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How Good a Lakbayan-ista Are You?

Are you well-traveled?

This site (Visited Countries) allows one to click buttons beside countries one has been to. I tried it out and got this generated map. Neat! From the looks of it though, it seems like my past travels have been limited to North America, Europe and South Asia. The still unconquered lands of South America, Africa, North Asia and Australia await.

create your own visited countries map
or vertaling Duits Nederlands

The exercise got me thinking about the Philippines and whether I actually saw as much of it already as I think I have. After all, I was born in the Visayas, spent my childhood in Mindanao, and am living out the rest of my adult life in Luzon. There is this common notion too that most often, one sees more of other countries than his own.

Did I really see enough of my own country?

Well, the answer came in the form of Lakbayan, which I stumbled upon during my blog hopping. Eugene Alvin Villar, who describes himself as “a not so innocent yet naïve hardware engineer”, got the idea for Lakbayan from the Visited Countries site. Continue reading “How Good a Lakbayan-ista Are You?”

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All Shall Be Well

When I feel down and out, this is a song that consoles me. All Shall Be Well is one of the songs from the album of Bukas Palad “Let Your Praises Be Heard”. What makes it extra special though is that its lyrics were done by Fr. Johnny C. Go, SJ and Fr. Manoling Francisco, SJ. Fr. Johnny is our boys’ School Director; Fr. Manoling is the brother of a former colleague at work.

Just recently, I had a chance encounter with this song again. It’s funny since I had totally forgotten about it until just a few weeks ago when a blogger friend of mine, Cathy, did a post about it. Cathy had lost her son Migi in 1998 due to complications from open heart surgery. In his memory, she founded Migi’s Corner, a place for children, in government hospitals. To-date there are 13 such Migi’s Corners nationwide. Cathy recounts how a former Theology teacher of hers, now based in Norway, sent her The Migi’s Corner video with “All Shall Be Well” as the theme song. And even more surprising, she discovered that the singer in the video was her good friend, Bukas Palad singer Laine. The video came at the right time as she was about to celebrate another anniversary of Migi’s passing. It’s amazing how the Lord brings together people and events at just the right time!

The timing of everything was not lost on me. Currently, friends of ours in the States are in crisis. They had just recently moved there since the wife was to take up her new job. The husband, who already had a stroke in the Philippines, again had a stroke there, rendering him in coma and totally paralyzed. Without anything else to comfort her with, I remembered Cathy’s post and promptly sent the wife the YouTube version of this song.

And…as I wait for the Lord’s healing on me as I deal with painful bouts due to kidney stones, I turn back to this song to get reminded that He is always in control and…

All Shall Be Well.

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Perspectives of Suffering

Over the weekend, I was confined for severe pain arising from kidney stones. The pain was almost unbearable. I was writhing in pain at the hospital and no matter what position I was on the gurney at the ER, the pain remained. It was not something I would wish on my worst enemy.

Through the pain spasms though, I suddenly thought of my sister-in-law who passed away of breast cancer. On her last summer in this world, we had the privilege of being with her in the province. I personally had the chance to serve her in some way by taking turns caring for her every basic need during those weeks. And during the times she would suffer, we constantly talked to her about turning her suffering into use by offering it up for someone. That way, suffering did not end up useless but instead, gets transformed into a powerful tool for intercession.

Then my mind wandered to friends in the States. The wife was recently sent there on a work assignment by her company and was allowed to bring her whole family. Her husband had a stroke a few years back, paralyzing his entire left side. But over the years of therapy, he recovered enough to be mobile. A month into their arrival in the States, he again had a major stroke, this time paralyzing his right side. As of this posting, he is still in coma with no clear or positive signs of recovery. The wife, though devastated, has tried to cling to whatever faith and strength is within her.

So as I lay in the Emergency Room of the hospital, and as wave after wave of pain went through my body and groggy as I was from painkillers, I somehow managed to maintain one thought. I asked the Lord to use that pain to shower graces on my friends.

Looking at one’s suffering exclusively makes one wallow in self-pity. It is only when one sees it from the perspective of others’ sufferings that one’s own situation appears trivial or miniscule.

One more life lesson for me.

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Bloggers Yoga Class Postponed!

Hi everyone!

Very quick post. I need to postpone the bloggers yoga class planned for tomorrow, June 19.

The bad news: I had a very excruciating attack of pain due to kidney stones over the weekend and had to be confined. I was discharged today with oral meds to see if stones will melt away in 2 weeks.

The good news: it gives us another chance to organize a larger bloggers yoga class some time in the future. So many wishing to join if not for schedules (the daily grind, you know!). But it’s exciting to think about the possibility of truly organizing a class made up mostly of bloggers, after which we can continue bonding over lunch or dinner.

When I am up and about, I will write a post on a realization after this confinement. Being fit does not necessarily equate to being healthy. 

Wishing you all health, contentment, love and a long life! -)

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A Bloggers Yoga Class is A-Brewing!

An exciting fitness event is coming up this Tuesday, June 19 in the Ortigas area — an unplanned, spur-of-the-moment yoga class to be attended by 4 bloggers!

Just through email and chats, 3 wonderful, daring bloggers (2 of whom are PMN mommies) plan to join me at Vinyasa Yoga Center this coming Tuesday, June 19, for the 11:00 AM class — Cathy, Dine and Jayvee.

Our goal? An hour and a half of great yoga and a simple bonding-over-lunch afterwards at Greenhills Christian Fellowship (just a stone’s throw away from the yoga center).

What truly amazes me is this — I still have to personally meet Cathy and Jayvee. Ang lalakas ng loob ng mga ito to trust me, sight unseen! Hahahaha….

In case any of you are free and wish to join us, invitations are open. Drop me a line at my newly-born yoga blog, The Yogini From Manila. You may also email me at <herestolife.jane@gmail.com>. Here are some more details:

* Venue is Vinyasa Yoga Center, 17/F, Strata 100 Bldg, Felix Ortigas Road (formerly Emerald Ave.), Ortigas Center. There are several open, pay parking areas in the vicinity. There is one right beside the building.

* Please be there before 11 AM. Classes start promptly and it is recommended that you do some warm-up exercises prior to actual class

* Attire: For tops — spandex top or loose tshirt. Bottoms: shorts or jogging pants. Bring a small towel to wipe off sweat.

* The Center has yoga mats for first-timers (bring your own if you have one). However to ensure there will be enough mats, anyone interested has to contact me prior to Tuesday.

* Preferably eat at least 2 hours before 11AM so your food has time to digest. Sufficient hydration (drinking water) prior to class is highly recommended but NO DRINKING OF WATER DURING THE CLASS PROPER.

* The center is still in the process of putting in a shower area so bring extra set of clothes.

* The trial session costs P400.

LET’S GET FIT!!!!

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My Yoga Blog is Born

 

This week is a birthday of sorts. I decided to open up a new blog solely for yoga.

It had been on my mind for some time already. I still have to see a comprehensive site or blog that would list yoga studios throughout the Philippines (in case there are people who wished to start their yoga practice outside of MM or Luzon but did not know where to go). I also dreamt of putting everything I wanted to know, already knew or wished to share about yoga into this one site, rather than mix them all up with this site.

For now, this blog is a work in progress….and I think it will never stop being one. There will always be something new about yoga that you and I can discover, experience and share.

Come visit me at The Yogini from Manila. Namaste.