With You

This is my visual image of peace and quiet. Whenever I have to picture a sanctuary when meditating this is what comes to my mind. Photo taken in Bontoc, Mountain Province back when I went on a silent retreat years ago.

Finally everything's quiet, calm and simple

With you everything's sure

Because you are consistent

With you the timing's always perfect

All other reasons seem irrelevant

With you everything remains exciting

It is always an adventure in your presence

In your presence everything seems fine

In your presence nothing really matters much but just you loving me

In your love I can be free

In your love I can choose the life that I want

In your love I am accepted amidst, inspite and despite of who I am

In your love I never have to second guess

In your love I am always secured

And everything aside from your love will always be second-rate

Your love is the only love that can satisfy the deepest void and hunger in my longing heart

Not because that I love you but because you are always the first one initiating this love

the one who is always constant

the one who still loves no matter what

the one whose love is promised to never end

whose love is tangible and real

whose love is true

Lord, it is only with You

This is what I don't deserve...

It may be beautiful but oftentimes we must remind ourselves that we deserve more than a bouquet, we are made for even greater surprises, like a garden full of our favorite flowers.

Any love that is not consistent

Any love that is not sure

Any love that does not make me feel secured

Any love that makes me question my worth

Any love that is not freely understanding of who I am

Any love that is not exciting, joyful or challenging

Is not the kind of love that I deserve 👌

Begin Again

sketch again
create again
write again
hope again
love again

well it's the basic of continuing something, to pick-up from where we left off...

Of First Time Basketball Game Experience & Learning How to Pray

It's funny how a basketball game can teach me new and deeper lessons on praying.

I have never been a basketball or any sports fan, so when my boyfriend asked me to accompany him in one of the FIBA Asia 2013 games I practiced faking excitement. Ehehe. He is a basketball die hard, as for me, I did not know anything. The live game was a stress experience. I am the contemplative type, so put me in a panic people crowd, it would definitely drive me nuts.

So during my first live game experience I resorted my stress to praying. Different things were happening, drummers on the left side, people shouting bad words at the back of our seats, missed shots in the court, photographers and cameramen running at the courtsides (yes, I'm observing them) and falling popcorns from our snacks. Me, I am silently and continuously praying my Hail Mary's because I am too nervous and distracted like that.

Then my Hail Mary's were translated to Thank You Lord for every point from the Philippine Team. I was saying thank you's for the game even before they have beaten the HK team. Realized that I was thanking the Lord in advance even when the victory is still 10 minutes away. That was the first prayer lesson, to Thank the Lord is a way of placing my trust that He will grant what I am asking for.

Semi Finals, Philippines versus Korea. This time my Hail Mary's were transformed to Glory Be's. As each shot turned as a point for the Philippines, I would be automatically praying one Glory Be. That Saturday night victory was I think the sweetest win for the team. First, because it gave us the sure Silver medal and the Spain ticket. Second, but the more important, was that it showed that these guys where playing for a greater someone. It was a humbling scene to see great heroes kneeling down and looking up to offer their victory to the Lord. Second prayer lesson: to bring all the glory to the Almighty.

The last game, that Finals game, was a heart breaker. I was asking where would the hashtag puso can bring the team, the crowd, the Filipino. For me Puso was a sure tagline, win or lose we can use it, dehado man o llamado para sa'tin yun. 10 points lead from Iran, I found myself praying the Our Father this time. The line that struck me was predictable "..holy be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done." At that time I was not readying myself for the defeat, I was praying that because I just felt that it was the appropriate supplication one. At the end of the game it made sense, the last lesson is that above all our expectations we should all learn to allow God's will to happen. Puso was more than a victory cry, it is a readying call to be strong no matter what. To keep the composure and the champion's attitude no matter how short we are or no matter what place we end up. Trusting everything to the will of the Lord and having the heart to accept the turnout.

See, I'm not really a basketball fan, I was reflecting these things during the those games instead of focusing in their defenses and rebounds. Thank you FIBA for the much needed reflections. PUSO! LABAN PILIPINAS! Deo Gloria!

(I find inspirations and reflection ideas through basketball games, maipilit sa creative blog)

The Pursuit of Creativity

 

The Pursuit of Creativity: A Call to Arms 

So why do we stop doing something we once held so dear? Maybe we stopped loving it. Maybe the creative process brought too much sadness or we stopped making time for it. Maybe your work was judged by someone in a negative light. Art is subjective after all, yet it still stings when someone doesn’t love it like we do.

Whatever the reason, if you loved being creative, if it once fulfilled your soul – how about bringing it back?

Though I did not really stop making art, I think after graduation from college my pace of discovering and creating dropped a notch lower. Corporate world has it's way of organizing and standardizing things, but then I realized that this should not stop you at all from being creative.

I realized too that everyday things will really lose it's magic if we stop searching for creative ways to spend it. When I stopped recording, blogging and sketching, life really became plain. I always wanted to start painting again, to start doing my own projects, to make crafts and fun things. 

So this blog is my take in following a creative path. Even though I'm doing something in line with art for a living, actually I still haven't figured out what I really want. But I know that I will always long to create and express, so that's where I'll start. 

Maybe God instilled creativity in me because I have to do things in an exciting way. And while I'm discovering what God prepared for me, I should be a responsible steward of His gifts and that I should exercise this more often. So my new blogger account will be my record in my pursuit of creativity! <3

New-Notebook-First-Page-Syndrome

My not so new sketchpad, a book I really wanted but can't seem 
to move forward from chapter 2 and my still not filled pastoral journal.

I think I have this new-notebook-first page syndrome. I fall in love easily with fresh new things but after the first few pages I tend to stop and just store them, no matter how much I wanted it before acquiring it. 

And here again, a new blog site which I hope would not be hit by my new-notebook-syndrome. I hope to keep up with it, as a record and platform of daily thoughts and dump site of future artworks. Here's to starting and sticking to a new blog for my 2nd decade of existence! *Confetti*

P.S.
Along with this new blogger account, I swear to faithfully give time for my sketch pad, finish the book and record in my journal too. Yey for another journey to living, expressing and recording creatively! :)