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Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Lucila: Woman of the Century

In Spain, Lucila meant illumination, light. In my life, Lucila meant everything. Lucila Porciuncula was the name of my late grandmother. She was the heart and light of our family from my Mother’s side. She was the wall behind our great wall (Lolo Carling). To me, she was life and she was my light.




Earliest moment that I can remember was when she built a mini store in front of our house and all we did, my sisters and I, was ask for candy, chips or plastic balloon (yey!). Latest memory on the other hand was in my dreams, waking up in my room and she was sitting beside me smiling then when I finally realized she was dead then, I shouted, “Lola, Lolaaa!!” then dream skipped to sort of an old movie where my lola was young, in black and white, smiling and dancing to an old song. God, how I miss my Lola.





Though It is sad that she is not physically present with me today, I would like to share with you some of the most valuable lessons Lola taught us:

  • Integrity is  a much better choice than financial wealth
  • Family first
  • Always use “po” and “opo” and show respect to elders
  • There is always a way
  •  I can still show how I care and love you despite being upset with you now

 (Side Story: I remember one time when she and Lolo was in the middle of an intense Lover’s  Quarrel, she still brought him a glass of iced orange juice while he was cutting grass in our  backyard. Sweet!)
  • Give. Give and give even when you will not have anything left.
  • Always have a smile on your face when greeting people.
  • No blessing is too small for you to show gratitude.
  • Love. Love with all you heart. Love with all your might. Love with everything that you have. Love patiently. Love hard.
  • Nobody is perfect. Forgive fully and move forward with love.



You are always in my heart Lola, always and forever. J

Friday, May 23, 2014

Superwomom: For the One Who Started It All


To start off a good project to express myself more and embrace my joy for writing, I will dedicate my first ever blog post to the woman who made “unconditional love” not just a phrase, but her life- My Mom. 


I am the only person I know who gives love so much.



My mother’s name is Rosalinda but I call her Mommy, Mommybear and Mudrabear. She has been a single “superwomom” ever since I can remember. For 23 years, her daily routine will be to travel 2 hours from Novaliches to Taguig, function as a manager for 8 hours, travel for another 2 hours again to Novaliches and quickly shift as a “momnager” by the time she set foot on our doorstep. Most often than not she is working both jobs at the same time because as a kid I remember calling her on her phoneline for the littiest thing I can bring up. Something like, “Mommy, ano pasalubong mo sa amin mamaya?”, or “Mommy, anong oras ka darating?”. She was responsible for sending us to top schools in the country and for providing our lifestyle needs as middle class family in Quezon City.




The love-hate relationship that I have with my mom ruled over almost half of my 23 years of existence. She was trying hard to be our mom and dad at the same time and I was trying hard to please her to make her sacrifices for the family worthwhile. It is only when I experienced the hardships of a corporate slave that I have learned to embrace compassion and gratitude towards my mom. I guess, as a kid trapped in a yuppie’s body, I needed that wake up call to appreciate how much body pain my mom is experiencing as she commute to get to work, how focused she needs to be in the office when she has 3 kids calling and waiting for her to get home, how strong and energetic she has to be to be able to attend to her family after work. I never saw that side of mom until I went through it. And if there is one thing that I prayed I have acknowledged earlier, it’s the fact that I have an awesome, hardworking, loving, and passionate mom.

Fortunately for us, this rockstar agreed to provide us  a piece of her mind (and heart) when she cheerfully answered a few questions from our Query Box. 

©       If you had to be a lifeless object for a day, what would you be?
“ I will be a laptop so I can always be with my daughters.”

©       Describe your dream vacation
“I want to go to Jerusalem to see where Christ was born and died. And Vatican so that the Pope will bless me. And lastly Paris, because I want to see the Eiffel Tower and erect it.”
*side story: I told her “choosy ka pa, gusto mo Pope magbless sayo!” She told me, “well, sabi mo mangarap eh!” 

©       Complete this sentence, “ I am the only person I know who________
I am the only person I know who gives love so much.

©       If you had a shot at being in front page of every newspaper or magazine in the world, what would be your favored headline?
Len: Queen of the World or Len The Great!