Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 9:39 AM CST
I am OLD
I was sitting in a coffee shop quietly drinking a frapuccino i just ordered when I was interrupted with a piercing yell from somebody in front of me. I looked around greatly embarrassed that my name was “announced” so loudly; I stared straight at the person who just did it ready to be angry…but I feel like a yell was also about to come gushing out of my throat when I realized it was my long lost (young) friend (which by the way doesn’t look so young anymore)…goodness!! Times flies by really fast. How come she looks so grown up and ladylike?…she even speak and act like one!!! How long has it been?! Seven, Eight…maybe six years ago? Oh, my! I can’t remember!!! Am i old?
Anyway, after exchanging hugs, kisses and other political pleasantries (actually the joy I felt seeing her wasn’t feigned nor political…they’re genuine) I ask her about common acquaintances and friends and her family, she said that all is well…Blah…blah…And then she asked me the two questions dreaded by all singletons, “Ate Nat, are you married?, How old are you? Duh!!
How old am I? “Still young enough… dear”, I answered her and I smile sweetly to assure her that I may be old but hey, I’m not ancient…yet…ha-ha. Her question though simple pushed me to look deeper why most people my age felt pressured and yes, embarrassed (I’m not alone) every time this questions arises.
According to Max Lucado’s friend there are three things people should do in order to stay young. Firstly, eat healthy, secondly, exercise regularly, and thirdly lie about your age. Not a very godly advice, that last one.
So, when did I realize I’m old? Did I miss the tell-tale signs? No. I knew and was acutely aware because people call me Ate (even those that look a lot older than I am!), I have carved fats on my back even though i am skinny, small moles appear on my face and neck, I call everyone “gang”, and almost all of my friends and family advices (force) me to get married soon or else forfeit the blessings of child bearing and rearing (never mind the sleepless nights and zombie like days it will cause you), also I cant jump as high nor run as fast, even worst I have an affinity for old music, movies and old books.
But as my 29th birthday (yes i am 29 even though I look 28…lol) is fast approaching I am rather encourage that the Bible (which our guide and standard for living…defensive I know) views old age as the age of the wise. As one add years to her life one learns from experiences, good or bad, and it makes one stronger, wiser and even shrewder (Be wise as a serpent and humble as a dove). Youthfulness is always associated with vigor and even energy but with it also comes foolish decisions and miscalculated actions. Old age is look upon as the more mature age but also sluggish in a way.But which one is better being young or being old? Just as the springs role is different from that of the fall, so each season of our lives has a different emphasis, focus, and beauty. One is not better than the other (but preferableJ)….each yeilds its own unique treasures. I could not say that one season of my life is better than the other. Josh Harris said, “One age of our lives is not better than the other, each season builds on the one before it”. I agree with him completely J
So in conclusion, let me just say this with total intensity and deep conviction… I am old - more mature - I have grown physically (thank God), developed mentally and have changed for the better. I have matured and “with it comes the ability to assess things with objective eyes”. I can say that in my 28 years, all those hardships, struggles mistakes, failures…every happiness, fulfillments, joys and victories has created the person I am now. I wanted and longed for more…. but hey, the season of my life is still unfolding - who knows - I may yet be a LEGENDjavascript:emot('
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Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2009 7:35 AM CST
times when nobody really understands you
there are times when nobody really understands you.... you take a a jump at a relationship and learn t give ur trust and then this someone turns their back... confirming your worst nightmare that most relationships are built on a quick sand.... so you vow "never again"
Being betrayed is soooo painful especially if you think highly of the person who betrayed you... its like you hanging in mid air and he comes and cuts off the only vine your holding.... the pain is so pure.......
Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 4:59 AM CST
things taken for granted
APATHETHIC PEOPLE are the pathetic ones..
it’s not the distance that separates people from each other, it’s the wall they build among themselves..
only miserable people make other lives miserable..
its the simple things that surround us, we oftentimes take for granted, are the most important things in our lives...
things like friendship and love... after all its what we do to other that will shaped their thoughts of who we are in there lives
Posted: Tue Jul 7, 2009 1:32 AM CST
CLOSING CYCLES (Paolo Coelho)
One always has to know when a stage comes to an end. If we insist on
staying longer than the necessary time, we lose the happiness and the
meaning of the other stages we have to go through. Closing cycles,
shutting doors, ending chapters - whatever name we give it, what matters
is to leave in the past the moments of life that have finished.
Did you lose your job? Has a loving relationship come to an end? Did you
leave your parents' house? Gone to live abroad? Has a long lasting
friendship ended all of a sudden? You can spend a long time wondering
why this has happened. You can tell yourself you won't take another step
until you find out why certain things that were so important and so
solid in your life have turned into dust, just like that. But such an
attitude will be awfully stressing for everyone involved: your parents,
your husband or wife, your friends, your children, your sister, everyone
will be finishing chapters, turning over new leaves, getting on with
life, and they will all feel bad seeing you at a standstill. None of us
can be in the present and the past at the same time, not even when we
try to understand the things that happen to us. What has passed will not
return: we cannot for ever be children, late adolescents, sons that feel
guilt or rancor towards our parents, lovers who day and night relive an
affair with someone who has gone away and has not the least intention of
coming back. Things pass, and the best we can do is to let them really
go away.
That is why it is so important (however painful it may be!) to destroy
souvenirs, move, give lots of things away to orphanages, sell or donate
the books you have at home. Everything in this visible world is a
manifestation of the invisible world, of what is going on in our hearts
and getting rid of certain memories also means making some room for
other memories to take their place. Let things go. Release them. Detach
yourself from them. Nobody plays this life with marked cards, so
sometimes we win and sometimes we lose. Do not expect anything in
return, do not expect your efforts to be appreciated, your genius to be
discovered, your love to be understood. Stop turning on your emotional
television to watch the same program over and over again, the one that
shows how much you suffered from a certain loss: that is only poisoning
you, nothing else.
Nothing is more dangerous than not accepting love relationships that are
broken off, work that is promised but there is no starting date,
decisions that are always put off waiting for the "ideal moment." Before
a new chapter is begun, the old one has to be finished: tell yourself
that what has passed will never come back. Remember that there was a
time when you could live without that thing or that person - nothing is
irreplaceable, a habit is not a need. This may sound so obvious, it may
even be difficult, but it is very important.
Closing cycles. Not because of pride, incapacity or arrogance, but
simply because that no longer fits your life. Shut the door, change the
record, clean the house, shake off the dust. Stop being who you were,
and change into who you are.
Posted: Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:13 PM CST
One Afternoon
i had a very busy day. A typical day i would say. But my afternoon was a tiniest bit different from the typical days. My afternoon took on a lazy atmosphere because of the cooler weather brought on by the darkened sky and a few scattered raindrops. The air is full of the sweet smell of freshly cut grasses - and it has an invigorating effect on me.
I sat on the empty classroom - alone. Time ad place and the atmosphere is so conducive for meditative sentimentality ... so i did just that.... these moments are not so often in my life that i felt in touch with my inner person. Thank God for rare moments like this that we can take a pause in our busy lives and reflect of all the good things that has happened and the blessings that has been given to us... because of this moment im ready to face another series f typical days :D