to my 2 genius friends

i always knew we'll conquer the world ;D
and have i ever told you guys that i love you?

well i do, so take care.
and i'll miss you, whether it's only a month or a couple of years...
but no goodbyes, only see you later ;) God bless.

* ci vediamo :) *

don't they go by in a blink?

i was late this morning. well, it wasn't the 1st time, but today i was half an hour late. apparently, it was traffic. and i was like, what do you expect, it's monday. i was even singing tori amos' i don't like mondays in my head ("i want to shoot the whole day down... shoot it all down..."), while still being optimistic about getting to the MRT at 7. but when i found myself still stuck in commonwealth after 20 mins, i knew there must be a commotion somewhere.

then my brother, who was driving me to quezon ave, got a text from our mom that a taxi driver was shot in commonwealth, hence the traffic. it made me cringe just hearing that someone died of murder, but it didn't really register in my feeble mind that we'd actually see it. well, we did. or at least my brother saw the whole thing. as we inched closer to the site, my brother told me not to look, so i didn't. i thought i'd be brave enough but as i saw that the front part was facing us, and the corpse still there, i covered my eyes just in time not to see the dead man's face. and i had goosebumps for like a minute and cried for no specific reason, which just made my colds worse.

well, i guess i'm just always scared to hear of people dying. i mean, we could die any minute, in a blink, just like that. and then what?

back in college, i remember a friend saying how death is so final. and i also remember telling him how i was scared to die because i haven't gone to confession yet (that time) and he told me, that's why we should make sure that we are always in the state of grace. and though i try to do that for myself, i worry about my loved ones... like in this dream i had some weeks back. in the dream, it was a Good Friday, and all that was happening implied that the coming Easter, would be the last Easter, and then, it would be judgment day. and there i was worried sick trying to figure out how to tell my family, my aunts, everyone... then i got to watch Constantine some days after the creepy dream and this dialogue between Gabriel and Constantine kept ringing in my head:

G: you still trying to buy your way into heaven?
C: what about the minions i've sent back? that alone should guarantee my entry.
G: how many times have i told you? that's not the way this works.
C: why, haven't i served Him enough? what does He want from me?
G: only the usual. self-sacrifice. belief.

G: you're handed this precious gift, right? each one of you granted redemption from the Creator - murderers, rapists, molesters - all of you just have to repent, and God takes you into His bosom. in all the worlds and all the universe, no other creature can make such a boast, save man.
---
ehm, what am i trying to drive at, exactly? well, i guess, at how lucky we are. in a few days it will be Lent again. perhaps it would be best if we try to contemplate what it is about, and hopefully grow deeper in love with Christ. God bless, everyone. :)

so it's feb. i barely noticed how close valentine's is already, when i'm not even the busiest person these days. =P i was usually on a pre-valentine high when february hits, but not this year... maybe because i'm not in school anymore, i don't see much of those valentine gimmick ads that bulletin boards are normally bombarded with. or maybe because i'll be going straight home and just have dinner with my mom on the 14th because i don't have any date. don't feel sorry for me though, i do have plans on the 13th and 15th. ;)

UP fair next week. kind of sucks when i have to wake up at 5 in the morning the next day... but it's ok (i guess) even if i miss all the great bands (cos i'll probably just stay for 3 hrs :D), i'll see my friends again anyway. it's the company that matters. :)

anyway, i got to read last year's Sieve feb issue again, which made me laugh (pong's valentine's day humbugs), reminisce (kuya rodel's hirit lang po!) and ponder on some stuff (well, the rest of the articles there) such as this:

"what about love?"
"overrated. biochemically no different from eating large quantities of chocolate."
- kevin lomax & john milton, the devil's advocate

well, that's all i guess. i wish everyone a happy valentine's day! :)
if things are not looking up, grab some chocolates. ;)

nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way.
what you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. it will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.
fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.
-pedro arrupe