the view from the passenger seat

it took a while before i learned to enjoy the benefits of driving. my motor skills are not what you’d call exemplary (or normal, to begin with!).. so it was some time before i even managed to park my car properly (and not at all times, at that.. haha!). but eventually, i did learn to love driving.. and the feeling of freedom and independence i get everytime i get behind the wheel :)

like so many people, i now enjoy driving. i feel happy that i can (almost) effortlessly go from one place to another. i don’t have to wait for a ride to go to school. i don’t have to inhale the noxious gases so abundantly found in the streets of the metro. thanks to airconditioning, i don’t have to worry about the searing heat of the sun. neither should i worry about getting wet in the rain (well.. floods are a different story.. but you get my drift). and best of all, i get to spend precious “alone time” - where i’m all by myself.. listening to whatever i want to listen to on the radio or on tape/cd.

yeah.. i do love to drive. but honestly? i think the best times for me are still when i’m in the passenger seat :) not only do i enjoy most of the benefits i mentioned earlier; i also have the added bonus of having a great driver (usually my dad.. hehe :p) in charge! ‘coz you see, as a driver, i easily get lost. seriously. i’d probably need to pass through *exactly the same route* at least 10x before i memorize how to get to a particular destination. haha. i am soooo totally “directionally-challenged.” :p

and the same goes with my life. oh, sure.. it’s a blast, having control over the different aspects of life - career, community, friendships, romance (?!), etc. but oftentimes, i find i’m not really all that good at pinpointing which direction i should go.. which way i must take. i’d get stuck in a rut.. fall into all sorts of potholes.. go round and round in circles.. get trapped in one-way streets and the like. but the good thing is i have the Greatest Driver ever :) and His directions are *always* right.. His guiding hand *always* ready to steer me to safety.. His way *always* leading to the light.

ahhh. the view from the passenger seat sure is wonderful.. :D

anong bakasyon?!

20 august 2007. wala na namang pasok. halos isang linggo na akong hindi nakakapag-lecture sa mga estudyante ko. salamat kay chedeng at kay egay, naging sikat ang announcement na “classes in all levels are suspended” haha. ‘yan tuloy.. ang haba ng bakasyon namin.

pero teka. bakasyon nga ba?! sa totoo lang, dumaan ang mga nakaraang araw nang halos hindi ako nakakapagpahinga. hindi ako nakakalagi sa bahay.. hindi nakakanood ng sine.. hindi nakaka-gimik at hindi nakakalibot sa mga bagong lugar. bakit? dahil kung kailan walang pasok, saka naman nagsunud-sunod ang mga gawain namin sa ministry :p

maraming kailangang araling mga kanta. at medyo mahirap pang kabisaduhin ang mga tono. sa totoo lang, napapanaginipan ko na nga na may quartet kami (at isang beses, nagising ako na kumakanta ako! yikes!).

enjoy naman ang practice. masaya (lalo na kung panay tulad naming mga kalog ang nandodoon, haha!). pero minsan syempre, nakakapagod din sa katawan. hindi biro ang kumanta mula umaga hanggang hapon (totoo ‘to - dalawang araw kaming nag-whole day practice!). kaya nga saludo ako sa mga kasama ko sa ministry. mga nilalagnat, inuubo, masakit ang ulo, walang boses.. pero pumupunta pa rin para mag-practice (at hindi pa suspended ang mga pasok ng mga ‘yan ha!)

hayy. nakakahilo na ‘ata talaga ang schedule namin. pero sa totoo lang, pagdating ko sa bahay, nawawala lahat ng pagod ko :) kulang man sa tulog.. hilo at masakit ang lalamunan.. basta pag-uwi ko, nakakaramdam ako ng malaking ginhawa :) dahil pagdating ko sa amin, alam kong makakasama ko na ulit ang mga taong pinakamahal sa akin. at alam kong natutuwa silang nakabalik na ako. kaya may lakas ako para makipag-kwentuhan, makipagbiruan, tumulong nang kaunti sa mga naipong trabaho (tsk tsk.. hirap ng walang kasambahay!!). in short, tanggal talaga ang pagod :) sabi nga ng beatles..

“it’s been a hard day’s night and i’ve been working like a dog / it’s been a hard day’s night. i should be sleeping like a log / but when i get home to you / i find the things that you do / would make me feel all right..”

sana kaya rin nating sabihin ang mga katagang ito sa Diyos, ‘no? sana masasabi rin natin sa Kanya na kahit anupaman ang nangyari sa araw natin.. kahit gaano ka-busy tayo.. kahit masama ang pakiramdam natin, basta’t nakasama natin Siya, napapawi ang lahat ng pagod. at nagiging masaya ang buhay :)

* * *

Panginoon, marami po kaming mga alalahanin. abala po kami sa trabaho, sa mga gawain sa community at sa pagsisilbi sa aming mga pamilya. sana po, sa lahat ng ginagawa namin, makita namin ang Inyong mukhang nagagalak sa aming mga alay. dahil makita lamang namin Kayong nakangiti ay sapat na upang mapawi ang pagod at mabigyan kami ng panibagong lakas upang magsilbi at maglingkod sa Inyo :) amen.

an odd place to be in

this isn't really an inspirational post. there's nothing heartwarming to read in this entry. nothing God-related (or so i think). but it does reveal some of my recent musings. and it shows how far my wandering mind goes.. all thanks to a funny strip.

as the title says, it's an "odd place" to put this entry. but what the heck. read on. on the off chance that you pick up something useful..


has this ever happened to you? you're walking around the mall when someone shouts out your name, approaches you and launches into the familiar "hey-how've-you-been-long-time-no-see" conversation starter? you look quizzically at him/her.. while at the same time answering numerous questions and listening to his/her funny anecdotes. you nod once in a while, laugh at his/her jokes, politely ask general questions about family/friends/work while simultaneously trying to place this odd person who's striking up an uncomfortable conversation with you.

mercifully, after several agonizing minutes, he/she utters the blessed words "well, i guess i'll just see you around again then" and leaves. and you still have no idea who the heck you were talking to. you were too darned "polite" to ask his/her name.

yeah, well, all of us were taught to be polite. to not hurt other people's feelings. to always look cheerful and friendly. so we learn to stop saying bluntly honest statements children normally say (like "your fly is open"). we learn to hide our ignorance and weaknesses. we learn to pretend that we know a lot of things. we learn to put on masks. lots of masks.

and we're willing to do *anything* to let the charade continue. we keep up the pretenses.. even at the risk of losing ourselves. we plow through life pretending to be people we're not.. making decisions and commitments we can't really keep (or stubbornly sticking to our choices, even when we know they are wrong) all because we want to prove to others that we are strong.. that we always know what's right.

silly, huh?

but that's life.

and really, it's an odd place to be.

making rainwishes

"rain, rain, go away. come again another day. ‘cause little children want to play”

unlike a lot of kids, i never really recited those lines. why should i? i love it when it rains. i love grey skies and the pitter-patter of raindrops on the roof. i love curling up in my warm bed as i listen to the rain outside my window. i love the rain so much that i *always* make rainwishes. haha. i’m not called rainlover for nothing :)

well, now i’m not the only one looking up to the high heavens waiting for the rain to come. because of the dry spell in luzon, and all the trouble that lack of water has caused in different provinces, a lot of people have now turned into rainwishers as well. cardinal rosales has issued a circular that included an obligatory prayer to ask for rain. in some areas, they even have rain dancers! in all these years, this is the first time i’ve ever seen so many people asking for rain at the same time.

last july, pagasa says the dry spell will continue until august.. and that the rains will probably come sometime next month. they said that less tropical cyclones are expected to enter the country these coming months, so the wet season will come much later than expected. meantime, we just have to be content with the occasional afternoon shower - definitely not enough to replenish the depleted water supply.
i, however, choose to believe otherwise. as someone who’s been making rainwishes for years, i know that the One who makes the rain fall will grant the prayers of the thousands of faithful who implore His help.

just a couple of days after cardinal rosales issued his circular, pagasa says that a tropical storm (still unnamed) could enter the country within the week. hmmm. coincidence? maybe. but again, i choose to believe otherwise.

i remember a story i read a few years back. it was about a town that had not gotten any rainfall in more than a year. so the pastor gathered everyone in the town square to pray for rain. they held a vigil.. they had special rain dances, songs, worship, etc. and then the rain came pouring down. and everyone scrambled for shelter. except for one little girl - the only one with enough faith to bring an umbrella.

matt 21:22 says, “if you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." a lot of times, though, when we pray, our faith.. our belief.. is only half-hearted. we lack that expectant faith that believes 100% in His provision and His miracle.

when we pray - whether it be for healing, for guidance or for rain - let us believe.. let us trust.. let us expect ü for we know we have a God who *always* answers our prayers. Who knows our needs even before we ask Him ü