Late Documentation

So I've been thinking about what I've been through over the past months. I realized that I've been "gathering life experiences in very large doses". I am almost like having an everyday overdose of life itself. Maybe its because of my constant tendency of over-thinking and over-analyzing the happennings and goings-on of my life, but you know what, in my own perspective, I can say I've been through a lot. Only I and God knows the real deal, the real score of the gist of my story.



I am such a storyteller so I've thought how much I've been missing a lot on telling and sharing my stories to the world wide web. I've been absent in the blog-o-rama for quite some time now. If only I had the time [well, I actually have all the time in the world] and the right resources to constantly jot away my stories, then I would have felt a little more helpful to the society. I've been literally begging my 'rents for a laptop this year, so hopefully next year, I'll get what I've been begging for months. And with that, I could easily make myself present in the world wide web. Jeez. I just LOOOOVE blogging, know what I mean.

So anayway, bottomline is, I just wish I'd documented more on my freshmen year in college. It could have been a good read 50 years later. Well, there's no use crying over spilt milk. There are a few months left before the 2nd sem ends. I't may be too late but I'm sure, a lot of juicy stuff are going to happen pretty soon.

xoxo,
misschrayola
[okay, just to explain myself: i've been watching too much Gossip Girl & miss chrayola is like, my pseudoname in the net from now on] :)

Making Spaghetti With Friends

I had such a very fun birthday. Few people know how emotional I become when it's my birthday. I've had a series of bad birthdays for years that I gave up even hoping to have a pure & sincere good time on my birthday. But this year, I actually did.

Thanks to the spontaneity of my friends and I, we had an awesome unplanned slumber party. Patty's aunt owns this beach house in Guimbal so we packed our bags the morning of my birthday and headed out. We were pretty loaded that day. We splurged on groceries and spur-of-the-moment shopping. Like we just bought whatever popped into our minds.Hahaha! We ended up buying too much food. So yeah, we pigged out. A LOT.

And to top it all off, we cooked our food the old style way- over uling. Later that day, we swam in the beach, made smores and Patty got drunk with vodka.

So yeah. We had endless stories about random things and people. And we did crazy stuff only the four of us could understand.

Good times, good times. The best thing about my birthday was the realization how great it is to be in college. I have all the freedom in the world, yet I am sane enough not to abuse it.

Gosh, this is the life.

PS. pictures will be posted soon.

Yes, we can.

I've just read Pres. Barack Obama's speech on election day and it almost moved me to tears. He's the most hopeful American I have ever known. It's comfortable to know that despite how upside down and chaotic America has been, with the never-ending war and financial crisis, there is a man serving like a torch of light that lifts up the trampled American spirit. I'm really happy for America. The election of Pres. Obama once again proves how history can dramatically change according to the acts, choices and decisions of the people who form it. I have high hopes that the 67 bilion American people who voted on election day acted, chose and decided wisely.

God bless America. :)

I Regret

I’m glad to tell you that I’m doing better here at home. I’m in a superficial place I used to live in. But this time, I am not that same old superficial person. Actually, I guess this is the reason why I didn’t feel like going back to Bacolod. Whenever I’m home, I tend to become my old self who lives and breathes meaningless things. But I know that I’ve grown out from that shallow surface of my personality. Like what I’ve said before, I’ve grown older while away from home.

Though I’m doing better now, I still have my “bipolar attacks”. I become depressed and dejected all of a sudden. This happens when I look back at the past sem, the five months that has gone by. I think about it a lot. I am quite a thinker. I really wanted to go away to a place where nobody knows my name and start anew with a clean slate. I got all I wanted. I lived independently. I had the privilege to start going to a Christian Church. But I know in the back of my mind that I screwed things up with wrong decisions. I’ve been making all the wrong decisions. Everything seemed perfect but I just had to be immature and make a mess out of the blessings I have.

I know I’ve hurt and stepped on a lot of feelings. I’ve been offensive with my words. I’ve been uncontrollable with my sharp tongue. I want to apologize to my victims, victims of my insensitivity.

I know I haven’t been the best student I can be this sem. I’ve absorbed all the bad vices dorm life can offer. I placed my academics next to my social life in my priority list. To my parents, I’m sorry if I seemed to just consider your efforts to send me to college a game to play and fool around with.

I know I’ve been displeasing my Father. I conform to the world and stray away from the Narrow Road intentionally. I am most unworthy of Your grace God.

I regret all the wrong decisions I’ve made. I hope it’s not too late to start making the wrong things right. Now that the sem has ended, I’ll put the erroneous past behind and look forward to what’s ahead- new semester, new classes, new classmates and well, not necessarily a new me but a better me.

I’ll be the same Charisse, minus the crooked personality. Cheer oh for meeeeh.

This Is How A College Girl Rants

[I just want to rant. I seldom rant in my blog..so here it goes.]

Oh jeez. I can't really believe it. The first semester of my college life is officially over. Everyone's home already in my dorm. No one's around here except me and a few "problematic" kids and the upperclassmen.

I am completely heartbroken and emotionally torn apart. [How pathetic. I sound so emo-ish] I'm supposed to be ecstatic that I've survived my first sem in UP but I feel the exact opposite. I've been emotionally unstable lately. One day I'm humming "Perfect Day" and the next day, I'm singing the most depressing song ever written in history. Maybe its because of my growing and ehem, maturing hormones. Or maybe because I have a slight tendency to become bipolar. No, I aint joking. Seriously. My crehazy friends and I even dubbed ourselves as "Mga Iskolar na Bipolar".

So right at this moment, I am in the lobby of our empty dorm at 3 am in the morning, depressed and in an unexplainable mood all over again. The aura of the dorm, with boxes and storage containers containing valuable things of my fellow dormers that transformed this dorm into our second home, line the corridors. Its a very depressing thing to look at. Especially when I pass by empty rooms with cleared out closets and clutter-free books.

Why am I even still here in my dorm and not at home? Blame it all to CWTS. I still have to finish our project proposal. I could have finnished it a long long time ago, but my procastination habit just starts kicking in. But I'm done with our project proposal. I've peppered it with looove.

[Okay, i just looked outside our dorm (our doors are glass,btw) and I saw this cat roaming around. Its getting freaky here. I've heard a lot of *stories* about our dorm but I've never believed them.Jeez, I dont know what to say right now.]

The truth of the matter dearest readers is, I am ultimately depressed right now because *drum roll* I don't want to go home yet. I just want to stay here, seriously. The reasons? Well, I'll keep it to myself. The only thing I want to go home to Bacolod is that I'll get to see my parents, my best friends and my 2 sisters who are also coming home from UP-Diliman.

So yeah. Thats it. I'm going home tomorrow and I don't even know what time I'll leave. My upperclassmen are inviting me to come them [they're going to Bacolod too for the Maskara Festival] but I'm not quite sure if I will. I want to travel alone. I want to travel with myself and my gigantic red luggage. Yes. Its the perfect way to reminisce and think about things. There are a looooot of things to think about. You have no freaking idea what has been happening with myself and my life here. It has been a rollercoaster. And not just a rollercoaster.. A MEGA rollercoaster. I would be flat as a pancake right now if my Father God had'nt rescued me with Divine Intervention.

Jeez, I am having verbal diarrhea right now. I seriously have to get some sleep now. But before I do, lemme show you how my room has been like in the past few days. [And Kuya Eug, you're right. I will post pictures of my room here. HAHA]







WHAT A MESS. Anyhoo, I'll be in Bacolod in less than 24 hours. Ciao.

Oh Hello Hellweek!

I'll be gone for a few weeks. Need to give my brain cells a break. Ciao! :)

Showing Off

I'm currently having scattered brains right now due to my upcoming first ever hellweek in college. It's gonna be one heck of a series of sleepless nights. Gosh, I am having a reality check right now. I am in UP. UP! I just can't sleep away my exams. I'm constantly imaginary slapping my face every time I find myself snoozing the day again in my dorm. Seriously. Things aren't that glamorous when you are completely in control of your actions. There were times whe I feel really disappointed of myself because of my growing college vices. Have I told you that I think I'm failing my Soc Sci 10 subject? Like OMG. Unacceptable right? Oh well. I am discplining myself at the moment.

For the meantime, let me show off my so-called work of art [that is what my prof. is calling it] for my Soc Sci 2 third exam. It was uber fun doing the photoshoot. I didn't have anything at hand. Only my osbsolete Sony digicam. But with my resourcefulness and a bunch of game-for-anything friends, I was able to pull this off. :)

We were supposed to create a work of art based on a theory of any philospher we've studied in class. I chose Hobbes' State Of Nature. I interpreted it through my own version of the disney sugarcoated Snow White.

Thanks Naira and Chuchay. :*

Open Letter

Dear loves,

I know I’ve been mum for quite a while. If we were on a long-distance relationship, we could have ended our relationship a long long time ago with my lack of updates and communication with you. For this, I am deeply sorry. I sure do miss you.

Blame it to my busy schedule and my lazy, sluggish attitude. Not to mention my lack of interest to blog. I guess I was just experiencing the occasional blogger’s block. There are a loooooot of things to talk and dish about. But perhaps, I just can’t seem to put them into words. Some things are better left unwritten. But here I am in front of my PC, untangling this big block of thoughts in my mind, ready to be shared to the rest of the world.

You know what? Sometimes I question why I take the care and time to spend a good one hour typing down anything and everything about life and what this brain of mine could come up and publish it to the world wide web. I am not quite sure of what to answer to my question. I guess it’s simply because of the mere fact that somehow, sometime, the “little pearls of wisdom” I gather as I walk through the road of life that I share here could be meaningful to somebody who serendipitously stumbles upon my little blog. Well, it’s not as if I post here things like “how to have world peace” or “ways to be happy in life”. I know I am just a Filipino small town girl, but I believe I am a Filipino small town girl with a lot of stories to tell.
So here I am, telling my stories. Maybe this is the purpose of my blogging. Don’t you think?

Anyway, in the past few weeks I’ve been gone, I have gathered a good amount of little pearls of wisdom. I’m beyond excited to share them with you. Hold on tight because I feel like word vomit is coming your way.

I know you missed me,
Charisse

I Tell All (Part 2)

Yesterday I had a homecoming with my high school friends. I haven’t seen them since I left four months ago. It was a pleasant feeling being in their company all over again. But the longer I was with them, the stronger the familiar bitter feeling I haven’t felt in months came haunting me.

Nobody really knew what it meant for me to get out of Bacolod four months ago. For the people who personally knew me, they would have thought it simply meant just going to college in a different place and moving out to live independently. No. It’s far more than that. I actually wanted to get out of Bacolod for a bigger reason – I wanted to start living my life as the person who I really wanted to be.

Few people know what I truly felt towards my high school years. Yes, I dubbed high school as “the best years of my life” and now I openly admit that I made an overstatement. I take it back. Don’t get me wrong, I was genuinely happy back in the days. I cherish every moment I spent with my circle of friends. All of the laughters I shared with them were sincere. All of the cheery smiles I gave them were meaningful. Those weren’t pretensions and fakes. Let me just paradoxically say that I loved and despised high school.

I say I was happy back then, but never completely joyful. Let’s take a trip down memory lane, shall we?

Without a doubt, I had a good standing in high school. For the people reading this who know me personally, I know you would agree. I was in the star section and was a constant honor student. Not to mention that I was in the school paper and the student government. Modesty aside, I was a prominent figure in school. I wasn’t just a wall flower hanging around unnoticed. I was a social butterfly with a name other students knew.

But despite these, I wasn’t completely happy. There was an underlying dislike towards my high school years. It just had to happen. Stereotyping. I guess it’s a natural phenomenon in a place like a high school jam-packed with juvenile teenagers. People fit me into this some kind of a person. People label you this and that as if you’re a book in a library to be classified. The problem with stereotyping is itself. You “oversimply and standardize the image of a person” [that’s according to Encarta Dictionary]; limiting what he can do according to the label you give him.

It’s not a new thing actually. Teen movies like High School Musical have shown this kind of societal problem. In my case, I was stereotyped as a person I am not happy to be. I am more than that person. I wanted to do greater things than that person. But I can’t because people have fixed my image into that kind of girl. Consequentially, it made me insecure. I wanted to break out of my boundary and try new things, but I didn’t have the guts and courage to do so. I was trapped in an identity I was not. I developed a weak personality.

This is why I wanted really bad to move out of my home city. I want to start afresh and create an identity I truly am. This I have found in UP.
When I came to UP, I was still that stereotyped person whom isn’t my real self. I was insecure, had a weak, unstable personality and easily intimidated by people whom I thought was better than me.

I told myself that this new chapter of my life would mark the start of my personal empowerment. I had to conquer and overcome my inhibitions. I knew this was such a hard task, a challenge for myself. So I took it to my great big Father up above. I asked for a personal emancipation from insecurities and He knowingly knew what to do. He gave me even greater challenges, things I had to which I have never done before. Most of the time, I would be left awestruck about how God can answer prayers in the most surprising way. Life indeed, surrendered to Him, is full of surprises.

It is in UP that I have found total liberation from stereotyping. I once posted in my friendster shoutout that the best thing about being in UP is the fact that you can you’re your own individuality without being judged. Here, I can do things people back in high school thought I was not capable of doing so. I am empowered here in UP. No one can tell me who and what I should be because I am the master of myself.

At the moment of this writing, I am in Bacolod City. Seeing the “people of my past” reminds me of who I was. I don’t know if my high school friends notice it, but I am a stronger Charisse now. My transformation is far yet to be completed, but I have to say that gone is my weak personality. I guess they don’t have to notice it. It’s a personal change, a change within. I mean look at me not from the outside. I have layers of eyebags and I’m breaking out, but inside me is an emancipated Charisse.

You may not completely understand what I am trying to say here. I know. I’m not completely specific in details. But I have to be careful of what I say here for some people might be offended. As I looked over my high school friends, I realized that the moment we stepped out of high school, we began living out different new lives. Then I thought of my new circle of friends in UP and generally my new life there.

Then it just sunk in. I am happier now. I’m happier in UP.
You know why? Because in UP, I can be whoever I wanted to be.

I Tell All (Part 1)

I'm going to blog a series of I Tell All posts about the real score of my UP life. For the sakes of updates for my loves back at home. This is the first part. I tell all about the culture shock and the new strange things I observed here in UP.

After spending 5 weeks of my life[the looongest five weeks of my life that is] inside the boundaries of the University of the Philippines, I can pretty much say I can give myself a good pat on the back. Having experienced the UP life myself, I'm darn happy I am surviving it. In this world of "radical" [as my former classmate would describe] people who exercise their freedom to the highest extent without any inhibitions, it is safe to say that getting your way around UP is not as easy as 1-2-3.

Although I haven't seen them all, I say I have seen enough. I've seen firsthand activists doing their thing, rallying on the streets carrying their banners that scream out rebellion and defiance. I've been to those college parties where dirty dancing and drinking is the highlight of the night, parties I would only see in shows like Gossip Girl. I've been to initiations where your'e interrogated of every word you say, as if you were the most wanted suspect in the world. I've met infamous people I wished I've never met before. I've learned a different kind of knowledge that somehow robbed me of my innocence. I've seen the typical college way of living here in UP. I've seen the other side of the world.

Coming from a safety zone, that is my Catholic high school, experiencing all these left me awestruck. This is surely a thousand times different from high school. High school is so pa twee tums. It's so petty. It is pathetic. High school sugarcoats reality that when a person is finally relieved of its pettiness and gets to college, he is immediately shocked by the real and actuaI bittersweetness of life. True enough, I've shed my coat of sugar and am in the process of finding my real flavor. Wala na 'yung pa twee tums na Charisse. She's dead and deader already. I'm tougher now.

Being here in UP is being in a better place. A much better place. In fact, the life I live now is exactly what I always wanted to have.I once read the blog of my bestfriend Nadine ranting about how her mom treats her like a kindergarten kid even now that she's in college. Her mom would bring her to school every day and strictly wait for her after classes in order to securely bring her home. I really feel bad for her. I mean here I am, having all the freedom I could get. Just imagine, I am all alone in this unfamiliar place, free to do anything and everything I want not having my parents around. I make my own decisions which means I can carefreely sleep at 3am everyday and skip meals anytime I want to. And the best part is, I have my own moolah [translation: cold hard cash]. Now isn't that the ideal college life?

As I recall the five looong weeks that passed me by, I've realized that I am gradually absorbing the UP way of life. I dunno.. but I feel like I've officially become a kolehiyala living the laidback, presko kind of lifestyle. My bedtime just got a little bit earlier, I go to school sometimes without taking a shower, I get drunk with coffee, and I made jeans my staple attire.

But mind you, besides living the presko way, I've dumped my high school tactics of getting involved for the sakes of attention and became a little bit more contemplative when it comes to academics and responsibilities. I do my own homework [without ANY help from others], copy my own notes, and find resources needed for class at my own expense. I simply just stopped relying and depending on other people to get what I want. I'm learning to do things on my own. There isn't a Luigi Caler here in UP whom is so selfless when it comes to things like this. [wink wink]

People here are sooo competitive that even just asking to try to take a peak at their notebook seems like a crime. Well, who can blame them? The bests of all high schools around the country are gathered here in UP. We are one big flock of the smarter class [this is what you call bragging rights as a UP student]. We are the cream of the crop here so all must come up with their own strategies to stand out from this excellent crowd. I've met a lot of people with crab mentality here in UP [wink wink] .

Simply put, all I am trying to tell here is that I am in the perfect place at the perfect time. I am in the stage of my life where I'm having euphoria. Yeah beybeh.

The Dark Ages

This is my first taste of the internet after a gazillion years! My life here in UP just seems to explode [is that the right term?] as days go by. Just a quick recap:

• The ever-friendly Typhoon Frank hit Iloilo as we all know. It's such a blessing that UP is located in Miagao. Minimal damage and flood happened. BUT and that is a big big BUT.. Miagao experienced a total black-out for 1 whole week. Imagine that?? Freakin' 7 days without electricity? The water supply was also trying to play games with us. There were days when we woke up and found nothing flowing out of the showers. We had to make igib in the nearby houses inside the UP campus in order to take a bath.


• We had no classes for 1 straight week primarily because there obviously wasn't electricty in our college buildings and also because our professors were simply tinatamad to have classes because they were caught up with the post-typhoon Frank damages. Oh well, it was all good news to me! LOL.

[Okay..im starting to become a boring blogger. Maybe I need to rejuvenate my brain cells after 1 week of dormancy.Haha!]

Anyhoo, living in the dark ages was a whole new experience. It was the longest time ever in my whole life wherein I lived without electricity. Back in Bacolod, I would go nuts whenevr black outs happen. But here, I learned to accept the situation and be joyful about it. I mean, there I was, sleeping in a comfy bed, under a descent roof while the victims of FRANKenstein had no potable water and food. I was blessed.Really really blessed.

The dark ages taught me learnings I wouldn't learn if there was electricity around. I know, it may sound funny and exag, but it's true. When it's dark and boring and you're running out of things to do, you realize a lot of things you wouldn't normally realize when you have the comforts of electricity.

I didn't merely learn how to cherish every drop of water, value electricity [these things are obviously to be learned even if its not the dark ages], how to play cards and take a bath in the poso but more specifically, I learned to appreciate life's little things.

Back in the dorm, the dormers wouldn't usually go out and socialize when electricity was around. We usually stayed in our rooms. But during the dark ages, we slowly came out of our shells and met new people, people whom we're gonna live with for the next 10 months of our lives.

I learned to just have fun whatever circumstance life gives me. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! I realized that I don't have to have techie stuff, computer games, etc. to truly be blissful. Just the company of NFF's [new found friends] and the attitude to say no to boredom are enough.

But although I was like a frog dancing in the rain during the dark ages, negativity will always find its way. I dunno.. during the dark ages, I felt a certain feeling of homesickness. Like I was happy and sad all at the same time. It's weird but I know its perfectly normal [i hope so]. I mean, even though It's fun here in UP, I can't help but miss the good ol' times.

But yeah, electricity is back and there's school tomorrow. The fun times are over. It's time to snap back to reality.

I'm going overboard now, I know. I'm having word vomit! Haha!That's it, pansit! ^_^

What A Start!

How did my first week as a college freshie went? Pretty cool I must say. My social skills were really put to test. But I must say that it is such a blessing from God that I am staying in Balay Lampirong. It's just the first week of my stay here and I feel like I've found a family. I can't also fail to tell you that 2 of my roomies are Christians! I know that they will serve as instruments to help me stay in the narrow road.

I also believe it is about time for me to excersie my bragging rights here in my blog. Last Tuesday was the grand opening of UP here in the Visayas. It was a grand opening, I must emphasize. The University Chancellor, Vice-Chancellors and all the deans were present. Plus, big time alumni were also around. The opening was attended by all freshies and most upperclass men. To top it all off, an alumnus of Up who happens to be the national vice-president of San Miguel Corporation was the guest speaker. She was sitting beside moi!

It is my pleasure to tell you that I was chosen to give a response in behalf of the freshmen. Can you just imagine it? We are hundreds and I was chosen to give a speech? I must credit it all to God's grace. :)

The screening process included the writing of our respective speeches. Out of more or less 15 chosen freshies the top 4 were selected and were asked to UP last June 5 to deliver their speeches. I was one of them! So there, because God is so merciful, I was chosen to be the one to give the freshmen's response.

All I have to say to my experience of speaking infront of hundred of "Iskolars ng Bayan" is that it was... unexplainable. I was as cold as ice as I waited for my turn to speak. I had lots of experiences of delivering speeches infront of hundreds of people. But that moment was a whole lot different. I was to address to a sea of unfamiliar faces.. and a sea of unfamiliar faces which happen to be UP students.

But I survived that heart-pounding moment..all credit to Him of course. After I delivered my speech, the alumnus who was the VIP special guest congratulated me. I was flattered. Haha!

So here.. I am uber proud to expose my speechto the world wide web. Keep reading!

To our Chancellor, Dr. Glenn D. Aguilar, to the vice-chancellors, deans, faculty and staff of the University of the Philippines-Visayas, and to my fellow students, good morning.

Since I was in kindergarten up until I graduated in high school, I studied in the same Catholic school in my hometown, Bacolod City. Student life was easy, convenient and trouble-free for me. My alma mater was only five minutes away from home. Because I’ve been in the same school for almost 13 years, I have found second parents in my teachers and have made friendships that have stood the test of time.

As I walk down memory lane, I can’t help but realize how different the yesterday is to today. Now, I am in a whole new university which is a hundred miles from home and I am surrounded by a sea of unfamiliar faces.

Change really is inevitable. It is the only certain thing in this world. Seeds don’t stay as what they are for all time. They propagate into trees. Caterpillars can’t be caterpillars forever. They metamorphose into butterflies. Babies don’t remain as babies for eternity. Babies grow up into adults. Likewise, to my fellow freshmen, we can’t be carefree high school students forever. We have to change, to mature and to take things more seriously as we become college students.

We consider our high school years as the best years of our lives but it is a fact that high school is already history. Gone are the days when we can harmlessly copy assignments, be absent in school and fail that math subject. We aren’t kids anymore. If life was a computer game, we have already upgraded and received that level-up. We are now young adults with greater responsibilities and a higher educational pursuit to carry out.

Unlike high school, college is the stepping stone into attaining our life goals and dreams. The journey to a thousand miles begins with a single step as the popular saying goes. We are blessed and privileged to be taking that step in a premier educational institution like University of the Philippines- Visayas. Studying in UPV is like being the cream of the crop because excellence is the top priority. Being called an “Iskolar ng Bayan” truly is rewarding. The journey to a thousand miles will be tough and challenging for us, but we must be confident because we will be having quality education as our foundation.

As we take that stepping stone in UPV, let us prepare ourselves for inevitable changes that are knocking on our doorsteps. Being away from home, embracing a new lifestyle of independence, encountering a variety of personalities and undertaking a whole new academic pursuit are only a handful of the changes that lie ahead of us. But like seeds that become sturdy trees, caterpillars that metamorphose into beautiful butterflies and babies that grow into wiser beings, we too shall change into better individuals. Change exists so that we can continually correct and better ourselves into the persons we were meant to be. Let us be whoever we were meant to be!

The third chapet of the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible speaks that there is a time for everything. There is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to embrace and a time to refrain. Today is our first day as college students. Our time has come. Let us work harder now and play later. It is the time to step out of our comfort zones and to think outside the box. Let’s make no room for mediocrity and push ourselves to the limit. Let us not be vulnerable to our weaknesses as college students because terror professors and grueling subjects await us. But let us also remember that despite the challenging times, life’s biggest surprises are in store for us.

So in behalf of the freshmen batch 2008, I would like to extend our gratitude to the Office of Student Affairs and to our ate’s and kuya’s for being accommodating in welcoming us to UPV. From the freshmen orientation to our enrollment, your presence has been very helpful to us.

And to my fellow freshmen, let’s make the most of our college days and make it worth remembering. Remember, life begins at college! It is the time for us to step out of the comforts of our cocoons and spreadour wings to fly on a wider horizon. We are among the “centennial batch” of the University of the Philippines. Let us live on the centennial legacy.

Mabuhay po tayo mga iskolar ng bayan!

So This Is The Feeling..

After 3 days of packing and a lot of emotional rollercoaster rides, here i am! I've already settled my things in my room in the dorm and I've even spent the night there. Last night was my first night being alone here in UP Visayas and I do feel like a grown up. Haha! I'm still adjusting to this whole new thing that's laid before my eyes. Somehow, everything hasn't sunk in yet. I'm still floating in this reality.



I still can't believe that I'm independently living my life right now. I'm out of our house and all my household chore duties are over. Sigh.. It's all good.



When I arrived yesterday, one of my three roomies was already settled in. I am so blessed because she's a Christian. I prayed that I'd find a friend who'll help me grow as a Christian and serve as a spiritual back-up. And yeah, God really answers prayers. We've been talking about our Christian walk, our high school and basically, things on life and so far, I'm learning from her.


My social skills will really put to the test now that I am in College. A few minutes ago, another roomie just checked in and I can see the personalities of my roomies are very different and distinct. I'm surtely going to meet a variety of personalities here.


Tomorrow will be our Opening Excerises and I am going to do something big. It's pretty funny though. It's just the first day of school and I am already blessed by this opportunity. I'll tell ya about it in the coming days. :)

It's my first time to transfer schools [since nursery, I've been in the same school]. Usually, my first day of school is meeting the same faces, hugging the same people. But tomorrow will be a whole lot different. It gives me the heebies-jeebies just thinking about it. But I see college as an adventure. I'm so darn excited!

[Above are snappies of my desk and my closet. I don't have Adobe Photoshop with me so I can't really enhance these photos.So I guess in the coming days, my photos will be pretty much unedited]

Tic Toc Tic Toc

A Time for Everything

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

-Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8


As the youngest member of our family, I've seen all my elder sisters grow up and move out for college. Everytime somebody leaves the door, and my companions in our room are lessened until I was left with myself, a tear would never fail to roll down on my cheeks.

And now, my time has come. It is finally my turn to clean out my closet, pack my belongings, say goodbye to my bed and move out to college.

I started packing my luggage 3 days ago. I dont know.. But I just tend to get emotional when it comes to leaving and saying goodbye.

But i guess, this is it. I'm leaving tomorrow. I'll sleep in a new bed, do homework on a different desk and store my clothes in a different closet.

Goodbye Bacolod. :)

High School 101

High school life oh high school life.

I used to say that my high school years were the best years of my life. I was free-spirited, young, carefree and ready to discover more out of life. It was all about living and enjoying the moment - finding and losing friends, experimenting with boys, getting high on infatuation, getting busy with my social life and basically taking classroom matters for granted.

High school is purely fun and nothing serious. You can do stupid things in high school and just laugh and get away with it. High school is the area of life where we become silly and pointless, in order to “find ourselves”.

This is totally true. Not long ago, I was a high school student. I was immature and lacking good sense but I had fun all along. At the end of those four years of being silly, I am a change person, with wisdom and a whole new understanding of everything, just everything.

So now here I am. Out of high school and sure is happy that I am out of it. High school years were happy and good times, but now I opt for happier and better times.

After experiencing high school, I want to help the kids who are about to enter it and those who are already in it. I’m not an expert at this, but I sure do know how to make my way around high school. So read on fellas

FRESHMEN

Being fresh from a world of innocent crushes, jackstone and effortless lessons, it’s normal that you’ll be lost in a world that is a hundred times different from where you’ve been. As freshies, you are off to a clean slate. You’ll have to decide on who you want to be in high school. The statement “be yourself” is so cliché. You can be whoever you want to be in high school. If you portray someone you are not, its okay. The real you will eventually come out along the years. Don’t play it safe honey. Be risky. Do some experiments with yourself.

One of the most crucial things you’ll have to do is to be with the right people. Choose the right kind of friends. But again, it’s normal that in your first year, you’ll be in the wrong crowd. Just don’t be in the wrong crowd for too long.
Another crucial thing you’ll have to remember is to avoid being a wallflower! Don’t be just another face in the crowd. Start making a name of your own. Be active and show off what you got. If you’re good in public speaking, volunteer in class to recite. If you’re athletic, join the varsity. If you have a knack for writing, audition for the school paper.
Prepare yourselves for a bumpy ride ahead. You can’t imagine how many things can happen in just four years.

SOPHOMORES

My sophomore year in high school was kinda ordinary. But it was during that year that I did one of the craziest things in my life.. a memory that is permanently stamped in my head. In your second year, lessons are normally undemanding and you’ve probably have found the friends you’ll spend high school with for the next three years. Things will settle down in your sophomore year.

If it is destined for you to happen, then probably something crazy will happen to you too. When that moment comes, grab the opportunity and enjoy it while it lasts.

JUNIORS

Ah, yes. Junior year is Prom year. There are a lot of things to look forward to as a junior. You’ll probably fall in love and get your hearts broken, get closer to your friends, have sleepless nights because of school projects and encounter challenges that will test how you see yourself. Well, it all depends on the person and how he spent that past 2 high school years. But personally, those were some of the many surprises I’ve met.

It’s obvious that you’ll mature and become full-grown teenagers in junior year. You’ll become conscious of your looks and get frustrated by the changes in yourself because of the ever-unpredictable hormones. By now, you have partially “found yourselves” but is still quite confused if you are who you are.

Basta things will get complicated. You’ll have some personal struggles.

SENIORS

Senior year is the cream of the crop. So many twists and turns will happen in senior year that will test how much you’ve grown and learned about life and about yourself during the past 3 years. Most of the time, you’ll find yourself failing and realizing that there is still much to learn. But hey, one year is long enough to fully “find yourselves”.

You and your friends will become like a family in your senior year. After 3 years of being silly together, you are now like brothers and sisters. As your farewell year, you’ll learn the value of not wasting a day and making every moment count. Since you’re graduating, you’ll have to hit the books more often. But also, it is during your senior year where you become restless and want something more out of life. As seniors you’ll have frequent rewinds of the times when you were still freshmen, memories of the days that had gone by.

Basically, you will all become emotional.
But trust me; senior year will be the best year of your lives [as a teenagers].

Now, aren’t you just excited?

Is Anybody Here?

Yes, my dear earthlings. Somebody is still here. I’ve been gone for quite a while. I’ve been both busy and lazy [hey, is that possible?] . So let’s just say I have been busy being lazy.


In case you haven’t noticed, our favorite sun-soaked season is over. What have you done over the cut short summer? [So many people went abroad I have to tell you. Why is everyone going abroad?!] As for moi, a few jaunts to the beach, cross-island trips, hollywood movie marathons and lots of lots of zzz’s summarize my summer. Wow. What a fun-filled summer I had huh? :)


I forget to tell you all that I am officially enrolled in UP-Visayas! My trip back to Iloilo was less troublesome as my earlier trip. This time, I made sure that I had sufficient clothes and moolah at hand and that the needed papers are carefully tuck in my file case.


But trouble will really get its way, don’t you think?


My dorm slot was endangered of being cancelled because of my late passage of the dorm application papers [d’oh? I was dumber than dumber about my documents]. But God indeed is stronger than any forces of evil out there that are trying to spill misfortune on me!


Here’s what happened:
The dorm manager decided to meet the late applicants on May 20. It was our very last chance. She wanted to communicate with us through SMS BUT her battery went dead. At that time, it was storming in Miagao [Bagyong Cosme] so there was a black out all over the province.


Black out = no electricity = can’t charge= can’t inform the late applicants = cancellation of dorm slot


But hurrah! Before her battery died, she was able to text and inform me! So there you go, I am now officially a dormer. I don’t if it was just coincidental. But I sure don’t believe in coincidences. I call it life’s little miracles. Thanks a lot Father God! If I hadn’t been accepted in the dorm, I would probably be sleeping in the streets [or forced by my mother to study here in Bacolod instead].

Everything is really exciting and scary at the same time. I’ll tell you all my college freshman jitters in another time. I don’t wanna bore you right now with my personal stories you can’t somehow relate. [ Boring blogs are.. boring. Duhness. Hehe.]

I hope you do get to realize too that miracles don’t have to be like the dead rose back to life, or Pres. GMA admitted to the ZTE scandal, or your baby fats finally disappeared. Miracles don’t have to be big stuff. Look around you. Miracles can be found in the details of life.

A Daughter Talks Back

[WARNING: Wordy thoughts ahead. But do take time to read them. :* ]

There will always be that one person in your life you just can’t seem to get along with. Whether it may be small or big things, the two of you just simply can’t achieve harmony. When you have a flashback of all the moments in time you’ve been together, arguments, wrangles and simply conflicts between the two of you noticeably dominate.

Perhaps that’s just the way it is. The two of you are parallel to each other. You are black and he is white. You like it sweet, while he prefers it bitter. You go for east and in opposition, he moves to the west.

Well in my case, it has to be my mother.

We have a bittersweet relationship. It’s pretty normal for moms and daughters to argue about stuff. At one point, I stopped wondering why we are like this, like cats and dogs. I thought that it’s probably just the natural law of nature.

I know that I am not alone. Millions of teenagers out there go through the same situation very similar to mine. Don’t you just wonder why this is the case? Mothers and daughters are meant to be like best friends. But why, in our present generation, daughters [including me] are drifting farther and farther away from their moms?

This post is an attempt to speak and voice out my point of view in this matter in behalf of the teenage population world wide experiencing the same thing. This is only one side of the issue—the side of the teenagers. I hope that when moms get to read my story, it will shed light to them and get them to understand more the sentiments of their teenage daughters.

So let me tell you why my mother and I just can’t be the best of friends.

PROBLEM # 1: First of all, my mother is a verbal kind of person. She is so loud, I gotta tell you! I even dubbed her before as the “Queen of Mouths”. There was never a day in my life that ended without her screaming at the top of her lungs, nagging and badgering about the smallest, simplest things. The worst part is, the things that come out of her mouth are just.. [sigh] you know what I mean. She deals with things in an earsplitting way.

WHAT I HAVE TO SAY: Personally, I am fed up with all the loud and negative vibrations that come out of her. This is one of the major reasons why we don’t click at all. Teenagers are stubborn and hard-headed. When mom’s address matters to us while shouting and screaming like we don’t have a pair of ears, it won’t do any help at all. It will only annoy us.

WHAT THE ‘RENTS SHOULD REALIZE: I believe that if mom talked over problems in a calmer, more modest way, then our mother-daughter relationship is so much better. It would make me realize that she really cared about my welfare and not only cared of getting mad at me. Taking things in a peaceful way and talking to us like young adults, not deaf people, would show that you respect us as individuals.

PROBLEM # 2: My mother isn’t much of an expressive kind of person. She doesn’t show much emotions. I can especially see this trait of hers during special occasions like birthdays or Valentine’s Day. She does not like showing affection like saying “I love you” or some sort. For her, things in the family are so casual that she feels like greeting us [my sisters and I] when it is our birthday isn’t needed at all. Whenever we have achievements or success, she doesn’t evidently show that she’s proud or happy for us. Well I know that deep inside she is, but she refuses to show it on her face or gestures.

The thing with my mom is, her language of love is through gifts. She prefers showing affection through material things.

WHAT I HAVE TO SAY: Don’t get me wrong. I love getting material gifts from Mama. But as a teenager, I also need attention and love which is “hands-on”. It’s very painful to feel when your mother doesn’t greet you a simple happy birthday on your birthday, or she doesn’t show appreciation for your accomplishments.

WHAT THE ‘RENTS SHOULD REALIZE: I hope that Mama wouldn’t take things so casually and informally. It is true that we can be casual because we are family but not to the point of being unconcerned about our emotional needs. As simple as it may be, birthday greetings, I love you’s and appreciations from our parents really please us.

It would also mean sooo much for us when our parents could come to special days of our lives like graduation and days of competition. FYI, one of the top reasons why teenagers go on rebellion is because of lack of care ad affection.

PROBLEM # 3: What really annoys me is the fact that my mother doesn’t seem to understand that I am a teenager, and teenagers want to have fun. Modesty aside, I am not the kind of mediocre student in school. I work my butt off to get high, excellent grades and participate in as much school activities as possible. I study hard. All I ask is to have fun, harmless Saturdays with my friends and watch movie or “chill” for a while.. have a break from books. But NO. My parents, especially my mom, want me to stay at home over the weekends and do the household chores instead!

WHAT I HAVE TO SAY: Hello? I spend five days of the week waking up early and sitting in class all day and my mom expects me to be like a housemaid on weekends! This is torture for us teenagers. We have social lives, if you may ask. It really is heartbreaking for us when are not allowed to go to trips, sleepovers or excursions when everyone else is going. Being there means A LOT for us. For teenagers, we would be like missing one half of our lives. We’re young adults. We’re old enough to take care of ourselves. Besides, we’re not that stupid to get ourselves in trouble. Believe me, we love ourselves too much.

WHAT THE ‘RENTS SHOULD REALIZE: Parents, you were once teenagers yourselves and I bet you know the very thing we are feeling. We are adventure-lovers and we want to make the most of our teenhood. We become teenagers only once in our lives. Letting us go out for a while not only shows you want us to have fun, but also is a sign that you trust us. I’m sure that being young adults, we know how valuable trust is so we wouldn’t do dumb things to ruin it.

I hope that through my story and opinions, you would get something helpful and useful to straighten out your relationship with your parents.

As for me, I don't know when we'll stop being cats and dogs. I'll have to give double efforts.

Have a special Mother’s Day!

The Video That Always Makes Me Cry

The title says it all. Watch the video to find out why. Wait for the video to fully load so that there won't be any interruption. Remember, patience will take you a long long way my dear. [This is pretty much all I have to say for now. I'm busy trying to be busy with summer. We're half way through our all-time favorite season. I ain't wastin' anymore of it!]

Metal Is In!

After many serious, nose-bleeding posts, let’s have a break shall we? It’s not advisable to drown readers with super wordy writings in a blog so today is a good day.. I’m gonna take a look at the brighter side of things.

I’m gonna give you some insights about a very very interesting topic: BRACES.

So for the past 2 months, I’ve been living with this metallic device stuck on my upper and lower teeth [ which surprisingly does not rust in my saliva! Amazing, isn’t it?]. When I was younger and braces were sooo in, I’d make my own improvised braces using aluminum foil. There was also one time when I desperately bended paper clips and tried to put them on my teeth as if they were retainers. I don’t know why but back then, I just loved those thingies on people’s teeth. Braces were status symbols back then.. so I guess at my young age, I was a coño! LOL! [Don’t know what a coño is? My goosh! How luma naman your vocabulary!]

Now that I actually have braces, I’m not as ecstatic as I am supposed to be [considering how desperate I was to have braces before]. I have braces because I have seemingly crooked, bug’s bunny teeth, not because I’m still that little coño I suppose I was before. Hahaha! I guess when you finally have that something you’ve been dying to have, you start feeling more and more less satisfied.

But hands down, having braces is a whole new experience. Here are new things I encountered that came with these new thingies on my teeth:

• Every time I eat rice, I only chew half of what I swallow. The rest get stuck in-between the brackets of the braces. Some get stuck with the wire. So this meant.. less chewing! Yaay!
  
• When I eat bread, the chewed form of it [or what we scientifically call as bolus] gets stuck again with the braces. Such a fun, disgusting thing! Believe me, you don’t want to let me smile when I eat!
  
• I don’t normally use tooth pick after meals. But now, I keep a mirror and a toothpick handy at all times.


• Having braces gave me that new distinct smile. When I smile, it has to be all out like a super smile wherein the braces really become visible. So when I pose for a picture, I resemble a shark! Arararararr! Sharkbait uhaha!
  
• I have to cut every single thing I eat into bits and pieces because I can’t bite.
  
• I always found my single colored teeth to be dull and lifeless. But with braces, my teeth became colorful and funkeh!
  

Becoming a metalmouth is something you should experience once in your life. You’ll learn valuable life lessons which you can only learn in those 2 or so years of your life spent with braces. After living with braces for barely 60 days, here are what I’ve learned:

• The art of mouth opening. When these metals had to be installed on my teeth, I had to open my mouth [without support!] for a total of 4 hours! Because of that, I have mastered the art of opening my mouth. Every angle of my lips, every corner of my mouth, every twist of my tongue, I’ve learned ‘em all.
  
• The virtue of patience. Patience really is a must for someone having braces. Just imagine lying there in your dentist’s clinic with your mouth open for four hours, without even a recess or bathroom break! More than a pound of patience was needed to survive that!
  
• Discipline and self-control. Hard, sticky and uber sweet foods aren’t allowed for someone having braces. Now, who couldn’t resist that crispy bag of Lay’s? Or that frozen chocolate covered caramel bar? But for a metalmouth, NO is the answer for those cries of the stomach.
  

The only downside of these braces is its effect on the way I talk. If you know me personally, you can attest that I am a speaker. I love talking! But these braces seem to cause a disturbance when I speak. I’m kinda anxious since I’m starting College in a month and a half and my course is all about communication [Communication and Media Studies] but I’m still having those natural speech effects that come along with having braces [ you pronounce s as th].

But all in all, braces are fun! I don’t know if other bracefaces out there appreciate braces the way I do. Maybe I’m just mababaw ang kaligayahan. I guess I have to love these metals on my teeth for one simple reason: I’m stuck with ‘em for the next 24 months of my life!

Is UP Life For Me?

Exactly one week ago, I went to the place I call as "Somewhere Else". I went to Ilo-Ilo with my sister Andrea who is currently taking up her bachelor's degree in the same university, UP- Visayas.

It will be a boring read for you guys if I tell here all the mishaps we've been through. So I'm going to spare you the pain and make a summary.. simply because I love you [and I dont like boring people to death!].


Okay.. I've never been into a trip as troublesome as my trip to UP-Visayas. I went there with incomplete entrance credentials to be passed to the Registrar[which was the sole purpose why we went there in the first place]. So my sister and I had to go back and forth,like a hundred times, from building to building. And take note: we had to ride a tricycle [which inconsiderately charged a pricey fare] from building to building!


And the pila was sooo long so we had to spend 2 nights in the dorm. The worse part is, we didn't have sufficient clothes with us! Believe me, I wore the same jeans for three straight days! And my sister had to sleep in her undies! Hahaha! So funny! We ended up buying boy shirts in the banwa [like a small city]. Why boy shirts? Because the female shirts they were selling were so baduy and buki [out-of-date]!


Oh, and haven't I told you that I lost my high school card [which was uber important!] while we were strolling in the streets of Miagao? Men! Good thing we traced the way we've been through and found it! My sister and I were also running out of moolah. Everything was unexpected that my sister didn't bring her ATM. But thanks to some helpful people [yes.. there are really good-hearted people left on this planet] we managed to survive.

So there, we went home to Bacolod wearing boy clothes and a pocketful of memorable misfortunes.

Most of you might think that because of all the hindrances I've met, studying in UP aint for me. You might think I'm jinxed. Well at first I think so too. Sometimes, I doubt if I made the right decision of moving to another place away from home.But I realized that hello? I survived all those obstacles! Even if a thousand barriers came my way, here I am.. still clinging to my hope of having a new life somewhere else. Surviving those hindrances makes me even more confident that it is God's will for me to study in UP. I know I must starve these doubts of mine.


I have to tell you though, life there is so different from the life I am comfortable with. But this is the time for me to receive change. Nobody said that achieving what I want will be as easy as 1 2 3. Sacrifice is a part of aiming for a higher goal.

Somewhere Else

When I was on the verge of graduating and was thinking over the real life that is about to begin after high school, I promised myself that I would study in a prestigious university and leave my hometown ,Bacolod, and start over with a clean slate.

My goal was to move from Bacolod as far as possible that’s why I really really wanted to go to UP Diliman. Besides that, we all know that UP Diliman is among the greatest universities in the country. But most of the time, my plans aren’t parallel to Father God’s plans, so I ended up in UP Ilo-Ilo instead.

I wallowed for a while and eventually accepted what He has in store for me. But I have to tell you, a lot of tears were shed along that process of acceptance.

So now, one out of the two things that I promised myself is fulfilled. I’m going to an excellent school for college. This leaves me one more thing to fulfill : starting over with a clean slate as I bid goodbye to Bacolod.

You might think that I wanting to start all over is brought about by a bitter history and unpleasant memories. Well, not exactly. The truth is I am actually not quite sure of why I want it so bad to leave Bacolod City and go back to square one in a different place. I have sweet and beautiful memories here in Bacolod. This is where I first saw sunlight, learned my alphabet and 1 2 3’s, and discovered the many faces of life. The 16 years that I have lived in Bacolod had been great, wonderful years. It is in this place where I met beautiful people who later on became teachers of life’s hardest lessons, and where I became brave enough to make my own identity. Yet, why do I want to leave the place where I grew up?.. The place where I took my first breath?

After much thinking, I’ve realized important matters about my life here in Bacolod. I enjoyed living here and being with its people during those 16 years, but somehow, as days pass by, I am starting to get choked. I can’t fully explain it. This place and these people seem to become hostile to me. The beautiful people I’ve met who taught me life’s hardest lessons seem to have become the ones who make my life hard. This place where I became brave seems to turn me back into a coward.

Yes, I enjoyed and loved the people and this place during those 16 years which I lived in Bacolod. But it is not a matter of the past. It is a matter of the present. And at present, I am not enjoying and loving life in Bacolod as I did in the yesterdays. I’m not making sweet memories anymore, only bitter ones. I think this place is getting smaller and smaller and I am being caught in the middle. The people here are becoming more and more like the kind of people I just can’t seem to bear with.

I am starting to believe that I am not meant to be here, to be in Bacolod. My life is not meant to be spent in this place. I’m starting to think that most [but not all] of the people I allowed to walk through my life are simply going to pass by like a wind without even leaving a mark.

The truth is, I am not happy anymore. I can’t seem to find sincere happiness here in Bacolod and its people. There is just something I can’t seem to find in this place. As my real life is only beginning, I am going to find that something that is missing somewhere else..

Yes, maybe somewhere ese, I might find it.

Little Did I know

Four years ago, I took my first step into the life of high school. Little did I know the little and big things in store for me. Little did I know how amazing, beautiful and amusing people I'd meet. Little did I know the easy and demanding lessons I'd learn. Little did I know I'd learn the hard way. Little did I know how much I'd grow and let go. Little did I know the new, strange emotions I'd feel.Little did I know I'd make many many wonderful memories, memories I'd still laugh about even when my hair is grey. Little did I know that in high school, I'd experience the best times of my life.



Now, four years later, I take my final step, marking the end of these carefree days. The rollercoaster is over and done. Every spin, twirl, thrill and smooth-sailings were fun, but I'm ready to put a period on this story.


I am going to start a new one.. going to embark on a different kind of ride.

To my high school friends, its been pleasurable spending every single day with you. Your presence made the ride worthwhile.

To my high school teachers, those four years of classroom lectures are like my educational savings box. I'm sure they will be put to good use in College.

To Mama and Papa, living alone with you was a whole new experience, an experiencethat definitely brought me closer to you. Despite your sterness and KJ-ness, you are cool parents after all. Labyu.

To my alma mater, you are my second home. I spent 13 years of my life in your four corners and I'd have to say, those 13 years were incredible. I learned, loved and lived with you.

To my Father God, everything, every single thing, I owe it all to You. Through this rollercoaster ride, I'd look beside me and always found You there.

Thanks ya'll. Mwah mwah mwah! [sus, drama. LOL]

A Story

Last month, I went to a retreat together with my classmates [I've mentioned it in my past posts] . In the dining hall of our retreat house, there was a framed portrait in which a story was printed. Some force somehow pulled my eyes to read what was printed on it. Thanks a lot to that force! What I read was surely an enlightenment to what I was feeling at that moment. I was still upset about not going to UP Diliman at that time, and I went to retreat with a heavy heart.
But that framed square-shaped portrait was a blessing. Perhaps, God's way of reminding me of His will and plan for me. He really moves in mysterious ways! Imagine? He used that plain portrait to talk to me. It just shows that even the littlest things, or what we consider the most unimportant people, can be used by God as instruments. [the picture on your right is the actual portrait. :)]

Here is the actual story printed on it. Read and be blessed just as I was blessed. :]
[its the long version though, but trust me, its worth the read.]

Three Trees

Once upon a mountain top, three little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when they grew up.The first little tree looked up at the stars and said: "I want to hold treasure. I want to be covered with gold and filled with precious stones. I'll be the most beautiful treasure chest in the world!" The second little tree looked out at the small stream trickling by on it's way to the ocean."I want to be traveling mighty waters and carrying powerful kings.I'll be the strongest ship in the world!" The third little tree looked down into the valley below where busy men and women worked in a busy town."I don't want to leave the mountain top at all. I want to grow so tall that when people stop to look at me, they'll raise their eyes to heaven and think of God. I will be the tallest tree in the world."

Years passed. The rain came, the sun shone, and the little trees grew tall. One day three woodcutters climbed the mountain.The first woodcutter looked at the first tree and said,
"This tree is beautiful. It is perfect for me."With a swoop of his shining axe, the first tree fell. Now I shall be made into a beautiful chest,I shall hold wonderful treasure!" The first tree said.
The second woodcutter looked at the second tree and said, "This tree is strong. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining axe, the second tree fell."Now I shall sail mighty waters!" thought the second tree. "I shall be a strong ship for mighty kings!"

The third tree felt her heart sink when the last woodcutter looked her way. She stood straight and tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the woodcutter never even looked up. "Any kind of tree will do for me."He muttered. With a swoop of his shining axe, the third tree fell.The first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter brought her to a carpenter's shop. But the carpenter fashioned the tree into a feedbox for animals.The once beautiful tree was not covered with gold, nor with treasure. She was coated with saw dust and filled with hay for hungry farm animals.

The second tree smiled when the woodcutter took her to a shipyard, but no mighty sailing ship was made that day. Instead, the once strong tree was hammered and sawed into a simple fishing boat. She was too small and too weak to sail to an ocean, or even a river; instead she was taken to a little lake.

The third tree was confused when the woodcutter cut her into strong beams and left her in a lumberyard. "What happened?" The once tall tree wondered. "All I ever wanted was to stay on the mountain top and point to God..."Many many days and night passed. The three trees nearly forgot their dreams.

But one night, golden starlight poured over the first tree as a young woman placed her newborn baby in the feedbox."I wish I could make a cradle for him." her husband whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth and the sturdy wood. "This manger is beautiful" she said. And suddenly the first tree knew he was holding the greatest treasure in the world.

One evening a tired traveler and his friends crowded into the old fishing boat.The traveler fell asleep as the second tree quietly sailed out into the lake.Soon a thundering and thrashing storm arose. The little tree shuddered. She knew she did not have the strength to carry so many passengers safely through with the wind and the rain.The tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched out his hand, and said, "Peace." The storm stopped as quickly as it had begun. And suddenly the second tree knew he was carrying the King of heaven and earth.

One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when her beamwas yanked from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as she was carried through an angry jeering crowd. She shuddered when soldiers nailed a man's hands to her. She felt ugly and harsh and cruel.

But on Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the earth trembledwith joy beneath her, the third tree knew that God's love had changed everything. It had made the third tree strong. And every time people thought of the third tree, they would think of God. That was better than being the tallest tree in the world.

So next time you feel down because you didn't get what you wanted, just sit tight and be happy because God is thinking of something better to give you ....

Have a blessed Easter!

I'm over it!

Yaaaay! I am over my appearing and disappearing act. I am.. freakin' officiallly back! Yeah, beybeh! *applause applause*



Now that I am back there are sooo many things in line for me to blab about. But since I dont wanna bore my readers, I made up my mind that I'll just save them for the later days when I desperately don't have a topic to blog about. Hey, I'm not the kind of blogger who whines and rants about how cruel life is. I'm a cool blogger. [wuuut? LOL]

I bet I sound very hyper today. I dont know, but I am. Maybe because I just ate corn flakes or something.. Or maybe, it's because I am now wearing in my mouth [and for the next 2 years].. BRACES! [No, no. I wont post a picture of my braces here. Since I had 'em on, I haven't had a decent, cute picture. My smile looks awful! >:c ]

Yes, lads and gents, I am now a BRACEFACE, a METALMOUTH, a BETTY LA FEA [especially when I wear glasses] , whatever you look call it. It's a whole new experience for me, and so far.. ahmm.. I'm definitely experiencing the downside of it. I haven't eaten real food for the past four days and I keep on showering saliva when I speak, but as I've said, It is a whooole new experience. I'm starting college in two months and I don't mind having that new look. :)

And speaking of college, I just want to tell you that I am so ready for it! Im graduating this 26th of March. The sadness and reluctance to leave high school is over. I'm ready to leave high school, but not that enthusiastic to leave the people. I'll miss surely miss 'em but Im looking forward to meeting new folks in UP Visayas.

Oh? Haven't I told you guys about my college school? Well, Yeah.. I am going to UP Visayas particularly in Miag-ao. I know, I know. I really wanted to go to Diliman but God has other plans for moi. I cried about it of course but acceptance spells peace. It's still UP right? And besides, Im going to make sunog my kilay so that I'll get enough grades to transfer to Diliman when Im on my second year. :D As of now, I will be enjoying the serenity in UP Miag-ao since it's situated in the mountains. See? Away from temptations. That's more like it.

Anyway, I might be boring you now, so my updates end here.

Ooooh. Before I forget..have you noticed my new layout? I designed everything myself! The banner, the code, every single thing [pride pride pride]. It's a work of a Photoshop amateur so please excuse the imperfections. ^-^ I've updated the side bar and added songs I'm liking at the moment. Im not quite sure why the theme of it is tattered, torn paper. When my creative juices flow, they are unpredictable. I did this sponatenously.Whatever comes into my mind then.. that is it! Hahaha! This new layout is a sure sign that I am now going to blog on regular basis [i hope so]. Give me constructive comments on my new blog layout if you like.They will surely make me a better Photoshopper. Tata!