How Do We Welcome Each New Month In Our Life?

          November 2, 2013, Saturday- just seems to be another ordinary day for everyone....yet if you would like to check this out, this day is  the 2nd day of a new month, November. Are you aware of your own dynamics when it comes to welcoming each new month in your life? Or are you just like any typical person who seems not to care exactly what day or month of the year is it?

          Are you full of enthusiasm to start a new month? Are you full of regrets that you feel as if you did nothing special on the course of last month? At several stages of your life, you tend to measure things up either they're positive or the contrary by means of their consequences in your life. Yet if you take a closer look, a thing to become either positive or a negative is also a relative one. In fact, this could be different from one person to the other. What might be positive to you could be totally negative to the other person or vice versa. 

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geralt  /  Gerd Altmann

          No matter what, the important thing is that you are happy and contented on every move that you take. As months go by, you also need to move on with your life. Leave all those worries behind as you embrace a new and a fresh start with the entry of another month. All the while, you will realize that life is a constant journey and to be triumphant on its every phase, you must learn to face all its trials and successes openly and squarely. 

Good luck everyone to this new month.

                                            

EVERYDAY JOURNEY

          Each day brings both significant and non-significant  experiences to everyone. From the moment that one wakes up in the morning up to the time that he/she goes to sleep, different events unfold in one's life. Summing up everything that happens in a day, one could always say that life indeed is a constant journey.

          Today as a weekend, I wake up with much vigor reflecting that just like any other day, this day becomes a complete manifestation of God's unconditional love for me- another new day, another new gift, another new positive manifestation of His great love for me. In fact, I could claim that I have various reasons to be grateful to HIM since I am blessed with a family of wonderful and loving people- my wife Yanyan and my son Kurt. Everyday becomes a wonderful and a fresh beginning for me because of their presence to my life. 

mommy yanyan and kurt

           Each day, as I wake up, these two significant people become my source of motivations as I encounter and embrace life's challenges and trials. Like any ordinary human being, I come face to face as well with life's trivialities- at times, my conviction to life is tested, at times my goal in life which is to be a constant God fearing individual is put into test by plenty difficult situation YET with my own faith and the LOVE I receive from these two significant persons in my life, everything seems to be so light.

          Armed by this realization, I am ever thankful to God for extending to me these gifts in life- my family. How about you, can you identify those important people in your life and have come to realize that they are your source of joy in this life's journey?

THE GIFT OF A CHILD

          Each day brings to us numerous experiences. My week, though not yet over, has been full of wonderful experiences and surprises. With all those lovely things happening with me and those around me, I could say that life at times depends on one's perception of every opportunity that knocks on his/her door.

          Everyday as I walk going to my workplace, I usually pass a certain park along the way. Melbourne is such a wonderful city that anybody can hang around with some of its famous parks such as The Shed Skatepark, Luna Park Melbourne, Gasworks Arts park, The Royal Botanic Melbourne and many more.

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          Just this week, when I passed by the park, there were few children who were enjoying the park's facilities such as slides, thrills and spills, shaded areas, seats,  and others. As I observed them, there was that presence of the sense of innocence on them.

          They really have their own world notwithstanding what is going on with this beautiful and sometimes complicated world that we adults have. Playing with peers is such a very important element in a child's development. They should be accorded with any chance to mingle and enjoy other children as well.

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          On the other hand, every adult especially those parents need to play their role positively and effectively. They should learn to express in a very concrete way their love and care for those children around them. An adult's great love is not expressed on any material possession or gift but rather this is relayed in an intimate way such as giving one's presence and affection to a dear child.

  

EACH DAY IS RELATIVE

          Have you observed each day as something too quick or the other way around? Hence it is said that each day in our life is relative meaning that it could either be too long or too short. How each day will appear to us is greatly dependent on certain factors such as our disposition and state of mind.

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          First on the area of disposition, have you noticed that  when we are intensely joyful or having a great time with loved ones, then time becomes so quick when in fact we still wish it to last longer than it used to be. And time just flies so swiftly when we are still in the midst of happiness when we are surrounded by loved ones and when we are experiencing positive things in life.

          On the other hand, have you experienced such moments as when we were journeying a time pressured activity or situation, the day or time seems so long. Like when we are in a crisis situation ( have you ever been on such situation?), it seems that time and day is so long. As such, we tend to watch without blinking and count every second or minute or hour that passes by without realizing at all that this is just prolonging the agony of waiting.

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         Consequently, in the midst of these two contrasting relative conditions, everything relies on the beholder. I would relate it then to my belief that it with the person to make or break any time or day in life. No one should never become a slave to time however each one should learn to be flexible in any given situation. Focus in life is so essential to emerge triumphant in one's journey. Our state of mind plays a major role in whatever situation we are in each day.

  

BONDING MOMENT WITH SIGNIFICANT PEOPLE

          Last weekend, I had the fantastic opportunity of celebrating life when two precious people remembered their birthdays. The first celebration was that of my friends' daughter who celebrated her first birthday. Her name is Caeli Ricca and she's such a wonderful  little girl. She did enjoy her party although it is still beyond her understanding what was going on around her during that night. 

          Many visitors joined the proud parents, Alvin and Denden, on their joy with their daughter's memorable evening. Delicious food and drinks were served all throughout the party. Disco music also was filling the hall and people were dancing trying to sweat it out. On the dancefloor, children were outrageous trying to outsmart each other with their dance moves at times displaying some latest dance craze such as Psy's gentleman moves and others. Indeed, it was such a very enjoyable moment for me and my wife to take part in that party.

from:www.kozzi.com

          On the other hand, last night's party was for our friend, Melissa, who celebrated her 21st birthday. The venue was at MAMA'S PARMA'S, a famous party place in CBD, Melbourne. When we arrived in the place, many guests were there aside from our group. Choices of food were mostly on various recipes of parma's. I chose the chicken parma and I finished everything just showing how delicious was my food. 

Angelyn, Melissa and Myra

The birthday girl together with friends at Strike Bowling Bar QV

Melisssa (right) and a friend

          Aside from the food, we met new and cool friends like Jess and Nicole who were so lively in sharing their insights as well on topics like food, life and pets. Angelyn, my wife's mate, was enthusiastically sharing with us her own experiences  in those topics. The celebrant, Melissa, was the darling of the night. She was gorgeous with her dress for the evening. Some of her close friends especially her boyfriend also joined her in her party. It was such a great experience for me as I enjoyed both my food and the company.

SHARING THE GIFT OF LIFE

          Today as my loved one celebrates her birthday, I am with her as she embraces her creator's goodness in bringing another chapter to her life. Indeed, life is the most precious gift that we all received from God. 

               Everyday we are endowed with situations in which we can share this gift of life with others. It is not just on birthdays that we must realize life's value....we need to inculcate in our minds that everyday is always a reminder for us to treasure and get hold of this gift.

from:www.pixabay.com

Moreover, I salute those who are seemed to be deprived in life in terms of capabilities, those who are differently abled, those who are denied of certain senses like that of seeing and hearing, yet in the midst of their predicaments they are still projecting how precious life is. Even if many are feeling hurt and helpless in those situations yet there are many also who emerge triumphant of such deprivation and they are the ones who serve as models for all to strive the more.

          On the other hand, we are surrounded by people, events, situations and others that will aid us in holding on to what is ideal in life. We have different goals and directions, we own separate ways, we carry different burdens yet we are on the same journey that is towards the fulfillment of our life. We all aim for happiness and contentment. Yet many instances in our life can tell us that it is not all joy that we experience everyday. As life goes on, we continue to struggle and fall down yet what counts the most is that we continue to get up and survive each day believing that  we can get over the situation and emerge as better persons.

from: www.pixabay.com

          To reiterate, I celebrate the joy of my beloved on her memorable moment this day and I am with her in extending gratitude to our Divine Creator for all goodness shared day by day most notably the gift of LIFE. 

  

SIGNIFICANT DREAMS in LIFE

          Dreams have so many interpretations. On this post, I won't dwell on them yet what I would like to share are insights on a friend's dreams. What was significant in her dreams was their resemblance to her waking life. Below are some of her dreams as she narrated them:

* Dream 1: 

          "I see in my dream a guy whom I haven't met in my life. One time, he is bringing a soccer ball with him. Then he brings me to his house which I notice that it is not lighted enough. We go through the kitchen door. Their house's style is  extremely different from houses way back home. When we enter the kitchen, there's an old man sitting on a chair in the dining area. Then as we come into the living room, there is this old woman sitting calmly on a sofa". 

from: www.dreamstime.com

 -----relevance of this dream to the dreamer: when she was married to her husband,  she remembered that he looks very much alike with that guy in her dream. Then asking him about soccer game, he said he was previously playing the game and in fact, he was once a winner of the "Best Player" award. Further, she recalled that when they went to her husband's house, she recognized it as that in her dream. It was there that she also met his mother and step dad. 

* Dream  2:

          "In my dream, my boyfriend goes away one night. He wears a back pack and what he gestures to me as we part ways is that as he walks away, he just turns his back then gone".   

-----dream's relevance: It was a dream before she separated from her daughter's father. The next day after she had this dream, her boyfriend's uncle informed her that he went away just bringing his back up with him. 

from: www.dreamstime.com

* Dream 3:

         " In my dream, I hear somebody knocking my bedroom door and when I open it, there is this lady standing then she hands over to me a baby". 

-----dream's relevance: After a few months, she and her family learned that her sister was pregnant and later, delivered  a baby girl during her (dreamer) birthday.

          Our dreamer has other dreams which she claimed that later they became realities. In her case, there is that sense of connectedness between her dreams and her life. Were they all coincidences or not? I could never tell - perhaps they were or it could also be that she has the gift of foretelling certain events in her life through dreams. 

          Recalling back our dream study, we dwelt on several interpretations of dreams. In my friend's case, I  invited her to focus her energy on those parts  that she considered relevant to her waking life. A dream is composed of various important parts and it is the dreamer's option to pick out those which are most touching to him. After all, it is the dreamer who can evaluate a dream's impact on her/his life. On the other hand, my role lies on being a facilitator in identifying connections of any dream to one's waking life. This is done by allowing the dreamer to undergo certain accompaniment so that he will see his dream's impact. 

p.s. I thank my friend, EMILY C. DEVILBISS of Maryland, USA for sharing her story.

ANOTHER WEEK.....ANOTHER REASON TO SAY "THANK YOU"

          It has been more than a week that I posted my last entry on this blog. Anyway, this week has been another wonderful one for me. Bountiful blessings and rich experiences ushered me to strengthen further my belief that life is such a treasure. This week's unique experiences added colors to my life's chapter. Somehow some may perhaps tend to be monotonous however personally,  every single experience plays a unique role to my self discovery. Indeed this journey called life is a never ending one. It goes beyond time. No two experiences are exactly alike  from each other. 

fr:www.kozzi.com

          For all those reasons, I could declare that I am so grateful for this week's events since they enabled me to appreciate the more what is life. On the other hand, even my own work experiences as well were deeply appreciated for they allow me to survive day by day. Without my job, I could never support my self and my family.  

          Consequently giving the best of my ability in every job that I perform is a daily goal. I make it a point that quality and elegance will always be a part of my work attributes. Committing any error in my daily performance has no room since in the whole production process, I serve as the starting point. If I don't do it perfectly, then the rest of our production will suffer. 

          Meanwhile my experiences at home were all noteworthy and special as well.  Those times of bonding with my dearest wife were extremely delightful moments. My wife and my kid are my main reasons why this life becomes so meaningful everyday. All my efforts and dreams are geared towards their welfare and happiness. Seeing them happy everyday accorded me great satisfaction and meaning for they are source of strength. 

from"www.kozzi.com

          On the other hand, the people I interacted this week also allowed me to share myself and everything with others. After all, I believe that life is sharing and extending my self with others is my joy. That becomes another reason for my sense of self- fulfillment---- knowing that everyday I become an instrument for others to realize that life is such a wonderful journey. 

A GRACE-FILLED WEEK

          This week has been a week full of blessings for me. Indeed God has been so generous to me and to my loved ones. With all such goodness, the more that I was able to affirm my faith in Him that He is such a loving and a very patient God. As human as I am, there were several shortcomings this week yet I was also conscious and tried to make ammends for them.  I could not count with my fingers  how many people whom I interacted with within the week however one thing for sure is  that I am able to see God's goodness through them. 

          In other words, they became God's living instruments to concretize my relationship with Him. Personally , other people can raise questions such as the following:  

Where was God in the midst of these world's events like the crisis and war in certain places?

Where was God when there were bushfires, earthquake and other calamities?

Where was God when no new plaque swept away the human race?

Where was God when millions of babies born in the whole world?

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          Truly we can have countless questions in our minds and hearts yet what is very  clear with me is that I have experienced God in concrete moments throughout the week. Consequently I had no single doubt of His presence. Nevertheless I can pinpoint instances this week that I have witnessed His goodness and patience. And I know that He sent His messages through this week's life's events so as to constantly invite me to self repentance. However in  my realization that I am an underserving sinner, what came out as a consolation is the reality that God's great embrace is present and patiently waiting for me to come back to His fold. 

          Finally, the presence and love coming from my most treasured possessions - my wife and my little boy Kurt- reinforced this faith and love of God in my life. 

"LETTERS FOR MY OBSTACLES AND CHALLENGES"

DEAR OBSTACLES & CHALLENGES;



I am sick, tired, torn and sad… I can’t help but cry… 


I knew there could be gloomy days in my life…


But I’m not giving up!... I’m still hoping for 
the sunshine to lighten me up and pass 
through the raindrops to see the 

rainbow that awaits me… I gotta be strong!.. 
I’ve got a great God behind me and this is just 
a piece of cake for Him!… 


So obstacles & challenges, back off! I’m not afraid of yah... If you still haunt me, it will be my pleasure to face yah since 

you're feeding me to be wise... And FYI, There’s no problem too big for God's power and too small for God’s concern… 


Got it? ヅ


YOURS FOREVER,


SWEETUMZ's FAITH



by: SWEETUMZ16----

REMEMBERING in our HEARTS OUR LOVED ONES

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        Significant people are ones who can give us comfort and strength when things are getting rough and tough...when everything seems so blurred, they come to our rescue and offer us a sense of perspective. Thus, it is but fitting to remember them always in our hearts including those who are away from us anymore-our faithful departed.

          Their memories and legacy will constantly remind us of their presence. They are merely physically absent from us yet their examples and good deeds guide us in choosing what is best for us. We always have 24 hours in a day and how great it is when we are appropriate a part of these 24 hours to offer our prayers for these significant people for they would always be present in our life.

NATURE is GOD's manifestation of HIS great LOVE for mankind...

          Physically absent yet their love would always be our source of inspiration. I remember concretely  my mother who died many years ago. Ever since I  was  a kid, she was my mentor in my prayer life. She everyday initiated us into prayer by reciting the holy rosary. Every Sunday is always a day of obligation. When everybody seemed to be enjoying their rest on Sundays, she constantly became the first person to wake us all up and prepared ourselves for mass.

          Hence, I offer my daily prayers for my beloved Mama and for other faithful departed and this allows me to continue my connections with them. Do you also keep in your hearts and prayers your own departed loved ones?...

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A DAY OF PRAYER

            A day is just like any other day. Basically we wake up then do our daily tasks, communicate with others, write our diaries, letters, read emails and news and many more. However excellent is any day when it is coupled with prayers. Saying our daily prayer does not require much time. We can even perform our daily mantra like saying " LORD JESUS CHRIST HAVE MERCY ON ME A SINNER" and this will be our prayer of repetition. Our GOD, no matter what name we attribute to HIM, would always be a symbol of GOOD NEWS and SALVATION.

GOD IS GREAT...

          HIS goodness is so overwhelming that He even sacrificed His own son JESUS CHRIST to save us from total damnation because of sin. In my introduction, It was mentioned that indeed we start our day with so many activities in mind yet if we try to check on them, most of them are focused on our own satisfaction and happiness. All of them satisfy our basic needs yet we need to offer time and prayer to our GOD as we are always blessed by HIM. In a week, there are seven days and it is just on a Sunday that we are required to offer a time for HIM on the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and that is even just for an hour. Yet even with my own experience, there were several SUNDAYS before that I failed to fulfill this obligation mainly due to self- centered reasons. I am sorry for all those misgivings. 

          Hence it is always appropriate and positive to unceasingly offer  a day of our week (SUNDAY) to hear HIS words and consolation. Because GOD doesn't want us to be weakened by evil thoughts and human distractions, thus we need to say our personal prayers even just a very simple one. 

Welcome to my Blog

       I am Roldan and here  is my new blog that would allow me to share with you my spiritual and life journey. Everyday we come up with different life experiences so rich that we always find relevance in them in our lives. We travel and trek different ways yet we are all companions on this life journey.

     However this blog will also share even your own journey and what you have to do is just share with me and the readers here your own story. I know there is such a wide world out there when it comes to our own spiritual and life journey.