Stress Release

Did this Moltres because I needed to release my artsy side. These are those times I just want the school term to end ASAP (Just like last week).

More so, I need fire in doing my academics even if it is sucking me like a vacuum. Excellence needs to be given to the One who deserves it.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” -Matthew 11:28-30

Yes, Lord, I need to hang on to your promises. As in.

Start of Term. Now.

There are those days when you like and dislike school at the same time. You like going to class because you learn, but you dislike going to class because of the numerous requirements you need to pass.

So you wish it was the start of term, so that everything goes in a relatively easy/slow pace.

I really don't mind not having a "summer" summer. I'm actually considering summer classes to lighten my load for the first term of the next school year. "Summer" summer makes me a bum. Eat, sleep, surf the net... It makes me so lazy.

In a different light of things...

The 12th of March was just as good as the 11th's. More of that next time (when I actually have the mood to type it down. This will definitely happen, BTW.).

There's this pretty poem from the devotional I'm reading (Walking On: Women On The Journey). It's actually quoted by the writer of the entry, Wawa B. Ponce:

I was regretting the past and fearing the future.
Suddenly my Lord was speaking: 'My name is I AM.'
He paused. I waited. He continued.

'When you live in the past, with its mistakes and regrets,
it is hard.
I am not there.
My name is not I was.
When you live in the future, with its problems and fears,
It is hard.

I am not there.
My name is not I will be.
When you live in this moment it is not hard. I am here.
My name is I AM.

-Helen Mallicoat

If one would ask me how I felt about the poem, I'll summarize it in two words: "Kinilig ako." Haha. It's a strange description, but I had good goosebumps when I finished reading the poem. I'm the kind of person who worries what would happen the day after next, so it is comforting to be assured that He is "I AM" and not "I will be" once in a while.

Another verse that came into mind when I read this poem was:

"Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:34

Well... that's all for now. I still need to get up at 4 A.M. tomorrow. We need to go to Tagaytay, for some reason. Hehe.

The 11th of March

Wow. I can't believe I finally turned 18! Well... I feel fine. I still feel like I'm 17 or 16 or 15... but yeah, it was a really happy day!

My morning started by finding a card written by my Mommy and Papsy somewhere near the sofa I was sleeping in (We were all in the master's bedroom. I need aircon to survive the summer nights. Haha. Oh... they had two bouquets of flowers last night.). Of course, they had their little messages in it. I love cards!

Of course, there is the usual flood of text messages in my inbox/YM PMs, and the most memorable ones include:

"Happy birthday... I pray that may you not change but only impr0ve as a pers0n as you j0urney into adulth0od... P.s. 707th wedding anniversary nina r0me0 at juliet din 2day. Haha." -Kev Bautista

Comment: Wow! Today, thanks to Kev, I learned that a famous couple's actually celebrating their anniv!

"May tumatanda! ;p" -Anjo Santiago

Comment: Grabe, Anjo. The best/most creative greeting of all. This made my day. Haha.

"Kamae! Happy brthday! Grbe tnx tlga kahapon ah..d pla aq kpasok s tred..sakt ng ulo q at d aq klakad ng dretso..." -Mikee Carag

Comment: Mikee! Sorry kung naimpatso ka kahapon sa block birthday treat ko kahapon (March 10). At least you enjoyed. LOL.

"...Happy birthday! ;D Palibre namaen o... I hope you had a very memorable un-legalhood and a blessed life as an adult, and I hope that you enjoy every moment of this very important day! Saan na ba?" -Jason "Burr" De Jesus

Comment: Jason-burr, in his memorable way of speaking and kapal-face. Haha.

The ever elusive Worldness (a.k.a. Jerico Santos) greeted me! (Even if he was doing his lab report when he sent his PM... Okay... I'm really shallow when it comes to hard-to-reach/hard-to-find/extremely busy people greeting me.)

And... Maisie Magnaye and Dana Torio too! I really miss these two girls!

Oh... The PKMN-ph family also greeted me! Yey. Thank you to everyone there! (Though I don't like my hair on that greeting poster. LOL)

Patrick also treated me out to "Secret Recipes" in Robinson's Manila. It's a cafe/cake shop... and the Oreo cheesecake and Tropic cake-thing I ordered was yummy! (Of course, the best part was that I ate for free. Haha.) And yeah, he gave me two books as birthday presents (Now I have additional entries to the unread-books-that-I-own list. Hopefully I'm able to read them.) Oh yeah, the books are titles "Para kay B" by Ricky Lee (The novel which I suspect Patrick has not yet read... But okay, the story was told to him and he liked it.) and "No Boyfriend Since Birth" by Claire Betita (Ayayay Patrick. No wonder you didn't let me open this package in front of you. I might have strangled you. LOL)

And... the highlight of my school-day birthday day. (How redundant) My blockmates surprised me while I was playing icebreaker with Ate Val, Gracie and Jerica in the William Hall Gazebo! I was really "touched" (Thank you, my dearest Block EH!)... The thing was, it was hard to ride the LRT with a cake in one hand and a bouquet of roses in another. It was just so good that God allowed me and Tintin to ride an almost-skip-train (with seats still available inside). That made my "journey" to Monumento so much easier.

The cake unfortunately melted while I was traveling from La Salle to home via the LRT... and instantly succumbed to my Nanay's katakawan. (Hahaha. When she saw the cake, she opened the box and ate some of it in the car... way before I did!)

Yah. The bouquet of roses! I sooo love it. They even had my blockmates greetings in them!

I'm also happy that we (my Nanay and I) were able to force my dear Papsy to pose for the webcam... Since he incredibly dislikes taking pictures. (Hair issues *ehem* *ehem*)

To end my birthday, we ate at Chili's Tomas Morato (as tradition says so... At least after that traumatic 16th birthday experience. Haha.) with my dearest Cuzzy-wuzzy a.k.a. Paolo Luces. Yeah.

That's a wrap! I just needed to summarize my birthday! Now, I got to do those prayer points assigned to me for tomorrow's Archer's Call!

Special thanks goes to Tatay God for the wonderful 18 years I have spent here in this world. ^^

Countdown

Here I go again making a post before I officially turn a year older.

I'm going to turn 18 next Wednesday, and I still wonder if I had already experienced all the stuff people need to go through before I reach that age where Filipinos (especially the girls) earn that "right of passage."

Oh well. Who really cares who went through what? At least not me. I'm actually talking nonsense to myself again. Hahaha. Anyway...

Last Sunday, I was reminded of Hosea, one of the Old Testament prophets. who was instructed by God to marry a prostitute. This was because of a talk by a modern-day prophet named Stacey Campbell in a church me and my father "visited." Actually, she just dropped off Hosea's name, and I, being the curious person I am, searched who Hosea was (because even I forgot his story).

I was reading the summary of the story on the net last Monday morning (because I cannot resist my curiosity), and this was what I found out:

Hosea was a remarkable man who really followed God, even if it hurts. He went on to marry Gomer, who God prophesied to become a prostitute, name children after names that were equated to "doom" because God told him so, went on to search and buy out Gomer at an auction when he found out that she was sold at the market after being disposed by her lover, and forgave Gomer.

I actually had some tears in my eyes when I finished reading his story. I never knew there was a love story in the Old Testament that's so moving it can make you cry. Not only did it show Hosea's unwavering faith on God, but it also showed how much God loves His people - how far He would go for His love.

So, that's Hosea.

It's Friday night again, and it will be Monday soon. Oh, how time flies so fast.

At least life's good. God's good.