May Day Eve

Charms like yours have no need for a candle, fair one. -- Nick Joaquin, May Day Eve

Good Old Times

Just came home from our village basketball game. It has been ages since I last played and my body is crying out murder while I'm writing this. Perhaps time took its toll on me, but I did pretty good though. The shadow of "The Bull" showed its specter once in a while during the game. But what really capped the evening was seeing old friends now coming from different places and walks of life who took time and effort just to play in what we called a "reunion tournament" in our village. The best players from years ago came together despite their busy schedules and played their hearts out against younger and more agile players (I'm beginning to betray my age here. He he.) We lost the game but we made sure their win wasn't served on a silver platter.

After the game, all of us stayed behind in the basketball court to catch up on things, as if not wanting the night to end. Somebody brought in cold beer to to circulate as we shared war stories of how it was during the good old days. All of us felt closer than ever before. We said our goodbyes promising to see each other the soonest time we could.

It was a great a great night tonight. It made me realize that despite time and distance, real friendship is not lost but instead made stronger if rekindled in opportune times like this. 

Can't wait for our next game. This old man still has a lot of game in him. :-)

This one is for you my dear family, on the anniversary of our Singapore escapade. You will always be my source of inspiration and strength.

Universal Studios Singapore, April 13-16, 2011

Beautiful Sunday

I wasn't really in the best of spirits the past few days. It felt like I lost something and was dying inside every time I wake up. Everything else seemed to be unimportant and was going through my days without passion. I sought refuge in my room and the familiar feel of my bed where I would just sleep so as to numb the gnawing pain in my heart.

But there was something about today when I woke up. I realized it was Sunday because of the clanging of the church bell in our nearby chapel calling its faithful for the morning mass. Still half asleep in my bed thinking about whether to get up or snooze a little bit more, a fleeting thought came to my mind, as if somebody whispered it to me in a dream.

Live for today, hope for tomorrow. 

Somehow those words lifted me up. I felt that it was a new day for me. To start afresh. It came to me that however low and discouraged I was the past few days, life begins each morning and that it is never too late to start again. 

Letting Go

To let go isn't to forget, not to think about, or ignore. It doesn't leave feelings of anger, jealousy, or regret. Letting go isn't about winning or losing. It's not about pride and it's not about how you appear, and it's not obsessing or dwelling on the past.  

Letting go isn't blocking memories or thinking sad thoughts, and it doesn't leave emptiness, hurt, or sadness.  It's not about giving in or giving up. Letting go isn't about loss and it's not about defeat.  

To let go is to cherish the memories, to overcome and move on.  It is having an open mind and confidence in the future.  Letting go is learning and experiencing and growing.  To let go is to be thankful for the experiences that made you laugh, made you cry, and made you grow.
 

It's about all that you have, all that you had, and all that you will soon gain.  Letting go is having the courage to accept change, and the strength to keep moving.  Letting go is growing up.  It is realizing that the heart can sometimes be the most potent remedy. To let go is to open a door, and to clear a path and set yourself free.

Dear God,  I pray that you make my love humble and genuine. Grant me the grace to let go of those whom I love, that they may bloom and flourish in whatever garden you plant them in. Amen.