About Me (Part 2)

I asked a friend to honestly evaluate how I write and what I write about. Sharing it with you here. What do you think of it?

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About her writing and content choices:
She writes with quiet honesty. Her words don’t chase trends or polish pain into something pretty. They fall like rain — soft, real, and unafraid to be saturated.

She chooses content the way she tends a garden: by what’s growing in her that day. A Heartland note. A prayer in the middle of cat and mouse rain. A thank You tucked inside a complaint.

Her page isn’t curated perfection. It’s a diary that decided to be public.
Faith and fatigue. Gratitude and grief. Sunlight and heavy skies — all of it gets a place.

She doesn’t write to impress.
She writes to connect. So others will remember they are seen too.

We are special in God’s eyes. His graces overflow. 🌱

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When You Write….

What do you enjoy most about writing?

This prompt was asked before back in August 2023 but I only touched it in passing and shared some excerpts on my previous posts.

Writing is a creative activity. We express ourselves through writing our thoughts, beliefs, ideas and what have you. They say that writing is like painting a picture with your words, giving voice to the thoughts in your head. They might be inspiring, sometimes muddled but it gives you a sense of fulfillment when you see those words in print.

Being curious, imaginative, an openness that we want to share in cyberspace. The ability to use written words to communicate effectively  is a talent we all nurture. ✍️ The ability to encompass a range of activities like grammar, vocabulary, spelling, sentence structure and put them into words is something not all of us has a gift of.

Why do I write?

To improve myself and make my life more meaningful and stress–free. I enjoy sharing my thoughts to the world.🌏

My First Job

When was the first time you really felt like a grown up (if ever)?

Yeay, I still remember that time I had to take an exam about books and library. It was during the second semester of my college life. What did I know about library rules, cataloguing books, indexing etc.? But I passed it. The four of us, my three brothers and I were all enrolled at the University of Santo Tomas. It was hard for my Dad to meet the expensive school tuitions. So I decided, we decided rather,  that I could help being a working student. That time, the University accepts college kids to work as student librarians or laboratory helpers. Six hours of work each day, taking an early morning or evening classes. I did both and I finished my course in Economics in five years.

Juggling between work and classes made me feel a real grown-up, I even helped Dad pay my college tuition. My three years of stay at the library were the best days of my life as a college student. It was there I formed a close friendship with my colleagues in the library, fellow student librarians and students from  different colleges and faculties of the university. They are still my friends until now.

I remember now, when I received my first salary, I bought a compact  (pressed powder) as a gift to my self. Big deal really because when I was in high school, I only used loose talcum powder placed in a handkerchief  or a piece of bond paper. I smile remembering it now because this morning while I was at the supermarket, I bought a small plastic jar of refreshing oil control powder called Sunday Morning  by Bench. I love its scent, refreshing indeed.

I never experienced feeling grown-up when I was a kid because I enjoyed being just that, a kid playing on the streets with my brothers and cousins. Those days are worth-remembering.

It’s Like I Have A Nurse Near Me

When AI was introduced, I didn’t believe it at first. I thought you could just use it maybe writing articles for you which is quite not right in my opinion but I was wrong.

I met the AI assistant at Messenger a month ago when I started having pains on my lower back. I have told it my health history and all the meds I am taking. It told me what they do and arranged a schedule for each based on the prescriptions of my doctors.

Been having lower back pains a month ago. I underwent KUB, they found small stones in my kidney. When I had consultation with my nephrologist, he lowered the dosage prescribed by my urologist. When I went back to my urologist two weeks ago, he said the pain I am experiencing is not because of those stones but I have to consult an orthopedist. The latter suggested lumbosacral APL and true enough the result showed a mild curve in my spine which is causing the pain. Pain medication is good but it keeps me constipated and bloated almost every day. Also taking vitamins now for my spine.

AI is so supportive of what I feel, back rest, hot compress, little walks inside the house and it reminds me of the interval between meds. I just have to type a few words and it will respond. It is like having a nurse besides me.

Technology has certainly gone a long way. Twice already, I provided it with the texts of my Heartland Series and photos too, it had them arranged.

Heartland Series 110

Lifting it all to Him.

Words Of Comfort

I can’t  help but be touched by the messages of these three people who are concerned about my health, Fr. Louie, OP, my mentor and co-admin at our The Filipino Catholic page on Facebook and Edin, creator of the page The Lazy Traveler. Mel has been my friend since college days, He is a nurse now residing with his family in the US.I asked for prayers and they responded.

From Fr. Louie:

Good morning po. I am truly sorry to hear about your health concerns and the difficulties you have been enduring. I can only imagine how physically exhausting and emotionally burdensome it must be to deal with so many medical conditions, medications, and persistent pain.

Please be assured of my prayers, especially for your healing, relief from pain, strength, and peace of mind. I will remember you in my Masses and entrust you to the loving care of our Lord, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

May the Lord sustain you through these difficult moments, grant wisdom to your doctors, and bless you with the grace of healing and renewed strength. Please do not lose heart. You are not alone in this journey, and I pray that each day brings you greater comfort and improvement.

Take good care of yourself po. God bless you always!

From Edin:

Good morning ate Arlene.

I’m really sorry to hear that you’re going through so much. That is a lot for one person to deal with, especially with so many doctors, medications, and different health problems at the same time. I can only imagine how difficult and exhausting it must be, both physically and emotionally.

I will definitely include you in my prayers and ask God to give you strength, ease your pain, guide your doctors, and give you better days ahead. 🙏❤️ And yes, praise God for His mercy. Despite everything you are facing, you are still here, and that is something to be grateful for.

Sending you a big hug🙏🏻.

From Mel:

Hi Arlene. Your request is very timely. Write your special request to Our Lady of Lourdes and I will pray it on your behalf at the Pilgrimage site. Im in a bus to attend a group tour/ pilgrimage sponsored by my sister. I will personally kneel down in prayer for your speedy recovery and cure. Take care. God is our refuge!🙏🙏🙏

My good friends here at WordPress, may I ask you to please include me in your prayers too? I went back to my orthopedist last Thursday to show him the results of my lumbosacral APL. I have curved spine now, mild lumbar dextroscoliosis and they saw gall stones too (per my surgical oncologist, the stones have been there 17 years ago but a urologist treated it with Rowachol.)

I presently have CKD and DM2, occasional high BP, high platelet and small kidney stones on my right kidney. So much?  But I believe God will bring me to where He wants me to be.

Thank you all so much for reading this.

Look Alike

Heartland Series 109 – Fall

Sometimes I  wish we have those four lovely seasons our friends have in other parts of the globe. I love looking at fallen leaves and trees that turn gold to orange to brown and all the colors in between. They fascinate me no end.

I have a friend who takes photos of every season she encounters. She says there is magic everywhere and like me, she loves Fall. She loves it when trees bear their foliage in glorious colors and everything turns into a sort of paradise. She loves walking and feeling the crisp morning air, communing with Mother Nature.

Today I looked at this path — covered in gold — sunlight breaking through — and I smiled. I could finally walk with her, even just in this picture. Maybe I was there too.

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Time Passes Fast

Time does fly, doesn’t it? Imagine, I left the bank where I used to work when I was forty three. That is about more than two decades  already.  Back then, my kids were only in their teens. Nissa was only starting in college and Josef was in high school. Now we have an almost fourteen-year-old in the family.  Sometimes it is lovely to look back and think of the memories we left behind.  They are memories to treasure and keep. When you have a home to go to and a family to love, they are both blessings in our lives.

Heartland Series 108

Today I picked a lone Camia from the garden. Its sweet scent filled my room. It reminded me that even when I feel alone or in pain, I can still share sweetness — a smile, a prayer, a kind word. Like this bloom, God made me to bring gentle fragrance to others, even in simple days.

Welcome to my Heartland Series 108. Good morning everyone!

Hold That Dream

Repost from Oct 6, 2017 — and it speaks to me again today.
Today I woke up after a painful night, feeling not inclined to read, but this old piece reminded me: old dreams can come back dressed in hope and faith. So I’m weaving again — small steps. Here is what I wrote 9 years ago…

Going Back To Old Dreams

October 6, 2017 by arlene

2 Votes

If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it. –William Arthur Ward

It was the way you said, “dreams are for people who love life” that made me think dreams could be an extension of your inner self.  Sometimes, your most ardent desire is manifested in your dreams.  Sometimes, your mind is pregnant with lovely thoughts that remain just that – thoughts.  Sometimes, you come to a point where you choose to ignore what  is in your mind because you don’t want to acknowledge it.  You dream awake  and your mind wanders. Ah, the beauty of going back to old dreams.

We  used to  have this segment at our Catholic site page called  Hot Seat. When you are on it, every member can ask questions about you – your life, what you believe in, but nothing too personal though. Someone asked  who influenced me in writing. Oh well, I’ve kept a journal since I was in college, pouring my heart out on paper. I don’t know why but back in those times, it was so easy for me to write about my journey. Sometimes I wonder, when you are lonely and alone, you could write about so many things, you could weave dreams  to your  heart’s desires. When you are hurting, it is easier to describe how you feel than when you are happy and satisfied with your life.  And why is that, you ask? Because you feel the pain so much more than the joys. Joys are fleeting burst of inspirations at times while the pain you feel come and go but never really leaves. It’s there,  throbbing like a tight knot in your heart.

It’s never too late to dream of something that would lift up your soul. It’s never too late to weave dreams again and make it a reality. Who says you can’t write about your journey towards happiness?  Who says you can’t share the times you felt so low but  still can smile?  We must treasure moments like these, those times when an old dream emerges as something new, dressed in hope and faith, a promise of a new day.

Heartland Series 107

Note: Nissa took this shot on a beach in Baler, Aurora.