Friday, December 27, 2013

WHEN OLD MAKES GOOD ITS TIME TO LEARN WELL

 


With the sun shining warm and bright, puttering in my tiny pot garden on the patio was not a task at all particularly when a tiny cool breeze started blowing my way. I was in the middle of trimming dried-up branches in one pot when a neighbor living just across the street strode down casually to the side of the patio facing the street and happily extended an invitation to her birthday party on Sunday which she’d rather call her Thanksgiving Party. She further added that she’s so grateful to be 75 and healthy. Indeed Amen to that!

50, 60, 75 or beyond ... it is that time in life when everybody regards you derisively, condescendingly, patronizingly, sarcastically, mockingly, irreverently......‘old’. It just means one thing to them --- old.

Allow me to say something.....

Never mind the aching bones, the weak joints, the failing eyesight or hearing, the pills nestling permanently in one’s bag, and the memory lapses. All that and more is just the natural physical journey of the human body. We know and understand that. But there is something special in being old.

It’s special.......

...To have better learned to consider a fellow being as an equal and loved by the same God. To see him not only through human eyes but through the eyes of God and thus understand that he goes through the same struggles, burdens, misery or pain as everybody else. Then without further ado quickly shoot off a prayer to the heavens creating a grace-filled path leading back to that person. It’s special because you have understood well. For not many learn.

...To have better learned to act kindly and patiently towards the young whose brazen and foolhardy behaviour often get on your nerves. And instead seek to help, enlighten, uncover their potential, unobtrusively train them into the way that they should go, as designed by a good God. It’s special because you have learned to understand the young as they should be understood. For not many understand.

...To have better learned to accept life with both the good and the bad in it, to have understood that both are requisites for growth. It’s special because you have learned to move in step with the music of life’s universal dance and essentially to God’s design for your life. For not many try.

...To have better learned to be friends with the sun, moon, stars, trees, seas, rivers, oceans, and the animals of land-sea-air, all the seasons and its changes and that you have a part in its preservation and continuance. It is special because you have understood your role as a steward of God’s work. For not many will.

...To have better learned to separate the wheat from the chaff, to recognize those of true value amidst those which only serve no good thing but waste.  It is special because you have gained the ability to peel off unnecessary layers or masks which hide truth where truth could have been the better choice. For not many do.

...To have better learned that everything in life passes through heaven’s doors. Joy, sorrow, misery, success, failure, laughter, tears, and fear --- all can find its solution – hope – inspiration – comfort and consolation when it is passed through faithful prayer. It’s special because you have understood very well that nothing is or will be without GOD. For not many learn and learn well.

So there.....Old is special because old made good its time to learn and learn well. Although God isn’t finished yet but with the way it looks now the work is closer to done. And that’s a very good thing if heavenly perfection is the goal. 

So then here’s for a ‘Happy Birthday’ to anyone who may be celebrating a birthday today or in the days ahead before the year ends.  Don’t count the years in numbers but in how much and how well you have learned.



Friday, December 20, 2013

MERRY CHRISTMAS! - AND THANK YOU!




With the holiday season revving up to high gear and before you guys get so wrapped up in all the stuff for celebrations (if you haven't already), I'm going to put in my Christmas greeting and prayer for you all.

For you,

... the love of a Magnificent God to keep you safe, good health at any age, with great provision when most needed, with kind understanding and compassion for everyone, for peace in the midst of life's haste, for trust in the basic goodness of people, for courage to be you when others would try to make you someone else, and a greater hunger to be closer to our Heavenly Father who loves you no end and wants you to know it. God loves you this B-I-G!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!   GOD BLESS YOU ALL!
 

And of course not in the very least, my sincere thanks for the 'likes' - 'visits' - 'comments'  you have so honored my blog with through the year 2013.  Thank you very much! Blessings to you and your loved ones!



Tuesday, December 17, 2013

ANGEL OF GOD - BLESSED PRESENCE


Have you ever had this kind of moment when out of the blue you remember something and it does not leave your mind? It's just there sticking like glue. This is that moment. This was a tiny prayer taught me by my mother when I was just this high. A prayer I grew up with. It has served me well through the years  in all the times I needed comfort and assurance in the midst of fear or uncertainty. A blessed presence. Then and now.

I believe in angels. They are God's special messengers, soldiers, secretaries, production assistants in the heavenly ministry of caring for earthlings here on earth. Each one has an angel. Mom would tell me that each angel is tailor-fit for the job. And it's there for life -- for the rest of your life until you return to your heavenly home one sweet day.

This tiny prayer keeps me connected with my angel;  won't ever forget it. Thanks, Mom!


Saturday, December 14, 2013

DONE EXTRAORDINARILY WELL





A quote I have always loved and I am sure that you will, too, to quote.......

 "My mother knew a distinction between achievement and success. She said that -- "Achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best in you.  
Success is being praised by others, and that's nice, too, but not as important or satisfying.  
Always aim for achievement and forget about success."   
---- Helen Hayes
Unquote.

And yet success is what we aim for. Success by what the world teaches us. That one which is accompanied by applause, trophies, title and recognition; that one which brings you to the center of the stage with the spotlight on you and you feeling so pleased with yourself. But that's nice too. I don't mind seeing myself up there on that stage..... being there in that fantastic moment savoring the sweet smell of success!

But wait......

I remember mom tell me before that success for the most part is a feeling within rather than it is without. It's what you experience or feel within in your core and does not necessarily depend on what transpires externally on a grand or grander scale. I think what she meant was it does not matter if the task be minute or colossal but if you gave it your best shot, did your best with it, you are just as successful as the person who invented the light bulb. That would be, by the best standards in point of value, a huge success. Quite an achievement!

Well, all that considered, we can call ourselves achievers everyday! Because everyday as we get on with our respective lives we give it everything we've got. Giving everything to life with what we are and with what we are allowed to have. We study hard, work hard, think hard, honest in our hearts, tumble and fall with bad breaks and yet rise up again even much stronger.

I have achieved much in my life, too. Just like everybody else. Maybe it won't hug the headlines but in my tiny world the spotlight's on me. And the applause I think I hear is the applause of a happy God who I believe is mighty pleased for what I have done or do. After all as I understand it, God does not require extraordinary things from extraordinary people but that we do ordinary things extraordinarily well. But don't we do that everyday!?? And that's fantastic!

Blessings, everyone. Give the day and life and God your best shot.



Thursday, December 12, 2013

BEST IS ALWAYS GOOD


 

A good friend said... 'Not writing? What are you doing?!!' So she sent me another dozen of quotes. Gosh, what can you get with a friend like that?!! I know what ---- no rest!!  So here's one quote..... (Psst, I liked it anyhow.)

"He that holds fast the golden mean,
 And lives contentedly between
 The little and the great,
 Feels not the want that pinch the poor,
 Nor plagues that haunt the rich man's door."

--William Cowper

Contentment. That's not the music the young sing to. I know cos I was young once. Oh yes I was Lols! .... and it was a good time in my life. Young is when you think you are the king or queen of the world and that nothing is impossible...  until you fall flat on your face! But if your parents taught you well, you will stand up and try again. Like this old cliche -- ' Try and try again until you succeed.' But sadly nobody told you that you would fall flat on your face again. And again.... and again. And then finally you stand up weak and worn with all that old youthful bravado drained out of you finally realizing that you have never really left your place.

Oh well, it happens even to the best of us. 'Life can be a bitch', says my best friend.

Hey wait! this piece should be about contentment, right?

Oh but it is. Contentment is defined as a state of happiness and satisfaction. Now you will ask me... 'How can anyone be content with a situation defined as above?' Yeah, it does look miserable I will agree.

But when you have learned and learned well from your bad experiences, tribulations, struggles, strife, or whatever else one may call it ...  then you will rise up to that point where you can say to yourself --------- 'I did my best.' - 'Gave it my best shot.'

And you know what, BEST is always good. Best, to my mind, is that special kind of success which is not always achievable by lesser souls. Best is also where contentment resides. Your best is what God expects of you. Best with who you are and with what you have and then armed with that with what you do with your life. By God's design.

Have a good day, everyone. Give the day your best. Today won't come again. Blessings!


Saturday, December 7, 2013

JUST STOP AND BREATHE


 

 

 

 

---------------------
What a quote-filled morning to start the day with. My good friend, Mr. Quote Man, is quite obsessed with packing my inbox with ideas which he thinks would or could block the proverbial 'writer's block' as a convenient excuse. A writer himself he probably knows what he's talking about. Understood that pretty well, my friend. Intent and effort is truly appreciated and which shall be put to good use... that is, if sitting by the window and communing with mother nature does not take the better part of my morning. :-)

With about six good quotes he sent me I plucked this one out because it is something which I think would resonate well with most of us. To quote.......

"Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go, 
just remember how far you have come. 
Remember everything you have faced, 
all the battles you have won, 
and all the fears you have overcome."   
---  Author Unknown
Unquote.

Had a brief chat with a friend just recently. I was touched by her sadness over the way things were running in her life. I need not go over the details here, suffice it to say that she felt up against a huge wall..... and needed a 'sounding board' to air out her frustration. To help get the load off her chest. To cut a long story short, she seemed fine after that 'healing' moment. A beautiful precious bond good friends in wonderful friendships offer to one another in blessed kinship.

But it made me think. Life is tough. None is spared by its troubles. We get them all. Maybe differing in size, shape, intensity, reason, cause, or even purpose of which I want to think is for our better good, growth, maturity. But we don't always understand it that way. We don't seem to get it most times that it's how it works.... the hurt, pain, bruises, tears, disappointments, frustrations, angst, confusion, desperation, bewilderment.... we have to go through it all. Not nice, very inconvenient and not exactly user-friendly.

But I have learned in my own journey that I needed to stop the ranting, the heaving, the trying....   and just STOP. And breathe. Just breathe. And when the dust settles where everything (issues, obstacles, etc) goes back to its place and sits there grateful not to be unnecessarily roused to hyperactivity --------- something beautiful happens. Calmness flows through your whole being like the hand of God touching your soul and saying........

'Rest. Be still. Know that I am GOD.'

Wish you all a lovely day. Count your blessings. It's all there in your day. Because God loves you and blesses you with it every time.



Friday, December 6, 2013

SERENITY IS A RARE TREASURE






Sitting here by the window quietly by myself is a wonderful feel. It's that part of the day when everything has come to waking while some early-bird humans are already into the day with their hands filling up with to-do lists. Mine is just being still... just being... just being here. As mother nature carries on a conversation outside my window I watch and listen......... trees content swaying in the breeze, sun cheerily bouncing its warmth on the leaves of such great diversity of color shape and size... birds flitting here and there atop branches in the midst of a chirpy symphony praising the day... sky undecided if it should be clear or messed up with jolly clouds but finally deciding it doesn't matter at all.

Wonderful morning!

Such precious moment. Nothing to mess up your brain with nor something to crank up your heart with in weary toil. No tiny irritating odds and ends gnawing at your calm nor pressure villains telling you to do-this-or-else.

Peace. Content. Happy. Feeling closer to the Divine.



Tuesday, December 3, 2013

THE PERSON YOU DECIDE TO BE




Mr. Quote Man thought this a good quote and sent it to my inbox...........................  

 "Don't judge me by MY PAST. I don't live there ANYMORE" 
-- Unknown


Yes, it is a good one but I have learned this much too that people generally tend to judge a person by his or her past more than anything else. People have always been that way.. it's human nature.. it's also a human flaw.. it's also a myopic view of life. People do not think in terms of  'what if' ... but rather of 'what has been'. Sad but true. To ask people not to judge by one's past is like aiming for the moon. Only the magnanimous of heart are capable of sifting through the past and understanding what it sees there and then moving on to the present and appreciating it for what it's truly worth. But that, unfortunately, is a rare gift.

And is I think one lesson in life which we are meant to learn and relearn -- if but again and again until we finally get it. To understand best that people do change over time. And that whatsoever you so choose to be is all up to you. But certainly change will get you there.



Sunday, December 1, 2013

NATURE'S MORNING DANCE - A PRIVILEGE




---------------------
Outside my window in the living room is the lot of my good neighbor Celia (not her true name). It's filled with trees -- mango, duhat, langka, avocado -- which branches are lush with green leaves. A lovely sight for sore eyes. And such a wonderful sight to see first thing in the morning on waking.

But I too have a tree (the Mast Tree)...  a solitary one rising tall and strong, not the wide expansive kind, but one that grows up like a straight rod reaching for the sky. Except that it goes through a regular trimming at the top so that it won't rise to unmanageable heights. On this fine morning I noticed on the lower part of my tree there right on the fringes of its leaf-covered thread-like branches a tiny dance going on. The pointed-shaped leaves were swaying gently like a lovely couple sashaying on the dance floor in a gentle waltz. Amazingly as the rest of the tall tree remained straight rod-like and motionlessly tall and unbending.... as it is on the season of hot windless summer days.

You think that isn't possible? Well, it is...  and it's right there before my eyes. This went on for just a few seconds and then finally the rest of the tree joined in as the breeze finally decided to include it in the morning dance.

This is one of those rare precious moments Mother Nature allows you to see. But there is a prerequisite to the rare privilege granted.... that you be still and pay close attention.

Remember what God said.....  'Be still and know that I am God.' 
Say to yourself ---  'This is going to be a terrific day.'  .... because it is and will be! Thank God for such a lovely gift!

Good morning, folks! Be blessed and stay blessed.



Saturday, November 30, 2013

THERE FOR A REASON - KNOW THEIR STORIES



------------------------------
"People are the way they are for a reason."  -  "..Know their stories"  Oh??  -  The trouble is they hide their stories, thus we can't know nor understand. Why? Because they're afraid of baring their true selves to a very judgmental kind of world we have. Easily condemning, easily crucifying, easily criticizing, and embracing false standards of character. And double standard too? --  'You can't do that but it's okay if I do'. 

Maybe it is time we should learn.  I guess that is just what Pope Francis is trying to tell us.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The truth is, people are the way they are for a reason. If we would take time to know their stories, we would be much more forgiving.
 
 The truth is, people are the way they are for a reason. If we would take time to know their stories, we would be much more forgiving.

Friday, November 29, 2013

WISDOM FROM THE MOUTH OF BABES


Maxie with her bff Miko the King cat

My family and I are dog-lovers having three in the house.. and a king cat. But at one time, we had all seven considering our small household  and yet it was a joy to love and be loved by seven gorgeous dogs. But their time came when finally they each would through the years move to their forever home in dog heaven. But this post isn't about pets leaving us, I am sharing this wonderful piece here in my blog to honor the words of this amazing six-year-old kid.

I saw this article this morning and hesitated not one bit to share this on my page.  Has anyone ever wondered about that? Why do dogs leave earth first? A little kid gave his answer. Here's the article in full.
And I'd like to repeat that.......   He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?"  The six-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."       ----  Unquote.

Truly Wisdom from the mouth of babes.



Tuesday, November 26, 2013

GENEROSITY WITHOUT A SELFIE






--------------------
Lovely post I saw this morning and gladly sharing on my page. Good words to live by.....  "Magis is generosity without a selfie."       - Fr. Arnel Aquino, SJ

I pray this takes root in the hearts of many. As it thrives in the hearts of volunteers and workers and foreign friends near and far for/in the Visayas. Thank you, Fr. Arnel Aquino, SJ for this blessed piece...  and to Mark Lopez for sharing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
To quote:

Two Saturdays ago at the Richie Fernando Covered Courts, I was in a human chain with some young people whose faces were awfully familiar. We were unloading a truck of rice and we were laughing at how we struggled with the weight of those darn sacks. I couldn’t quite put names to their familiar faces, let alone remember where I had met them. 

When we had fully unloaded the truck, Brother Mark walked up to me and said: “Fr. Arnel, I saw you in the chain with our Payatas boys.” 

Well, there was my answer. I met these kids in Payatas when I said mass there in October. The picture now was complete…and very moving: boys living in a landfill and now happily uplifting the hungry and homeless of Yolanda: the “widow’s last coin” happening before my very eyes. It was magis in its truest sense of not counting the cost but still giving, of not heeding the wounds but still fighting, of not seeking any rest and reward, but still toiling and laboring…and even having fun while doing it. In other words—offering from what little you have, enriching others from your own poverty, giving from your dearth.

For many years, I’ve noticed how our students and alumni understand magis in quite a different sense (and I blame us, Jesuits, first of all for having let it go unchecked, surely we dropped the ball on this one.) They describe magis like this: soar higher, fly faster, achieve more, be smarter and hipper, not just 3-peat, go 4-peat, no, go 5-peat; more distinction, more fame, more glory to God, yes, but glory to us doesn’t hurt along the way!

Go back to Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises and we realize that magis in the quintessential sense means—are you ready?—more humility, more simplicity, more self-outpouring, more poverty of spirit, and should God desire it, more material poverty, even. See, the Prayer for Generosity is the incarnation of the spirit of magis. Run the lines in your mind (give and not to count the cost, fight and not to heed the wounds, etc.) and you’ll realize that true magis is giving to others from our own dearth, building others from own homelessness, healing others in spite our woundedness. In other words, think of the Prayer for Generosity when you think of the true spirit of magis. For magis is generosity without a selfie.

See the difference, sisters and brothers? Magis is all about God, therefore, it is all about our neighbor, therefore, it is not all about us. This is the magis behind the widow’s last coin, behind the Payatas boys’ willing and joyful hands.  Magis is to do both the great and the small for God, but without the selfie…because then it becomes all about us, really.

Incidentally, I was thinking, if I were to change a line in our alma mater song, I would probably replace the one that says, “Win or lose, it’s the school we choose.” I wonder if that line does not in fact belie the spirit of “down from the hill, down to the world go I.” I have a creepy feeling that the line is a selfie. And I’m sure you’ve noticed, dear sisters and brothers, that this thing we call “selfie”, it comes in a thousand different forms. But in all of those forms, the thing that comes between our eyes and the world that we should be looking at — is us looking at ourselves.

Dear Father Ignatius, help us remember the generous widow in our Lord’s story whenever we think of your magis. Amen.

*delivered at the ADMU College Chapel noontime mass, Nov 25, 2013


Unquote.

(I stumbled upon these beautiful posters (thanks to the internet) to further essay such beautiful thoughts.)


Saturday, November 23, 2013

TODAY BECOME A BETTER VERSION OF WHO YOU WERE YESTERDAY



Got this in my inbox this morning, from friend Mr. Quote Man........

“There are three things extremely hard:   
steel, a diamond, and to know one's self.” 
------ Benjamin Franklin

Oh but we know that, don't we? And most of us also know that just because it is extremely hard (and that even is an understatement) ....  we still would keep working at it until we get the steel to build the foundations of our houses, the diamond to enhance our pleasure, and the effort to better our selves.

Nothing is nor comes easy to achieving something that which is good. The law of the universe. To come out better or best, things and mortals are passed through the fire. The fire is rough, inconvenient, intensely challenging. But it is a necessary process to peel off useless unnecessary layers in order to reveal the precious treasure within.

In the task of self-improvement the challenges are greater and huge. Because we would have to deal with our centuries-old habits, beliefs, and attitudes those which apparently no longer serve a good purpose and which instead stand as obstacles to a better self. The challenges nudge us out of our comfort zones which by our human nature is definitely a most unwelcome change or task. I struggle with that, too.

The aim today and each day that comes to us is to become a better version of who we were yesterday. Hard... yes... but not impossible.

May today bring you endless treasures and blessings, in Christ.



Friday, November 22, 2013

KNOW YOUR GIFT - PUT IT TO GOOD USE

My thoughts this fine God-blessed morning...

I like these words from Francis Kong. (See below)  So true that no man is without this precious gift or talent. No one! God made sure of that. All that we have to do is make the best use of it.... to develop and nurture self as we journey through life, to serve others with, to bring greater glory to God.

So then figure out what your gift/talent is. Don't wait too long to do that. Further, there is no small or big talent... all are the same: gifts from God for a purpose.

Remember 'no man is an island', we all stand connected. And if you think that you can live by yourself alone and independent as you think you are --- think again! Are you having your breakfast now? Because the food that you are feasting on was planted, harvested, prepared, transported, processed by many working human hands here or in some far away country until it got to your table.

Know your gift. Appreciate it. Put it to best use. Share it. And certainly not the least..... Thank God for it!

Have a lovely and blessed day, everybody! Good morning!
 To quote.....

We have different gifts according to the grace that God has given us. Most of the misery in life is not in the absence of gifts but the misuse of it. Mine is in the area of communications. Think about this for a moment. Process this and share (only if you are comfortable)...what is the gift that God has given you?
Unquote.

Sunday, November 17, 2013

HELP DON'T HURT


 
 

See that??? LOOK FOR THE HELPERS! ... instead of sitting on your high chairs and checking out for flaws. Get down here and get your hands dirty too, brother and sister! Or if you can't go physical for some reason or another, then >>>> SET THE SPOTLIGHT UNTO THE HELPERS (by word or print or get your cameras working and post them on social sites online) ... they are many! Bless 'em!!!

Let's drown out the negativity around us with POSITIVE IMAGES OF POSITIVE PEOPLE --- hearts and souls regardless of age, gender, race, color, or creed --- joined in one common NOBLE cause!!!

LOOK FOR THE HELPERS! THEY ARE THERE!!
 
The post below is an eye-opener ..............

 
From Rob Crilly, a journalist, who was in Ground Zero in Tacloban:

But I have been shocked to see that the story for the past few days has been dominated by criticism of the relief effort.

These things take time. They can never, ever move fast enough when ships are the only way to deliver the colossal amounts of aid needed. No-one predicted that Typhoon Haiyan would be quite so lethal. And there is little left in the way of local government.

And you know what? One of the least reported aspects of this whole crisis has been the patient stoicism displayed by the victims. Most of their help has come from extended families. Relatives are looking after each other, pooling resources and sharing what little food they have. Those who have homes are taking in the homeless.

To lambast the international aid response and the local authorities is to misunderstand how humanitarian relief operates – and to overlook the humbling charity already on offer from people who have little to give.
 
 -----
 

Friday, November 15, 2013

SO THAT MANY WILL UNDERSTAND - 2 - Haiyan/Yolanda super storm aftermath


One more BRAVO to the person who wrote this fantastic post!! Thank you, Jerome Christopher Hernandez. Ah but there's many out there still writing something like this. Keep it all coming, brothers and sisters, because many need to understand. And those who get to read this, please share.

A post by Jerome Christopher Hernández 

To quote.

This calamity, this disaster, is the worst of its kind in the WORLD. It might just be the strongest, most destructive typhoon in the history of human civilization. Any country who would experience this would be dealt upon a great blow.

Now, please consider these:

1.) The Philippines is a third-world country. The country's entire Air Force owns only three working C130 (cargo) planes. Only three! And it's supposed to serve a country of 100-million citizens! So are they too slow in delivering relief goods, medical equipment, personnel, etc.? But of course! Let us understand that they are limited by the resources that they have. I could imagine how eager our military/government personnel are to help!

2.) In Tacloban, out of around 200-plus police officers, only twenty of them reported for duty the day after the storm. Yes, 20! The couple of hundred others cannot be reached or found. Most likely, they're attending to their own families who are themselves victims of this tragic calamity. Heck, they might even be dead as well! So are they too slow to respond? But of course! What is it that you cannot understand there?

3.) Most, if not all, commercial flights to and from Tacloban have been cancelled in the first few days after the storm. The airport isn't safe to land on due to the absence of radar, lights and other essential facilities. How can the replacement government personnel go to their assignments quickly? How can you go to Tacloban to volunteer and lend your own two hands? Even if you wanted to, you just cannot go to Tacloban. And that's the CAPITAL CITY of Leyte! What about the smaller towns in remote islands? How do you get all the help to these places instantly? Consider, too, that the roads are clogged with debris, carcasses and cadavers! It's a logistical nightmare! So, is help too slow to arrive? Unfortunately, yes! How is it humanly possible not to be slow? Enlighten me if you know how, please!

This is a very extraordinary situation. Hurricane Katrina knocked the US down, and it took a while before they stood up again. The super strong earthquake paralyzed Japan, and it took a while before everything normalized. These are the two wealthiest countries in the world. They have the most equipped, most advanced military in the planet.

We are the Philippines: a third-world country with a military who calls an old US Coast Guard patrol vessel as its biggest, strongest warship! So before any of us dares to blame the government, think hard. I'm not saying that we must stop criticizing. But if we are to criticize, may it be constructive, and having considered the entire picture. And most importantly, it must be criticism that's bundled with an alternative solution! If your mortal human brain cannot conceive of a better, doable way to address the problems at hand, your criticism, sadly, is worth manure.

Let us all pray to God almighty for the strength to endure this extraordinary tragedy.

There's no Batman. Just us. As one Filipino people.


Unquote. 


SO THAT MANY WILL UNDERSTAND - 1 - Haiyan/Yolanda super storm aftermath




This morning I was asked: “why not just tell your Government to move out all those people there. You see in the news all dead people around?” I told him it is difficult because there are just too many people affected.

Put them in camps, he said. We have evacuation centers but still not enough, I said. It is very easy, he pushed, put them in airplanes and boats then send to camps. I asked, “Did you know the place well? Heck, have you even seen how the islands look like?” He smiled and said, “NO”.

So this is how I made him understand.

I showed him this map of my country. My hometown is at number 15. The areas affected are roughly from numbers 32 to 53; can you see those islands and how far they are?

Yes, we can fly people by plane but airports are broken and no electricity. Yes, we can take them by boat, but the docking areas are full of debris and dead people. How can we shift them to the next island, if the other island is also in ruins? To this he just smiled and said: “oh yah, huh”

For most who don’t know, my country is made out of 7,100 islands, give or take. Number 21 is where the command center is and where most goods and resources are coming from. They fly and ship them to the areas affected, that means logistics is really a challenge.

Things are easier said than done, for most of us who are not there, directly involved. Easier for us to say “what the hell are they doing?” “where are the donations made?”.

By watching the news, reading the paper and social media updates, OUR knowledge is empowered and magnified. Our words and comments become swords that draw blood, ignite more pain and hurt to those people who are already giving all their best to help.

Help us more not only by making donations but also by understanding why things cannot be done as easily as how we think it will be.
Share · November 13 ·

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

FOLLOW THE HELP HAPPENING - Haiyan/Yolanda





--------------------
WHAT'S ON THE NEWS TODAY?  (Haiyan-Yolanda)

Okay, somebody said on TV  that help is there. So then let's see the action.....

Show the help happening. Show the helpers.

- the clearing of roads
- the aid trucks, ships, and planes
- the medical teams and centers
- the power lines being restored
- the water supply
- the temporary shelters built
- the kitchen soups
- the transportation facilities
- the communication lines restored
- the security measures in place
- the dead buried
- the packing of relief goods
- the individuals and groups with their donations
- the priests and religious groups ministering to the flock
- the global community reaching out to help
- and much more....

You say it's just starting. That's right! So we follow the help happening from day one of help happening. We would like to see...  we would like to know... We would like to appreciate and thank the helpers and the help.  We would like to cry in great joy and applaud.

We already know about the 'why' of this horrible catastrophe. And it's very sad. We'll never be the same again as individuals, as a people, as a community, as a nation.  And I think we have learned our lessons, too.

But please Stop replaying the tears, the anguish, the misery...  we feel their pain. We do! But please do not try to overkill the images. It's like rubbing salt on an open wound. That truly hurts deep.

Now show us the --- what,  when,  where,  who,  and  how of its
solution... restoration... rebuilding... recovery... the efforts to rise from a very very horrible fate.

Show us the spirit of ---  hope,  faith,  prayer, compassion, brotherhood,  courage, unity, generosity, the national and global community separately and collectively towards a singular cause, the basic goodness of man ........... show us the spirit of life!  Show us GOD at work!


Tuesday, November 12, 2013

BAYANIHAN -- THE SPIRIT OF BROTHERHOOD


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BAYANIHAN ------  n. A Filipino term taken from the word 'bayan', referring to a nation, town or community;  bayanihan refers to the spirit of communal unity to achieve a common purpose.

Here are a few random images, in good or bad weather.  The spirit shines even brighter --- something you can't douse cold, Haiyan/Yolanda!

One nation ----- One bayanihan.   One world ----- One bayanihan.

Moving house with bayanihan effort.
Landslide with the spirit in action.
The same spirit braving the high flood waters.
Volunteers, young and old, packing sacks of aid.
All together now...... p-u-s-h!!!
The spirit shining brightly in the young.
Brothers for a common cause.
One world --- One bayanihan.



Monday, November 11, 2013

SUPER STORM HAIYAN Local name Yolanda BATTERS MY COUNTRY THE PHILIPPINES




Haiyan smashes through the Visayas.

Haiyan obliterates the coastal homes in Tacloban City, Leyte.
Super storm Haiyan flattens Guiuan, Samar.

Haiyan in Catanduanes City.

Haiyan topples down a giant Christmas Tree in Cebu City, Cebu.

I'm lost for words ----------
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Rebuilding....  but not without you, God!

Please help via


(Pictures provided for on/by the internet.)