GottaLoveMom

More than sadness envelopes a parent’s heart whenever their child’s in pain, Watching your child jump and fall feels like your body is being pierced with pins and needles. Seeing your child smile is the best gift any parent can possess. What can you do to not feel the pins and needles of parenthood?   A wonderful family friend, Rich and Darlene Pierce, lost their son almost nine years ago when their son was just 2 ½ years of age. Please read Rich Pierce's post and pass it along. You, too, can save a heart. Its that time of year again. Nick would have been 11 this year on August 23rd. Instead of booking a party room, taking him to a ballgame, or getting our son a new bike, we will gather with Friends and family at the cemetery and send colorful balloons up to a smiling boy that left us at 2-1/2! If you know me you know I am a pretty upbeat kind of guy. I'm not here to bring people down. But if you really know me, you know how passionate I am...

There is one member of my family that has given her entire life to her family – and that’s my MOM. MOM eloped when she was just almost sixteen years of age, and ever since then, she has dedicated her life to the welfare of her husband and her six children (5 sons and a daughter). She’s up and ready to attend to her usual morning routine at the crack of dawn: gardening, laundry, filling up the water tank, hosing down the patio, attending to her pet dogs and had breakfast ready…and if it’s a Wednesday or a Saturday, she tries to go to the market before it even opens since she’ll be taking care of my Dad as he gets his 5-9 hour dialysis treatments at the Philippine Heart Center. (The treatment only lasts for 5 hours but the waiting time can be up to 4 hours) “Exhausting” is an understatement in describing how my Mom’s day is like. She rarely smiles I think because she is just exhausted. But there are a few things that make her smile brilliantly: ORCHIDS. My ...

Just like any other third world countries, the Philippines has not reached it’s economic potential to the fullest. Poverty is its most significant problem and I can point out corruption in government, income inequalities, lower levels of education and huge population as culprits! The Philippines just elected a new president, President P-Noy (Noynoy Aquino). The current polls show that approximately 84 percent of the Filipino people trust the new president. I pray and hope that he maintains to walk the “straight path” as opposed to the “crooked path”. There are a lot of people who can give back to the community. Some live close by and some live continents away. Some will always consider Philippines "home" no matter where they'll be. In his recent State of the Nation Address (SONA), he pointed out the many challenges he has in front of him. The one thing that stood out for me was : “ The time when we will no longer be made to c...

I attended a dear friend’s wedding on Saturday. And as one of the sponsors said, it’s one of the sincerest weddings we’ve attended! Faith, hope and love linger. ( Reminds me of mine!) I want to share with you something what the priest had said that day: C-A-S-H : that’s the secret to a lasting marriage: CASH ( financial)  helps but what’s essential are the following: C – communication. Don’t assume what your husband or wife expects. A – acceptance. S – support H – humor. I don't think I need to expand on it... Wishing my dear friend  ( and everyone ) endless happiness, joy, peace - faith, hope and love , and understanding in their marriage. Until next time. Big hugs and kisses. Keep smiling . ( The trip to take the SISBA scholars to Ocean Park was cancelled because two of the kids are sick. Hopefully before I head back to the US, I'll be able to take the kids to see the aquarium, etc...)

Namaste… Good morning Manila ! Well, to be exact, good morning, Quezon City (QC)! It’s 5:30 in the morning, and I have been up since four o’clock. What are the odds of me being wide awake early in the morning?  Who would have thought that I’ll be on the rooftop enjoying the morning fresh air and some “me” time to reflect, sing-a-long with my iTouch playlists all decked in sneakers, bug bracelet and the drive and energy to stretch, run, kick box, walk and jog for an hour. (if you know me, you know that I always manage to squeeze-in a little dance here and there depending on what’s playing on my iTouch playlist) My four crumbcatchers, especially my littlest one, always reminds me that every day is an adventure, and witnessing the sunrise was a great way to start my day! I paused as I noticed as I see the sun rises slowly – a reminder that there’s beauty in life that God created. Magnifico! Bellisimo! Maganda! ...