A quick afternoon getaway

It's a holiday today and since I've been cooped up in the house for two days, I had this compelling need to get out. To feel the outdoors, sit under a tree and inhale fresh air - if there is such a thing as fresh air in the city that I live in. I also wanted to feel the soil under my feet.

But I didn't want to go for a long drive or even to dress up for it. 

We found the perfect spot for this sort of mini outdoor adventure, a few kilometers from where I live. 

Hubby and I drove off to that area  called "Engineering" near Marikina Sports Center. There are big acacia trees and a long wall with colourful graffiti. 

The soft afternoon sun, the trees, the cool air - everything was just perfect!

I bought a cup of coffee and we sat down on the sidewalk. I forgot to take off my slippers and step on the soil but no matter, we had a nice time.  

We've gotten so used to going to having to going to the malls, and to the idea that we ought to pay for every little getaway or treat that we can find. But maybe it's just a matter of looking around and finding a little nice spot nearby where you can spend a few minutes and just breathe, look at the sky and bond. 

And that's what we did. It was  a quick Thursdate and we didn't have to spend a cent!

The happy choice

HAPPINESS IS A CHOICE. I've heard and read it so many times but today, when I saw it on a friend's time, I actually stopped and nodded my head.Yes, yes, it is a choice that is available to me. And I choose it. 

This day may not turn out the way I want it to, but I am going to be happy. My kids might frustrate or disappoint me but no matter, I will continue to look at the bright side. 

Yes, I am happy. Because I chose to be.

Getting out of a rut

I am in a rut. I feel angry, anxious and insecure.

Then I remember what the priest last week said. Don't be too harsh on yourself. All those disciples of Jesus were weak, insecure and ambitious before they became holy. 

Of course, those words, even if I do agree with them, do not make me feel better. But maybe I will just bask in all these negative emotions for a while. I will simmer in them. And then maybe when I wake up tomorrow, they will be gone. 

Experience has taught me that sleeping on something isn't such a bad idea. Tomorrow is another day. And it should be better than today. 

Opportunities for kindness

Do you get annoyed when beggars and street children approach you and ask for money?

Except for really old people and PWDs who obviously no longer have the means to earn a living, I have developed a tendency to ignore these people. The street kids because I feel they shouldn't be in the streets so giving them alms would be to encourage them. The adult beggars who, in my opinion, are sometimes just too lazy to work. 

But then I learned a new insight the other week that made me rethink my views. Someone said that maybe, these people were placed there to give you the opportunity to be kind. This made me stop and think. 

I cannot do anything about keeping street kids off the street. And maybe those beggars were just too lazy to work. Clearly, they are not in the best of situations and a little kindness won't hurt. 

Last night, as I was buying my favorite roasted peanut at the corner near our house, a boy approached me and asked for money. I gave him and his friend 5 pesos each. I should have bought them food. And I should have bought medicine for the other boy whose swollen hands were full of lesions and rashes. 

I was still thinking of those kids this morning. I missed the opportunity to do more. Much like how we chase career and business opportunities and take advantage of them, maybe we ought to do the same when we come across situations where we can extend a kind hand to others.  

The present moment is inevitable

We all make plans for the future. Plans for our personal lives, families and work. In my job, plans are the foundation of our business.


But what if, after meticulous deliberation, things do not go as planned?


What I learned from the Happiness Workshop that I recently attended is probably the most true and incontestable lesson of life: The present moment is inevitable.


Some of you might argue, especially when confronted with unexpected and unwanted problems: Oh, but we could have done something to prevent that from happening; if you didn't do this, this could not have happened; I knew this could happen and that's why I planned carefully so nothing like this will ever happen to me.


Well, guess what? After doing everything you could to keep it from happening, it still happened. No matter what you think or how much planning you've done, what is currently happening is inevitable.
This is not to discourage you from making plans. Instead, it's to encourage you to give your 100% whenever you make plans. So that when it doesn't turn out the way you want it to, it's so much easier to let go and move forward. I gave it my best shot but still, it didn't turn out that way.


So just accept it and move on. A bigger hand is running the show. And it will all turn out for the better or if not, the way it should.

Doing nothing

"Sometimes, the best way to complete a task is to take a break."

I do agree but, even better, let me just say that the best thing to do after completing a challenging task is to do nothing. Absolutely nothing.

And that, my friends, is what I did the whole day today. After an exhausting month preparing for an event, I am taking a short break to do nothing. To get my bearings back and recover.

People are always after doing something. When you say you're going on a break, they often ask: "What are you planning to do? Where are you going?" Most of the time, they are bewildered when I reply, "Nothing. Staying at home. Tutunganga."

Not sure about you guys,  but going on a vacation or a trip where I am usually in charge of organizing activities, making reservations simply stresses me.. I don't consider them a vacation.

But today, I am on vacation. I spent the whole day, well, almost the whole day doing nothing. And it feels good.

Disowning negative feelings

For the past four nights, I've been attending a workshop called Happiness Program.

One of the things that I learned was a different way of dealing with negative emotions. Entanglement, greed, lust, envy, anger and anxiety.

The idea is that when we were born, we did not have any of these feelings. And so each time we experience any of these negative emotions, all we have to do is submit to it.  By submitting to it, I don't mean we give in to the emotion but acknowledge it and, with all humility, give it back to the angel who played upon us that negative emotion. It is not mine, so I am giving it back. 

It is, for me, a new perspective in looking at these emotions which, I have to admit, I experience and nurture often. 

Next time, I feel anxious or angry, I will try to hold on a bit to that feeling, feel its solid weight in my heart and give it back to the heavens. It is not mine.