Book Of Faith

We do admit that most of us grew up absorbing a lot of information about who is God in our lives except for those who are non Catholics. These would have come from parents, neighbors, friends and church ministers. But it is a fact that only few Catholics, most especially the youth have forgotten the main role of the written word of God-the Bible in their lives. They are always too busy of their friends, studies and vices that they even forget to go to church every Sunday. Just not like the older generation because they are more aware of Christianity because during the past, there are still no malls, Internet games and cellphones. And this might be because it is only attributed to the traditional point of view or thinking that the Bible is only for the clergy or for those who studied it in depth or as we call nerdy type of people. But what is really a bible? What is its role in our lives? Is it just any ordinary books found everywhere?


Our bible is not a book of History nor a book of Science that gives us some historical and scientific facts. Therefore, it is a book of faith wherein we should be reading it according to its perspectives and contents. We should be able to know what is the message of every chapters and verses we read. What it intended to do was to express the different communities' faith in God in the Old Testament and the different communities' faith in Jesus in the New Testament and especially to strengthen our faith in God. For it shows how God's people experienced the miracles he made as each day passes by. Though faith is shared with us individually during baptism, it is nurtured and strengthened to us by sharing it with the community where this same faith is shared by other people. The bible is just one of the many different ways for us to come back to God despite of the sins we have done because no matter what happens He still loves us. In our Christian community, we have the Bible, traditions, and the living of our faith in God.


But we should not forget that our goal is to submit ourselves to the light of the Holy Spirit in order for us to know what is His message for us. We should be devoted to God to be able for us to know him deeply because He already knows us by flesh and blood for He is the one who made us in the first place. To tell you, if you will be able to know him better, I am pretty sure that you will love him because He is the only one whom you can cry your heart out and tell your problems. He is a friend, but take note, a special kind of friend. Combining the serious study and prayerful reflection, God will surely speak to us personally and communally through the words of the Bible.

Nature

Nature is the world around us, except for human-made phenomena. As humans are the only animal species that consciously, powerfully manipulates the environment, we think ourselves as exalted, as special. We acknowledge that in an objective view we are merely one of many organisms, and that we are not able to survive outside of our natural world of air, earth, water and life. But we end to be poor leaders in the "hierarchy" of animal life. Despite our greatness, too often we waste, we fight, we breed heedlessly, and are too self-centered and short-sighted. I take note of the increasing awareness of ecology, at least Western culture, and am heartened. We may still change our weapons of war into tools of peace, and our habits of despoliation into nurturing.


Earth is so large, that even if humans destroy ourselves, plus most other life forms, there will still be nature. The soil, oceans, atmosphere and weather would still interact with solar power to allow some life to exist. Earth cannot be a barren place like the moon. Humans can, then, reduce our planetary paradise into a hell of sorts, but cannot, I believe, destroy the planet itself.


This thought, sober and gloomy, is a modern one; in early ages it is unlikely hat people contemplated ourselves wiping-out most life on earth. I don't know why I brought it to the forefront of my nature essay. It does offer a perspective.


Nature's life forces, as well as its winds, eruptions, quakes, avalanches, freezes, etc., is immensely powerful. Even in this age of high-technology, where many people who live in cities and work full-time with computers see but little nature intimately-at least we all are still aware of the weather and the seasons. We all know that a short, rainy winter day is less pleasant or striking memories we associate with each season.


My awareness of nature was at this normal level until high school. I recall as a second year student, the nature was wholly unappealing to me. I like sports, music, sleeping and whatnot. Tress were trees, grass was grass, flowers were flowers and weeds were weeds. But by this time, I had been affected profoundly by nature awareness. I went from a normal world view to one wherein the value of being aware of and appreciative of nature was a centerpiece. In retrospect, this was he pivotal transformation of my life.



I began meditating under trees, listening to birds, tasting wild berries, and finding joy and excitement, meaning and inspiration. My self-confidence boomed, my sense of being as an individual blossomed. I began designing a custom meal from the menu of life.


The awareness of natural beauty was like a revelation. I looked at, and experienced, all manner of organisms, and light. Rainfall and windstorms became celebratory. The principles of life, previously mere broad abstractions to me, became plainly clear. I saw firsthand how environment and genetics, together affect life. I saw nature's pace-before I'd only considered humanity's.


From nature study, then, I developed my critical faculties, I gained practical information, derived inspiration and joy, and welded my personal world view. This is not an unmitigated plus. When one has an odd perspective, and so sees things n rare way, communicating with others of more traditional or conventional outlook can be difficult. For example, if I believed the soil is sacred, and yet the prevailing assumption is that it is dirt-we are worlds apart from compromise.


I would prefer that people based their philosophies more on nature study and reflection, rather than nearly wholly on what their parents or influential peers tell them. But he weight of tradition is on the side of relatively uncritical acceptance of whatever one's mainstream believes in.


I would go so far as to say humans have an instinctive need for nature, since we evolved under its influences. So to live, say, in a cave, with only artificial light, and only human-made objects, would be a sever strain. Along this line, the sterility of hospital rooms is frightful-I am glad about the emergence of "horticultural therapy" and the like.


One of my motives i sharing what I've learned from nature study is to help empower others. Even if a person doesn't find nature effective for inspiration or education, it is good to "strike it off the list of possibilities and go on to sample something else, such as religion, art, work, etc. Find your love and pursue it passionately.

He Is Still Alive In My Heart

Death?!? Everybody is afraid of death because they are scared to leave behind their loved ones. Every time I hear the word death, it gives me this weird feeling of anger. Maybe because it always takes away from me the most important persons whom I treasure in my life. One of which is my beloved grandfather. As far as I know, he was 75 then when he died because of organ failures due to his Diabetes. It was really a shocking news for our family and especially for me, for the fact that I am a Lolo's girl.


On the eve of September 24, 2005, our family was having a small gathering because some of our relatives from Bohol visited us here in Cebu. As for me, I excused myself because I have to go to the Internet cafe to do some researches for my assignment. When I left, everybody was still laughing and they were having a good time. But when I came home, you know what I saw? I saw them in an opposite mood. It is as if someone died because there faces are so sad and their eyes are teary. I know something wrong happened when I was gone. My mother approached me and hugged me so tightly. She told me that they received a call from Bohol and said that my Lolo had just passed away a few hours ago. I told her that It was not a good joke. But I saw the seriousness in her eyes. I look at everybody especially my father who was my Lolo's son. He looks so down. I just leaned at the wall and I felt that I want to cry my heart out and then suddenly my tears just ell from my eyes. At that moment I just want to ride on a ship to Bohol and hugged the cold dead body of my grandfather. I was not even given a chance to say how thankful and how I lucky am to have a very loving and caring grandfather in the whole wide world. And now all I want to say is, "I love you Lolo". Early the next morning, my father and my brothers rode on a ship to Bohol to manage the needed papers for my grandfather's death. Unfortunately, I was not able to come with them because it was still our school days. I felt so sad and disappointed. But I told my mother that perhaps I could have be absent on the Friday. Even though we were going to have a test that day I told her that it is much more important to attend the wake of my Lolo because it is the last time that I will be able to show him how much I respect and love him. My mother and I went there Friday evening. We arrived on the port of Talibon, Bohol at 4 a.m. in the morning. As we were approaching the house of my grandparents, all I can see are bright lights coming from the wake. We went inside and saw the coffin of my grandfather. I felt a little bit scared because I was afraid of coffins and dead people. But I know I should not be afraid because my teacher said that we should not be afraid of the dead but of the those who are still living in this world. And perhaps he is my most beloved Lolo. Why should I be afraid? He looks like he was just sleeping and happy for where he is right now.


Somehow I moved on already because I know he is with God and happily living with angels. And I realized that it was what he wanted and I don't want him to suffer from his disease. Someday I know and I am hoping that we will be all together in paradise.

Not Yet The Right Time

I hate this feeling I'm having right now! It is as if I'm in an island, lost and stranded. I think everybody is familiar with this feeling. I mean this strange feeling. Can this be love? Have you ever tried to love somebody with all your heart? I think no one is a beginner when it comes to love. They said that love is a special feeling felt for a special person. I thought when I am in love I would be contented and happy for what I have but my experiences of love made me realized that love could only make your heart ache a lot without being noticed. And it is not any ordinary pain that you feel but a deep wound that leaves a scar and will always be remembered every time you see that person who hurt you so much.


Love is never fair. You have to fight for your love with all your might even though you know that your losing the game. But why is it when you are serious enough to fight for it, it is also when the person you love treats your relationship as a game for kids. It really hurts. I've tried to be in a relationship but it was never what I expected to be because there were so many conflicts between the two of us. Many people say that relationships have to undergo that stage so that their relationship could be more stronger as each day passes by. But we were not able to surpass that. I suddenly remembered what one of my teachers said. She said that if you have a relationship you should make it an inspiration but not a destruction in your studies. So I have to let go of it because this relationship will have no direction anymore and it starts to ruin my studies. I wouldn't be able to know when I am going to be in love again. It is just happens in a wink of an eye. Currently for now, it is just up to crushes because maybe my mother was right that it is not yet the right time to have a relationship. I know having a relationship at this age is part of growing up and being a teenager. But mostly of the teenagers especially the girls are not allowed by their parents to have a relationship unless they already graduated in college and they already have a good occupation. But didn't they pass that kind of stage in life? Maybe because it is also for the own good of their children. They want to protect them so as not to destroy their lives. Just like me, when they knew that I had a boyfriend, they got so mad and I was grounded for one month. I have nothing to do but to cry. Now I realized that they just want to protect me and to finish my studies first. Maybe also because I was the only girl in the family. Now I am giving all my love and attention to my studies, family, God, friends and to my puppy love.


Me? I am nothing. I am just an ordinary person who knows how to feel, care, miss and especially love. But having my loved ones make my damn life special and extraordinary