Needles of rain

It's been a hectic month... changes are in the offing... been worried and stressed, thus blogging has been left on the wayside. But you know you've been privileged to proofread a wonderful thesis when it inspires you to finish that half of a poem you started on the rain-soaked jeep ride home...

needles of rain

threads of sun

are said to weave a veil

for a tikbalang's wedding

but i believe

it's simply God's gossamer way of saying

i love you

4 Sept 2013

A blessing in disguise

Sickness is not normally something I would be thankful for but here I am on the sixth day of chicken pox and grateful for the time it gives me to stay home and just be.

For the past four weeks it has been a struggle to get out of bed on Monday mornings to go to work. This sickness arrived just in time because I really needed a break. 

Saturday was the worst time with my fever at 38.9 but thanks to prayers (special thanks to my SD, Fr. C), the fever broke and was 37.7 the next day. Now, however, the fever is gone and I'm feeling quite normal except for all the pustules. 

I hope I can use this time wisely. God knows what is in my heart and what I would like to do. I just lift the various concerns and desires to Him and hope things will work out according to His will and mercy.

Lord, thanks for making me feel better. But most especially, thank you for giving me this time to rest. It has been such a relief to be home for the past five days. Grant me the grace to do what I otherwise would not be able to prioritize. This I ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

Little Things

I saw one of my CTS classmates sewing numbers on a piece of cloth. They use these to identify whose habit is whose in their congregation. What struck me was how excellently the little numbers were made. She was doing a detailed cross stitch so accurately without any guide. 

It reminds me of a quote from St. Therese of Lisieux: 

“Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love.” 

Little things done with love... like cross-stitched numbers to label your habits with. =)

Sr. Lordes, SSC

Foodie!

Yesterday we were supposed to have a group meeting at 1 pm, which for me meant delaying my lunch (my lunch sked is 1 to 2 pm). When the meeting was over, I was grumpy and hungry but not really wanting to eat the food I found in the pantry. I was thinking of getting noodles at the Forum shop but instead I ran into two brothers, Frt. K and Frt. Ch, who asked if I wanted some arroz ala cubana. It was a birthday treat from a religious sister they visited.

Of course I preferred a special home-cooked rice dish to instant noodles! And Frt. Ch added suman for dessert. Yay!

Thank you, Lord, for satisfying my hunger with yummy arroz ala cubana and suman. Sarap! Thank you for Frt. K and Frt. Ch for being the instruments of your blessing. Please bless the sister who celebrated her birthday by feeding the hungry. Thanks, thanks! =)

Close Computer Calls

This is the second time I almost lost my computer...

The first time, I accidentally nudged the bag where the netbook was placed and it fell from the chair to the floor. The next time I opened it, there was a flickering and then... a blank screen. Several times I tried to turn it on again but with the same result.

Blessedly, when I brought the netbook to a friend for diagnostics, it was inexplicably working again... her computer guy didn't have to do anything... thank you, Lord! 

Last week while I was using the netbook, my sister unplugged the cord to place it in another socket. Maybe the electrical fluctuation did something to the battery because a few minutes later, the netbook shut down and the little light that should be on when it is plugged was dark. 

My heart sank within me... but when I brought it our IT guy at work, voila! After he removed the battery, it was working again. He said he hadn't done anything yet... again all I can say is, thank you, Lord!

Lord, thank you for allowing my netbook to get through mishaps... may it continue to be an instrument used for your glory. Hugs!

Journal Cutting

I'm writing my thesis this semester and since it was Tagaytay Day last Friday, I took advantage of the holiday and visited the LST library in Ateneo. One article that I hoped to get was Fishbane on the reversal of creation in Job's lament in Vetus Testamentum.

So I had a few journals on my desk and when I opened the Vetus Testamentum to find the Fishbane article, it was like the journal cut itself to the exact page. 

Ah yes, it's the little things that make me feel loved... almost like God nodding his head in approval, here's the article you need, anak. Thanks po!  

* * *

Had another Cinderella moment when I found P200 gold-colored sandals to wear to a friend's wedding last Saturday. Minsan talaga pag babae ka, you have to have shoes that go with the outfit. Thank you, Lord, for providing even my fashion wants.

Unspoken

On the way to work yesterday, I found myself asking God to give courage if it was His will for a certain vocation direction. In a way, I found the answer to my prayer in what was left unsaid. 

If things are left unsaid, there must be a reason. If I cannot be brave enough to take a certain direction, maybe that fear is actually a holy fear--a fear of being a stumbling block or causing someone to go in a direction other than the perfect one God has in mind.

How often in the past have I tried to make things go my way by forcing things to be said out loud. Was it really courage, as one person described it? Or just impulsive, stubborn impatience? Now I am learning the art of letting things be, the art of patience, the art of acceptance. It's actually much harder especially when the media around me tells me a contrary message. This time, I will do my best to follow; I will take my cue from silence.

Lord, give me strength... to take what is given at face value and to accept it with grace. Let me follow your lead and not force the dance to go faster or go this way or that way. Be in control. I surrender.