Visita Iglesia '12

Growing up witnessing the activities held by the catholic church fed up my curiosity and social consciousness, I say in how I've understood the position of the church to every human life and its position to the social community. 

Anyway, I've always wondered how sacred those activities are. One of many is, Visita Iglesia. Done every Holy Week, Visita Iglesia means visiting different church and pray in front of every station of the cross. its the season where the catholic community reminisces  Jesus Christ's sacrifices in order to save us. There are so many catholic activities being done on a lent season but it was my first time to do this one. That is why i am so eager to share what happened during our whole visita iglesia experience.

Our route was from Molino, Cavite to Tagaytay City. We had visited 7 beautiful churches.

1. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Parish - Citihomes, Molino III, Bacoor, Cavite

2. Mary Immaculate Parish - Salawag, Dasmarinas, Cavite

3. National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette - Dasmarinas, Cavite

4. St. Anthony de Padua Parish, Brgy. Pooc II, Sta.Rosa, Laguna

5. Our Lady of Lourdes - Tagaytay City

 The Candle Chapel and the candles' color meaning

6. Franciscan Missionaries of Mary Immaculate Heart Convent - Tagaytay City

7. Ina ng Laging Saklolo Parish - Tagaytay City

This is the last station of the station of the cross :) last station at our route's last church.

This is a very unforgettable fun experience. I've seen a lot activities of the catholic church but it was the first time I ever thought and realized how powerful it all are. I realized how faith could draw everyone together. its just great seeing everyone pray together. God bless! Thank You, Lord! :))

photos:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150725319983446.430260.540033445&type=3

The Strength of A Million and One Prayer :))

I’ve always had this thought as God’s favorite ever since I was a kid. Every time I pray and ask something from Him, He makes it happen. Although everyone’s special to God. This is just my own personal belief. I remember the times I cried talking and asking Him to lift my problems, after a few self-realization, He lifted it. Each one of us has a problem, big or small, we carry it. But one thing we all forget at times, that is to carry those problems with God. With God, everything’s possible. I’m gonna tell you one story that God did just this season.

I’m about to graduate and finish college few days from today. The pressure is all on. A friend of mine has a problem in one of her minor subjects and couldn’t graduate. We’ve been praying for it to be fixed until the day her professor encoded her grade. She failed. Everyone felt like crying. We didn’t know what to do next. Until we had this tiny talk with another friend whose situation’s just the same as her’s. Hope came back and we decided to have another try. Announcements came like a flood after the rain that the final list of graduating students will be out anytime soon. And I decided to have this very emotional chat with God. Actually, all of us had been praying. I always do this but this one’s different in a way that its almost impossible to be fixed right away. But just as everyone has said, “with God, everything’s possible.” And so, the night before the release of the list, I asked God for a favor. I asked Him to please sprinkle a little holy magic and change whatever’s on the list that’s coming out the next day or just don’t let them release the list on the said date. I asked for a sign from Him. If the next day, the list wouldn’t be posted, everyone will be on the list. Everyone who’s expecting their names will be there. Then came the day and the pressure we all feel got stronger and even stronger. After a few hours of waiting, the list didn’t come out and my friend had her most awaited another shot to her professor! They had an agreement and the grade was once again posted. She passed. Everyone rejoiced and I never forgot to thank God for the ultra mega fast response. Before the week ends, another friend of mine had a shot in fixing his problems through another friend’s uncle. He has accepted that he wouldn’t make it to the stage this graduation earlier this year already but God’s sprinkle of magic still worked on him the last minute. And just like that, things got better. One should really never lose the power of prayer. When you ask God for something, bring with you a little patience because God is still looking at other possibilities. If God grants your prayer, be thankful, if God doesn’t, still be thankful coz just like moms, God knows best. =)) Congratulations to us all,  Batch 2012! =))

Nostalgia

No place like home that’s what they say,
Home is the place where I’d like to stay.
Free of worry, that’s what I am
Every time I stay in the land of mine.

A few moments after midnight
 I saw the coming of the sunlight
From the place where I was lying,
I realize I just felt the universe moving.

As I get up I heard the animals murmur.
Different voices, different sounds;
Oh how good are those to hear right before my eager ears
It’s like listening to a story that the green forest once made in tears.

Different mornings, different days;
Same feelings every each phase
I smell the newly cut green grass,
As it comes with the wind that touches my visage

These sweet interactions, I reminisce a lot
Soothes my inner veins and heals my dying wounds.
From where I stand, I see the moon
That shines so bright at the time of noon
The day is broad and very much splendid
And all I do is nothing but to daydream.

Procrastination I do more often
To keep my mind away from thinking of them
But the things I do last a moment only
And don’t abate my loneliness really.

These emotions and memories are very consistent
Staying still on my mind like a man with a good physique
And like a statue that could never be moved
These inspirations will forever be a precious potpourri.

It maybe sad being away from this motherland
But my heart leaps for joy with lessons I obtain;
Oh how I love the feeling state whenever I stay
And how I wish never to leave and go away
These memories, somehow, in many ways, cure and serve as medicine
To the wounds of loneliness of nostalgia;

Seventh heaven

We fondly call this place as DQ – Dolores, Quezon
We have stayed in Bangkong Kahoy Valley.

This place was colder since it stands very near Mt. Banahaw already. Others unbelievably played tennis. Unbelievably coz none of them knows how to play it well! =))

I can say we had the most out of the days we spent here. We had tasted and eaten fresh organic foods and veggies like fresh taro pizza, veggie nuggets which we had no idea that it was made out of taro and it tastes incredibly delicious. Just staying in this paradise with very healthy food makes my heart jump. They had raspberries in their garden. We actually tasted it fresh. But this raspberry shake is way more better!

The raspberries that were used here were taken fresh from the garden! There are other flavors like mango, banana and lychee but I was only able to taste lychee and raspberry and I swear! These shakes taste heavenly!

Enough about food! This one’s another exciting thing that made our vacation! This is the highlight of it. The zip line and the hanging bridge!

You couldn’t really experience zip line without trying the hanging bridge. Why? Because zip line’s station is actually located at the end of the hanging bridge. And that’s pretty cool and exciting. For me, I guess, it added a little spice to the sweet flavor. One’s not allowed to come across the hanging bridge without safety harness because if you could see, the bridge is simply as is. Nothing to grip on but the harness itself and it stands approximately 18 feet from the ground. =)) Once you came across, the zip line awaits. The zip line is approximately 3 kilometers long and stands 18 feet above the ground but of course it gets closer to the ground. The zip line by the way has two cables. Its up to you if you wanna experience it alone or not. =))

This is a haven of God’s children =))

photos: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2497259011237.89345.1845727772&type=3

Blessed (The Grand Vacay)

On the second day of our vacation, we climbed up the real mountain! Incredibly mountain called “kalbaryo.” I swear, until now, I couldn’t believe I had climbed up a mountain!  But take a look at these amazing people!

           Moy, Gello and I had this photo taken on our way on top of the mountain =))


In the middle of the mountain, we bumped into these people and we were like, “how the hell did they manage to come up here?” we were tired. So tired when we saw them and you wanna know what we felt after that? Maaannnn, we were partly ashamed! Lol. Not all people, aged like them, could actually hike that mountain, I swear! They’re simply adorable!

I thought for a second that maybe that’s what faith could bring and do to every individual. I know the exact reason why they had climbed up that mountain! Its because of their religious belief. That mountain has what catholic calls “station of the cross.”
Its amazing how faith had brought them there. Its amazing how faith could draw every individual closer to God. Each and every way’s just too awesome. God is awesome. God is good all the time.

Anyway, this mountain offers picturesque view which swept away all our body pains and sweat. There’s a big cross on top of the mountain where we lit up candles for our loved once and prayed. We had conquered the mountain in less than 3 hours! And this experience opened and drew each one of us closer to God. And for me, its simply the best! Sometimes, simple things could make one the happiest person on Earth.

*pardon me for writing so much about this vacation.  I can’t help it! =))
*photos https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2497167168941.89343.1845727772&type=3