60 posts tagged “love”
In my province in Pampanga, these lanterns would find their way during the Christmas season....People would cost them a lot just to have one displayed in their homes...but if you want to see more of these beautiful lanterns just visit San Fernando, Pampanga one of the greatest cities we have producing great lanterns....
I remember the "drama" I had with lanterns when I was younger^^....It was Simbang Gabi then and Noche Buena....The whole family except my late father went out to go to church for the Noche Buena mass....I was maybe 8 yrs old then and I was the only one left behind with my father coz they refused to wake me up because they said I was really so sleepy at that time....So when I woke up, they were already at the church....I went down the stairs crying....The more I even looked exactly like Bruce Lee then^_~from too much crying(sob sob T_T)....So my father was trying to pacify me....He told me to stop crying so what he did I remember was to point at me the beautiful lantern in our neighborhood....Although it was really hard for me to stop crying coz I really wanted to attend the Noche Buena mass....He sat beside me and told me about the lantern as the symbol of that light that had guided the three kings from finding the Child Jesus....and we just sat there for an hour and looked at that beautiful lantern....until I stopped crying....After that my father promised me that no matter what they would take me to the mass during the Noche Buena^^....but, by just looking at the lantern I may say by now that somehow I was already part of the thanksgiving mass we have for the birth of the Child Jesus....
December is a busy month yet it seems like everything just comes so smoothly during this particular month.....Like every Filipino would get excited about the coming celebrations it offers and everyone learns to offer a gift with one another.....although my real wish for us would be to become humble like what Jesus had shown us from the time of His birth and until now....We should be humble enough in asking blessings from God and in giving what we have to others....We should be thankful to all the gifts God has given us....Be thankful on what we have now and do not ask for too much....and share to others the blessings He has given us....
I attended a wedding this afternoon and I really appreciated the way the priest officiated and witnessed the ceremony....
The mood is always happy when I see couples tie the knot....I just wish that the "love" between couples will always last forever....and they would fall in love with each other again and again....falling in love with each other also means falling in love with the "same person"....the same husband and wife all over again^^.....
There was a movie shown years ago and I had forgotten its title but the story was about family life....about love between husband and wife as well as parents and their children....I find the movie interesting because there was a scene wherein the daughter was asking her father why he was divorcing her mother....The father said it's because he had fallen out of love with his wife or her daughter's mom....So the daughter said...." Now I knew Dad why you were divorcing our mother....it's because you fell out of love with my Mom"....Then suddenly the daughter asked her father....."Dad will there be a possibility too that you will forget about us as well?....The father said,...."Ofcourse not!!!....How could I forget you....never will I lose my love for you".....But the daughter was really confused and asked her Dad...."But Dad?" she said...."Will you also fall out of love on us just like what you did to our Mom?"...."Will there come a time also that you will fall out of love on us?"...."By then I guess you will also leave us just like what you did to my Mom".....The father didn't know what to say after that....It was really touching coz the father shed some tears and embraced her daughter after that....Yes I guess building a strong marriage and a family is really important....coz in the end the children are the ones who suffer from our immaturity and irresponsibility....
I've had a nice chat with my friend Tezuka...Yes I learn lots from her though she is just so young....She tells me that I give her hope and encouragement ....I guess I also learn true friendship from her....It''s always nice talking to her....even though she's just an online friend, for me she is a true friend already...God bless my friend^^
Joey Velasco is a Filipino artist who gave so much hope to the lives of those street children he painted in his famous Hapag ng Pag-asa....
Why Hapag ng Pag-asa?....Joey Velasco was moved by his work that he made great efforts to help those street children he used as models in his painting....At first he just used them as his models , but God knocked on his heart and he searched for them, fed, and clothed them ...Now they have been sheltered by Gawad Kalinga....an organization helping people suffering from poverty....Here is an excerpt from the book...."They Have Jesus" written by Joey Velasco....
They Have Jesus
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Foreword (by Cardinal Rosales, Archbishop of Manila)
A dinner table reveals a lot about hunger, manners and relations. Who sits near the host, who serves the guest or who cares for the youngest, all these are made known at the family dinner. More than taste, meanings are associated with what one eats or even on how one sits at the table. Friendship, old ties or the loss of it are suddenly recalled when diners meet, and the passing of food is enriched with stories and sharing of familiar knowledge and feelings. Surprisingly some meals are taken hurriedly, thus crumbs fly and the meaning of the coming together is lost. In the Israelites’ flight to safety at the night of the great escape (Exodus) the surprise of running away left the people with many experiences unexplained; symbols were lost, as people fled in fright. Thus many more meals will be celebrated in order to get to the meaning of their paschal meal. And “one of your children will ask you, what does this ritual mean?” Tell us that some meals have become so private and solitary that no one asks a question? What do we eat? Where’s the patis? Who’s coming to dinner? The art of conversation and telling stories has already been lost at many dining tables. More than enjoying a repast, a diner has need to reveal other wants. Every child diner at the hapag reveals a story of more hunger than a plate of rice could satisfy. Onse, a nine year old lad, for example sits at the hapag ng pag-asa, his plate cleaned to the last crumb, but he listens still to feed his other hungers as a cart-pushing scavenger whose father is a drug addict and the mama is a club strip dancer. At the table of the Master, Itok, the eleven-year old bread winner, another cart pushing scavenger, whispers that he has gone number of times to jail after having been caught in a number of thieveries. What hunger and desires did this talented scavenger bring to the feet of Jesus and those who believe in Jesus? A Christian community is fittingly disturbed as it watches the masqueraded struggle between good and evil, between wealth and poverty, between greed and compassion, power and weakness as played in the lives of these children robbed of innocence and security of an ordinary growing youth. Around the table were young people, including one whose hurt dug deep into her heart and completely erased whatever dignity a young girl had. Much misery is hidden behind the faces of the hapag children whose lives are further shrouded in the destitution of cemetery shack-dwellers and pushcart lodgers. Is the hapag still waiting for food, or are the poor young diners announcing a different hunger that makes young and old, rich and poor, the educated and the ignorant equally famished for nourishment that only love could satisfy? The artist Joey Velasco’s portrait of the young asks us more questions about ourselves rather than probe the hapag children. Rather than ask “why” these young people live in such an unkind and violent world, the challenge to the beholder of the portrait should be “how” in a Christian community the poor children could be helped out of such misery. Pope Benedict XVI in his first encyclical letter, DEUS CARITAS EST, reminded us that the essential core of communion, at the heart of love, remains the same: “within the community of believers there can never be room for a poverty that denies anyone what is needed for a dignified life”. (DCE, 20). The hapag is not an accusatory portrait. But the reality of the shacks under the bridges and the tunnels of homes along esteros, or the slums among the tombs from which many more young ones come, challenges every believer in the Christ who loves the poor. “How” can we be Christians to them? Can a good Christian, a true lover of Jesus, be without compassion for the poor? Welcome this portrait into your own and make the dining table serving life not just a table of hope, but isang HAPAG-IBIG or hapag ng pag-ibig.
In addition the book was entitled "They Have Jesus" because Joey Velasco was inspired by one who viewed the painting and said to him that "No they weren't actually unfortunate or miserable....They have Jesus.", this viewer had said to the artist....
Blessed are the poor in spirit for they shall see God..... |
The past week had been fruitful I may say^^In school the kids enjoyed working and studying. Kahit papaano may natututunan naman sila. My co-teachers continue to work well even if our school head is not around to attend some seminars etc. Our country on the other hand, somehow, got united again through Pres. Cory's death. Life goes on as they say even though some of our most valued leaders will no longer be there to support us, to guide us. We should learn from them. Live by their examples. Let us continue to build a society that would make our ancestors proud of us. The Filipinos are worth living and dying for. How lucky the Philippines is if you will just count our blessings. First, we are the only predominantly Christian country in the whole of Asia. Second, we are rich with natural resources. Third, we have lots of educated leaders, great scientists, engineers etc. We've got what it takes to make it big as a nation. If only we knew what it takes to be great, that greatness starts within ourselves, with those little things we do, in our family, in our community. Respect our families and our neighbors. Respect the old people,our leaders, the priests, preachers, the church,and freedom. Let's be fair with each other. Let's be fair with the environment. Let's not be blinded by our own interests and ambitions but work for the welfare of our nation.
My fondest memory of Cory Aquino was this one.....In September 1986, former Philippine President Corazon Aquino delivered a speech before a joint session of the United States Congress which was interrupted by applause several times, and which then U.S. House Speaker Tip O'Neill hailed as "the finest speech I've ever heard in my 34 years in Congress." Above the din of cheering officials, Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole then said to Mrs. Aquino, "Cory, you hit a home run." Without missing a beat, Aquino smiled and shot back: "I hope the bases were loaded".....
We will surely miss her.....our guiding light....our hope for freedom and democracy....
Former president Corazon C. Aquino of the Philippines or Tita Cory as we call her has left us Filipinos to be with her creator....She was the woman our country has considered as an icon of democracy....and we say thank you Tita Cory.....and have a peaceful trip.....
Many songs have been dedicated to her....two of them were I Have Fallen In Love With The Same Woman Three Times and My Girl, My Woman, My Friend.....
My Girl, My Woman, My Friend
when my work is through at the end of the day
there's nothing else that i'd rather do
than to be with you at the end of the day
to be right by your side makes me feel brand new
'cause you're my girl, my woman, my friend
and that's how it's gonna be till the end.
loving you is what i live for
and i can't ask for anything more
you're my woman, my girl, and my friend
rolled into one.
you're my man and i'm at the prime of my life
to you i give myself, all my heart
all of what i am at the prime of my life
i'll never let a thing come to break us apart
'cause i'm your girl, your woman, your friend
and that's how it's gonna be till the end.
loving you is what i live for
and i can't ask for anything more
than to be your woman, your girl, and your friend.
being with you, my love, just makes my day complete
holding you close my love, creates a wondrous treat.
no need to say the words
no fancy places for me.
love is anywhere
as long as you are there with me.
we'll be free.
our love will make us free to be you and me.
I Have Fallen In Love With The Same Woman Three Times
by Jose Mari Chan
I have fallen in love
with the same woman three times;
In a day spanning 19 years
of tearful joys..and joyful tears.
I loved her first when she was young,
enchanting and vibrant, eternally new..
she was brilliant, fragrant,
and cool as the morning dew.
I fell in love with her the second time;
when first she bore her child and mine
always by my side, the source of my strength,
helping to turn the tide..
But there were candles to burn
the world was my concern;
while our home was her domain..
and the people were mine
while the children were hers to maintain;
So it was in those eighteen years and a day..
’till I was detained; forced in prison to stay.
Suddenly she’s our sole support;
source of comfort,
our wellspring of Hope..
on her shoulders felt the burden of Life..
I fell in love again,
with the same woman the third time.
Looming from the battle,
her courage will never fade
Amidst the hardships she has remained,
undaunted and unafraid..
she is calm and composed,
she is God’s lovely maid..
I promised my bestfriend Bill to post her favorite song in my blog so here it is.....She played Flightless Bird, American Mouth on guitar while singing it too....
I was a quick wet boy
Diving too deep for coins
All of your street light eyes
Wide on my plastic toys
Then when the cops closed the fair
I cut my long baby hair
Stole me a dog-eared map
And called for you everywhere
Have I found you?
Flightless bird
Jealous, weeping
Or lost you?
American mouth
Big pill looming
Now I'm a fat house cat
Nursing my sore blunt tongue
Watching the warm poison rats
Curl through the wide fence cracks
Kissing on magazine photos
Those fishing lures thrown in the cold and clean
Blood of Christ mountain stream
Have I found you?
Flightless bird
Grounded, bleeding
Or lost you?
American mouth
Big pill, stuck going down
How do you read a newspaper? Well as for me I try to choose only what I need to read. Ofcourse there are some bad news and good news in a newspaper and we can’t help but to view the bad news as well yet I always look for the good news first before reading the bad news^^I just find it so unfair when people sensationalize the news and it’s always been that way.
I thought about this because I wonder why we love to criticize or ostracize people. Why do we never care about other people’s feelings just to make our news the best news in the world. Why do we always compete with one another. “Our nation is better than your nation. Our people are better than your people”. I just wonder why we can’t be fair with each other.
We all have our own hidden agenda. We don’t do things out of love instead we do things only for our selfish interests. That’s why we try to pull each other down instead of promoting what’s best for each other.
Love your neighbor as our Father says. Forget our hidden agenda. Do things out of love not out of selfishness.
