honoring mothers

first of all, i would like to honor the mothers in my life.

Antonia A. Carino

My grandmother from the side of my father. Thank you for taking care of me and my family. Though I was only two years old when you passed away, I felt that you have always been watching over us for a long time.

Concepcion T. Fontanilla
My grandmother from the side of my mother. We are thankful for the clothes that you made for us when we were younger and during our school years. Unfortunately we had a lot more arguments and differences as we eventually grew up. Though I still honor you as a mother for you tried your best to provide for your children despite the difficulties you have experienced.

Bernardita B. Isolana
Bjoy's mother, my mother-in-law. I was never able to meet her face to face as she already passed away when Bjoy and I met but I have heard great stories from Bjoy about her. The mere fact that she gave birth to nine boys and a girl is already a wonder to behold. I can just imagine the difficulty of raising a dominantly male household - all those testosterone. She was a great role model for her children. I can say that as I see the good values and discipline she has instilled in my husband Bjoy and his siblings.

Maria Lourdes F. Carino
My mother. Carried me inside her for nine months and risking her life to bring me to this world. I remember she would help me with my art homeworks and there was also a time when she juggled finishing college and being a mom to two girls. She does her best to provide for us but sometimes it backfires because of different reasons. There are days that we are fine together but there are days that we just want to keep our mouths quiet as to avoid saying anything bad against each other. Despite our differences I am still thankful for my mom in more ways than one.

Maria Socorro Catalina Antonia C. Contreras
My sister. I honor her because despite her age, she has overcome a great number of struggles as a young mother. I know that she is a strong person, but in the past year, she has proven to me that she has more spunk to give and I will be expecting more of that in the next few years.

Remember, being a mother is not just biological. There are "mothers" who do not fit our conventional definition of a mother, sometimes mothers are the strangers in our lives.

A great shout out to all the mothers in the world!

time for love

"Make every heartbeat count." -Nutschell Anne Windsor

Time is ticking. Take every opportunity to LOVE MORE

Matthew 13:44-46

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it."

this was the core of our discussion during our household a few meetings back. We were asked what were our greatest treasures and what are we willing to give up to achieve this treasure. the common denominator for the greatest treasure between our household is family. we would do almost everything in our power just to help and care for our families.

our guest during the household was ate jean. her greatest treasure would be her relationship with her family. she admitted that she felt her prayers were answered recently regarding her family. though she has gone through a death in her family, she was able to see the goodness behind the darkness as her family is now more bonded and she has now a sense of belonging within her family. she shared that for her, she needed not to give up anything to attain the treasure she has. it was all because of prayer, patience and following the path of Christ.

our household head, ate alma, has been helping in sending her sibling and other family members in their education. though there is not much left for her, she feels joys in seeing their success and achievements. she feels accomplished in being able to help her brothers and sisters through the education of her niece/ nephew. she shared that she is willing to give up her personal desires just to fulfill the dreams of her family.

for ate taf, she shared that family is always a treasure she would also cherish. another treasure would be her relationship with her God's Gift, Kuya Reuben. she shared some experiences that made her let go of her selfishness and pride in order to preserve and protect her relationship with her love. the result of her giving up her selfishness and pride? a stronger and more meaning realationship with kuya Reuben.

as for me, the greatest treasure would be, being able to build my own "christian family." i have had my own turmoils with my family and i guess i am able to "hold on" because of my own prayers and the prayers of those around me. i know that at my age, i may still be too young to even think about marriage, though i would admit that it is not far from impossible considering i am in a relation with Joy Isolana, my "God's Gift."

when i was discerning on whether or not i would be in a relationship, sis mimi told me to decide, "if i wanted to be with the person for the rest of my life (someone i would marry) or merely someone who i want to have a relationship with." this in mind, i decided that this person is someone i will be marrying in the future. this is where my "treasure" stems from, my relationship with my GG and out future together as a family.

no family is perfect, but no future parent would like to make the mistakes that they may have experienced with their own parents, their own family. i shared that at some point in my life, i would have to sacrifice and let go my own family to build up my own christian family. i know that it may all be just words for now, but as i move forward to the future, it is definitely a reality. i would have to face the separation, the change in priorities and being more responsible for my own (future) family.

CLP 2013 Batch 2 Chronicles: the start

today is the start of the CLP. even before this day, we have had our struggles to face. at this very moment i have a struggle in the relationship i have. we are currently trying to work on it, but it's pretty obvious it's going to be a dangerous roller coaster ride.

this is only the start, there will be more temptations and pains in the coming months.

i admit i am very nervous about all of this but i know that prayers, praise songs, word of God, fasting and sacrifice, will be my defense and my offense in this coming months.


Mama Mary, please intercede for us.

Amen.