Happiness comes in simple things like this. One more day being one with nature…the raindrops beckon. I was giddy at the thought of remembering what today brought me.
Archive for March, 2012
Happy
Posted in blessings, guilty pleasures, Happiness, tagged a bit of myself, Close to Nature, life, photography, silence speaks, thoughts on March 30, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Metamorphosis
Posted in flowers and blooms, gardens, guilty pleasures, home garden, life, tagged Amazon lily, city gardens, Close to Nature, flowers, flowers and blooms, garden, gardening, home garden, nature, photography on March 29, 2012| 2 Comments »
Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature. – Gerard de Nerval
Don’t look now, but there was a time when I used to document every bloom and every seed that grows in my garden. I even dreamed of writing about it, describing every bloom, how long it took for one particular plant to grow and surprise you with that lovely bloom after nurturing it with your heart and soul. And always, the pleasure of seeing it transform before your eyes and the joy you feel after long days of wait is worth a thousand smile on your face. I remember taking these shots with my old Pentax Optio camera while recuperating from a life-changing ailment almost three years ago. It’s my Amazon Lily, from bud to bloom.
Fall
Posted in life, photography, tagged a bit of myself, fall, family life, flowers and blooms, life, nature, photography on March 28, 2012| Leave a Comment »
A close friend of mine once shared her album she took in BC. I simply love the colors of the fall season. I was having my morning routine of cleaning the backyard, sweeping dry leaves and deadheading some plants and I was briefly reminded of the pictures she shared.
This is how close as I can get to seeing a dry leaf fall from our avocado tree.
Six PM
Posted in Close to Nature, Closer to God, flowers and blooms, tagged flowers and blooms, nature, photography on March 27, 2012| 2 Comments »
Can’t resist taking shots of these and what better time to do it than at dusk, hmm….it’s more of twilight I guess.
More Blessings
Posted in blessings, Closer to God, inspirational, tagged blessings, Closer to God, inspirational, life, photography, silence speaks, something to think about on March 27, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Grace comes in the most unexpected places
At the most unexpected moment.
Clouds never stay long to obscure our view
Because God wants us to see the beauty of the sky.
Ah, I love what WordPress says:
Goal of 860 Posts Completed. Congratulations!
From One Bookworm To Another Bookworm
Posted in books, friends, guilty pleasures, silence speaks, tagged books, friends, guilty pleasures, literature and Fiction on March 25, 2012| 1 Comment »
Alam mong adik ka na talaga sa libro when you want to enter every Booksale you pass by and hope to find that one particular book which you’ve been looking for for so long. Alam mong adik ka na talaga sa libro when you want to justify an expensive purchase at National Bookstore saying to yourself, it’s Mother’s Day in two months anyway so it’s a gift, well, sort of.
Posted the above shout-out earlier on my wall at Facebook. The Me here is of course yours truly and LC is a friend residing in the US. And I find it funny that when the topic is about books, anything goes.
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Me: Hi LC!
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LC: Alam mong adik ka sa libro na mas gusto mong pumasok sa bookstore at mamalagi ng buong araw sa loob at kuntentong kuntento ka!! Alam mo adik sa libro na kahit wala kang payong, hahayaan mong mabasa ka pero yung mga librong binili ay talagang iniingatang wag mabasa!! =)Unlike ·
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LC: Hi Arlene!!
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Me: 101% agree! At alam mong adik ka na sa libro kung pagdating mo sa bahay gusto mo kaagad lagyan ng plastic cover at isulat ang “ex libris” on the first blank page with your name in bold letters….hahaha!· Like ·
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LC: haahahaha….actually meron akong stickers na “ex libris” and I put them on my fave books!! Speaking of books,Arlene , you won’t believe what I paid for a hardcover complete works of Shakespeare!!??!!! I found it in one of the thrift shops and I asked how much was it since it didn’t have a price and the clerk quickly flipped through the pages and asked me how much do I want to pay for them and I was salivating at the mouth but I tried to be cool so I said, “how much do you want to sell it for?” and she looked at it one more time and she nonchalantly said, “hmm….ten cents.” Well…I quickly bought it and yes, I put my “ex libris” sticker, hahaha!!
- Me: Wow, LC, that’s a good find! How lucky can you get!
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LC: You can imagine me walking out of the thrift store with my cheshire cat’s smile!!! =)
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Me: I am looking for old books by Richard Paul Evans here but I could not find any. My hardcover copies were all destroyed by the flood two years ago. (Notice the link on RPE’s name,baka mabasa niya eto eh, maawa at padalhan ako…hehehe)
- Me: Wow, LC, that’s a good find! How lucky can you get!
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LC: hahahaha….talagang naka link!!! Hanapan kita next time magawi ako sa mga thrift stores!! There’s a handful pero karamihan mga romance and mostly by barbara cartland kaya nga I was soooo happy to find that shakespeare’s book.· Unlike ·
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Me: I haven’t read Cartland since high school pero paminsan masarap magbasa ulit ng ganun, easy read and all. RPE is on my mailing list for a number of years now and he is an online friend here at FB, a very accommodating and kind author. I have a whole album of his quotes which he shares with his readers.
- LC: Oo, nakaka-addict yung mga Cartland; I remember meron pa akong guideline noon ng royalty hierarchy para alam ko kung ano ang baron/ness, viscount, etc. hahahahaha!! Sige, hahanapan kita ng mga books nya!
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Me: Hahaha! Thanks in advance… Wala na atang mga ganung subject ano except those books by Judith McNaught (one of Nissa’s favorite authors).
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LC: It’s been awhile I read those kind of books; lately it’s suspense/thriller for me. Sige, inbox mo address mo so kung meron akong mahanap, send ko sa yo.
- Me: Lovely 🙂
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Yeay!
Posted in blessings, Closer to God, inspirational, life, tagged Faith, inspirational, life, prayer, reflection on March 20, 2012| 3 Comments »
My daughter Nissa texted me this a while ago. Lovely words, what a way to start the morning saying a simple prayer for God’s blessings.
Be thankful for yesterday
because you have wonderful memories to think about…
Be thankful for today
because you are able to wake up to celebrate life…
Be thankful for tomorrow
because you will be able to fulfill your dreams and wishes…
But most of all, be thankful to GOD
for He was with you yesterday,
He is with you today
and He will always be with you tomorrow and
forever!
GOD bless you!
University of Santo Tomas (Main Building)
Posted in a tribute, Catholic University in Asia, inspiration, my school, my university - UST, Pontifical Catholic University, University, University of Santo Tomas, tagged my school, my university, photography, Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, University of Santo Tomas, UST, USTe on March 19, 2012| 2 Comments »
Two months ago, I had another opportunity to take shots of one of my favorite subjects, my alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas, officially known as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, the Catholic University of the Philippines. UST or USTe as we alumni fondly call it is the oldest existing university in Asia. In terms of student population, it is the largest Catholic university in the world in a single campus. The institution was established through the initiative of Bishop Miguel de Benavides, O.P., the third Archbishop of Manila. I blogged about it more than any other subject I encountered. You see, I am a proud alumna of the University spending nine years of my life since high school in this revered institution.
The UST Main Building with its massive, imposing and seemingly solid facade is one of the best city landmarks in Metro Manila. Designed by Fr. Roque Ruaño, O.P., priest and engineer, it has the distinction of the first fire-proof building in the country. The building is composed of forty independent structures separated from each other by a gap of one inch, which is filled with loose cement. One of these structures rises beyond the level of the fourth floor to form the tower in the center of the huge box-like stone mass.
Back in high school, I was never curious what the statues and monuments atop the main building stand for. Being a student who saw them everyday, they were just part of the campus and the lovely facade of the building. It’s when you have left its portals that you get to appreciate it better and you’re proud, so truly proud that after all these years, you are still welcome in its bosom.
The trio of statues represent theologians and historians: St. Augustine, the Doctor of the Church, St. Raymond de Peñafort, O.P., doctor of Canon Law, and Vincent de Beauvais, O.P. French historian. And the three statues facing A.H.Lacson St. are those of the playwrights: the Spanish Lope de Vega, the Greek comic Aristophanes, and the French neo-classical comedian Moliere .
The wide campus in front of the UST Main Building.
The cross atop the tower symbolizes the University’s mission to impart knowledge in the sacred and civil sciences. Slightly in front of, and below the tower is the “Tria Haec” clustered around a giant clock in the center facade of the fourth floor. The hooded and robed figure “Faith” brandishes a cross up high and occupies the top of the clock. Lower and to the left of the clock stands “Hope” and to the right, “Charity”. All these statues communicate with their varied expressive poses magnified in stone. They teach in silence.
These three figures represent the great philosophers Aristotle, St. Albert the Great and Plato.
This is the inner quadrangle of the Main building. The surrounding rooms here used to be the UST Main Library (back in my time, that is).
I walked these halls countless times during my student days and working for almost three years as a student librarian instilled in me the love of books. Those were the days and I really miss you, USTe!
Hmm…just want to remember, this is my 855th post, thanks WordPress!
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