Amid My Silent Reverie

June 10. Birthdate. Gemini. 33 years. What a blessing to be able to reach this milestone and experience life. Five years ago, I wrote a letter to myself supposedly to remind me of how special and loved I am in times when I don't feel like one. Reading it brought back nostalgia and I realized how important it is to always write down my feelings. Primarily, because they are valid and they may come in handy a few years down the road. True enough, it gave me a little nudge to start this post. ☺️ I don't have any news to share on how successful I am nor is there any major life update. It’s just that after two years of creative block, words are freely flowing again. During the onset of the pandemic, I thought I was doing fairly okay. Covid took so much of our attention and energy that one day, I cannot write anything anymore. It was such a big deal from someone who enjoys doing her blogs (even if all people already moved on to other trending platforms). I had a hard time expressing ...

"Mag-aral ka ng mabuti at magtapos para makahanap ka ng magandang trabaho. Kapag nangyari yun, mabibili mo na ang mga gusto mo."  Did you also grew up hearing this cliché? In all honesty, I spent 15 years of studying from preschool to college but I did not learn anything about managing my finances. All along I thought that being employed will magically give me the powers to acquire the things I wanted. And so one day, I just felt curious. It was year 2013 - my third year in the work force that I suddenly had the thought, "I'm paying all these bills but I have nothing for myself other than this Alcatel phone and if I strictly save for at least two months, I consider myself lucky to be able to travel somewhere at most once a year."  I am not earning a lot. On the contrary, it was so meager and yet the dreams I started having weighs more than what I make. Guess what makes it heavy? Well, in order to achieve those  goals, I need money!  My 23 year old self was dream...

One afternoon, I browsed a meme on my Facebook newsfeed that read something like:  "Ilang kape ang naubos mo para sa planner na yan tapos ano na ngayon?"  For some, it may sound funny but for others, they might despise the situation all the more and think  "oo nga naman, sayang ang pera ko. wala naman natuloy sa mga plano ko."  We must always remember, in the things we say, in the posts we make, and in this blog I wrote, each and everyone of us have varying degrees of interpretation.  Different folks, different strokes . 

I am a homebuddy. But staying in the house 24/7 for almost 16 days now with the threat of a pandemic right outside the doorstep is way waaaaay different. Things are happening so fast. Sixteen days ago, I started working from home. Fourteen days ago, Community Quarantine was implemented which later on turned to Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) two days after. That was quite a lot, isn't it? Is there a pause button?

"Hindi na ako gagawa ng New Year's Resolution dahil hindi ko naman natutupad." "Fad lang naman ang paggawa ng New Year's Resolution." Is it really? Day 1 of 2020. Happy New Year! I hope we were all feeling recharged and rejuvenated this holiday season enough to power us through this new beginning. So we all have our planners ready, but what is there to write? Were you also one of those who had the same sentiments as above? Did you also felt hopeless that you are constantly identifying what you wanted to achieve or change every start of the year but ends up not being able to accomplish it come December? I am also guilty of this before until I went into a full adulting mode specifically prior getting married. Sometimes, all we really need is to recognize our most important "why" - the reason for everything we do in order for us to take time and align our goals with appropriate actions. THE NEED The truth of the matter is, we...

It's been six months since my last blog entry and boy, a LOT of things did happened. Although that sounded like an excuse. I always seem to say a lot of things happened that's why I neglect to write and post a blog entry. But really, you know how you set goals at the start of the year then comes this big opportunity that you don't want to miss which eventually takes your life to a whole 360 degrees turn? So you reassess the goals you set towards the first few months, make necessary adjustments or rather create a new list then go on with the rest of the year. Thinking and praying that you made the right decision.

I am a thinker, a worrier and an emotional person. Sometimes I use it to my advantage by writing blogs and empathizing with people but it can also be my weakness especially when I tend to overthink. I always reflect on the happenings in my life and put meaning as to why I am in a certain situation. Many people say, you should just enjoy life and stop worrying. But how do you even do that when the decisions you make today will most probably affect your future? Can you always say, "come what may?" Notice that I used always to maintain the premise that there are still some battles you could fight your way to the top and there are those which you should know when to give up. One day out of the blue, I wondered on the concept of "adulting." Every after life's storms, there's a silver lining.

One year. First wedding anniversary. The first step out of the many footsteps to follow. By now, the husband and I have shared understanding of what a "happy" celebration should be that's why we chose to do a staycation to commemorate this milestone. You know how much of a laid back and boring couple we are. 😉 On another note, I would like to make a shout out to the husband who thought of preparing a surprise gift for me, I'm in love! ❤

Happy New Year! As of this writing, today is Day 4 of 365. Are you still pushing through with your sticker collection? How about your year end evaluations? In all of it, don't forget to celebrate all your wins, big or small. It's still a win after all. You did great! As for me, can I just share how happy I am for being a lot more organized with my life last year than before? I'm thinking, is it because I am getting old and it is mandatory to have a life vision? Or is it also correlated to the idea that I am planning not just for myself but for my husband too (and our future family)? Can it also be that all the training and workshops I attended related to time management and extraordinary productivity last 2018 are already paying off? Put your hands up if you're an OC and mega- planner like me! I thought I was already doing my best the year we prepared for our wedding, but no. You'll only keep on getting better through time. What worked for me the past year? ...

After two months hiatus in the blogging world, I am FINALLY back. Ready to end the year on a high note! Wow, December! I can't even begin to think where the other eleven months went. Anyhoo, I don't want to end this month "entry-less" so here I am ready to share the husband and I's most recent Singapore trip. This travel is really one for the books compared to our previous stay last 2013 because it's our first international travel alone and we joined the prestigious Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (SCSM) 2018 - 5KM run.

Getting a positive result from a pregnancy test one day and losing one line the next is not as easy at it may seem. It can be as painful and lonely as any other loss but just the same, you fight your way through despair. It is one of the reasons why I said it is important to have an intact support system.  It's not entirely a loss.

No man is an island. In my honest opinion, I am not so much of a believer when others coin the term "loner." Maybe, just maybe, that person is not in his/her element when you see them but when they are at home, they should have their family or even childhood friends that they are comfortable being with. Of course, being depressed is a different situation at that. 

I consider writing in my blog as a source of relaxation and personal growth. If there is a notable change other than my commitment to post an entry every month, that is I don't want to overthink about the contents anymore. Meaning, I just want to treat this as an online record of my experiences and hopefully it can capture the appropriate market. It would be a bonus to extend inspiration to would be bloggers to just come out and write with their hearts' desires. Eventually, it will lead us to where we are destined to be heading. Just a few months ago, I encountered quite a number of page views. I ecstatically celebrated this small win but it doesn't stop there. Everyday is a work in progress. In a world where it's harder to influence others to read blogs anymore (vlogs are so much on trend nowadays), I do not even expect an international viewership. After 46 articles, to date, I am doing fine. Or was it purely made up? Just until recently, I received an unexpecte...

Twenty-eight. Three more and I'm officially out of the calendar. As a matter of fact, if it is not a leap year, my age would be the last date of February. For the over-thinker that I am, I hope this letter may always remind me that I am doing well.

Statements such as  "Nabasa ko yung blog mo, magaling ka pala magsulat"  and  "Ang ganda ng blog mo,"  are music to my ears. The readers' feedback keep me motivated to continuously write and share my entries. Sometimes, more than the likes and reactions to my post, it is the direct messages and inquiry that makes me really ecstatic. This is where I am most certain that I left a mark. But how did I ever came up with the idea of creating a blog and what are the steps I made to be able to develop my site? Let me give you an idea.

I feel like I'm an old person trying to fit in my new body. You know how we are adjusting when writing 2018 in our notes or diary last January because we are so used in using 2017? That kind of confusion and newness. It's not unpleasant, it's just that being married involves an every day process of adjustment. Staying in another place other than our house was not a new concept to me. Way back in college, I spent four years in a dorm, going home only on weekends. During my practicum, we stayed in our host community for two straight months. But these experiences are nothing compared to the reality that I will not see my family every single day like what I was used to. I don't know how others are coping with it. But in my case, there are still days where I am skeptical of my roles. I'm stuck thinking of what needs to be done, what is expected of me and what I wanted to do. I honestly miss the days when I can spend my entire weekends watching Korean dramas, or ...

Money definitely doesn't (and shouldn't) make the world go round but it is a tool that we use to help us bridge one day to the other. As small as P8 in a jeepney can transport me from Biñan to Sta. Rosa while a P10000, without seat sale, can bring me to Singapore. We have different values and knowledge when it comes to spending money but we all have one common goal - to alleviate or prevent ourselves from hitting rock bottom poverty. How can we do it?

Now, we've come to the end. This has been the best adventure that my husband and I undertook to date. So even if I'm a bit sad, this is probably my last entry for the blog series "Wedding Insider."  But looking at the brighter side, it is an opportunity to write other interesting topics in the future. That being said, let us end this on a high note. To date, we already know: 1.  What we did right after engagement 2.  How we tend to lose track on keeping up with our friends (and why it's normal)  3.  How we arrived at the FINAL FINAL PLAN , and 4.  What were the details of our "Big Day" You can click on each of the specific topics to read on the articles I previously posted. 

All weddings are perfect for every newlyweds. By the term "perfect" I meant that the bride and the groom brainstormed together to plan it, spent a couple of their weekends scouting inexpensive supplier options instead of resting and chose to dump date nights just to save money. Most importantly, if it felt like it's the happiest day of their lives, then I consider it as the epitome of perfectness. What was your perfect wedding like?