2012 and the end of the world

2013 is going to be an awesome year.

Not because we won't have challenges along the way, they are to be expected, but because we claim it to be a year of strength, perseverance, faith, hope, blessings and breaking free.

So, at the onset of this new and eventful year, me and little one will spend the last day of 2012 preparing for new beginnings.

This year has been a fairly good one. My little family has had a good share of troubles, tears and worries and a number of unexpected turn of events and challenges in our path to a better life. But in God's Grace, we ended the year with a little triumph in our hearts, big smiles plastered on our faces and stronger hope that we will have an even better year next year.

From these trying moments, I have learned so much and discovered so many things.
Among the important ones, I know that we should always:

* Keep the faith. With hope burning, we allow ourselves to witness miracles.
* Keep calm and stay in the presence of a Higher Being and in Him rest our doubts and worries. This will allow this inexplicable sense of serenity to take over.
* Remember that we have everything we need to become better persons.
* Never forget to tap our inner selves;
* And spend a few minutes of contemplation each day- find the fate that was carved out for us and achieve what we are born to achieve.
* Value family even more. Because at the end of the day, the home we come home to is just an empty shell without the love and laughter we share with closest to the heart.
* Appreciate true friends - who never leave your side even if you clam up and see or feel nothing.
*Sift through the important and non-important; valuable and invaluable; and de-clutter your days with unnecessary emotions.
* Identify 'gangrined' people and choose to cut off relationships that do not serve the purpose well. There will always be those claiming to be friends but stand by your side with envy and a quiet wish for your to fail.
Such is a reality difficult to understand, but nonetheless true. We don't need these so-called friends.
* Feel the generosity of kindred spirits. And feel the appreciation of people we have helped one way or another from the days, months or years passed. Just as we try our best to appreciate people who stayed with us through trials and triumphs.
* Remember to open our windows each morning to let the sunshine and the cool morning breeze in. This will allow all negative emotions from yesterday to flow out and allow the new rays of light to flow in.
* Never forget our manners, in every thing we do. Say Thank you, I'm sorry, Please because these magic words go a long way.

* Always choose to do what is right -- even if there is an option to do otherwise.

Most importantly, we should always:

* Bask in gratitude. Always give thanks for the days that seem to be difficult, because we know we still have strength to fight; for the mornings that wake us up each day, because we know that we still have hope to have better days; for random moments of simple happiness, because we know, by heart, that we are happiest with the simplest things in life.


This year, I have found what I have struggled finding for more than two decades of existence.

I found myself, and the courage and confidence to affirm the purpose of my existence.

Indeed, 2012 is my year of transformation.

An epic year where I shed off old skin, old pains and faced the difficulty of evolution.
And from this difficult moments, I emerged to be the better Me, on the way finding the best part of my being.

It was, aptly put, an end of a world I once knew and an end to the self that I have always maintained to know.

The changes manifest.
And if you are close to me, you will also see and feel the difference of this person standing in front of you from the one that you have known from years before.

As I end this year, I can tell with greatest surety, that I am already a different being. Not just because I can feel it, but also because I know it now.

And I am happy.
Happy with this realization,
for the start of new adventures,
for the new perspective in life.

Happy that as I enter 2013 and (my 30th birth year), I know, with utmost confidence that this year is going to be an event of epic proportions.

Tomorrow, on the first sunrise of 2013, let us write our hopes and plans and allow them to fly to the heavens.

Claim it. For our hopes and dreams are always ours.
As someone wise once told me, our year is what we make of it.

Happy New Year, folks! :)

In all Things, Let us give thanks.

I am thankful for the food that we have on our table, for the dresses that make us glow, for the warmth of a home.

I am thankful for the gift of family, for the unconditional love we give and receive, for the quiet moments we spend together.

I am thankful for friends who make our days count, for filling our days with laughter and cheer.

I am thankful for my work that gives me the chance to become who I want to be, for the sense of fulfillment and for the challenges that harness skills and talent that our Creator has given me.

I am thankful for the simple messages received, that make me smile and ponder on things that matter most in life.

I am thankful for Christmas carols and the joy the songs bring our little home.

I am thankful for rest that allows my tired bones and weary soul seek respite.

I am thankful for my sister, who never fails to amaze me.- whose strength is far more than mine.

I am thankful for the days that seem to be difficult, for it is when we feel our faith the strongest.

I am thankful for better days, because it is the rainbow after the rain. the light of our darkness. the hope that Christmas is all about.

I am thankful for my daughter, who has filled my days with love and happiness. For the times we spend together. For the thoughts and jokes and lessons that we share. For allowing me to become a mother, and to continually grow to be a better person.

I am thankful for the gift of motherhood -- because it is when I have become a mother myself that I am able to appreciate my Womanity and the very essence of selflessness.

I am thankful for forgiveness, because of which, I am free.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

We wish you love, peace and prosperity this beautiful and happy holiday season.

We are blessed with more things we can count and much happiness we can ever keep. May the spirit of Christmas fill our lives and all our days hope and gratitude for all blessings received.

Cheers to a bountiful year ahead!

Aging

5 sure signs of aging:

1. Craving turon, bibingka or halo-halo for merienda. I used to look for sweets or junk food during coffee breaks, but lately the taste has evolved into something closer to my age bracket. It makes me feel that I have aged, because these choices seem to coincide with my mom's. And she admits to being old.

2. Enjoying household chores. Did I really hate it, hate it with a passion? Sure, I can arrange stuff, fix the bed, and the usual but I would have always preferred reading a book or going out with lil gurl than doing the cooking or the dishes. But lately, since I lost the nanny to some flimsy excuse, I realized I can actually break a back working chores. And surprise, surprise, I find that it isn't so bad. I now find myself cooking real breakfast, washing the dishes, mopping the floor, etc. etc.. And lil gurl exclaims "Mama na gyud ka, Ma." LOL (fake pala ako dati?!)

3. Hoarding plastic bags and plastic containers. LOL We used to joke about my grandma keeping a whole drawer of plastic bags and plastic containers, saying she's keeping junk in her closet. But now that I have reached a certain age, I find that I do the same- and keep one in my tote too (OMG) ! Why? Because you'll never know when you're going to need a good plastic bag for random moments (for puking, for extra goods that won't fit your market basket, for soiled slippers, for wet clothes, etc).

4. Your Christmas Wishlist looks like everything can be bought from Handyman or Our Home. I started drawing my wishlist two months ago and in lieu of the perfume and new dresses, the first things that came into my mind were a new fridge, new sheets, sweets tray, new set of beautiful dishes, a tool kit, new bathroom rack, and OMG, a new griller.

5. You'd rather celebrate beautiful moments with a few good friends and loved ones than being in a crowd. Maybe it's just me, but I find that conversations are far better when shared by a couple of time-tested friendship and relationships over a quiet cup of coffee. Wow, i've let go of my hed khandi days like it was just yesterday. lolz

**

My friend K tells me that we aren't so old, and in fact, she's not giving up her youth that easily.
So, by being the way that I am now and having new choices, am I giving up my youth already?
Sounds a bit scary, the way I see it.

But you know, I have always felt like an old soul anyway so I have no problem embracing the "oldness" that I feel. Because recently, this new kind of "aged" feeling makes me feel more at ease with myself - at peace with my decisions, enjoying the pace of my life and looking forward to a number of laid-back adventures with the little girl and closest friends.

I tell K that she's my dose of youth, so when we are together, despite the "oldness" that I feel, I will be reminded how young we truly are. :)

And Of course, lil girl will always remind me that I am not so much older than she actually really is.
Even though she's also this old soul trapped in a five-year old kid's body.

Do you feel this kind of old too?