- My family.
- My friends.
- My life and the lives of the people close to my heart. Whether it's a healthy life or not.
- The usual things. Like problems/challenges/trials, opportunities/chances, new things/people, experiences/lessons, expectations/disappointments.
Then there are those things that not all people were given this year that I was.
- Chance to do some traveling.
Traveling always leaves a sense of fulfillment in me everytime I come home. There's always that sense of satisfaction. The places I've traveled to may not be as glamourous compared to other people's but still the experience of being in a different place, immersing in a different culture and hearing a language so far from what I know is beyond anything else. I always learn a lot from traveling and somehow, you just can't share that learning to people unless they traveled with you or the same way. Traveling with friends and family is different from each other. And it's not where you're going that matters, it's the people you travel with. Trust me, it makes a whole of difference.
Boracay and Bangkok: Thank you so much to my brother and his family. You inspire me. I hope I could also do the same for you and our family.
Boracay and Bangkok: Thank you so much to my brother and his family. You inspire me. I hope I could also do the same for you and our family.
- Deaths and Loss.
If you know me, or at least have been reading my blog this year, you'd know about the deaths in my family. It's not something to be proud of. Grief and loss are not the things that I take pride in. But it's the way I overcome them. Losing the ones we love through dying is by far the most painful way because we just know that they're not coming back anymore and each death leaves the kind of fear that would sometimes keeps us from living. And also the kind of fear that would always make us question God what's or who's next. Looking back the past nine months is never easy. Each loss brings about a different pain and a different perspective. Now, why am I thankful for death? Simply because I look at death as an escape, a relief from everything that this world offers. But I am not encouraging anyone to go kill themselves. It's a relief to those who have been suffering long enough that you just couldn't bear to see them alive and in a great deal of pain or to those who have been here long enough to see a great difference between the world he was born into and the world he would leave behind. But what about those who were killed? My heart still aches for her and I just know it'd take a very long time to heal. As much as I want to see the glass as half-full it just doesn't seem right at all. If there is anything that I've learned from that ordeal is that we should never take the ones we love for granted and that we should not wait for a special day to tell them how much they mean to us. Why? Because no matter how healthy we are or how safe our lives are, we just don't own tomorrow.
This year was a year of loss for me. I lost a lot of great people. But it doesn't mean that it's the end of the line for me, too. I am still here, alive and kicking. If there's any good that has ever come out of this year it's that it's also a year of hope for me. I've always thought that loss always teaches us to hope. To hope for better things to come after a few bad things. To hope for the loved ones who have gone ahead to be in a better place than they were before. To hope for better opportunities after losing the good ones. To hope for salvation. To hope that there is really a light at the end of every tunnel. To hope that every dark or gray cloud has a silver lining. To hope that there is a life waiting for us somewhere. To hope that we could make our wildest dreams come true.
To hope.
But as they say, you can't lose something without gaining another.
Or.
If a door closes, another one opens.
- Babies.
No. I am not pregnant with quadruplets. I just look like I am. bwahaha. People close to me were expecting and still are expecting. So what to expect when they're expecting?
Babies. What cute creatures. Oh yes, they're quite adorable and charming and one just can't resist but talk gibberish when you find yourselves face to face with such chubby cheeks, et cetera. Imagine: a goo goo ga ga.
Babies are life-changing creatures of God. And I am glad that I could be a part of these new babies' lives.
I have a lot of things and people to be thankful for and I will eternally be grateful to the Big Guy up there for everything and also to the people around me. Thank you so much!
I also want to take this chance to thank everyone for the support (for my blogs, photos) and most especially in taking part of the cause I am currently fighting for, the Feeding Program. And also for the people who are always there for me, to love, to support, to care and most of the time, to just be there for me. Aaaaand for understanding how my mind works, how my mouth talks and how my mood swings like the very unpredictable Leyte weather.
I would love to just put the names of the people responsible for making this year bearable despite of but it would seem unfair to those I would forget. So, you guys know who you are and what you did, A BIG THANK YOU!!! I would give back, as soon as I can. I know you don't require that I will but I want to. Being a recipient of the kind of goodness people are capable of is very enlightening. Being who I am has made me see a different perspective of everything and I will forever be grateful for everything that has happened in my life, for having what I have and not having what I don't, for knowing the real meaning of humility, for understanding what debt of gratitude truly means, and for being able to put myself in the shoes of other people and being able to understand where they're coming from. These, I am truly thankful for. Not the clothes I have or the shoes or the bags. The ones that don't get old.
Once again, thank you and it has been my greatest pleasure to have you all in my life!
Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!
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