Ang sarili kong mundo

Dear 2023, Well, that was fast. Anyway, I just want you to know that you aren't my best year, but you aren't the worst either. Let's just say that you made me cry a lot. And I will never ever forgive you for that. Just kidding. We're already even. I honestly want to thank you because of that. Because you made me cry numerous times, you also made me want to go on adventures. You made me want to go to places that I've never been before. You made me realize how helpful Google Maps is. That's why I'm welcoming 2024 with an empty pocket. Just kidding. It seems that all the money that I saved in the past few years I spent them all with you. But that's okay. At least my stomach is full, as well as my phone gallery.  I had many plans before you even began. I will do this. I will pursue this. I have to take this route. But what happened? It only goes to show that no matter what my plans are, in the end, God's will will always prevail. And who am I to complain

Merry Christmas, everyone. In just two days, we will be celebrating the coming of Jesus once again. Families will gather at one table again. Friends will reunite. Christmas parties are everywhere. Unlimited chit-chats from people who haven't seen each other for quite a while. The exchanging of gifts. Christmas is probably the busiest day of the year for some people. While for some, they treat Christmas as a normal day. We all have different approaches when it comes to celebrating Christmas. Others spend it alone by choice, while others are alone because the circumstances don't allow them to spend it with their loved ones. There are people who will be celebrating Christmas this year unlike any other Christmas. Perhaps some just had welcome a new family member. So they will be celebrating Christmas a lot more special with their new bundle of joy. Or it's their first Christmas to spend in their new home. On the other hand, there are some who will be welcoming Christmas in a so

When I was a kid, I really believed that Santa Claus existed. I would secretly hang a plastic bag somewhere in our house, hoping that when I woke up the next morning, there would be a gift inside. But in the span of my childhood, there were only two times when there was something inside the plastic bag. One was a PHP10.00 bill. Which, by the way, was already a large amount during that time. I could already purchase a luxury car. Just kidding. Anyway, the second gift was a xylophone. It was from my aunt. It has keys of several nursery songs that I could practice. I was ecstatic when I saw it in the morning. Now that I'm an adult, I sometimes wonder what if I hang a plastic bag on Christmas Eve. Will there be a gift waiting for me when I wake up? But seriously, as a grownup, it's really hard to tell what gift I want to receive. Then I ask myself why I need to receive or ask for a gift. I'm not the one celebrating my birthday. Plus, as an adult, the things that I want to recei

It all went wrong when I finished my studies. When I thought that late night studying for exams and early class the next day were the hardest things to manage. Oh! The things I am willing to exchange just to get back to those days again. It all went wrong when I thought that landing a job was a piece of cake. I thought that it was only a matter of time and I will soon be able to find a job. 11 years after, here I am still unemployed. It all went wrong when I expected too much from people. When I thought that I meant to them as much as they do to me. When I thought that my mistakes would be overlooked. Cause why not? I was still a child. It all went wrong when everything has changed right before my very eyes. I thought that things will never turned out the way they do now. But, hey! You know what they say. "The only constant thing in the world is change." It all went wrong when I crave peace over anything. When I expected people to have compassion on other human being. When I

How to be okay with the things that you're not okay with? Hmmm... Honestly, it's hard. But it's possible. Sometimes life seems to be difficult to handle, including people. They have their own way of disappointing us. As much as possible we want to avoid the feelings that we feel towards a certain situation, but we just can't. We have to bear the pain. We have to deal with the situation whether we like it or not. We have to act okay with the things that we're not okay with, even though inside we're dying. We have to pretend we're not hurt. We have to act normal like nothing is wrong. Even if all we want to do is scream at the top of our lungs. We want to scream out of anger, disappointment and pain. But we cannot. We should not. We don't have to.  Every time we feel that way, we have to hide our true feelings. Even though we know that what we feel is valid, at the back of our mind there's this voice that tells us we're only being sensitive. That w