In Your Memory

When I was younger, I remember hearing my Dad say that most of his friends have already passed and he was left behind. At that time I really didn’t give a thought about death since I was young. I wondered why would my Dad dwell on that sad thought.

And I grew older. I experienced the pain beyond words of losing someone very dear to my heart. I lost my Dad and then my second mom. Those were terrifying and very painful times I sometimes wish to forget. It seems like no matter how much you prepare for it, it still would sting like hell.

As years pass by, just like my Dad, I see a lot of people I know pass away. I try to keep a list of names and pray for them. Someone I know actually just died a few hours ago. We have been praying for him for over a month since he was in the Intensive Care in the hospital. This post is for him.

Death is a natural part of life like being born and yet you can never really prepare for it. It will still hurt or make you really sad. Then I look at my own life. I see my young children. I hope and I pray that my husband and I will be there for them for a very very long time. The thought of ending changes one’s perspective: To hold, to cherish and to savor each moment.

A Queen’s Day

She cooked a Filipino dish called Mechado. They all sat at the table. They enjoyed the meal and the family conversations.

She finished washing the dishes and cleaning up the table. She rested on a blue couch by a big bright window overlooking the pine trees and the colorful flowers outside.

The boy rushed towards her with a blanket and a pillow. He said “Rest, Mom”. The little girl came with a throw pillow. She put it under her Mother’s feet. She had a big smile on her face as they greeted her “Happy Mother’s Day!” They gave her a bag of Goldfish crackers in case she got hungry and a tablet if she wanted to play a game. She put it beside her and said her thank you’s. The boy was trying to be extra nice. He shared his Hi-Chew candy and fed one to his Mom. The little girl had her harmonica and played for her too. After playing a beautiful music, she read a story to her Mom. The book’s title was Pinkalicious and the Perfect Present. The story was just fitting for the occasion. It was about the girl looking for a perfect present for her Mom.

She got some shut-eye. On that day she felt like a queen. When she got up, her husband and daughter baked some goodies for everyone. She ate it and drank her favorite coffee. The rest of the afternoon was spent gardening while the kids enjoyed colorful sidewalk chalks, blowing bubbles, riding the scooter and playing with each other.

It was a memorable Mother’s Day!

 

My Sweet Little Home

Soon, we will be leaving the home I have loved so much for more than 5 years. This house is my first “home” after I got married. We lived in a house prior to this but I felt like it was just more of a house. A house is not always a home. But this one? I call it my sweet little home. This is the home of hopes, dreams, healing, joy, and peace. My family had a lot of happy memories in here.

They say, the only permanent thing in this world is CHANGE. So I guess this is another major change for us! Although we are sad because we will miss being in here, we are also looking forward to a new chapter in our life. Besides, they say home is wherever your heart is. Our family will be together so that’s all that matters. We will make the next house our home.

First Post for 2018

After more than two weeks of Winter break, the kids are once again back to school today. I miss them a bit but I have missed my solitude too. I still have two more hours before I see them.

I feel good. I am able to accomplish a lot this morning. Said goodbye to our Christmas tree and put all the holiday decor away. I was able to organize and clean the home just the way I want!

I feel good. The day is cold, cloudy, with a little rain. It is just perfect. I can’t wait to have my cup of coffee in a while before I pick them up in school. Had lunch in front of my computer while listening to music I love. And now, just write down my thoughts while it is so quietly beautiful.

I have so many random thoughts, at any given time. One of them is death.  I mentioned before in my posts that I found out one of my greatest fears is dying. Lately, I have heard some people I know who died. They usually get sick. And sometimes, it is really a shock. One day they’re here, the next day they’re gone.  This somehow gave me a different perspective of life. When I am about to complain, often times, I would realize that I shouldn’t. I should not complain because I am alive. I may sometimes be so busy and tired, but I am grateful that I am physically, emotionally, and mentally able to perform my duties. But as we all know, life is fragile, unpredictable, and can be full of surprises. And I guess it is fine if we think of preparing for it.

It is another new year and I was thinking “Oh, another year older!” I didn’t want to grow old. I wanted to forget my age. I will do my best to delay signs of aging. But you know what? I don’t mind growing old anymore. White hair and wrinkles would come and I will welcome you! I don’t mind celebrating my birthday because life is worth celebrating. Being healthy and alive each year is indeed a blessing. Each waking day is a gift.  With all these thoughts, I have found my greatest dream. It is to grow old. I wish to live long and be with the people I love. I would love to see my children, their children, and their children’s children grow old/grow up.  I would love to do all the things I love and be with the people who make me smile. I will listen to more music, take more photos, write my thoughts, love, laugh, try to be a good person, and live my life.

Happy New Year! I wish everyone good health and a great year!

 

Her 26th Birthday

I worked that day. The traffic was not bad as I drove home from work. It was almost dark. The house was bright as I got home. Few friends came over. We had a few drinks and had dinner together. I had a special guest who happened to be my crush at that time. It was so obvious that my father was thrilled because the guy happened to be a lawyer just like him. Little did he  know that it was a hopeless case. The guy just saw me as a friend.

I am writing not because of the guy. I am writing because that was the last birthday party I remember. I believe it was also the last party I had with my father around before I left home.  It was my 26th birthday. And then I totally stopped counting my age. Although I have always been grateful to life and to my blessings.

Reality bites. We can’t stop time. We can’t stop aging. For the first time as I was brushing my hair,  I found some white strands of hair. Not just one but two or three. After a few weeks, it happened again. And I haven’t checked since then.

For a long time, I have been terrified by the thought of getting old and dying. It consumed my thoughts for a while especially right after my father passed away. And I have realized that it is a process. It takes time to understand and accept the idea of death. I have finally accepted that it is an inevitable part of life. And someday we will all end up there. With this in mind, I believe it is affecting my perspective of life. Still it is a learning process. But I am getting there.

I may stop counting my age but I will never stop being grateful for NOW.

About Last Night

 

Such a happy moment for me

To meet with you again

To see you smile one more time

To talk to you for a while

That feeling that you’re just here

I don’t need to worry or fear

 

 

 

Love Stories

One sunny morning, I was hanging out with my kids in the pool.  Then a very interesting conversation happened. I do not recall how we ended up talking about it but my son was asking about my love stories.  I then recalled the feelings of falling in love, of being in love, as well as the tears and the heartaches that go with it.

There’s a relationship that you outgrow. You think you would want to spend the rest of your life with that special someone but as you mature, you will realize that you just don’t. Maybe it is due to differences in values, priorities, and/or timing.

Sometimes you will meet someone you finally like but you will end up friend zoned. I remember this guy who would always come visit me at work, hung out with me, and called me even at night just to talk about other girls . And you realize after a while you were so stupid to listen to his crazy stories.

There are times when you meet someone and you thought you have something special. He would call you from overseas on a regular basis then one day would just disappear. You will figure out that he found someone else.

Sometimes you would think you have met your soulmate. But they don’t really stay for long.

There are unspoken feelings. Feelings you just keep to yourself. And the person would never ever know how you felt about him/her.

And there is a love meant for you.

And love never ends. It is beautiful. It is painful. It makes life meaningful.

 

 

 

The Day When You Left

I choked up as I thought about it. I felt sick.  I went to church at 8:00 am this morning. I was standing there with a heavy heart. It was the very same time when he died. Everything happened around 11:00 pm to midnight (Manila time) two years ago.

I remember on that day, I just stayed beside him. He really loved listening to me and my siblings sing. So I sang any song that came to mind. All songs I could ever think of. We kept singing and talking to him despite that he was unconscious. Sometimes he was awake but we knew he was not the same. It was always just a blank stare.  I held his hands as if it was the last time.

It was 11:00 pm  when I received a message to proceed to the Intensive Care Unit. I had a bad feeling. I just left him 30 minutes ago and everything was fine. His operation (Tracheotomy) was a success. He was finally relieved from the tube he had for two weeks.

The nurse told me that he was stable. I could go and rest. I sent my good news to my siblings and everyone was pleased. We were all holding on to HOPE.

Everything quickly changed in just an hour.

I was walking towards the ICU and from afar I could see what was happening. His room was packed with nurses and a doctor. The room was very busy. They were all trying to revive him.  I could hear them. I was just less than 10 feet away. I sat on a chair and I had to lay my  head down on the table. I knew it was the end. I was so numb. I cried quietly. The doctor approached me and told me that they had to stop reviving him.

I had to make calls to tell the family. They all came and we did what we had to do. Then for the very first time, I went home. I fell asleep on his bed. We were all so very very tired emotionally and physically. I had no more strength.

Sometimes I would ask why did I have to see all that. It really broke my heart. I know that every time this day comes, I would feel the same way and I will remember EVERYTHING. For the rest of my life.

 

 

Sad Trip Memories

I will not forget the saddest trip I had in my life. It was exactly two years ago today. I can still remember being by myself at the airport. I was just crying on my seat. I could not help it and I did not care anymore. While the rest of the people around me looked so happy and excited, I was just broken. It was a very difficult time, that day and the next two weeks.

I flew right away as I heard that our father was resuscitated. Everything was just so sudden. I had to fly thousands of miles just to get in time. It was somehow a blessing to still find him there although he was already unconscious. I am not sure up to now if he even knew I was there. And watching him for the next 14 days was traumatic.

I wrote about that experience here right after I came back home. Losing a person very close to your heart is very painful beyond words. It was raw and unedited. Until today, I still do not have the courage to read it over again.

This morning, my sister and I were talking. She said something. “Most days are so busy, we go about our lives without thinking about him.. but there are definitely times when a lot of things around us no matter how simple remind us if him. And those moments we think of him is just heart breaking and makes me feel like crying.” It is true, I try not to think of him because it makes me sad.  However, it is just unavoidable. The person you love will always be a part of you.

I hear a lot of times some people would like to say “MOVE ON”. What does moving on mean?  Yes, we have moved on. We have continued to live our lives. But when you talk about someone you love, who has passed, it just means that you remember them. You miss them and that you love them. And that is absolutely natural. It is okay.

We remember.

 

 

 

Mother & Son

Being a parent means having this very important responsibility of raising good people.  It is a lifetime mission. We take care of them, provide for all their needs (physical, emotional, mental, spiritual), and guide them through life.

Being a parent is not always easy. Sometimes we get tired. Sometimes we get frustrated. We worry. We get disappointed.  In every stage, we face different challenges from waking up late at night to change their diapers or disciplining them in their early childhood days. It can be a lot of work. I say,  having a child  is truly life changing. It is a blessing and at the same time a sacrifice, an act of great love.

What inspired me to write? Earlier, I got into a small fight with my 9-year-old. It might sound petty to others but it meant something to me.

He was so distracted with his gadgets that he would find it hard to pay attention and listen to what I’m saying. Usually I have to repeat A LOT OF TIMES what I have to say to him. And this can be exhausting. I always pray for patience and understanding. It has been a challenge for me nowadays because they are on summer break.  Everyday, I have to set  a time limit with regard to the use of the gadgets. My son and I usually argue about this.  I manage their activities, making sure they read, write, draw, and do something else besides video gaming. I have to take them out of the house too for a swim or stroll at the park.

I lost my temper. I raised my voice. I had to be stern. What irritated me most was the talking back. He was reasoning out when clearly he was wrong. And it broke my heart to see him so mad at me. I sent him to his room for a time out. No TV. No gadgets. I said he needed to be alone and be quiet.

I was worried. I was thinking maybe he would grow up hating me because I would always discipline him. Then I felt sad. I was sorry for saying some things that could have hurt his feelings. I felt bad. I know I am not a perfect person. Definitely not a perfect mom.

I thought of writing him a letter. Just to assure him that I love him. And that whatever we are doing is for his own good. I was about to write him a note when he came out of his room and went to me. He handed me a paper. And saw this …

It melted my heart. I just hugged him for a very long time. I cried quietly. I was relieved. Maybe I am doing the right thing. I did not have to remind him that I love him. He knows. We talked about what happened and the things he learned from it.

He told me to keep this paper and I said I will.