proud to be thirty and one!

Before the sun sets down today let me tell you the things I’ve been through for the last 365 days because tomorrow im gonna start a new chapter in my life i will be thirty and one!

On the day I turned 30 I was busy with school life and numerous trainings the government obliged me to be. I didn’t even got the chance to celebrate it with my family and friends for I have to be in the school before the sun shines or else I will be out and im afraid I might not get all my boss wanted me. I spend almost four months going to school and finish all my modules for free. Sometimes I had a conflict of schedules from the other training school and to think I am enjoying it because i get to  learn more and grow but it isn't for doing so exerts a lot of concentrations one after the other that I almost forgot to visit even my friends and go out with them. 

I also had a lot of air trips and land trips going to the south then north that sometimes I feel like im still floating in the sky. I was more terrified when my boss sends me to Mindanao to attend an international event that took place during my brother’s birthday.  Up in the cloudy sky for almost three hours because our plane had zero visibility I never thought that we could still land safe that day. I have prayed a lot and beg for more extra life then. 

Sundays or half of sundays now are spent to church and moms day too. Doing all the laundries and chores for our maid never come back had drained all our energy during friday nights. Mom doesnt want them washed in laundry shop because all of my white t-shirts had turned yellow pants shrink of over heated dryer. Saturdays are spent shopping and groceries and cctv backups. Starbucks days had to be move from Friday to Saturdays or Sundays or sometimes forgot that I still have starbucks day and all. I didn't get to update my blog regularly for I lack time and energy to do so. 

Aside from saving more none of my wish list had been accomplish for I haven’t got a new bike yet although I still have 4 months more before I hit the deadlines. All of my savings had been diverted to other essentials we needed to live and what had drained me the most is the continuous and never ending constructions and reconstructions of our house good thing we live in a decent and beautiful place now.

January was never good to me the high fever and headache attacks me and had almost collapsed because of fatigue and dehydration. Injections had almost killed me I am afraid of needle and seeing the doctor. I was diagnosed with acute pharyngitis and my wisdom tooth in the upper part started to grow. 

February I feel better but spend more of our time doing geomaps and gps. Going to and back to the 48 barangays in our municipality. Measuring, reading until we get the right coordinates and most of the time went home late tattered jeans, muddy feet, tired, hungry and bruises everywhere. March had been pretty cool for all of my cousins get backs home. Some had just graduated with flying colors and had the chance to go out with them and have some break at the office and school.

Rewarding myself a bit is quite good among these is the new windows 8.1 HP envy core i7 touch laptop, a 48 inches LED tv, a new camera lens, galaxy s4 from mom and tab and most of all a fast internet connection which I needed most in my life. The salary and extra income i hardly earned are spent on foods, savings and necessities. I don’t have time to visit my old grandmother no matter how much I wanted to visit her.  I spent the whole summer in trainings and I haven’t got the chance to swim in salt water no matter how much I wanted too. We never know which way is to the beach and which way is to the training school. I will admit that I envy most of my relatives and friends who took their pictures while swimming and sand bathing and I have to endure the summer heat in the hot crowded training school. I almost cry when I learned that my brother is off the north and explore my father’s hidden place. I have encountered a lot of difficult people whom I never wanted to meet in my life again. Good thing my patience had grown more and more as I get older or maybe I just mastered it and meeting one have gain me too much respect for myself and after meeting those horrible people I get to meet more and more kind hearted souls. 

As the school year start for normal people so as my busy office life started and gets busier everyday. We did have a new boss and he is all smart and kind. Beating all the deadlines from the different national agencies and international partners and too much research and reading books had drained my energy. That sometimes i feel it boring and boring when there's nothing new to look at. scattered papers, printer printing and files of initial draft. To make myself better i took all the vitamins the doctor said will boast my energy. After all I learned too much that I thank everyone starting off from my boss for giving me such opportunities and a chance to step ahead of the others but I always wear a smile and keep my feet in the ground most of the time.

July was never a good month for me and mom for she has to stay in the hospital for six nights and five days because of her fluctuated blood sugar level and asthma. Other than that a raging july typhoon hit our place that most of our relatives source of income has blown off good that all of our houses and lives are safe. August has been a starting month for all of us. Recovering from the typhoon aftermath and income losses here we are standing and fighting as we move on with our lives. We spent the whole month of August changing and doing proposals with an interrupting power supply.

And now it’s September and I am hitting another year to start a new chapter. Fervently i live life according to what i like, according to what i understand, according to me. I am thankful for all the blessing god showered me no matter how small it was i am forever grateful. Most of all to all the people i dealt with everyday whether they are making my heart leap and head spin i thank them for giving me the challenge and fight what i believe for.  I pray that i may never forget to pray and believe. That i stay this way honest, polite, sweet the way my aboeji raise me. That I will be forever good and kind to all that I don’t change even a little but if i does ensure it for much good. That I stay calm and always smart. That as long as I can I will. To stay humble and enjoy everything that is with me. To strive hard to achieve everything I wanted to myself and for my family without cursing and troubled anyone. That I’ll be responsible in everything I do and stay positive no matter what. That all the friendship i started with will grow more and more until our lasts breathe. 

I thank mom and aboeji for bringing me to the world. Aboeji I am now of age how about that! Dudoi....Pambihira!

INA and our twisted traslacion

Today we joined the traslacion together with thousands of pilgrims from all over the world and gathered around the Penafrancia shrine to witness the annual traslacion of the Our Lady of Penafrancia, Patroness of Bicolandia. 

INA as what every bicolanos calls her is known to be miraculous and thousands of devotees pay their homage every year for each favor they received.  Traslacion, is the transferring of the miraculous Image of the Our Lady of Peñafrancia and of the Divino Rostro to the Metropolitan Cathedral. This happens every third week of September. This also signifies the start of Peñafrancia in the whole of Bicolandia.

For every bicolano, the traslacion isn't just a tradition it is also the time to reflect and be thankful for all the blessings we received. As a practice each time her holy image passes by the street it is being showered with flowers and confetti. Some business establishment fly balloons and spray water for the voyadores. 

The busy streets of Naga are being filled with good old friends from all walks of life. It is the time for every bicolano to go home and reunite again. The traslacion is an opportunity to meet with the old friends and get along with them during the procession and an avenue to make new friends.

As one of her devotee and growing up with the strong catholic faith and as a witness for her miraculous deeds for my mom, I came along with my brother every year to witness and join the celebration. No matter where we are we make sure to go home for her feast. Not because we were obliged by our parents to do so but because we want too and you can’t explain the mix emotions you get when her holy image passes by. 

We can’t afford to be a voyadores since I am a girl and my brother, I don’t know if he has the guts to be tough and all but together with our friends we make good pictures and share it to the world. That way we can contribute to spread the devotion and give a glimpse of the traslacion to all our fellow bicolanos around the globe who can’t make it home. 

The weather, the smell, the environment you have to endure it along with other devotees men and women young and old alike. 

This year traslacion is a new journey for us, we add some twist, its not only me and my brother this time, we were joined by xi. Xian Kiezzer or simply xi joined us. Without knowing that it would be tough bringing him because his mom is with him we met them at the cathedral. good enough we still manage to finish church when he start to roam around running and eating and shouting and crying and all. 

i never thought that bringing him will cause us trouble he was never like that at home. maybe the environment is quite new to him. Xi never tried to shout and talk too much but i dont know maybe because we dont see him the whole day but today was his shining moment. good that we have with us everything we needed from diappers to clothes to milk and thanks heaven for 711.

xi love chicken and yes we bought him chicken. xi loves taho or soya in the morning and we bought him taho in the afternoon because he kept on shouting taho! we have to keep an eye of him because he doesnt wanna be carried and all he just want to run. but considering the batch of people that keep coming through we are afraid we might lose him. good thing all of us had master the art of patience and patience and too much love for xi! he wants everything as far as his two little japanese eyes could see. 

you might wonder why on earth we have to bring him along with us and why the complain in here its because xi is INA's gift for lala and her family. And every time xi got sick all of us kept on praying to INA and soon after that he is back to normal and ok. Two days ago xi had a high fever and lala prayed hard to INA and promise that if Xi got better we will take him to traslacion and that's explain why we have him and will have him with us every traslacion as long as we can carry him. Xi's father is in Malta as a seafarer and since lala is our cousin. xi used to stay with us most of the time. Xi loves mom very much and mom loves him too. And lala's family are all in japan and that made her mom child too.

as what i have told you that the traslacion is also an opportune time to get along with old friends today is just another lucky day for of all people who might have thought that we could see itay dudoi and bump along with him. 

you may never know the chances your lens could capture and surprises INA could give you. She never fails to answer all our prayers for her.

we are thankful for all the granted wishes she had given me and my family and our fervent hope that we may continue to have strong faith and believe in her miracles.

i wonder how long will that yellow green orange chicken live and i cant wait to know what color is its peak will be. i cant even get a perfect shot with my lens this time but i love this day. 

until the next traslacion. 

viva la virgen!