Social ME-dia

“… so he (Zacchaeus) run ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus  who was to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him,

‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’ ”

(Luke 19: 4-5)

Facebook, Youtube, Google, Blogger and Yahoo! These are four websites that I often visit. I enjoy sharing stories with relatives and friends through blogs especially when it comes to essays, videos and photographs. Accessing these becomes a part of my routine especially during our home vacations wherein my schedules are so vacant. In fact, one time it became so vacant that I was too playful in using Facebook.

It was a fine summer time. Our vacation just started and we’re all very happy. Before the vacation I planned a prank for April Fool’s Day to upload the photo I used for our activity in Speech and Oral Communications about Eulogy (funeral speech). It was a smiling photo of me with a caption which says: “Rest In Peace 1995-2014” and I even added a dedication “I will never forget that infectious smile. We might have not seen it often but once we see it, it radiates a message of brotherly love.” Out of my naughtiness the plan materialized. The news spread widely. My parents received strange phone calls which made them panic as well. Well, my dad suspected that I was just playing around and he was laughing the next day. Anyway, I’ll continue. I was caught unaware that lots of people were already lamenting before I admitted my fault. I know that it was not a good joke as I was already facing the consequences after the event. No one is to be blamed. Not my family, not my friends, not the formation. Simply ME.

ATTENTION: Never ever imitate what I did. It is DEAD-ly

I felt guilty that I played around with the feelings of the people who loved me so much. But what made me guiltier is that I was not able to help them see Christ in me due to my playfulness and I found it difficult to move on those days.

My dear friends, the sycamore tree which Zacchaeus climbed in the Gospel story does not remain as an inanimate object. In reality, we are supposed to be like the sycamore tree helping people to see Christ and bring them to greater heights toward His glory. It is our mission. Time may be different now. Preaching the Good News may have evolved but there is one thing that will never change – a faithful person’s longing for his God. That’s why social media should be used not as a tool to project ourselves but to bring the “Truth” about the Creator. After the incident I vowed myself to blog only about our joyful preaching and childlike happiness. That I do not want to focus on myself anymore to be noticed especially in an unpleasing way and that I will use my talent in preaching for the better. And with the help of prayers to be enough of the ME but to proclaim who is HE.

My friends, are you willing to be a sycamore tree for others?

#Sycamore_SeeMore

Nothing too little

Nothing too little

“..and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins.  And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”(Luke 21: 2-4)

3 years ago, when my lolo Tino (my mother’s uncle) passed away, I went with my mother to our province in Malasiqui, Pangasinan to mourn with our relatives in the wake. I must admit that even though people see me today coming from a family who is well off, we are descendants of peasants in a farm. That’s why when I was in the house of our relatives they were very shy to serve me a bowl of ampalaya, munggo and malunggay. My lola Percy (wife of lolo Tino) told me and my mother, “Pasensya na kayo, a? Ito lang ang maihahanda namin. (Pardon us. This is the only thing we can serve you.)” It doesn’t really matter to me and my mother knows me very well and told them, “Naku! Huwag niyo po masyado alalahanin kakainin niya. Sundalo po iyan! (Oh please! Don’t worry about his food too much. He’s a soldier.)” They even prepared their “only” bedroom for me to sleep in. I appreciated their hospitality but I told them that I find it comfortable to sleep with them anywhere. Besides, I do not want to be treated like a god. O well, in those examples, those are some things to be proud of as a Filipino. Hospitality at its finest.

I can see that in the midst of the poverty of our relatives, they’re willing to give everything they can for the guests. Just like the woman in the Gospel who dropped two small coins in the treasury. Those are what she all had but because she gave it out of love for God she was praised more by our Lord. Maybe for her she was also saying in her heart that she’s sorry and that all what she can give. I feel guilty because whenever I drop some coins or bills during offertory, I am aware that those are spare or extra from my allowances.

It’s true that there’s nothing small in every act of kindness which we can do to our neighbors because our investments will grow bigger in Heaven. Down payment po tawag diyan. We don’t need to become heroes in order for us to tell ourselves that we’ve done a lot for our fellowmen.

God sings, “I’ll give my all to you, give your all to me.”

Baliktad ba lyrics? Oo, baliktad. Dahil siya ang unang nagbigay kaya tayo naman ang magbibigay sa kanya.(Is the lyrics in reverse? Indeed, it is. Because He’s the first one who gave, now it’s our turn to give something to Him)

#GiveToHimAllThatYouHave

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Gospel Reflection Luke 17: 1-6

 “Listen carefully: if your brother offends you tell him, and if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he offends you seven times in one day, but seven times he says to you, ‘I’m sorry’, forgive him.”

-Luke 17: 3-4

There are three ideas in our Gospel: On leading others astray, Brotherly correction and Humble service. But let us focus ourselves on the second.

It is no longer new to me to get hurt either that be coming from a family member, a friend, or a loved one. Surprisingly, I carry a burden each day wherein I would even wake up and see someone who has never, never wanted, and plans not to reconcile with anyone but I forgive those kinds of people. God loves them too. I should not be self-righteous to proclaim that God loves me more because I do my best to follow His commandments. I guess that’s part of life and some people’s attitude are really like that ---- enjoying their days here on earth to frown and to curse. Sometimes we just have to smile at them. Remember what the famous Latin adage goes: Nemo dat quod non habet (You cannot give what you do not have). So smile because God gives smiles to us every day!

Jesus has given us love, and reconciliation is part of that universal love Christ has given to His Church. When we ask for forgiveness and give forgiveness, we are fulfilling Jesus’ command “to love one another as He has loved us”. It’s easier said than done. Do you think it’s easy to love your enemies if they really want to hit you on the head? Do you think it’s easy to accept persecutions by letting ourselves be slapped on the left and right cheeks? Do you think it’s easy to pray for those who hate you? Do you think it’s easy to offer your favorite food to the person you dislike? O my! (Hahaha!)

My friends, saying sorry is showing to others that we are humble like our God who even at the point of His death said, “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” We have not asked for forgiveness yet but Jesus gave it. And to the people like me who are wounded from the past and are continuously being wounded, learn how to have a forgiving attitude. Anger will lead us nowhere! As what Buddha reminds us: “Anger is like grasping on a hot coal with the attempt of throwing it to someone. You are the one who gets burned”.

Always remember: Kaya tayo nagmamahal dahil una Niya tayong minahal (We love because he first loved us). (1 John 4:19)

Tips to a happy living:

Humingi ng tawad bilang lingkod ni Kristo (Ask forgiveness as a servant of Christ).

Magpatawad gaya ng ibinilin ni Lord (Forgive like how the Lord has told us to).

Magbigay ng kaligayahan sa paggawa ng mabuti (Give joy by doing what is good).

Kaya mo iyan, kapatid! Ikaw pa!

Fruits of Labor

Fruits of labor

“The student is not above the teacher,

but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.”

-Luke 6: 40

Vacation was near approaching for most of the students of Calamba, Laguna but it looks like that the Dominican Postulancy in the Pre-Novitiate House did not go with the flow. We were all wondering what to do in our continuing formation because this is the first time that we, the Brothers, had our semestral vacation all together. We asked ourselves if we are the guinea pigs for the upcoming formation years. I thought that it will be a lax vacation wherein we would not be pre-occupied by any activities. I do not like those moments because those make me think of escaping the seminary compound to go to the mall or any landmarks and parks. Thank God, there’s an answer to our prayer of avoiding boredom and that is our English Class with Mr. Melvin Hate (pronounced Ha-TEH).

I am fascinated with his stories from his childhood mainly on his experiences as a student. Can you believe that a kid who had a theme writing paper only he could understand will become an English teacher of the future leaders of the Church? That’s right! I believe in the spirit of “never giving up” and that manifested in Mr. Hate. He inspired me in some ways. His persuasive thoughts are secondary of my admiration to him. The primary reason? Well, he’s dedicated to his work and he encourages us to work harder if we want to discover our passion – the Eureka moments of our lives. Indeed, mind matters too. Whatever we are thinking was being shared in the class. He does not want the ideas to nest in our powerful organ, the brain. The motto of the Dominican Order, Veritas (Truth) was magnified when he asked us to voice out the truths that we believe in. I believe in three truths: 1.) God loves us all, 2.) we are all missionaries in our earthly life and lastly 3.) we are all unfairly blessed (The life, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ was His battle but ours is the glory). We thought that he would only ask us to read three of his essays but he never forgot the last one, The Spectrum of Humanity. According to William Shakespeare, “All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.” We are all unique and our diversity as human beings makes life colorful. But behind all those essays and motivating words, who would forget his jolly smile and enthusiastic personality? He loves sharing with us stories too and listening to our autobiographies. The classroom was not used for lecture alone but as an entertainment area. In addition, the sala was also a place for learning. He was the first male teacher (from Letran-Calamba) who scheduled a “Maalaala Mo Kaya? (MMK)” session with us. Our female teachers act as mothers to us that’s why it’s no longer new to hear that ladies love listening to stories. But most of all, between you and me, he’s the teacher who also loves eating with us during lunch time. Just keep it a secret, alright! He might find out that I told you.

I know that time will come I could be like him or be better than him. He knows it too. That’s what he instills to us as his students. I guess every teacher will be proud if he/she would be able to produce a student or disciple better than he/she is. The only unsurpassable Teacher is Jesus Christ, of course! Tame your selves people! Do not defy God.  I appreciate Mr. Hate’s dedication for his work. He admits that he also gets tired after our three-hour class but he feels that it’s worth it. I told him that I want to become a teacher someday and he responded, “Really? Well, there’s no money in teaching. Only happiness.” And I answered him, “I know that, sir. I just want to be happy too.”

It has been a short while with him but he gave us lots of lessons in life which other teachers were not able to teach in the four corners of the classroom. So, to Mr. Melvin Hate, you might be reading this, sir. I will never forget you being a part of our lives as seminarians. May God bless you in your future endeavors. The storms may come any minute but “DON’T WORRY. THAT’S PART OF LIFE.” There is a poem that we used to chant in our Citizenship Advancement Training (CAT) when I was still a cadet officer:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit-

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a fellow turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don't give up though the pace seems slow -

You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than

It seems to a faint and faltering man;

Often the struggler has given up

When he might have captured the victor's cup;

And he learned too late when the night came down,

How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out -

The silver tint in the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,

It might be near when it seems afar;

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -

It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

Sir, you are one of the reasons why I should always think that I am lucky in life. I am not kidding. Having you as my teacher was a great opportunity. Our future essays, sonnets, poems, compositions, songs, etc. are fruits not only of our labor but also yours. Take care and may I be one with you in prayers.