MORE Than A Superhero

So I think I'm a superhero. . . in disguise. With some sort of superpowers within. . . Doing extraordinary things, or things extraordinarily. . . . Ok,that's bragging. :)

But my thought of me being a superhero is not just because of the things I do or the superpowers I have. . . It's because of where I came from . . . . . . . and where is that? Well, I came from THE POWERFUL HEART of an ordinary person, s,but she's omeone FAR MORE than a superhero.

My HOME

You see, this isn't really the perfect heart one wishes to have. It's cracked and wounded. It has patches and stitches. Its color has faded. But, it still GLOWS . . . .  And it glows NOT IN SPITE OF, but BECAUSE OF these imperfections.

Of course this heart belongs to my one and only MOM. :)) This is not the first time I am writing about her, but this is the first time I'm doing this not as an assignment or as a featured article in a school newspaper. I'm writing because I AM GRATEFUL.





I may be a superhero but she is more than one. I may have done extraordinary things but she has done SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS ones. I may have superpowers within, but she? SHE HAS MAGIC.

"A human body can bear only up to 45 del (unit) of pain. But at a time of giving birth, a woman feels up to 57 del of pain. This is similar to twenty bones getting fracture at a time."

If the above trivia is true, then isn't it magical that she gave birth to FIVE kids, all in normal delivery?

BUT . . . .

Waking up at 2 in the morning to prepare food for her little carenderia, cooking and serving customers with all smiles even if she's sick, playing the role of a mom and a dad at the same time, and 13 YEARS (and counting) of raising five lovely superheroes ALL BY HERSELF -- are even more magical.


To survive all the pains and sufferings and sadness and sorrows; to heal her own wounds and let them leave scars of learning; to patch the holes in her heart and stitch the cuts - I guess I will never know how she did those. I wouldn't bother anyway. I'm happy admiring all the MAGIC OF HER MOTHERHOOD. She's not perfect, of course, but you know, she did what she could, and she does what she can. So who am I to ask for more?

products of a powerful heart

flowers and my diploma made her smile

celebrating her Nth year on Earth

Christmas 2011

the SUUUUUUPERHEORES. . . Happy together :))

Mons . . . . Ugh,well . . . . they are SIMPLY AMAZING.

The Joy of 'Sight Seeing'

The feeling of freedom and joy upon watching kids laugh.
photo credit

I was supposed to go to Dasma with my friends early this morning to help them find a Retreat House, and basically just enjoy the holiday hanging out with them. Unfortunately, my 'wisdom tooth', trying to make me feel its existence, has been giving me an irritating and almost unbearable pain. So I had to go to the dentist and have my tooth extracted this afternoon, and while waiting for my turn, I decided to go with my 13-year old sister, together with two other teenagers and a 5-year old really cute and chubby little girl. It was tiring to take care of the kids, to run with them, chase them, play with them, but it was fun to laugh with them. I'm not that old yet, but I guess I really felt the lack of daily exercise today so I sat down and just watched them play. I looked around and watched different kinds of people in the plaza: some elders playing tennis, students sitting seriously working on their thesis, tricycle drivers playing chess, students practicing a ballroom dance number for their P.E., parents walking with their kids, guys playing basketball, kids shouting and giggling on the playground. It's just amazing to see these people; the loud laughter of the kids around me was music to my ears, and the their smiles were joy to my heart. The simplicity of life when you are just there sitting, and looking around, trying to understand the stories of the people you see. It felt wonderful to me. :))

My friends had a great time in Dasma, and I really wished I could have joined them, but staying in the plaza today made my Monday totally different from all other normal Mondays I had (and not just because it's a holiday). Indeed,this is a life made lovely. :))

7 Deadly Sins

Hope to get to know more about others! :))

envy

seven things you lack and covet

1. self-confidence

2. writing skills

3. clear skin

4. time management

5. creativity

6. romantic relationship

7. cooking skills

sloth

seven things that you neglect to do

1. go to church

2. pray

3. study

4. read

5. write

6. exercise

7. clean my room

greed

seven worldly material desires

1. watches

2. iPhone

2. clothes

3. DLSR

4.  make-up

5.shoes

6. house

7. car

pride

seven great things in my life

1. I have a loving family. (with a great mom and pretty sistahs!)

2. I'm surrounded with wonderful friends and lovable students.

3. My job gives me a fulfilled heart everyday.

4. I do little acts of kindness to people around. (from charity works to running/buying stuff for a cause)

5. I'm a LOLA (Labor of Love) founder! (an "association' of  employees,who do overtime work without pay)

6. I have started managing my finances and so far,so good. :)

7. 7. I have a little sister who's growing up so fast, and growing up as an adorable and wonderful teenager.

 gluttony

seven guilty pleasures

1. eating ice cream even when I'm sick

2. talking! :D

3. Twitter

4. internet

5. watching America's Next Top Model (Yayks!)

6. (Ugh! Can't think of two more)

7. 

lust

seven things I love about love

   1. the hugs

2. the *kilig* moments

3. having someone to sit by the beach and watch the sunset with 

4. messages that make me smile

5. someone to talk to (who is always available) about anything and everything under the sun

6.  happiness

7. a best friend, a kuya, a lover

 wrath

seven things that make you angry

1. gossips (and gossipers)

2. pretentious

3. flirt

4. students (people) who throw trash anywhere and everywhere (even if the trash can is just a few steps away)

5. disrespectful people

6. liars

7. arrogant

Whew! It took me almost an hour to finish this. Join us! Drop by this blog  and get started. :))

My 'First' Paycheck

This time, the total amount I received matters. This time, all the deductions matter (I even searched for the tax computation to check and understand why I have such huge withholding tax)This time, even my absences matter. And this time, I thought, I should have insisted that, all those days in December that I should have been having my vacation somewhere out there (just like any other contractual faculty members like me) instead of working the whole day and even staying until 8pm in the office to finish some paper works, be compensated. This time, my paycheck DOES matter.

I had always been good in managing my money, specially when I was in college when I had to support myself. I survived my four years in the university receiving a weekly salary (depending on the mood of my students if they wanted to have class), and using that for all my daily expenses, as well as saving for my tuition and other fees in school. It wasn't enough of course, so by "managing money" I mean, really, putting into practice the Filipino saying, "kung maiksi ang kumot, matutong mamaluktot". And so when I received my first ever paycheck in my first ever job after college, I was extremely happy. Not just because I knew it was worth all the lessons I taught, test papers, quizzes, essays, and projects I checked, and all paper works I worked on; but because I knew then that I didn't have to think how much I should leave for my daily fare, food, monthly house rent, electricity and water, and to think if there would be anything left for my savings. My first year of salary (including my bonuses) was a 10-90 distribution between me and my mom. I didn't care that much whether there would be something left for me or none. I didn't care that much for all the deductions, for all the overtime I wasn't paid for, and for all my absences. I was extremely happy helping my mom and my family achieving the level of 'financial stability' (woah) we had always wanted to achieve. The following year I decided to study so I HAD to leave money for my tuition and other school expenses. So it became a 50-50 distribution. But other than that,nothing changed in the way I handled my money.

But as 2012 opened, I came to realize that I AM NOT GETTING ANY YOUNGER. And as much as I want to remain the LOLA (Labor Of Love Association) President, and as much as I want not to care of how much I receive and where I spend them, I just CAN'T ANYMORE. I have to save for my future (naks). I have to know how to manage my money, the way I used to when I was in college. And with all the bills and monthly expenses that my family has to pay (not to mention that my sisters are starting to have their own family already), I HAVE TO CARE MUCH about my paycheck.

Today I received my first paycheck for the year, and the first paycheck that I know, I CARE MUCH ABOUT.

This time, the total amount I received matters. This time, all the deductions matter. This time, even my absences matter. This time, my paycheck DOES matter.

The Belle of Cheerfulness

My heart just melted. :')

Rhincel John O. De Veas

BSED-III

Quiz no. 5

The Belle of Cheerfulness

Simplicity is beauty… well that’s a very famous saying. It is actually nice to find a person so supple yet so exquisite like sugar and spice combined. A person like that is inspiring, actually, moving. It’s really a delight to feel that person’s presence and warmth all around your atmosphere.

            She is like an angel, a very sweet angel. Oops… she’s ma’am Valerie Go.

            Well, in her simple jokes, she can make a crowd laugh. She actually looks like a gentle lamb with all the wits and humor of a wolf. She is actually one of the most spirited people I know with all the humbleness around her.

            Maybe I sound like bull, but she definitely inspires me. She inspires me to be better in what I do. She was my teacher for two semesters and she made an impact to my life so great that I became just a whole new person. It’s like magic, no, it’s like enchantment. Spending two semesters in her class, the writer in me was born. Suddenly something deeper in my soul purged. It suddenly wanted to came out and shout what it can do.

            I’ll never know how she did it, but definitely I owe her a lot. She tells us her story and it somewhat moves something inside me. I suddenly started to believe that the most impossible things can actually start with a courageous step towards what blocks your way. Meeting her also gave birth to my maturity. Though she was my friend too, she never consent my wrongs. I learned suddenly how to be responsible for my own actions and be more firm in making my decisions.

            She’s beauty and brains combined with a splattering of glow and cheer. I really admire her passion in teaching, to somehow make a difference to other people’s life. She’s like a total package of goodness and fun. She definitely knows how to carry out a lively discussion in the most boring moments.

            She is an inspiration, she is my friend, and she is ma’am Valerie. 

Smiles for 2012

It's amazing how time flies! Another year has ended and here I am, on the 23rd year of my life. 2011 has been good to me,not because the whole year went easy and I didn't have difficulties but because it gave me the chance to live my 22nd year full of learnings and realizations in life. A usual listing of reflections as another year ends sounds good but I guess there's this one big thing I got the previous years (specially last year) that I would still want to carry on this year and the years to come.

 

Smile.

I've always been a crybaby and it's just depressing to cry a lot. The previous year had given me a lot of reasons to cry and it was just so painful. Though I felt better (somehow) after shedding those tears (and I mean, TEARS), I just don't feel like crying anymore. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong about crying, but too much of it is just not good. People have their own share of dramas in life, and these are all part of the past, whether you dwell on it, mourn over it, or just smile or laugh at it. Your today is more important,so why bother crying too much over something that's always been part of your yesterday?

Cry a little, SMILE A LOT. It works better. It does far more than we can imagine. It heals the most painful wound.  It brings joy to the heart and soul. It juts lightens up everything, plus it makes you more beautiful. And besides, IT'S FREE.

Smiling is infectious,

You can catch it like the flu.

Someone smiled at me today,

And I started smiling too.

~Author Unknown

I had a lot of people smiled at me, some I knew, some I didn’t. Nevertheless, their smiles just made my days more wonderful. So for this year, I would want to share more smiles to those around me, with the hope that the smiles I had last year which brought joy to my whole year would also bring joy to theirs.