The Fall of Autumn

When Autumn arrives, I have to remember to revere the glory of what was before: in spring, the earth is waking up to life; in summer, the world is basking on the light and warmth of the sun. Spring and … Continue reading →

September 1, 2018

September 1, 1939 W. H. Auden, 1907 – 1973 I sit in one of the dives On Fifty-second Street Uncertain and afraid As the clever hopes expire Of a low dishonest decade: Waves of anger and fear Circulate over the … Continue reading →

How do we reconcile? We hope…

“We hope that your faith inspires you to be just, loving, humble and merciful. We hope that your faith inspires you to encourage the church to be more just, more loving, more humble and more merciful.” “We hope you find … Continue reading →

Fruit Of Our Lives

“Let’s go visit Granny.” That’s what the kids used to say when Granny was alive. Some of these children were not able to experience the love of their grandmother nor Mother would see how fruitful we have become. Mother instilled … Continue reading →

Letter #22, 2018: To Alfie, Son of Albion

Go on, young Alfie, son of Albion, Fearless fighter in a soulless age, With every shallow breath, while judges rage, To the very end, beyond all hope. Go on, young Alfie, son of Tom, Lion-hearted soul, without a trace Of … Continue reading →

Painted Prayers

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The primary emphasis in this work is based on evolution distinctively a combination of three persons, one God: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. He is drawn and inspired by The Trinity. The Prayer of St. Augustine … Continue reading →

Unlikely Friendship. Forgiveness. Miracle.

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Eventually, Ms. Van Sluytman decided it was time to look into his eyes. “We shared really wonderful e-mails. His words helped to heal me, but I finally said, ‘I have to meet you, I need to see your eyes,’” she … Continue reading →

Good vs. evil: The answer is found in Easter itself

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It’s God’s gift that enables peace. The supernatural message of Easter is that Jesus overcomes death, and when people believe that and act upon it, it changes the headlines. Spiritual beliefs change how people respond to evil. The bloody cross … Continue reading →

Bringing back fond memories

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Today marks the first day of advent. A day of excitement filed with hope and grief. But hope trumps! It’s Not This Time of Year Without… a message of hope, everlasting hope. The message is to step out of our head … Continue reading →

Future: the end or the beginning

Here lies the future. The future garden. For months, I assessed it and imagined how it would look like should there be a garden on this space. It was February 28, 2016, when I started digging on this space. I … Continue reading →

Sense of Wonder

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Do you know that we are just like cats that get scared easily, fearful? So be careful. All we need is love. Yesterday, I attended a conference in renewing my sense of wonder by bringing together theological, psychological and spiritual awareness … Continue reading →

In Training

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Voss would visit the arboretum whenever he had a free moment over the course of about a year. He would choose one tree to focus on each day and sit for hours on end, face-to-face with these epic yet small … Continue reading →

On any given day, give thanks.

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When it comes to gardening, I prefer to start from seeds. It reminds me of conception to birth. The seeds are the eggs and the sperms are a mixture of good potting soil mixed with mushroom manure saturated further with … Continue reading →

For the briefest of moments, every last man felt free.

“Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt 

I have no idea to this day what those two Italian ladies were singing about.

Truth is, I don’t want to know. Some things are best left unsaid.

I’d like to think they were singing about something so beautiful, it can’t be expressed in words, and makes your heart ache because of it.

I tell you those voices soared higher and farther than anybody in a gray place dares to dream. It was like some beautiful bird flapped into our drab little cage and made those walls dissolve away, and for the briefest of moments, every last man in Shawshank felt free.

Go ahead, play, relax, free your mind, redeem yourself and listen to the full aria of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro Duettino Sull’aria Le nozze di Figaro. This is a moment of grace.

 

We are not special. Just be you, ordinary you.

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‘Half the harm done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They don’t mean to do harm, but the harm does not interest them…or they do not see it, or they justify it…because they are … Continue reading →

Keep Writing

Doubts pushed me into drawing up a list, “Eleven Thoughts on Rejection Dejection,” responses to questions one side of me was asking the other. I admit the weary voice of continuance half hoped retreat would prevail:

• A real writer perseveres—he cannot do otherwise.
• The only effective escape lies in more writing.
• Cease evaluating and just write.
• If first you don’t succeed, write, write again.
• Better to fail than walk away haunted.
• How much do you respect failure?
• What else is really worth doing that you could do?
• Write until you prove unequivocally that you can’t.
• Try quitting to see how you like it.
• Write your best today and the hell with tomorrow.
• To keep writing is to live in hope and possibility.

Source: “A Guy in a Metal Suicide-Box,” chapter six of Writing Blue Highways, is reprinted here by permission from the University of Missouri Press and the author via Talking Writing.

What compels me to write.
Well, first and foremost, an old quote from a wise friend: “A paper refuses no ink.” Secondly, it’s a very long list of stories of in between times.

Now, what compels you to write?

You are more than your Selfie.

“Beauty is more than what we see with the eyes. People are more than their conditions. I am more than my hair and skin. This only shows my exterior”

She Took A Daily Selfie While Battling Depression & Anxiety. The Results Are Truly Astonishing.

Rebecca Brown is a film student from the U.K. In 2007, when she was only 14, she began a project that documented her life by taking selfie photos of herself. Brown is now 21 and she has compiled the roughly 2100 pictures that she has taken into a video on her Youtube channel.

This video documents her battle with depression, anxiety and an impulse control disorder (which is a form of OCD) known as Trichotillomania. (Trichotillomania causes a person to pull out their own hair when anxious).

Brown says that this project is ongoing and plans to continue as long as she can.

For all those people who are inflected by this disease, stay strong and be strong.  There is always HOPE and life does get better.

Keeping my Mother alive

“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.” ― Shannon L. Alder

Mother subscribed to “Living with Christ” that I took over when she died. I changed the mailing address and kept her name. It’s a booklet of daily mass readings.

As years go by, I noticed I started receiving other mails addressed to her.  Now, there are more mails for her than for me.  These envelopes are coming from various charitable and health organizations asking for donations.  Some mails even have greetings cards, address labels, calendars, pens, bags and other goodies.  I consider these as bribes.

Who on earth is keeping my Mother alive?

I know that there is an industry that collects and sells data of name and address of other people.  At the same token some organizations buy the list for solicitation purposes.  I wonder if they have any idea that some people on the list are dead.

I find it rather amusing that these organizations are totally clueless.  One envelope is from Heart and Stroke.  Do I dare tell them that Mother actually died of a massive heart attack on March 31, 2000?

Seeing all these mails for Mother is one way of keeping the memory of her alive.  I do not have the heart to return them to sender for I love receiving her mails.

Mother left us a lasting legacy of love, faith and hope.

Love is her guiding principle, faith is her foundation and hope kept her forging ahead to raise her thirteen children as a single mother.  Like most parents, she wanted the very best for her children.

Mother had a tremendous responsibility to maintain love and care for one another in our family unit. She provided a modest rented apartment as our home that is welcoming.  Even though our home is small, our friends and classmates are part of the family. There was a sense of belonging and ease.  They even call her Mother, too.

When it comes to education, Mother wanted us to focus our energy on studying since she only finished Grade 4.  Once we graduated from University, only then can we try extracurricular activities such as having a boyfriend.

Family is all about relationship of unconditional love, giving and nurturing.  She loved, gave and nurtured.  Her children came first and sacrificed her own personal wants; a very altruistic person. She set a good example and standard for me, my siblings, family, friends and community.  The community presented her an award as Mother of the Year.

When I was younger, I cannot see through what Mother is.  Only then, as I grow older and have more time to contemplate and reflect about her, I can truly say how blessed I am that she chose me to live and saved my life when I became gravely ill.  Not just me but so many others before me.  We are all lucky to have Mother.

Even though she’s no longer here on earth, we keep her legacy of love, faith and hope.  And for as long as we are alive, we will continue to speak and tell stories to the younger generations.

Expression of Apology and Hope

When we forgive, we have to let go of our own feelings, our own ego, our own offended identity, and find our identity at a completely different level—the divine level. I even wonder if it is possible to know God at all—outside of the mystery of forgiveness.  ~ Mystery of Forgiveness

Source: CNS photo by Art Babych

The Archdiocese of Vancouver, Archbishop Miller addressed former residential school students on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission event.  He acknowledged the role the Church played in “implementing the Canadian government’s policy which involved forcibly separating children from their parents.”

THE APOLOGY

Distinguished members of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Venerable Elders, Survivors of the Indian Residential Schools, First Nations Brothers and Sisters, Ladies and Gentlemen:

Speaking on behalf of the Roman Catholic Church of the Archdiocese of Vancouver, I am here with you today to acknowledge the role we played in implementing the Canadian government’s policy which involved forcibly separating children from their parents and families and placing them in Indian Residential Schools.  through generations, this deeply flawed policy has led to unbearable pain and suffering.

At the five residential schools which existed within the boundaries of the Archdiocese, we were entrusted with safeguarding the children and young people under our care. However, we failed to live up to the trust placed in us. Over the century of their existence, tragic incidents of cultural, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse took place at these schools. We hold in high esteem those survivors who have had the courage to tell the truth about their harrowing experiences….

Read the full letter here

Related links:

• TRC to hold national event
• Expression of apology and hope
• Let it be written, let it be done

Prayer for peace on Earth

Let us pray then, with all fervour for this peace which our Divine redeemer came to bring us.

May he banish from the souls of all people whatever might endanger peace.
May he transform all people into witnesses of truth, justice and brotherly love.
May he illumine with his light the minds of rulers, so that, besides caring for the proper material welfare of their peoples, they may also guarantee them the fairest gift of peace.

Pacem in Terris

• How does the Lord want to transform me into a ‘witness’?
• Can I be open to this as I ponder God’s Word today?

As we long for peace we remember our brothers and sisters of all faiths – and none – who share our longings.

Prayer of St Francis of Assisi

 Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred let me sow love.
Where there is injury; pardon.
Where there is doubt; faith.
Where there is despair; hope.
Where there is darkness; light.
Where there is sadness; joy. 

This sequence of prayer was offered in the early days of Sacred Space and has remained online since. There is always a call to us to pray for the world, bringing its changing needs before God.

• You are welcome to offer your thoughts on these prayers here.

Related Articles:

• Sacred Space: A Hindu Prayer
• Sacred Space: A Sikh Prayer
• Sacred Space: A Jain Prayer
• Sacred Space: Jewish Prayer
• Sacred Space: Buddhist Prayer
• Sacred Space: Muslim Prayer
• Sacred Space: A Baha’i Prayer
• Sacred Space: Prayer of an 11 year old Indian boy
• September Peace Challenge: And I Quote: Blessings of Hope

 

A Baha’i Prayer

A Baha’i Prayer

Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity.
Be fair in thy judgement, and guarded in thy speech.
Be a lamp unto those who walk in darkness and a home to the stranger.
Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light to the feet of the erring.
Be a breath of life to the body of humankind,
a dew to the soil of the human heart and
fruit upon the tree of humility.

 

Baha’i Garden in Israel Pilgrimage 2010

  Prayer for peace

May Christ inflame the desires of all people to break through the barriers which divide them, to strengthen the bonds of mutual love, to learn to understand one another and to pardon those who have done them wrong. Through his power and inspiration, may all peoples welcome each other to their hearts as brothers and sisters, and may the peace they long for ever flower and ever reign among them.

Pacem in Terris

At Sacred Space today can I allow the Word of God to stir up the authentic desires and longings of my heart? The men and women of the whole world long for peace.

 

Related Articles:

• Sacred Space: A Hindu Prayer
• Sacred Space: A Sikh Prayer
• Sacred Space: A Jain Prayer
• Sacred Space: Jewish Prayer
• Sacred Space: Buddhist Prayer
• Sacred Space: Muslim Prayer
• Sacred Space: Prayer of an 11 year old Indian boy
• September Peace Challenge: And I Quote: Blessings of Hope

A Muslim Prayer

O God! O our Master! You are eternal life and everlasting peace by your essence and attributes. The everlasting peace is from You and it returns to You. O our Sustainer! Grant us the life of true peace and usher us into the abode of peace. O Glorious and Bounteous One! You are blessed and sublime. 

Source: Sacred Space

Prayer for peace on Earth 

Forty years ago Pope John reminded the world of the Four Pillars of Peace. They are the basis of right order in our world. It is an order that is founded on truth, built up on justice, nurtured and animated by charity, and brought into effect under the auspices of freedom. 

As we join together at Sacred Space, we might express our hope for our world, that we may re-establish the divine order in our own hearts and in our world. Still, we remember that the Lord speaks to each person according to their own situation and needs. 

Our brothers and sisters of many faiths – and none – share our longing for peace.

 

Related Articles:

• Bishop Tatro: Family of Peacemakers
• Sacred Space: Buddhist Prayer
• September Peace Challenge: And I Quote: Blessings of Hope

The boy who reads: A story of hope

“One would think that the last place to find a starved and unkempt street urchin is in a book store.” 

He is 13-year-old Mark Jayvee “MJ” Mojon and he frequents the store to beg for money or food. But on some days, he also stops by to read. 

At age 13, MJ is just an incoming Grade 2 student. MJ’s mother says financial struggles forced MJ to drop out of school for several years. 

But poverty hasn’t stopped MJ from wanting to learn.  When he wasn’t begging, he would visit the bookstore to read.  Even in his house, MJ has a small corner where he keeps books borrowed from neighbors.  

This story has a happy ending. 

To read the full story, visit these links:

• Story from GMA Network
• Story from Book Patrol

Gifts of Hope

A homeless 13-year-old Filipino won a very prestigious award for his commitment to improving the lives of fellow street kids. Cris “Kesz” Valdez, who lived off a trash dump and slept in an open tomb for the majority of his childhood, was awarded last year’s International Children’s Peace Prize in The Hague on September 19, 2012. 

 

Gifts of Hope

For his seventh birthday, Kesz didn’t want any presents for himself. Instead, he wanted to give something to other street children: Gifts of Hope. That same year, Kesz started his own organization, Championing Community Children, aimed at giving street children hope and showing them that they can take their future into their own hands. Every week, he and his friends go to underprivileged communities to teach children about hygiene, food and children’s rights. He even takes things a step further, by teaching children how to teach each other. He has so far helped more than 10,000 children in his local area.   Source:  International Childrens Peace Prize. 

Kesz was presented with the prize by Desmond Tutu.  According to Desmond Tutu, Kesz is a deserving and inspiring example of “a new voice for the voiceless”. 

Spread this video
          Spread hope
                     Spread peace 

Peace by acting – summer4soul
B4Peace

The Very Best of My Thoughts

DP Jan 24, 2013 Ready, Set Go

Set a timer for ten minutes. Open a new post. Start the timer, and start writing. When the timer goes off, publish 

Good Morning, God, thank you for another day.  

I wake up way before the birds start singing, the day is still dark.  This is my precious time being one and one with my God.  It’s about me and my God.  Not much time when there is 24 hours in a day.  From 5 am to 7 am, then I head off to work. 

This is also the time I do the daily prompt, not much time to think but everything is Impromptu.  The more I think, the more my brain gets muddled up. Don’t think too much. 

The minute I step out of this sanctuary, I will be a whole different world.  It will be all about them.  I am out there to be of service especially at work, put in 7 hours, an honest work for an honest pay.  Then I say a prayer, Lord, Let every step I do begins and ends with you. 

Back to waking up; I fill my thoughts with goodness, a moment of Gratitude, this is the time where the very best of my thoughts come from my God: 

The very best of all my thoughts
Are those that think of you
The very best of all my words
Are those that speak of you
My fondest hopes, my cherished dreams,
My prayers to the Lord above
The very best of all these
I offer you my love. 

Faith, Hope and Charity is the basis of my being.

Thoughts, Emotion and Behaviour are the basis of cognitive thinking. 

This is triangle I follow in order to be at-one-ment. 

And here’s a song for everyone.  Have a safe day everyone.  God Bless. 

DP: Helpless – Lost Generation

 “Helplessness: that dull, sick feeling of not being the one at the reins. When did you last feel like that –- and what did you do about it?” 

It’s now day three that I am under the weather.  

I am so sick and tired of being sick with coughing, sneezing and dull achy feeling.  Living alone does not help.  I feel so alone in this world.  I want my mommy. 

The weather is uncooperative.  It has been raining for a week now, cold miserable winter day.  I am so bored all cooped up at home.  It’s so depressing looking at the weather.  I want the Sun. 

Be patient.  This too shall pass.  It’s hard to be patient being sick with colds.  I know I’m not the only one suffering with this blooming cold.  I caught this from commuting, from work, from who knows.  No point of blaming.  I just have to have a lot of patience.  Where can I buy patience? 

What am I going to do about?  I will cook more chicken noodle soup, cuddle up with my cats and a dose of hope from the Lost Generation.