Paris

I've just watched a movie that was set in Paris. I really think that it's a very beautiful city. I would love to see the Louvre museum and see all the original masterpieces of the famous artists. Of course, the Eiffel tower must be a sight to behold and I would very much like to taste authentic french cuisine. Oh, Paris! Will you only be in my dreams? It's too late for Hubby and I to go on a paris honeymoon maybe we can plan to go there for our 25th or 35th wedding anniversary? ;)

Travelling

We will be traveling back home tomorrow.. and thankfully not by a human-driven cart as pictured above.. lol! but by airplane. 

Every trip that we make is truly a testimony of God's favor in our lives. As a family of 4, it's not cheap to travel back to our hometown where we need to travel to the capital (either Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok) by car or train and then from there from by plane to Manila and then another flight to our city. We really didn't plan to go back home this Christmas, but since we didn't get to spend a lot of quality time with family last year due to the tragedy that happened, we thought it's just best for us to go back and this time spend a wonderful Christmas with family. 

We're praying that indeed we will have a safe and pleasant trip back home and have a beautiful time with family, church members and friends. 

My Favorite Tea

I've never been a tea drinker until I tried Thailand's Cha Yen  or iced milk tea and Malaysia's 3 Layer Tea. I just had the 3 layer tea this morning and it was really so delicious! It's been awhile since I had 3 layer tea and  looking at my photo right now makes me want to have one. 

I have actually found out how to make this tea. It's really quite easy as it's just like making a normal tea where you'll need Affordable Sieves, evaporated milk  but it's the palm sugar ( melaka sugar) the dark colored sugar that gives the distinct flavor of the tea. A few times we went around to look for this special sugar so we can just buy a bottle and make our own 3 layer tea at home, but to no avail. Maybe next time, we have to look harder. I would really love to make my own 3 layer tea.

Bloom Where You Are

Bloom where you are.. These are the words that best summarizes my reflections for the past weeks. God has given us so much of potentials in wherever he has placed us. We just need to acknowledge that wherever we are now in our journey with God, that's where He has placed us. Sometimes, we have a tendency to look at our left or our right and desire other things. In doing this, we tend to get distracted and forget what God wants us to do at this certain time. If we cultivate what we have and 'bloom' where we are, I'm sure all the things that we do will be a 'sweet, smelling offering' unto our God. 

Overtime

A few more hours and we're leaving to the Philippines. But here I am working overtime doing my online work. I really want to finish all my pending tasks so, I won't have anything to think about when we reach home. I just want to enjoy my time spent with my family. I know I will have few more tasks in the next week,  that's why I brought my mini laptop (without the mobile computer carts) but if I could finish these pending tasks tonight, at least I could spend my first few days with family  'uninterrupted'. 

So, I better get to  work now and pay later.. ooopps.. play later.. :)

Song Composition

After a long road trip a few weeks back, our daughter was able to compose a song after being stuck in the car for hours. She was actually very quiet for a long time and when she was done, she sang to us her newly composed song. I was quite impressed as to how fast and how 'quiet' one can create a song.:)

 Here is how her song goes :

I was alone, 

not one place to call my home,

 inside a dark land. 

 I was alone 

 people passing by ,

no one caring about me

 no one loving me at all. 

 I was alone

 all by my self 

 no one with me, 

But now my feelings rise 

because Christ is with me, 

 Now I'm not alone 

I'm not alone

 I have a home.

 I now have great friends, 

 I'm gonna tell you why 

Christ is with me . 

 He has blessed me 

 with his blessings from above.

Though there might not be much rhyme and balance with with words, but since the tune of the song is good, I couldn't notice it much. Then, I asked my daughter about her song whether there was a time she felt alone and as to why she came up with the song. She told me that the song is not about her but she's just putting herself into the shoes of the people she sees who thinks they are alone and to let them know that they are not alone. I'm just glad of her answer! Praise God!

Anyways, stay tune for the recording of the song with Tricia's voice. I still didn't have the time to do a recording. Maybe next time, though I don't think we need furman power at Musician's Friend for this but I have to make sure  I can create a nice video of her singing her very first composition.

Safe from Another Flood

As you might have known, Philippines had one of the strongest typhoon last week. This time it was on the island of Mindanao and our city was once again hit. But as I monitored the situation of our city before and during the typhoon. I noticed that the people were now more alert. As early as Sunday, the people living near the river started to evacuate. My relatives who were also affected with the flood last year and are still living near the river have also evacuated. This time people were more alert in prayer and in the evacuation process. The typhoon still resulted to a flood but praise God because this time there were no casualties in our  city.  If our house were still near the river, it could have also been hit by the flood last week. But there's nothing there anymore and my mom and sisters are now staying on higher ground. I thank God that everyone's safe and even the flood didn't reach our church building. 

But still, our hearts are burdened by those affected in another province in Mindanao called Compostella Valley, New Bataan. They were the ones who experienced a flash flood last week and more than 500 lives have already been claimed with hundreds still missing. Please continue to pray for those families left behind and those people who have lost all their properties and even their loved ones.

The Piece of Land

As I was monitoring about the flood situation in the Philippines last week, I remembered my  parents' piece of land near the river where we used to lived. The house that used to be there had been our home for 10 years. My father designed and built that house and even if it was a very simple house but it has been our own,cozy home. After last years flood, that land is now barren and of no use. I wonder what will happen to that piece of land. Even if we would want to sell it, I'm not sure if anyone would want to buy it since it is now a flood prone area. I really think it's very risky and dangerous to build a house there.  People these days prefer houses situated on the mountains far from the river or seas, places that are flood-free and risk free. Which reminds me, maybe we should visit our old neighborhood and see how everyone's doing after last year and last week's flood.

our house before it got washed away from the 2011 Sendong Flood