy it was always a feast! 

And of course, we always had 13 different kinds of fruits for abundance. We will always wear clothes with polkadots, and pockets full of money for prosperity. 

After eating, it was a tradition to go to our uncle’s (my dad’s brother) and aunt’s house. There, we will kiss their hand, and greet them happy new year. We’ll eat and chat for a while, and then, the most awaited part, our favorite, they always give us money for goodluck. 

Those were the good old days, good ol’ memories. My mother’s gone now, all of us have our family of our own, and I live half way around the globe. But I am making memories of my own with my family. 

Though not as happy as my childhood because for one, we had a big family, and I only have a child, plus the culture and tradition here is different from my birth country. Christmas and new year is like just and ordinary day. Added to the fact that my son already have his own family. It’s just me and my husband with our 7 pawsome pets, and we’re trying to get the best out of it.

2022 wasn’t bad at all, let’s all pray for the 2023 to be a better, if not the best year. May we all be given the best of health, good fortune, goodluck, and happiness!!! Cheers to the new year!!! 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! 

A Glass of Water

 If you will be asked, how do you describe the glass of water in the picture? Is it half-full, or half-empty? They said that if you see it as a half-full, you’re a positive thinker, and half-empty means, negative.

Just like in batteries, there is positive and negative. But in life, negativity is not a good thing. Or if you are hoping for something, like applying for a job, and the answer is negative, it means you didn’t get hired.

But not all positive is good news. Nowadays, with Covid still around, if you get tested positive, you have to isolate yourself and get treated. 

We need both to get on and balance everything. Life is not always a bed of roses. We have to experience sadness, in order to know what happiness is. Life has a lot to offer, but we have to work hard to achieve our goals.

Whether we see a half-full, or half-empty glass of water, we should still be grateful. That we get to describe and see what’s in front of us. That we get to think clearly. We should not dwell too much in negativity. Always remember, that life itself is beautiful. 

Family Matters

 

Family is the basic unit of society. With the father being the head of the family. He is the bread winner, protector, and the disciplinarian. The mother is the light of the home. She takes care of the home, as well as everybody in the household. The children are the happiness, they’re the ones that complete the family. 

But a family doesn’t only consist of father, mother, and children. We can also call our friends, co-workers, and even pets as a family. We can consider people whom we love, trust, and cared for, our family too. 

If you think you’re alone just because you don’t have a family of your own, you’re not!  Look around you, you can always find somebody, they may not be blood-related, but somehow, you can find connections with.

And the most important of all, we have God, we have Jesus Christ, He’s our brother, He’s our family. He will embrace and accept us as we are, without prejudice, without questions. We just have to reach out, and He will not deny us.  He is…our True Family.

No Time

 

When I was young, I used to not to care about time. But when i got older, especially when I became a mom, and my son became an adult, I started to think about how time flew by so fast. 

But I think, I became too aware of time. On the weekends, I will wake up early so I can do all the houseworks, so I can just relax the following day. Even if I don’t feel good, I will force myself to get them done. 

Suddenly, it dawned on me, I feel like I was racing against time, that I didn’t get to enjoy my life, and my family anymore. I even neglected my spiritual life, my time with God. 

In this days and age, where everybody’s into gadgets, and chaos everywhere, we forgot our relationship with God. I started to examine and asked myself, “do i want this to happen to me?” Of course not! When it’s my time to face God, I want Him to welcome me with wide arms. 

Our time here on Earth is limited, we’re just passersby. Let’s enjoy and live to the fullest, with God as the Center of our existence.

The Emperor’s New Clothes

Did you ever lie to your love ones about how pretty and nice looking they are even if they’re not? That’s exactly this story is about. I read this when I was in elementary. It was written by Hans Christian Andersen, this is about an emperor who was duped by 2 swindlers, they pretended that they made him the finest clothes, he wore it, and off he went to a procession. All his people that saw him praised and told him how magnificent his clothes were. Until a child said out loud that the Emperor had got nothing on. It was then that the whole crowd agreed with the  child. 

It happens in reality, in our life. Probably because, we don’t want to hurt the people that we care for, or to a boss that we don’t want to get on his/her bad side. Or maybe we just don’t want to face the truth. But whatever the reason is, whether we call it a “white lie”, it’s still a lie. We don’t want to get used to it, until the lie becomes the truth….in our mind.

We are all created by God, each one of us is special, we are unique. We might not have what others have, but we know that we have what they don't have. We should embrace our uniqueness, we should believe and love ourselves, after all….

“The truth will always sets us FREE” 

The Blind Man and the Lamp

 

Have you heard about this story? It's about a blind man that holds a lantern while walking. It was given to him by a friend, he asked why he would need it when he's blind. His friend told him that it wasn't for him, it was for the people who comes in front of him, so they will not bump into him. 

Many times in our life that we stumbled and fell. We make decisions out of the blue, most of the time, out of anger. Then we had to deal with consequences afterwards. There are also times that we face darkness, it's like walking into a dark room, seeing nothing but peach black. 

 Life itself is mysterious. We don't know what's ahead of us. Sometimes, if we stay in the dark for a long time, we get accustomed to it. But if there's darkness, light always come thru. It finds its way out. We just have to have faith and believe in ourselves. Just like the blind man, it helped the people see him, and not bump into him. 

In life, we need people that'll support us, to guide us, but the most important is, there's always God that never left us. We will always find light in Jesus Christ. His line is open 24 hours a day. He always talks to us, we just have to stop, and listen. He's always waiting for us. 

And always remember: He is the Light of the world.  With Jesus, we will never be left astray. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

 

It’s Christmas day. A lot of us, if not all, waited for this once-a-year celebration. This is the time when family, relatives, and friends gather together, giving gifts, exchanging cards. I am no different. I was so busy, thinking what presents to give for my love ones, and of course, thinking about my never ending wish lists. My mind was so occupied, so excited. Before Christmas, it was my birthday, that means, I'll have more presents (feeling elated). Then yesterday, it was Christmas eve, my husband asked me if I wanted to attend a midnight mass. but he said, it was just a passing thought, but it made me pause and think hard. Then suddenly, I felt a nagging feeling. I became thirsty, not for water, but for God, for His words. Though it was my husband who told me that, it was as if it was the Lord who talked to me and woke me up from my long sleep. Then I realized, it's been a long time since I went to His "home". Maybe tomorrow, His actual birthday, is the day, to pay Him a visit.

And today is the day! It was my first time in this church since we moved to this city. As soon as I entered, I felt that the Holy Spirit poured upon me. It's like a "welcome back" feeling, and it felt so good.  I was told that if it's your first time to visit a church, you should make a wish, so I did. After the mass ended, I felt light, and happy. I'm glad I went. It was nice to listen to Gospel and Homily again. I know it's not the material things that make us happy, it's not water that makes our thirst quenched, it's listening and talking to God. After all, He is the reason for the Season. 

Happy Birthday Jesus!!!