New Year Celebration 2017: Should We be Optimists or Pessimists?

Went to church on New Years eve and then went home and sleep, we have no preparation for the New Year. My sister wake me up when 12 o’clock strikes in the clock so I could see few fireworks in the sky, there’s not much then it is drizzling. The night is very silent, my father fired eight pieces of “kwitis” then when they’re all fired up, I went down and sleep again.

It’s New Year and most people sleep late but the church service started very early because it is first Sunday of the month. Pastor opened his preaching for the day by asking if we are pessimist or optimist.  Looking back, I am always an optimistic person, I always look at the bright side and I always find good reason in every situation, like why a flight has been cancelled or delayed, that life is more important than money and so on… then my light dies… I became pessimistic and expect worst in every thing, I became hopeless…

Anyway, the scriptural scripture this Sunday is from Ephesians 5: 15-17. Pastor reminded everyone to watch our step because sometimes we are guilty of living too fast, to redeem our time and make most of every opportunity and do God’s will.

Pastor E shared a lot of inspiring verses from the bible after the preaching proper like Let not your heart be troubled.” (John 14:1 KJV),  “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6) and other verses that were strong enough to pacify a hopeless and weary heart.

Since I went to church early without eating anything I decided to have a sip of coffee, ate bread  and peanut butter after church and while I am eating an aunt called and invited us to their house to eat, was told that some of our relatives were there eating.  I am already full but we don’t want to disappoint our aunt so my sister and I went to their home which is now owned by her son. Well, they have plenty of preparation for the new year,  there was a lot of food to eat.

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My Cousin’s Wedding: The Stress and the Highlights

It was my cousin’s wedding yesterday, my parents were one of the principal sponsors and my younger sister was one of the bridesmaids and me was one of the visitors. I dress nicely so I won’t be under-dress like the previous weddings of my relatives but I think I over dress because my dress blend with the bridesmaids.

Below are some of the disappointments, problems they face before and after the wedding.

Unforeseen Event

My cousin’s wedding brought a lot of stress to them, days before the wedding the mother of the groom died so the groom family wasn’t able to attend the wedding, then there was a typhoon so there was a lot of passengers that has been stranded, so some of their visitors and part of the entourage were not able to attend my cousin’s wedding.

Gown Rental

The dresses of the bridesmaid were not done on time and the dress of the matron of honor was a disaster that she wasn’t able to wear it on the wedding day. A few months before the wedding day, my cousin’s family informed the couturier about the bridesmaid dresses, the color and etc., The bridesmaid even went to their house/shop for the measurement, everything went well but not as the wedding day is coming. A few weeks before the wedding the dresses weren’t ready yet, it was told that they were still in Manila as they were sewn in the city, days before the wedding the dresses were still out of sight, the bridesmaid had to be measured again just in case the dresses needs to be repaired for their new measurement.  A day before the wedding the dresses arrives to their house and it is coming from out of town contrary to what is told that is coming from Manila, and since the dresses were not yet fully finished, minor details were not added yet my aunt and the bride has to wait for them until early mornight. Instead of relaxing for the wedding tomorrow they are stressed waiting for the bridesmaid dress to be done.

Catering

The reception was a disappointment too. There are still photos taking photos at the church but the groom and bride’s cut-outs name has to be removed because it has to be used at the reception held at the bride’s residence. The program proper didn’t start until the bride and grooms place was not set-up (re: adding the cut-outs). Then the secondary sponsors were not given a presidential table they have to fall inline in a buffet so they could eat. And according to the family, the food that they choose with the caterer were not the food that was served and the vegetable menu was lacking, their utensils went missing after the wedding (dunno who took them it is either the visitors or the caterer) and even some of the food were gone quickly when there are only a few visitors. In the end, the caterer refunded an amount brought by unpleasing service.

Film and Video

Added to the fiasco was the video and camera persons hurrying to finish the wedding reception ceremony because they have another engagement in the afternoon but they took their time eating at the reception.

Over-all, it was a successful event despite the mishaps and blunders of people they trust on the dresses, reception and documentation of their wedding.

Update:

After a month, they are able to claim the photos and video taken on my cousins wedding day.  Disappointment of all disappointment the video was of low quality, a pirated DVD is far more clearer than their wedding video.  It looks like the  videographer  doesn’t know his craft,  the video was either zoomed out or the people were cut,  the sound and movements were not sync too. They returned it to the studio but the quality was still the same darker and blurry but it sync now, the video was not just a remembrance of their wedding but also for the groom’s family to see because they were not able to attend their wedding. Maybe they could just day “that’s how its done in Odiongan!”

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Christmas Day 2016: Experience the Miracle of Christmas

There was a Christmas Cantata and exchange gift party last night at church, the cantata started early and wasn’t able to watch it from the start since we went to town to buy some stuff. It wasn’t that exciting anyway since it was just the same as last year, the young people sung the same song. The exchange gift party was done after the raffle draw where I bought few tickets and didn’t win even a minor prize.  I received colorful food container from the exchange gift party, it turns out my cousin’s wife picked my name during the raffle of names for exchange gift party.

Today is Sunday and it is Christmas day, most of the people in church were wearing red and the kids are feeling festive. Pastor E’s topic for today is part of the series of “Experience the Miracle of Christmas” which is The Miracle of the Method – from the scriptural verse of Romans 11:33.

Pastor E talks about how God’s method transcend us, His greatness beyond measure and beyond human understanding. He added that God’s method include each one of us, He uses ordinary people to accomplish extra-ordinary things and God’s method sanctify us, God is at work in our lives in ways that we do not and cannot fully comprehend.

After the church service, Pastor E told everyone not to leave since there will be a gifts to be given. The kids were given bag of goodies that consists wafers, biscuits and chocolates. When all of the kids got theirs, Pastor E called the young people to get their goodies I immediately run upfront while calling the attention of my younger cousin who is set to marry in a few days, she was in hesitation maybe because we are too old for the bag of goodies but with an older cousin pushing her upfront she followed me. When I returned, my cousin told me that some people voice out if I am  still a young people because as what they knew I am not anymore and I am already married, so I replied while laughing that the bags of goodies are for my younger sister who’s a member of the young people, she went home ahead because she needs to reheat something.

We prepared a little food to eat on Christmas day so some of of our relatives went to our home after the church service, they didn’t stay longer but I have enjoyed their company that I wasn’t able to feel Christmas blue making this Christmas a bit better than last year, especially with my little cousins visiting.

Well, since my personal photos were stolen from my dead travel blog and posted to other people’s website I started to blur photos with people in them for privacy reason.

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Soon It Will Be Christmas Day…

A few more days before Christmas and I can already feel Christmas rush around me, the parents were already busy buying new clothes for their kids and gifts for their kids Christmas party. Nothing much, happening around me I am slowly eating by the dark hole again, I have a lot worries, questions and regrets. I am feeling alone…

Anyway,  I have already wrapped gifts for my Godchildren; it was a good thing I found gifts for less than $2 at LazadaPH and for the others I just wrapped some old but new clothes. I think for the first time I bought Christmas gift for my family, I bought a bottle of Kirkland Vitamin B for my mother as her Christmas gift, she’s been skipping taking Vitamin B because the brand she is taking is quite expensive per tablet in our local pharmacy and with my father’s weekly compensation we can’t afford it daily, I bought Kirkland label because I believed Vitamin B is Vitamin B no matter what brand it is.

Free Paper Bags Near Wall Stock Photo

[Photo courtesy of freestocks.org /pexels.com]

My sister wanted a head phone so when there was a Christmas sale I bought Techno Tamashi TH-780 Over-the-Ear Headphones (Blue) for her and inexpensive red wine for my father, there are gifts for J too if only…

The good thing of shopping online when you have no card you can pay via Cash on Delivery which is good deal for me. What I am saving right now is money to send this Christmas for my maternal grandmother, she lives on her hometown together with my biological grandfather and doesn’t want to live with us because she isn’t familiar with the people and the place.

With the year ending, I hope 2017 will be a good year for me. I hope do miracles happens and I hope it will open more opportunities and work online so I can live life day by day and buy my necessities. Oh well, how can I find work online with my slow internet connection? ☹

Today is my grandfather’s death anniversary and I think it was Cody too! ☹🕯

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In Memory of Our Cutie Chubby Kitty Taekwoon

Every morning when we wake up our kittens were already waiting behind our main door so when we opened it they will excitedly run inside our house to play and asked for food. Today, there is something different one kitten (Taekwoon) is missing and we can’t found him everywhere, we search here and there but he isn’t around. It is peculiar because it is not his norms to be not around in the morning.

My sister search around and asked neighbors were one of them says that they found a dead cat which looks like a mother cat that was been a victim of hit and run just about an hour ago, were told that they throw it in the irrigation canal.  I have asked the kid who found the dead cat what does it looks like and show here a photo of Taekwoon in my phone and her answer is positive, it was the dead cat she found in their yard. It turns out at night Taekwoon loves to run across the street and after reaching the other end he will run back home.

Taekwoon (May 28, 2016 – December 02, 2016)

Sad, my sister went searching along the irrigation canal and when she returned it was indeed Taekwoon, cold and wet.  It was very painful to see the sweet, chubby and playful Taekwoon in such condition, it was just last night when I cuddle and feed him, it was just last night when he cried into my ears but now he is gone.

Taekwoon was born on May 28, 2016 as the eldest of Monina’s four kitties. His feature is very distinguish because of his long ears, red nose and chinky eyes, when he was younger he looks like a rat than a cat. Surely our cutie Taekwoon will be forever be missed, our chinky eyes kitty will be always in our heart. In heaven, your playground will be more wider with no cars, bikes to fear around.

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A Blessed Sunday: Celebrating Thanksgiving Sunday

Today the church is celebrating Thanksgiving Sunday but unlike the norms it wasn’t celebrated inside the church. A voting for the venue was done the previous Sunday which I wasn’t able to witness because I went to the church a bit late; I only knew that Thanksgiving Sunday will be celebrated in one of the popular beach resort in town when Pastor E mentioned it during announcement period.

I felt uncomfortable with the venue and I found it unpleasing, the church was built within a purpose and a beach resort was built within a purpose too, it is for fun, relaxation and to cater gatherings like birthdays, weddings, alumni and etc.  With this, I decided not to attend the Thanksgiving celebration and just went to church to read the bible and pray on my own.

It was quite sad that most churches were open and full during Sunday but the church beside us was closed because the members decided to full a resort instead.  Maybe, if it was not Sunday I may be able to go the resort and celebrate with them but it is Sunday and I found it improper to attend a service outside of the church when the church was quite large to cater a lot of people and guests.

Bath Abbey, Chair, Stained Glass, Church

[Photo courtesy of ddouk/pixabay.com]

Well, it would be better if the Thanksgiving service was done inside the church and the reception for the Thanksgiving Day was done in the resort rather than leaving the church empty on Sunday. It was quite disappointing that it seems most of the church goers (over here) already forget the purpose of the church, the effect of worldly influence to them is quite scary.  Who’s on their straight mind abandon a church during Sunday?

Well, some people forget too to respect the holy place and it seems going to the church is just becoming their habit.  Who the heck cut their fingernails inside the church when a Pastor is preaching in the pulpit? Shocking isn’t it? But that’s the weirdest I’ve seen inside the church, weirder than someone combing their hair or playing games on their phone during Sunday service.

Anyway, I am not saying I am a perfect Christian because nobody is perfect but my views and opinion doesn’t correlate with was just voted and decided by many.

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A Blessed Sunday: The Beat of A Thankful Heart

It was been a long time since I blogged about Sunday, I have been procrastinated on doing so. I have planned to just write a late post but my mind was too busy and can’t focus.

How are you going to describe your heart today?  That’s the question asked by Pastor E to everyone and I could write a long sentence to describe mine but I’ll just skip that.  The scriptural verse for this Sunday was from Luke 17: 11-19 with the scriptural topic of “The Beat of a Thankful heart”.

Pastor E shared  that the thankful heart beats for those who are without.  We see hurting people all around us and yet we are paralyzed to help because our hearts are telling us:

[Photo courtesy of greatergood.berkeley.edu]
  • “Why bother…nobody will change”.
  • “It’s too risky…you might fail or get hurt.”
  • “Someone else can a better effort at helping than I can.”

Secondly, the thankful heart beats with a faith that things can change no matter what the circumstances. As Paul  said on Philippians 4:6-7 ~

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

It is with a heart of thanksgiving that we are to pray and let God know our needs. When we pray, God can do two things:

  1. Change our circumstance
  2. Give us His peace in our circumstance

Thirdly, The thankful heart beats for the Giver…not just the gift and lastly the thankful heart beats with thanksgiving and more is given.

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Adopted Three Abandoned Orange Kittens from the Street

It was been a while since I updated this blog, starting today I will try to update more often and post something new or what is happening around our pets.

We have been adopting abandon kitten from the streets but they don’t live that long maybe because they were too young when we found them or they’re been out for a long time since we found them and when they’re mixed with each other they got each other disease since they ate and drink together.

Anyway, it was been a month since we found and adopted these three kittens in the middle of the street. We saw them when we are going to town walking at the side of the street and when we returned home from town they were all in the middle lying down. We stopped for a moment, we’ve all agreed not to pick new kittens anymore but when the kitten cries and follows me when I went down our motorbike I took all of them home.

Our cats at home were not happy with the new kittens, they don’t get a long on the first day. They either run or fight with the kitties but as the day goes by they learn to accept and adapt with each other, we named the three kittens according to their behavior or likes.

We name one of them as Jinja from our dog’s name Jinjoo. Jinja wasn’t afraid of our dog contrary to two other kitties, he actually sleep with her and suck milk from Jinjoo making him her puppy.  I think they are still nursing to their mother cat when they were thrown in the street by their previous owner.

The second was named Patpat from our duck’s name Patutinay, unliked Jinja, Patpat found motherly love with our duck, he plays and hugged with her.

We named the third kitty as Jinjii, he is the frailest and smallest of the three. He is always left alone by Jinja and Patpat, Jinjii found motherly love in one of our older kittens.

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Dreaming of an Airplane Crashing

I had the weirdest and scariest dream last night, I saw myself and family inside a plane and presumably J. What is weirdest and scariest was the plane is crashing, the plane is literally going down in full-speed. Everyone is panicking, people are standing and have so much fear, it looks like something is broken within the plane and there is nothing I could do but silently pray. I don’t know how my dream went on being landed safely in an unknown airport,  the plane was stalled directly in the airport door, I hurriedly called and grabbed my family down the plane, I was too scared to stay inside of it, I hurriedly took my passport so I could go to the immigration but there was a chaos, we are told we are not allowed to pass through. The immigration will not stamped our passport and we have to return to the plane so we could fly again, the stewardess was calling everyone to board the plane again, some people did but I didn’t  move, was too scared to be inside the plane again. I would rather suffer in the airport than fly again with the broken plane.

[Photo courtesy of Unsplash/pixabay.com]

When I woke up the dream seems real, I felt dizzy and can still feel the dazed. It feels like I rode a full speed roller coaster.

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Dream of Seeing and Talking to Ghost

Every night I am dreaming, I used to journal my dreams but the procrastinated me is so lazy to do it and there are times I forgot what was my dream all about when I wake up or after hour passed. My dream last night was so vivid, saw myself talking to a young female ghost and asking her so many questions. Then a group of men wearing white took me and while walking away from the ghost I am talking with I saw a feet of a man wearing white trousers beside her, I am not able to see his face because I didn’t look up… along the way I saw many ghost, then I don’t know how my dream hop in to different place, the people who took me brought me in front of a house which looks more of a villa and then my dream went to different scenario.

Image result for ghost

What is weird, on my dream I am not scared seeing ghost around me while in real life I am scared of them. It reminds me what happened a few weeks ago. It was evening and as I went out the door of our old house to go to the store, in my peripheral vision I saw a person in my left side leaning towards our old house, I saw his eyes looking at me and since I am not expecting that there was a person in that dark corner I cried out in surprised and as I look back to say a word, nobody was there, I am all alone… there was no person in there, it was just a motor bike which is fully covered with coat.

My aunt who owns the store, heard me and asked me what had happened to me because she heard me scream in fear and shocked, so I told her what I saw.

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