GottaLoveMom

God works in mysterious ways. There's a reason for every season. Sometimes I just can't fully comprehend why things happen. But Maybe we are not supposed to understand. Maybe we are to experience life the way we chose to live it and whatever our path leads to. The night of my 45th birthday, my Dad called me and told me that he wasn't feeling well. He must have been in pain that he forgot to wish me a "Happy Birthday!". That night, my brothers took him to the hospital. He had a mild heart attack and had some kidney problems. A few days later, I flew in to Manila to be with him. My brothers and I thought we had to say "good-bye" to a very special person. 2/3rd's of my Dad's heart had already been damaged by his previous heart attacks. When I saw him, my heart couldn't bear the pain he's going through. But with prayers, love and support - we are lucky that Dad recovered! He's not totally the same. He still has to go thr...

A view from my one of my brother's condominium in Global City, Manila. I wish someday the entire Philippines will be like Global City. Although it's superbly expensive to live there - maybe someday it will more affordable to live in a more civilized community. Prayers, love and faith have helped us these past few weeks... Remember when you woke-up one day and ideas just kept pouring out of your brain? Remember when you looked into your child’s eyes and your heart was just filled with joy and excitement? Remember when you were younger and you dreamt of being somebody or being some place grand? Remember when you just feel like reading a book and being caught-up in the plot? Remember when you just have the craving to sit down and savor apple pie and vanilla ice cream? I'm here in Manila because of my Dad. I'm blessed and thankful that... *** I have a family who cares and helps one another. *** Dad's finally released fr...

A view from the plane... As the plane descends... Being with the clouds... Just makes you feel peaceful... Yet a feeling of gratitude, excitement, apprehension and sadness come over me. Seeing South Korea International airport makes me wonder why Philippines never embraced progress like the other Third World countries in this continent. It's a sad feeling seeing how there's so many people in poverty. When I left the country 25 years ago, it wasn't this bad... The squatters are so prevalent in every inch of this country. I'm blessed that my brothers were with my Dad to take him right away to the hospital and the doctors saved him from a mild heart attack and kidney problems. St. Luke's Medical Center is where Dad is. Located in the city, Where billboards dominate... And traffic congestion is a way of life. A place where the poor is side by side with the not so poor. And yet little things we take for...

Dad's been admitted to St. Luke's hospital - CCu (Cardiac Care Unit) since Sunday. I'm on my way to see my Dad (Mom, and brothers) in the Philippines... This Sunday, my other brother is arriving, too and the whole family will be complete! Waiting in Korea Int'l Airport... already flew 14 hours from JFK!

“ A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” – Winston Churchill When you fall, what direction do you head to? When you reach the bottom of the hill, don’t you hike back up? When you cried your eyes out, don’t you start feeling better? When you made a mistake, don’t you ponder and move on? There’s no time machine that can re-do what already happened; There’s no magic wand that can wipe-out all the misgivings; There’s no nose-twitching that can change the direction of the wind; There’s nothing you can do to undo what’s already been done. The difference between learning and regressing, The difference between happiness and misery, The difference between victory and losing, The difference is your attitude in moving forward! We all make mistakes, and its fine to feel bad about it; Pour out your emotions and give yourself a day; Ponder, reflect, ruminate, deliberate – work on it one last time; But on...

Happiness is not something you just think about It’s something your heart beats to. Happiness is not something handed to you It’s something you aim for. Happiness is looking at your child’s eyes and he smiles back at you; Happiness is being with someone who cares for “all” of your being; Happiness is something to share with someone – and it’ll definitely blossom. Happiness is not just being “content” - it is a “work in a progress” Once you get a claim on it, it should be something that drives your every hour. Whenever happiness seems to be taking a break, Just force yourself to put on a smile :) and it will definitely sneak back in your life. Every day we make choices. We cannot change the past. We cannot change what we're born with. We cannot change how people react. We cannot change the unexpected. How we react to these changes, Our attitude towards the choices we make, leads us to the path of happiness. Wishing everyone pure happiness. What makes yo...

“Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of “you” to the world”... I’m a Seven-Eleven baby! Makes it easy to remember so my families have no excuse not to remember my birthday. (smile) I was born in the Philippines 45 years ago. There's a 12 hour time difference, so I should be singing Happy Birthday to me around noon tomorrow. I’m not sure if it’s a Filipino tradition BUT I don’t remember having boxes of presents for my birthday (maybe I’m just getting senile, lol!) but one thing is for sure, there’s always pansit (noodles) to celebrate long life. My mom always makes pansit every birthday celebration, my Dad comes up with the amazing BBQ sauce for the beef-k-bab and every family member makes sure to be around for my birthday! Birthdays used to be a huge gathering of families... Having a Filipino mom and a Jewish mom(in-law) makes me doubly blessed! I get both traditions when celebrating birthdays! How lucky is that? So when mom (in-law) asked me a coupl...

I've been offline ( and will be on and off for the next few months to deal with some pressing projects and issues) but I would like to say thank you to those who tirelessly pray and give me well wishes and to those who came to visit and left such sweet comments. Your support and presence truly mean a lot to me. I will be responding to your emails and comments soon. Before I share my week with you, I would like to say thank you to the men and women who selflessly serve this great nation of ours so that we can enjoy the freedom that we sometimes take for granted. (Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July!) Thanks to our RCI timeshare, we had a fun and relaxing Independence Day week in Williamsburg, Virginia. ( A much needed change of scenery!) We stayed in the resort most of the days just hanging by the pool, reading a book, writing and just chatting with the family. We're so happy to have honey's parents with us, too, especially since Dad had his heart attack a few m...