Task #3 I Stop To Say "Thank you Papa and Mama"

“I’m busy!,” was everyone’s reply. My Grandmother was hospitalized last week due to some serious health problems. We were supposed to take turns in nursing my Lola in the hospital.  Sad to say, I was unable to visit my Grandmother. My two sisters and my parents likewise failed to visit my lola.  My sisters and I had classes and our parents had to work. Were we really that busy or was it just an alibi? Somehow, I felt guilty.

Incidentally, in the very short film I watched on You Tube video entitled, “Rich son Poor Son,” four elderly women were discussing about their sons and daughters. The three were boasting about how successful their children were in their careers basing on their humungous earnings. The fourth was proud of his son for a different reason. She says her son visits her and takes her to wonderful places. His son spends quality time with her. Simple joys which money cannot buy, isn’t it?

Nowadays, nobody stops to say thank you anymore. In these times of global economic recession, it looks as if people only care about money and survival. Because of our desperate efforts to alleviate ourselves from poverty, we forget. We turn our backs on our families and forget to thank them for their support and sacrifices. What a shame! We fail to realize  that our parents are the ‘wind beneath our wings.’ We soar high in the blue sky because of them. Our parents shower us with their unconditional love. They are not expecting their children to pay them back someday. A simple thank you means so much to them and it doesn’t cost a cent.

As for myself, I say "Thank You" to my parents now by being a responsible daughter.  I may not have money at present but I shall thank them with my strength. I shall to do my responsibilities as their dutiful daughter without being told. I shall study well, do my homework, and help with the household chores. I want to prove to my parents that their sacrifices and efforts are not wasted on me. Also, I wish to be worthy of the trust that they have granted me. They allowed me to pursue my tertiary education in Iligan.  My parents have high hopes for me. I do not want to let them down.

Love of the family is life’s greatest blessing. Ten years from now when I will have my own family, I shall still stop to say, “thank you Papa and Mama.” My future husband, my children, and I will share our blessings with them. Despite our busy schedules, we shall find time for them. Together we shall create more intimate and colorful moments. Then they too, just like the contented mother in the short film, will have a good reason to be proud of their daughter Amira.

 

 

Food for Thought: The measure of success

Stop, Look, and Listen. . .Closer

Have you ever once experienced that hair-raising sensation at your nape? How about that spine-tingling feeling that you are being watched? Scary, isn’t it?

Come to think of it, perhaps I was conditioned to believe that spirits can communicate with the living. Why wouldn’t I be when our bedtime stories as children were horrifying ones? My mom bequeathed to us what “Nanay”, our house helper for 38 years now, had narrated to her back then. These were certified terrifying folktales from Initao Municipality coined as “Init na Tawo”. In addition, our parents oftentimes frighten us to impose discipline around the house. It was certainly an effective way of saying “NO!”

"If there is smoke, there is fire." Is the paranormal just a figment of the imagination? The Exorcist, The Omen, Poltergeist, and Ghost are blockbuster horror movies about the Anti-Christ, demons, and spirits. CSI, a popular modern day TV series, deals on the paranormal as well. I wonder where the brilliant award-winning directors and scriptwriters of these films got their inspiration from. They must be extremely creative and imaginative if all those were baseless. Do they have secret ghost writers, literally speaking? Are they the reincarnations of some dead and famous scriptwriters? 

Have you heard of the “third eye” or the “sixth sense”? Some people say that you can only see “them” if your third eye is open. Others say everyone has a third eye but we either are unconscious of it or have failed to develop it. There are also instances when desperate clients hire a medium who can invoke a spirit to possess his body temporarily. The more adventurous even perform the Spirit of the Glass ritual. It is done by putting an inverted glass on a board marked with Yes or No and some other letters. After which, some secret incantation is chanted while two fingers are touching the bottom side of the glass. Then the glass would slowly move by itself over the writings to form answers to intriguing questions. It is believed to be moved by spirits. Even our eerie dreams at night are interpreted as messages from the other side. Indeed, the living tries to find ways to communicate with the spirits.

Personally, I haven’t experienced a close-encounter with the unseen. Still I believe that spirits communicate with the living. Alas, with the clanking and jangling of the hi-tech world, it’s quite impossible for us to hear their faint voices. If only we could take a break from our hectic schedule to stop, look, and listen closely. I mean really LISTEN to the blurry voices from the dark recesses of our room. Scared?