Batulao. January 1, 2016. 12:05 AM.
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| Sunset at Mt. Batulao (as seen from Don Bosco Batulao) |
The firecrackers fill the darkness that blocks this place from the houses and revelry nearby. The fireworks I see from this window are all far away… like small dandelions popping in the mixture of darkness, rainclouds and the night fog. And in
the interval of pop’s, boom’s, whistles and horns,
the frightened dogs bark.
It has been 14 years that I haven’t experienced New Year in the Philippines. My last New Year’s eve was in Atsugi, Japan. We had the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament from 7 PM. Families — many from South America — came and went. Then, there was the Benediction at 11:30. And the Mass for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God at exactly 12 MN. No fireworks. No firecrackers. This was Japan. The only noise were all in the train stations and the temples and shrines were the ordinary, “no-religion” Japanese would traditionally go. But for us in this Catholic Church, we wallowed in the solemnity of the Holy Mass!
2015 will go down in my personal history as a violent roller coaster. I can even make a highlight per month! There was the strong impact and renewed zeal watching Pope Francis in the Philippines (through live streaming in my office in Japan), which led me to finally nail my decision to go back. There were low emotional moments that led me to spend the time watching a movie, intentionally ignoring any text or call from worried parishioners. There were moments of sleepless nights, palpitations, difficulty in breathing or even overeating. There were moments when I literally felt I was the rope in the tug-o-war between sensibility and selfishness. Anxieties. Daring courage. Surrender.
But God is kind. God is good.
And so, here are the 5 lessons I learned from the roller coaster ride of 2015:
1) Prayer works! Yes, not just the usual prayers, but silence, personal dialogue with God and a good investment of PRAYER TIME.
2) We may have our plans in life. But it is always wise to remind oneself that this life is FROM God, this is life is FOR God. My plans will only be secondary to His.
3) It is never wise to ask God for a sign. The SIGNS have always been there. Better ask God to open your eyes to see those signs He had already placed all along.
4) Less of self, more for others. The years in Japan that taught me that discrimination is bad, that there are people in worse situations than myself, that any person around me is a CHILD OF GOD… it’s time to apply them now.
5) Be faithful to your vocation, to the life God calls you to be. That is the simple route to being happy.
It is 12:35 AM. The firecracker sounds have died down. Yet, silence prevails. Silence has won again. Ah yes, silence is a good teacher. It makes you pray… and makes you continue being generous to yourself by sifting through memories and find even the smallest of graces.
TE DEUM LAUDAMUS!
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