Jesus Wept.

John 11:35

I come from a devout Christian family but when my mother died, I was clueless how the Lord could let that happen. I did the most fervent prayer in my life; cried my heart out to God, yet she did not get well. I almost lost my senses when I was told she’ll be taken out of the hospital—without life.

How many times could you remember being badly hurt? You may have pointed many reasons or simply asked, How could that be? Why didn’t He stop this from happening?

Let me share a short story found in the book of John chapter 11:1-44

Lazarus was a poor man who lived in Bethany with his sisters, Mary Magdalene and Martha. They are Jesus’ personal friends and He loves them so much. (John 11:5)

Lazarus became very ill and eventually died. Jesus knew this was going to happen yet chose to minister in the place He’s at; away from Bethany. Lazarus was already four days buried when Jesus returned. Martha and Mary run into Him and mourned. The sisters were saying, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died!” (John 11:21;32). The Lord felt their grief. Jesus cried with them. Thus, He did the wondrous miracle raising Lazarus from the dead! This had caused a number of people to believe in God. John 11:4 says, “[It] is for the glory of God, so the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Now, could you imagine the pain of Lazarus’ sisters? They have hoped that Jesus would return to heal Lazarus yet did not. Their clamor was, why didn’t the Lord stop what had happened.

At times, when we get hurt, we become downcast and fail to understand God’s purpose for the event. There are many times we thought the Lord has turned His back from us and remained unconcern. He certainly has not. The Lord allowed the death of Lazarus so the miracle of life would take place. Yet again, when we become hurt, He also shares our grief. He knows our heartaches and fears. The Lord cries with us. He loves us and doesn’t want us to get hurt but He has His wonderful plan. And surely, the end will be for our best and to His glory. Sometimes, we just have to feel the pain so God can show us the miracle in the end.

You might be hurting today but don’t trap yourself in mourning! Seek what the Lord plans for you and He’ll show you His purpose. Three and a half years ago, I said the same thing, “Lord, if you had been with Nanay, she wouldn’t have died!” Now I understand. The Lord loves her and took her to rest with Him. Her death made us more conscious of His work in the family. The Lord also opened many doors of joy and blessing to us. And I know He has yet to reveal His plans. Nanay couldn’t be more happy in His presence. And He would do the same to you.

May this be a word of encouragement to every one: God loves us very much!

reminisce...

I was checking on my things and found this poem I wrote –a gift—on my friend’s 21st birthday. I’ve known him since we’re twelve. He’s one of my most trusted friends. Each line has its own interesting story that we shared growing up; crisscrossing almost ten years. Just wanna keep a copy here.


Thanks

For guiding me home when we were thirteen.
For inviting me to your barrio fiesta every year.
For remembering my birthday.
For listening.
For calling me Laura.
For eagerly teaching me play chess.
For teaching me no more.
For smiling.
For hiding your teeth when you smile.
For singing at our high school promenade.
For being petrified when I was asked to sing.
For being a good commander.
For buying me a key chain.
For being punctual.
For carrying my bag as we waited for the bus.
For believing I can cook.
For coming regularly to our Open House.
For being there at my mother’s wake.
For giving words of encouragement.
For saying my crush is a playboy.
For being a brother, not just a friend.
Happy Birthday!

We studied in the same high school; then, in the same university—I took Public Administration while he, Chemical Engineering. He stayed in the boys’ dorm while I’m in the girls’ dormitory. I remember being invited as his date in a formal dinner in college. It was fun[NY]! We rarely see each other since we become seniors (until now having our own careers) but managed to keep in touch anyway. I can’t help but smile being reminded of all those memories behind each line. What can I say, we’re buddies!

I saw him!

Yes, I couldn’t believe I actually saw him yesterday –even for at least two seconds!
Saw who?? Tada-- MY FIRST LOVE!!! I’m so happy! *giggles*

Mr. Mysterious is none other than OSCAR DELA HOYA. The boxer?? YES. And you heard me right; he certainly IS my first love. *eyebrows*

Was watching the fight between Chavez (son of the legendary Cesar Chavez, Oscar’s idol and the one he [himself] knocked out!) and, who was that? Gosh, can’t believe I actually forget!!!

And so Chavez won with a KO and rejoicing with him on his corner was Oscar himself. He wore his suit with a tiny butterfly tie. Very neat. I believe Chavez is under Oscar’s Golden Boy Promotions for Pro and Amateur (not so sure) boxers. Of course, they are both Mexicans and I expect them to be on the same team.

Oscar looked gentle like he usually does, and seemed not a boxer in the ring. Still haven’t confirmed if he had his retirement. But he had planned to retire early this year and focus on promotions. I can’t blame him; like he said, he’ll never want any of his family to be a boxer, especially his son! *sniff*

Talk about my first love: I’ve “known” Oscar even before I turned sweet 16. I was watching the heavy-weight championship between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson (?) and Oscar’s fight was in the lineup, right before the main event. That’s when he was crowned as new WBC Welterweight Division Champion. He is known as the Golden Boy, having won a gold medal for the US team during the 1996 Olympics. His history as a boxer can be traced as young as seven years old. He barely had 20 fights in his card back then, as a pro, but there’s something about his style that would really blow up for the win. Maybe it’s his extraordinary swiftness and underdog aura that brought him to my attention. But I assure you that boxing fanatics would affirm me saying he’s one of the greatest and most wonderful/powerful fighters in the arena. His blows are solid and focus. You’re dead if his left catches you. XP From that day on I became a fully-pledged Dela Hoya die-hard.

First impression: he is very timid. And all the time I’ve followed his journey in boxing, I have affirmed this fact. Aside from being coy, he has this humble personality which seemed doesn’t even know when to act like “Hey, I’m the Champion here!”. He fights his opponent fairly and respectfully. He honors and commends each one of them. He’s like a young child who’s thankful for a scoop of ice cream. And he was indeed young and was a learner himself (he’s interested with studies—to call him academician, however, I’m not sure if appropriate). With all patience, I waited at least every third month to see another title match defense. I’ve seen almost every fight after that first encounter as the champion until his card gains more numbers and remain undefeated. Every title defense would make me skip a heartbeat—literally. It is very impressive to note that he had taken the last three Division championships before his current division—without being beaten. As in ZERO LOSS. He REALLY is a pro. My family (who’s practically boxing addict) is teasing me to my nerves whenever Oscar has a fight. Maybe I’m just so much of an avid fan to the point that I ‘can’ feel each blow that hits his frame. What they didn’t know, I really ‘liked’ this guy.

Aside from this excellence in the field, what made me love him more were some behind-his-career moments. It’s worth it to mention that he visits his mom’s grave before walking inside the ring. I could identify with him. Yes, his mom died of breast cancer, right after watching him win one of his fights. After gaining some resources, he founded a foundation for patients with breast cancer. His being a boxer wasn’t his choice at all; submissive son he was, setting aside his personal wants to follow his father’s orders. He is the son of Joel Dela Hoya, a former, ‘frustrated’ [pardon my lack of term] boxer who was disappointed with his junior, Oscar’s older brother Joel, for not pursuing boxing. Against his will, Oscar trained himself to be the best fighter that he became. I cried learning the story about his high school prom night. That’s all he ever waited for, to finally attend a ball. Like the usual teenager, he’s excited and was looking forward to that night. Only to find out his father had set a fight for him that same night and made him wear his gloves. Yes, he missed that prom and you can still hear the traces of regrets relating this story. That must have been really tough for him to remember and not let go. Some books even wrote exaggeratedly that he was a ROBOT, being a puppet of his father. Oh, I can say a number other things but it’s just a long story.

Just that two seconds brought a long entry like this! Haha! I missed him. My first love and the only one to break my heart. You should have seen me last May when I learned that he married a Millie Corretjet –only last February! I was just so upset [honestly, I’m surprised myself!], my hands are trembling and I couldn’t breathe right. The next thing I realized, I had to keep those tears from falling.

Pathetic? Maybe. It was unimaginable to act that way. But I did.

Hey, who wants to listen to this entry anyway? I don’t mind. I wanted to blurt out a little. XD

I’m glad I saw him.

Viloria: Champion at Heart

I have a new sought after hero: Brian Viloria, 24.

Brian Viloria. World Champion, Light-Flyweight Division.

I am so proud of you. You have the heart of a champion! You pay homage to your land and give credit to your opponent; very honorable!

First:
Your best lines for me: "Mabuhay, Pilipinas!" [Long Live Philippines]
"Aloha, Hawaii!"
"Mahal kita, Philippines!" [I love you, Philippines]

Second:
You gave tribute to Ruben Contreras, your opponent who went to coma last May after having knocked out by the same punches; on the very same arena. That is very heart-warming. I want to quote your statement on Contreras:

"I almost choked when I saw Ruben at ringside. I almost cried but had to hold it back... I was real glad to see him. And seeing him out there meant more to me than winning the world title." [The Philippine Star, 12 September 2005]

Lovely. Very honorable. I salute you. Fighters like you make me more drawn to this kind of sport; despite the fact that it has its own language of 'cruelty'. You earn respect by giving one.

Thanks, Viloria. You add pride to us Filipinos again.

Proud to be Filipino!

Yes I am.

Sunday morning, three Filipinos made our country proud by winning three-in-a-row in the event tagged “Double Trouble”, putting on the spotlight the fights of Manny Pacquiao (Philippines) and Velasquez (Mexico) vis-à-vis Erik Morales (Mexico) and Raheem (?), respectively. YES, I AM TALKING ABOUT BOXING.
---
I am a boxing fanatic, if not the sport addict. Being an Oscar de la Hoya fan runs in my blood; as much as I have devoted myself to supporting my fellow Filipinos. I missed the first fight where a kababayan (fellow Filipino) named Bautista won against his opponent in the third round. TKO. I wish I saw it, but I’m happy to hear the good news. [Can’t wait to read the newspapers!]

What really impressed me was Brian Viloria, who made the Philippine flag sway in the air before the first round was over--after barely two minutes inside the ring. Yes, another TKO. My heart leaped as I watched him raise our flag. Then, with all passion and splendor he cried, “MABUHAY, PILIPINAS! MAHAL KITA, PHILIPPINES!” Believe me, I was covered with goose bumps! He really brought honor to the land, far greater, because he meant it with all his heart; considering that, I believe, he is Hawaiian-born and speaks slang English! I wish to see a lot of Filipinos bringing honor to our land—and someday, myself too!

And the main event, for us of course, is Manny Pacquiao’s bout. He finished the fight with a splendid win in the sixth round, causing his opponent to stand on his fours. It was a pretty good fight, except that I was nervous with the first two rounds watching Manny giving barely few punches. As expected, he’s learning his opponent’s fighting style, the proper distance, etc., and coming up with a good formula. Thank God! You made us proud once more! Keep it up!

The last fight was Morales vs. Raheem. Filipinos wanted badly to have a rematch between Pacquiao and Morales and this bout will decide if that's the case. Unfortunately, Morales loss to Raheem, giving away his belt and perhaps the possibility of a rematch with Pacquiao. We'll see what will happen.

To our new-day heroes: Thank you so much! MABUHAY KAYO! WE’RE SO PROUD OF YOU! Soar Philippines!

random.

I’m feeling complacent.
Hmm, gonna do some domestic stuffs tonight.
And hey, finally the room upstairs is fixed [and a better clothesline too!].
Thanks, Tay--you're the best!

Me, yes, me

Just want to share the result of my personality test... Somehow, it explains a lot of who I am.

PERFECT MELANCHOLY PERSONALITY
The Introvert * The Thinker * The Pessimist

EMOTIONS
Deep and Thoughtful
Analytical
Serious and purposeful
Genius prone
Talented and Creative
Artistic or musical
Philosophical and poetic
Appreciative of beauty
Sensitive to others
Self-sacrificing
Conscientious
Idealistic

AS A PARENT
Set high standards
Wants everything done right
Keeps home in good order
Picks up after children
Sacrifices own will for others
Encourages scholarship and talent

AT WORK
Schedule oriented
Perfectionist, high standards
Detail conscious
Persistent and thorough
Orderly and organized
Neat and tidy
Economical
Sees the problems
Finds creative solutions
Needs to finish what is started
Likes charts, graphs, figures, lists

AS A FRIEND
Make friends cautiously
Content to stay in background
Avoids causing attention
Faithful and devoted
Will listen to complaints
Can solve others’ problems
Deep concern for other people
Moved to tears with compassion
Seeks an ideal mate

Oh, how this world needs Perfect Melancholy!

The depth to see
Into the heart and soul of life.
The artistic nature
To appreciate the beauty of the world.
The talent to create a masterpiece
Where nothing existed before.
The ability to analyze
And arrive at the proper solution.
The eye for detail
While others do shoddy work.
The aim to finish
What they start.
The pledge, “If it’s worth doing,
It’s worth doing right.”
The desire to “do all things
Decently and in order.”

Now you almost know me.... almost.