The Lion in Baguio

This lion's head carved from a giant rock is the landmark to motorists that they have finally reached Baguio.

The Sunday Before Christmas

The Sunday before Christmas, le famille attended a Sunday worship at a church downtown being pastored by my brother in law. Bro in law led the worship singing and a visiting preacher preached the word of God for over an hour. I'm wearing my pocket talker but I did not try to use the extension cord so that I can position the mic near the speaker. We were just visitors in that church and I thought not to bother with the hassle of installing my ALD all over the place. Oh how a I endured and suffered an hour of not understanding anything the preacher was passionately saying at the pulpit. I kept pinching my arms so I can stay awake. You will never know how hard it is to sit for an hour trying to understand a preaching but failing miserably. The proper word is angry. I was very angry that I didn't understand. I heard sounds but my mind cannot proccess the sounds as meaningful speech.

Then after the preaching a little girl sang a special number. I was delighted because I can lipread and understand the song as it was my childhood Sunday school song.

When Christ is in my vessel I can smile like the storm

smile like the storm, smile like the storm

When Christ is in my vessel I can smile like the storm

Until He takes me home.

Sailing, I'm sailing home

Sailing, I'm sailing home.

When Christ is in my vessel I can smile like the storm

Until He takes me home.

Anyways God is really good and His mercies never end. He saw my anger and He aproched me by letting me "hear" the song. I shed a tear secretly not because of self pity but because I experienced God's love at that moment in church, the Sunday before Christmas.

We are only whole to the extent that we are experiencing God's love everyday, as my eldest sister loved to say.

Le famille spent the hols in Baguio from Decemeber 22 to 26. We were 45 in all including the kids. Half of us rented a transient house for five thousand a night. The other half stayed in my sister's house in Baguio. Then each of the adults contributed 550 pesos for food. We had a party on Christmas eve, we exchanged gifts, had parlor games and sang Christmas songs. The kids were happy with the toy gifts they recieved and wanted to play with their new toys the whole night. Mum offered a long closing prayer then we chatted while sipping coffee until after midnight.

We also went to church last Sunday then had lunch out afterwards. We went in groups and I ended up joining my eldest son and his family at Yellow Cab. Soon after my other nieces found us and joined our holiday lunch out. I was hoping son will invite me to have coffee at Starbucks come evening but he didn't. I want to have coffee at Starbucks in Baguio as I love the ambience of the coffee shop and the fact that it's very cold as the wind blows in there.

Mum's birthday cake

Le famille

It's urgent I should blog before December ends. Mum's birthday bash was a big success. Her guests were so blessed by how well we tried to make Mum happy on her 80th birthday. My comic brother in law composed and recited a poem in praise of Mum. Then with the help of his two daughters he sang Only You to Nanay.

We were dressed in our finest and in all imaginable shades of purple. Even the three layer birthday cake was purple and white. Beautiful!