Who are we? We are One.

Why is it that so much importance is placed on just a fortunate arrangement of bones? On some fortunate amount and location of hair?

Why is it that people let themselves be defined by their reflection on some piece of fancy metal? How is it that they never realize that a person’s worth--a person’s life--a person--can never ever be defined by what their eyes’ receptors interpret from the light reflected from such a thing as a polished surface?

Humans—me—you—are so much more than what the light shows of us. But how is it that so few people ever see(realize, truly realize)that. How can they see and not see?

How can they not see their auras, themselves expanding, filling all the spaces—the gaps, leaving nothing untouched—How can they not see themselves in the beauty of the first drop of water that falls from the skies portending rain? How can they not see themselves in the violence of people spewing forth from their mouths lances of hatred which leaves deep cuts on another’s soul? How can they not see themselves in the pain of a mother bringing forth another living creature into this wonderful world? How can they not see themselves in the tragedy of loving and not being loved in return?

How can they not see themselves—and not see fully?

“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

“The world is full of stories, but the stories are all one.” – The 5 People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom

The physical world is not our only reality.

God will never judge us because of how we look, how we smell, or how we sound like. He will not close the doors of heaven for us just because we are not slim, thin, or "beautiful" by the material world's standards.

"What is essential is invisible to the eye." -- The Little Prince

A Concert For A Friend. :)

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Please help, guys. Neither I nor you may know this person, but that should not stop any one of us from helping another person in need. :) Spread the word.

"When a person dies of hunger, it has not happened because God did not take care of him or her. It has happened because neither you nor I wanted to give that person what he or she needed." - Mo. Theresa

"It is in giving that we recieve." - Prayer of Saint Francis

"The smallest deed is better than the greatest intention." - Jon Burroughs

"If I can stop one heart from braking, I shall not live in vain." - Emily Dickinson


"It is the things we always hold
That we will lose some day;
The only thing we ever keep
Are what we give away." - excerpt from the poem "Song" by Harold C. Sandall

Dividing Line

I was just thinking of something while I've been reading our CLE(Christian Life Edu.) book. And I've decided to name thoughts like these seemingly-random-but-not-really thoughts I run into while I'm studying and having one of my AHA! moments. I now call them as my own personal...

RaT(s)

Ra = Random
T(s) = Thought(s)

My RaT(s) for today:

What truly is the dividing line of right from wrong? How do we just so intrinsically know which one is which without really having to agonize about it? Is it really just because we grew up learning about the Ten Commandments and such? Is it truly just because of exposure? But how is it that we can still do what is right even without having to believe in something--anything? It's just a WOAH thought for me. Was there an internal device built inside each one of us to make us so very capable of knowing and differentiating right from wrong?

And truly, if there is no difference from right and wrong or if there is NO right or wrong, then isn't it another intriguing wonder to just think that the people who are fighting, dying for what is right are just dying for NOTHING really? It's just something they themselves believe is right. Or does the reality that they BELIEVE it is right make all the difference?

What wonders. :) I love thinking.

Sick is in VOGUE

Having your pharynx and tonsils swelling like inflated balloons really sucks. They hurt like heck, and every time I swallow feels like sandpaper is being rubbed against them. :(

But I've definitely realized that health really is one of the things you don't realize is so important until you lose it. I want my health back and the good things is, it seems as if it is finally returning. I don't want to be absent in school! Might miss too much.

Anyhow, here's to health.


My Youngest SISTER

Thank God It's Friday. :)

YEY! Another update. It's been quite long. A lot has happened to me this summer. :) Though, I believe my favorite change is my change of attitude towards life in general. I've just become more cheerful, easygoing, and more down to earth. I'm not taking things so seriously anymore, which is a good thing for me. I am hoping, though, that this change isn't just a temporary one. I hope it isn't just the result of not being very stressed yet. But, I'm living and I'm loving it. :)

"The Secret" is this video/book or idea says you can control your life if you can control the way you think. The secret is just that. Think positive so you attract positive. It's generally what they call the law of attraction. And you attract things, whatever they may be, whenever you think of them. This idea have really changed my mindset about things. I know it may be BS, but believing that you can do something before doing it really does help in finally achieving it in the end. I have read this quote and I've never really realized deeply what it means, until recently..."Whether you think you can or cannot, you're right." (Forgot who said it. :( I'm sorry.)

And this one quote have really influenced my perspective in life too. "Realize deeply that the present moment is all you ever have." --Eckhart Tolle

There was also this e-mail which my aunt sent to our family Yahoo!Groups. It contains real good advice, in my opinion. It just generally boils down to this main idea: Follow your dreams; do what you want and love or what makes you happy; life is good. Love life. :)

Regina Brett's 45 life lessons and 5 to grow on
by Regina Brett
Sunday May 28, 2006, 10:13 AM
To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolls over to 50 this week, so here's an update:
1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Overprepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative - dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

So that's that. My viewpoint has changed and with that change my life has too. Never say never. :) (I used to hate that cliche but it's really true.) Stop think about hate, cannot, do not, or whatnot. Start living your life with the mindset "I can".

Love life. Embrace it. Laugh, Smile, just LIVE.
God Bless,
Kristina



Me and My Best Friend, Denise :)

Supposedly Continuation of Previous Post...(But, I guess not. :| )=> Gay Rights

The title's pretty self explanatory. But anyhow, the idea WAS to expound more on stuff that has been happening in my life, not just what's going on inside my head. Instead, my neurotic brain neurons have been incited by the topic on Tyra today. "Is GAY the new BLACK?"

Her show addressed the current issues about gay rights. She had some "debaters" come over and defend their own side. Pro or Anti gay.

INEVITABLY, the Bible came into the discussion. WAIT, I'm getting ahead of myself here. So I want to clear this out to everyone that I DO NOT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS with same sex marriages or the like. I am not ANTI gay, nor do I think I'm pro it either. Yea, confusing much?

I guess, I'm just kinda detached. I'm indifferent. If someone chooses to be gay, then I would respect that. But I admit that I WILL always have feelings of disgust and a sense of wrongness about same sex relationships. AND, I'm being honest here. I'm admitting that my thinking has been affected by my environment. And that is the Catholic setting of my life. I am a Roman Catholic. The normal, or I guess, conventional, thing with us here have always been "I now pronounce you husband and wife". Not wife and wife nor husband and husband. SO my views have been influenced by my religion.

BUT, see, my initial reaction towards gay rights/same sex relationships have been "Oh, no big deal. I'm fine with that.(Gay people/homosexuality)" But then, I realized--yea, for the people who've been reading this for a time now OR the people who does know me, I DO argue with myself a lot(WHAT? I believe it is a way of finding more about yourself. It's self rediscovery, or just you know, reflection? Just--it has always been a belief of mine that the only way to get at answers and to know more about yourself or whatnot is by ASKING QUESTIONS. You know, simplest example: How did Isaac Newton discover that the energy/force/whatever which caused the apple to fall from the tree is the phenomenon we now know and call as gravity? By ASKING QUESTIONS. Or simply, I guess, by wondering about it.)SERIOUS DIGRESSION THERE! Hahaha, sorry for that...--I REALIZED that if one of the people who are close to me, like my sister, mother, or my own FUTURE children would be homosexual, I would not really be fully comfortable with that. I would always prefer for them to remain heterosexual.

HOWEVER, I am not opposed to homosexuality. I am not homosexual, so I admit I do NOT know how it is to be gay. I would not be presumptuous enough to speak ob their behalf or to tell them that being gay is a choice or whatnot, THOUGH that has always been what's been taught to us, Catholics. That it is your CHOICE whether to be gay or straight. So back to my stance on this issue, me being NEITHER anti-gay nor pro-gay...BUt, I guess I'm leaning more onto the PRO-GAY side. It's just that I believe whether gay or straight, people are still people. Humans created by God. For lego's sake, even mass murderers, rapists, psychopaths, ETC. ARE STILL CHILDREN OF GOD. We are all God's masterpiece. ("The world is full of stories, but the stories are all one." Yes, from "The 5 People You Meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom) ALL of us, trees, the water, the sounds of the river flowing by, the cool breeze of spring, the gentle pink of newly blossomed flowers, ALL OF THESE THINGS, ALL OF US IS God's masterpiece. All of us, together.

So what am I getting at? (I admit, I got a little carried away with that line of thought.) I'm saying that these homosexual people are still supposed to be treated like CHILDREN OF GOD. They are still supposed to be loved, therefore, EVEN if they are gay, they are not supposed to be discriminated and be BANNED from marrying. I mean, discrimination is an act of hate, especially when it leads to gruesome acts like murder, ridicule and hostility. Gay people are first and foremost STILL PEOPLE. Therefore, they ARE NOT mistakes or for heaven's sake, abominations of God. They still deserve respect.

So I guess or presume, that is, that the previous paragraph have most likely firmly established my stand on this issue. I am pro-gay, though I am straight.

But what's really incited a reaction out of me is the fact that (like what I had said earlier...) INEVITABLY, the Bible came into the discussion.

Traditionalists or just the public IN GENERAL have always argued and believed that the Bible IS AGAINST homosexuality. So during the "DEBATE" in the Tyra Banks Show, the subject of the Bible's teaching regarding relationships had come into the discussion (I forgot how exactly. I'm not exactly sure if the other side(antis) had mentioned it first or if it was because this one gay man who mentioned that he was beaten by his dad who used the Bible as an excuse to beat the "GAY" out of him.) so one woman, who is a lawyer, if I'm not mistaken, from the pro-homosexuals mentioned the Bible passage about plucking out the eye that causes you to sin, etc. etc., and argued that if the Bible was to be followed word per word then we all would be walking around with just one eye and an arm.

But, see, though she is one the pro side with me, I think that she had misunderstood the Bible, if she really does believe this. (But, I MAY be mistaken. I could have misunderstood her...But the way she said it, it came out like she was discrediting the Bible.) I've always believed that our God is a Loving God, therefore, he loves each and everyone of us because when it comes down to it, we all comprise his great masterpiece, we are all his children. Therefore, with Him being LOVING, then I don't believe that he would discriminate against homosexuality or would he be against it just because he created man and woman to be a couple.

People might say this is presumptuous, to just speak in behalf of God, or to presume to know what God thinks about this. But, these are my opinions, so please, read the whole entry first? I'm not YET done explaining myself.

You see, I've always believed that God knows our weaknesses, he knows our DARKEST secrets, he knows that we sin and think ill of others and I know that in spite of all our shortcomings and all the things that makes us horrible God still loves us. (THERE ARE SO MANY THOUGHTS RUNNING THROUGH MY HEAD RIGHT NOW, And once again, I am frustrated by the fact that I can't type in all of them at once. I can't even fully sort them out in my head yet...Just one huge tangled web) So I did a little research of my own. I picked up my Bible and just reread the part in the Genesis about Adam and Eve. About Man and Woman. And nothing in the Bible says that it is against the same sex relationships. It did say that woman and man become one flesh and that woman is man's companion. But it did NOT say that man AND man cannot be one flesh.

(Hahahaha...)

Yes, I did take into consideration the fact that maybe, the idea of homosexuality was not born yet at the time the Bible was written, BUT, the Bible is full of symbolism, is it not? So what if this is just another symbol or sign God is trying to tell us?

The Bible did say that man and woman are joined together, or become one flesh "to give back to the large human family the treasure of humanity which they received from it." In simpler terms, the purpose of marrying someone is to copulate with that someone and therefore produce an offspring. In one word, PROCREATION. So maybe people got the idea that the Bible is saying NO to same sex marriages because it does not allow the married couple to procreate in the traditional style. But I thought, maybe this could have been the rule before because there were still very few people then compared to how many we are now. So it was vital for humans to procreate if humanity as a species was to survive. Or for any species to survive, for that matter. (Procreation is the key.)

But, think about it. Today, how many people are there? Billions. There are massive population explosions which are especially prevalent in third world countries. Meaning, excluding the possibility of another ice age or an asteroid wiping out the human race, I think our current population level is pretty stable for the survival of the human species. So why not allow same sex marriages when thre are still so many people out there to ensure the survival of the human race? I don't know, I guess, this is a rather radical idea. But, it's just what I think.

Also, taking into consideration the fact that there are so many orphaned children who are in need of parents, why not allow these couples who technically can not "procreate" to adopt them. Therefore, both parties are happy. (I know, there are so many factors to take into consideration.)

And I just have to say this to all the people who are using the Bible against homosexuality and saying that gay people will go to hell, have you read the TEN COMMANDMENTS. OR did you even REALLY READ the Gospels in the BIBLE? What is the two main commandments? Jesus said, (Mt 12:30-31)"You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. And after this comes another one: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. THERE IS NO GREATER THAN THESE TWO." So discrimination against same sex marriages? Is that an act of love? You answer me.

P.S. I guess I am not so indifferent, after all. :)

Quote for today:


"The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storm
terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient
reason for remaining ashore."

-- Vincent Van Gogh

An Entry of a Different Kind

So...I've been thinking. (What a surprise! 8D)

And I thought that it might be a good thing (for I dunno who/what... I guess, for me?) if I started writing inside my blog about things about myself. I mean, not just my thoughts/complaints and whateva... Just updating this blog about what's happening with my life and all that bejeezus. And I thought it would be more updated if I post entries about my life at least once a month. At the end or beginning or in the middle. I'm not really strict about these things. I guess, whenever the opportunity reveals itself.

Hahaha, not to intentionally bore you--whoever YOU are--with the constant cynical track my mind chooses to run on. But I just can't resist. I have to ask: "Who the heck would read this anyway, right?" Hahaha...Of course, I have some fantasies about that, but then again, that's why they're called FANTASIES. Fiction. Not real. Might as well be called lies...

Anyhow, cynicalness aside, what has been going on with my life right now?

Well, just 15 mins. from the current time, 2:45PM, I will be going to my Hip Hop classes with my brother because he will be first dropped off at his school for Frisbee practice, I think.

Then, I will come home, watch American Idol, eat, sleep... you fill out the rest.

Hahahaha...just kidding. But that IS what my schedule would be like today.

So, I had managed to secure myself some dance classes. I love it. I love the people there. They're absolutely welcoming, friendly and just NICE. (Sorry for using the word with NO meaning.) I've been active on youtube lately too. I've been watching some people dancing, doing covers, and of course, stumbled upon the YouTube phenomenon, FRED. Hahaha...LOL. You should definitely check out Robert Muraine, though. He's FANTASTIC. Check out his audition in So You Think You Can Dance. NOW that, THAT was phenomenal.

Hmmm...what else? Well, my family or Kuya Jacob (the leader in this endeavor of ours), have decided to create this family book for our grandparents. Narrations of the parts of their lives that have been influential to them. Their own love story, Lolo's (Grandpa) experiences during the second world war, or just our favorite memories spent with them. It's kinda interesting. And I guess, this way, we're able to bond more. And I've never mentioned it before, but my brother, Kuya Vincent, had made a Yahoo Group for our family. This way, we can communicate through the internet too, not just during the regular Saturday reunions. I'm also learning more about all of my relatives this way. Not just my cousins, even my aunts and uncles participate in our discussions. Hahaha...pretty neat, actually.

I love my family.

Oops, how coul I have forgotten such a big part of my life? CHOIR. Well, currently we're preparing for our big concert on the 27th of May. It's gonna be at Philam Life Theater. Pretty grand. But, we've performed there before. But with the MTQ choir. Not with Vox. If you don't know me, you probably won't understand what's MTQ and what's Vox. But that's another story for another time.

So...I guess, Ciao!

I have to go! My brother's already finished with whatever. And we gotta go...

IT's raining. So that might mean some traffic. So I better go, you know. BUHBYE!