Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Thank you :)

thank you for YOU ARE ALWAYS NEAR AND ALWAYS THERE. thanks for the much needed help of yesterday, of today and of the future. you are my light, my eyes, my strength. you always showed me the truth and the way to the right path. you gave me wisdom, you gave me your much needed intercessions when I am lost and needed them most. you gave me that much needed consolation in times of sadness, hopelessness, anger, despair and disappointments. you, with the father above and Jesus...i am forever grateful...

the image of our mother of perpetual help in our parish that i took not too long ago. this image was transferred from another church when our parish was renamed "our mother of perpetual help parish" from "our lady of fatima" 2 years ago due to consolidation of parishes made by the catholic archdiocese in our area...the rose was from my garden one nice summer. a beautiful bloom rightly meant for our mother...my faith is the wind behind my back. i won't be here living in the U.S. without the grace of God...miracles do happen, that's for sure...so i thank God everyday from the bottom of my heart :)...

whispered memories that you couldn't catch before they fade away"...a remarkable line from an old turner classic movie called "random harvest" 1942...i watch old movies for they constantly remind us of our mortality. old movies and its characters are eaten by time. it is just a stroke of luck that these actors and actresses are forever recorded, unlike most of humanity then. but now you can record your own video-movie with the brilliant inventions of the present time :)

“Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.”  anonymous? from the www...we can't do anything about the past except it is a silent teacher. we can't do anything about tomorrow because it is not yet for us to swallow. today is what we have granted that the sun will smile at us. to be what we want to be, to do what we want to do before the clutches of time catches on us and eat us. before there are no more sunrises, before we don't have enough strength to enjoy this gift of a limited time on earth. sad in a way but God designed it that way. we are just humble creations of our powerful creator, God :) who has the final say with regards to what will eventually happen to us in our short timed lives...so... let's aid a life before life passes us by :>

Michael & Me in Canada 6-28-2017

In the Philippines & in Canada, then and now...

Autism, a robber in broad daylight...

How do you feel when it's dark all day
How do you see if nothing lights your way
How do you do your chores
How do you cook and clean
Tell me, how, in the absence of the sun

Will you see at night when the moon is gone
Will the stars above have that enough shine
Will the owl, the fox, or the dog can dance
Will the cat, the cow or the rat can run
Tell me, if you can see shadows in the dark

Why does a child can't read or write
Why does a boy can't play with a ball
Why does a girl can't play with a doll
Why do some kids can't ride a two wheel bike
Tell me, why, some children can't understand

Do you sing and dance with them
Do you smile and laugh with them
Do you do their jobs for them
Do you, can you, tell them what to do
Tell me how to open up a tight igloo

Autism, with that mind altering bug
Robbing a child's intelligence once
Permanently erasing memory lane
No sun, no moon, no light, no dreams
Tell me when can they act like a normal human being...

Special children are special people...

LIFE IS TANGO

LIFE IS A TANGO
As you dance in each passing day
Feeling your way in every move
Not so sure how your steps will be
Dance is a movement
It's very gracious, at times it's fancy free
Blunders and errors are at your feet
As you glide with your partner as you sway
Life is like that in some moments
As mistakes are made along the way...

Special thanks to you anonymous artist who created this wonderful piece of art...

LIFE WILL ONLY HAPPEN ONCE

WHAT LIFE IS ALL ABOUT

The road is winding down
the best rays of the sun are gone
The moon will soon arise 
with its slow shimmering light

We travel in this life's journey

however the streets are crowned
With stars or fireworks, with thorns or crosses
or with laughter, cheers or sighs

Nevertheless time moves on
with the tick of the clock
Tick tock, high low, faint loud
until you see that road which all of us will pass

To reach that glorious end
where harmony and peace, where God stands
As our Lord above awaits for us
with His divine embrace and hug

Asking all of us, "How did my paradise worked for you?
the earth with all its wonderful sights
The sea, the mountains, the forest and the waterfalls
and of course your unique co humans?"

"Did you enjoy my gift, until it lasted
until it ended, until the sun went down
Until your last breath, until your last moments
and here you are with me now"

Our departed loved ones would have said to God...
"in spite of the pains, in spite of the heartaches,
in spite of life's challenges and travails"
"Life is the most beautiful gift
that any of us could ever received,could ever experienced
even how short or long that journey will"

To all of our departed loved ones
and to ALL of us alive, beware...
This life's journey is short and quick
Lost, gone forever before we knew it

So let's catch a glimpse of happiness
while there is still a chance
While we have the strength and the time
to enjoy life for it is real grand

Young and old the playing field is fair
Life is priceless though sad for it will certainly end
Let's pray that our life's journey
is long to our heart's content

And let's hope in God's divine grace
and hold on to His divine love
and keep them forever
in our dearest heart of hearts

As we take our steps to welcome a new day for the sun to roll
For we do not even know what is next for us
as life is full of surprises
that we humans can only mull, like, or enjoy...

YES definitely life is beautiful in spite of it all
YES we love life, the gift of God even how hard life is sometimes and its toil...

Let's start with the Rose...

Vividly I remember your rose
Ruby red the crown jewel of July
Red is the color of the heart
Love meant in each petals?

My very own red roses
Once in full bloom
A canopy of beautiful reds
For the eyes to adore

Never to return again
For time carried them all
As each of us will go too
Shelved in time's eternal vault

For eternity's turning pages
For the memories it holds
For the bright smiles it brought
In this lovely earth we call home...

For the blessed Virgin Mary whose flower is the lovely and exquisite rose :)...my roses in front of our home, one beautiful summer...

life's reflections...

we all have stories to tell, earth shaking, extra ordinary or just plain and simple. our lives, ordinary or exemplary, our life story should be told to those who are willing to listen ;)

well mine is in between. born poor because of the deceitfulness of bad humans. my grandparents own a sizable land but my grandparents were victims of a scam who persuaded them to sell their property for the land of promise in mindanao then which turned out to be an illusion. this made my dad and his siblings to scramble for life and make it on their own...

but God is good, i was sent by my kind hearted, rich, spanish virgin mary look alike benefactor to UST for my nursing degree. i was able to navigate the hardships of college working as a maid because my aunt was their cook. i helped mop the floor, wash the dishes, prepare the things that my aunt needed to cook and also clean our masters' quarters at the same time going to nursing school. up to this day i wonder why i wasn't kicked out... pre-nursing we started with 21 sections with 50 students each but in our internship 9 sections were just left to continue. UST is pretty hard i tell you, maybe bec. of my being a valedictorian and i graduated top in that honor roll in HS with 200 students, maybe i was well equipped to weather the storm of nursing school... brain wise ;)

i worked as an operating room nurse for about a year and a half and luckily when maxine gurgold, the director of nursing at mt. carmel mercy hospital here in the U.S. went to the philippines and stayed at the manila hotel and interviewed hundreds of nurses applicants there, i was one of the only 6 who were given the job to come here in the U.S.to work in this hospital. several years later the sisters of mercy sold this facility to my current employer. i was very lucky that i'd never forgotten this enormous blessing in my life. i was only 26 years old then and i was U.S. bound to work for the richest and the most powerful country on earth which president Obama said during his very last state of the union address and that no other country could even come close in comparison. plus the only super power to boot. my life made a dramatic shift for the better after that. God is always good. if you work hard you can do it with God's grace. no help from wealthy parents for i don't have one. only from the mercy of our most powerful and loving God above :)

as life rolls it makes changes. my family's life was profoundly changed last year when my husband of almost 3 decades passed away but we are determined to move on in spite of the sadness and the grief. we will continue to live our lives showing more of our sunny disposition and our brighter outlook of life. things happen and only God knows the reason why but that's life. one by one we will all bid our goodbyes to this earth sooner or later. tomorrow the sun will shine again and at night the moon will come out and so of the billions of stars twinkling up in the sky. we look up and make a wish and dream of a better life ahead of not only for us but of other families as well with husbands or without. life only happens but once. we will ride its wagon until the end. until God decides to take us back like mother angelica. EWTN is here to stay, her creation. a remarkable nun that for the love of Jesus she was inspired to dream big, to give big and to have lived bigger than life. farewell dear mother. you were an extra ordinary human being who deserves to be a saint someday... like mother theresa...

above's remarkable art is by john singer sargent...thank you :)

AID A LIFE IS NOW ON THE WEB :)

Please visit us at http://www.aidalife.org/

WE GIVE LOVE

THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE

You can't buy true love
it comes as in a fancy free
You won't buy courage
it is the fuel of dreams
You can't buy faith
our divine link to God
You can't buy friends
for they are heaven's gift...

Resurrection Art

Dima's art of Easter Celebration, San Miguel, Mexico...thanks for your divine work of art :)

Life is a celebration...

A sun's journey without a cloud is hot 
but the moon rises at night to cool it down

A river's ride above the water that is so calm
the waves are mute without the ocean

Oh life how truly beautiful you are
adorned by miracles of the divine

All things are planned, all things are run
quietly and efficiently by the hands of God

Guiding us all in our life's path...

LOVE IS JESUS, the lenten season meant quiet reflections

it is short
life is too short...

life is fun
it can be fun
if there is no hate
roving around

you would think
that we are smart...

but we always forget
that life is timed
it won't forever last
no matter what

there is that road
the road of no return...

where live flesh
will turn into ashes
merely being blown away
by the passing wind

just like that...

ASH WEDNESDAY is the start of the Holy Week, and the cross is the most visible symbol of our religion. the love of our Father in heaven for us is forever manifested in His Son dying on the cross to redeem our sins...

Jesus and the Cross, my version of the "Old Rugged Cross" classic

A New Beginning

HAPPY NEW YEAR SOON TO ALL...

It is not everyday that we are given a gift
A gift that most of us would easily soon forget
Life after all will roll along as time moves along
Another year had past and it is quite just like that

After all the merry go rounds, the carols and the cards
When we are all tired and ready to pass out
God will be smiling at us up above
We forgot to thank Him
For another year, a precious gift of life...

GOD IS LOVE

              
                  The Nativity Scene at the Shrine of the Little Flower Catholic Church... 

It is Christmas once again...

It is Christmas, is there anything better than that?
It is our Lord's birthday
Can't think of anything holier than that...

We came into this earth
some in wealthy trappings and
some in very humble beginnings

We live our lives
as we wake up each morning
chasing the wind of unimportant races

As we grow older and wiser
We reflect each passing moments
Our golden ambitions seem to be fading away

All we have now are left overs of the remaining years
Soon to be spent in what ways
In what touching and unforgettable ways

We can't seem to be happy with money
Sure It can make your life fly you to the moon
And you can help others in noble and in divine joy

Still there is something missing
A lonely void of an empty space
that you can't put your fingers on

Could it be the love that we forgot to give
Maybe it is forgivenes
that we can't seem to release

Whatever it is, it is like chasing the wind
You can't hold it, you can't touch it
Because it seems to be somewhere else

But...we have Jesus, we have Him tonight
Not only tonight but till the rest of our lives
Till our last breath on earth is cast, till we forever close our eyes...

MAY THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS FILL OUR HEARTS AND OUR LIVES WITH JOY NOT ONLY FOR TODAY BUT FOR ALWAYS!... MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY! & A BLESSED NEW YEAR TO ALL!...above is our parish image of our mother of perpetual help on its website...

When Christmas is blue...

FULL OF WISDOM & LIFE'S TRUTHS VIDEO, THANKS ARMIE :)

The Bridge of Life

We travel to a bridge
Called the bridge of life
Until we reach that end
Called 6 feet down under

And in between maybe
We do our thing
On higher grounds
We love and we care

On our lowest point maybe
We despise and we hate
As we form opinions of people
We don't even know well

As the sun rises, a new day reveals
The light seeps through the souls of people we've met
Those that stuck with you in thick or thin
Are the ones sent by God who truly cared

It is everyday that we learn about life
As we walk on that bridge of sighs and of smiles
It gets harder as the journey gets tough
Though it's easier to cross that bridge with friends holding your hands...

You will know and learn who truly cared for you when you are in a bind...

above painting is by Thomas Kinkade, thank you...

Historia de un amor...

the waning days of summer

youth and vitality gone
drinks of red wine
at candle lit fires

spring with its heavenly hope
summer with its fanciful colors
bidding farewells and adieus

crisp golden colors of autumn
falling leaves so ever gently
to the  ground so cold

slowly eaten by winter's claws
frost bitten and on hibernation
after the waning days of summer

slowly and painfully
the butterflies and the busy bees
that were buzzing and humming

all gone, muted as silence rules...

AID A LIFE

In our lives we are all a product of charity in some form or another so to help and to "aid a life" is moving forward the charity that we received...

to the point...

to the point of no regrets
we helped, we persevered
it is not enough

to the point where
all the songs
has been played

all the sunrises
became sunsets
still it is not enough

how can we measure
a life well lived
a life fulfilled to the rim

a life to the point
of worthy of the
Lord's praise

of the Lord's admiration
of the Lord's love and care
of the Lord's wink

we live, we die, we breathe
we danced, we played
the game of life

till we reach the point of no return
where we become just mere ashes
being blown away by the passing wind

being shelved somewhere
in the desert, on top of a mountain
or being dragged by the ocean waves

to the point of utter silence...

GOD THE MAGNIFICENT

http://www.andiesisle.com/magnificent.html
this nature's video and its meaning makes me happy :>

life in pink, la vie en rose...

when you're young life is in pink
when you're old life turns into maroon
lesser smiles more of the pause
lesser joy more of the sorrows

why could it be, why
more of the reflections
down the road of life
and the rolling of the tide

a story woven in a classic movie
lives gone before you, silenced and free
world of the past buried and shelved
in cold agony as the moon laughed and reigned

life is a wheel that keeps moving on
its pedals are run down, its tires all tired
it becomes rickety as the moving of time
as the passing of the years, life will be gone

so enjoy it while life is still in pink
it won't last long because life is just a breeze
a brief encounter, a meaningful meeting
of people around you at that life's train traveling...

above is a smiling rose image i took at the back of the Shrine of the Little Flower Catholic Church...

St. Faustina's prayer on how to be merciful...

Prayer To Be Merciful

O Most Holy Trinity! As many times as I breathe, as many times as my heart beats, as many times as my blood pulsates through my body, so many thousand times do I want to glorify Your mercy.

I want to be completely transformed into Your mercy and to be Your living reflection, O Lord. May the greatest of all Divine attributes, that of Your unfathomable Mercy, pass through my heart and soul to my neighbor.

Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be merciful, so that I may never suspect or judge from appearances, but always look for what is beautiful in my neighbour’s souls and come to their  rescue. 

Help me, that my ears may be merciful, so that I may give heed to my neighbour’s needs, and not be indifferent to their pains and moaning.

Help me, O Lord, that my tongue may be merciful, so that I should never speak negatively of others, but have a word of comfort and forgiveness for all. 

Help me, O Lord, that my hands may be merciful and filled with good deeds, so that I may do only good to my neighbours and always try to take upon myself the more difficult and toilsome tasks.

Help me, O Lord, that my feet may be merciful, so that I may hurry to assist my neighbour, overcoming my own fatigue and weariness. My true rest is in the service of my neighbour. 

Help me, O Lord, that my heart may be merciful, so that I myself may feel all the sufferings of my neighbour. I will refuse my heart to no one. I will be sincere even with those who, I know, will abuse my kindness. And I will lock myself up in the most merciful Heart of Jesus. I will bear my own suffering in silence.

May your mercy, O Lord, rest upon me. (Diary 163)

it is farewell...

my husband was a philippine soldier. we miss him sooo much. this song brings tears to my eyes, his favorite...happy birthday tito soon...

My speech, HS reunion, April 2012

nostalgic mementos

April, 2012. First HS reunion with WPL classmates. Thanks Editha for sharing these precious mementos :)...priceless...

amazing ocean

the color is blue
is it true
peaceful like the sky
that's a lie

waves will soar
as typhoons roar
its water is restless
untamed and ruthless

look, it's aqua marine
open your eyes
colors are borrowed
masked of truth

but don't despair
beaches are tranquil
most of the year
a picture of quiet and calm

until that whiff of another hurricane winds...

patar beach in bolinao, pangasinan...

music matters...and i want to sing :)

Mesmerizing melodies meant for thee
Angelic tunes for her and he
Wonderful words melodious mix
Playing prominently across the street

Ballads, bachs or lullabies
Beaches and bars or any one's house
Unending beat, jamming feet
Dancing playfully per music sheet

Agonies, joy, sadness and smiles
All intermingled and all are intertwined
Targeting lives of the young or not
Boring deeply in their hearts

How magical, music can really be
How lovely it can make your day
How suddenly it can turn around
For one to cry and to always frown

With music melodies' spell
Changing our lives better from hell
Seeking soothing serenades
Your lips, theirs and mine can ever sing...

ah music, men make them for the loves of their lives :) and thank you pilita,  mr. fernando poe jr., mr. rock and roll king, elvis and the rest for sharing your beautiful music. i know i can't do it as good as you do and i do not have a band for accompaniment so i improvised :) the intention is clean and it is whole heartedly fun :) ... yup music makes me smile and i hope the rest of the universe as well ;)