January

Reflection on: The Holy Name of Jesus

St Francis said to the Lord one cold day as he
was about to do his morning prayers in the
garden, Lord please, not too loud.
As I hear the sounds of nature, O Lord, I ask
to be able to listen to Your Word.
Like the trees and greens watching over the
river, I pray that You watch over me in my
journey, and keep me safe and warm in your
embrace.
Like the current, steadfast on its way and the
suns rays twinkling on its surface, please
direct me, guide me back to You.
And I offer my thanks to You! O Lord, how
marvelous are Your works! - ejs

The Lords Works by: ccanare

February
Reflection on: The family: More than any
other human reality, is the place in which the
person is loved for himself and in which he
learns to live the sincere gift of self.

He left his parents, his brother and

sister. He took a wife who bore him
children. Now, he has his own family.
Together, they grow in love, in peace
and solidarity, sustaining a heritage,
keeping a set of values and living in
Gods image and likeness. A church in
itself, the family is where we are
taught to obey, to respect and to be
caring. It is also where we learn
forgiveness and thus, be forgiving, as
in our families, we are truly accepted
for ourselves. - ejs

Home by: ccanare

March
Reflection on: St. Joseph
"Of all the people I have known with a true
devotion and particular veneration for St. Joseph,
not one has failed to advance in virtue; he helps
those who turn to him to make real progress. For
several years now, I believe, I have always made
some request to him on his feast day, and it was
always been granted; and when my request is not
quite what it ought to be, he puts it right for my
greater benefit." St. Teresa of Avila
I have often wondered why I was not given the
name Josefina, or Josephine so that it would be
English-sounding and more common as my first
name, Elizabeth. Its the female version of
whats in the calendar, as my mother kept on
justifying Josefa. There are only a few Josefas,
so I was an easy target for teachers when I was in
school. However, it was a big help when I was
getting my legal documents, as I had the same
first and last names with seven other people from
the same city. When we had our son, my hubby
and I chose to give my name to our son, but in
English. As St. Joseph has guided me, my prayers
continue with my son that he be guided also by
him, who watched over Jesus, leading, helping
Mother Mary rear Him to be our Savior. - ejs

Watchtower: by ccanare

April
Reflection on: An increased devotion to
Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.
A lifetime ago, while attending mass, my nephew
who was around 4 years old at that time was
roaming around the otherwise packed church.
He was of course always asked at first sweetly,
then commanded, then reprimanded by my sister
to be still and quiet as people around were
getting distracted in their prayers; and it would
be best that he also pray. When for the nth time
my sister and her husband were again about to
scold him for his behavior, my nephew looked up
to them both said, Ma, Jesus said to me, its best
you go home and play in his loud, little boy
voice. We just looked at one another and smiled
and understood that its time we stay at the
church gardens instead of in the church as my
nephew couldnt yet understand the whole
concept of the mass. The mass is the highest
form of worship and prayer for us. Its the time
when people are gathered together in prayer,
offering up petitions, praises, thanks and request
for the forgiveness for human frailties. For sure
my nephew now appreciates and understands
the mass and its meaning. - ejs

Lotus Flower by: ccanare

May
Reflection on: Hail, holy Mother, thou who
didst bring forth the King who rules heaven
and earth forever and ever.
I lost my mother 30 years ago, a number of years
more than how young I was then when she died.
The best thing that I learned from my mom was
prayer. I remember asking her to pray for me so
that I would wake up early even if I was up until
the wee hours of the morning. I asked her to
pray for me during exams. I asked her to pray for
me so that I would get accepted to a job. And I
remember that she prayed for me when I was
heartbroken from my first love. I believe all of
her prayers were always answered, because she
was my mom.
In her absence, I learned how to pray fervently to
a greater mom, Mother Mary. I have learned to
consecrate myself to her, asking her to keep me
and guard me as her own, the way she did with
her son, Jesus. This way, its like my own mom
never passed away. - ejs

Angel by: ccanare

June
Reflection on: The Lord God is my strength
and song.
To borrow Stings song:
Every breath you take, every move you make; every bond you break,
every step you take, Ill be watching you.
Every single day, every word you say; every game you play, every
night you stay, Ill be watching you.

And, in this world as Scott Peck in his book, aptly titled says LIfe is
difficult.
Lving water the one thing that would heal us and will never make us
thirsty ever again.
In one of the bible readings, Jesus encountered a Samaritan woman
on his way to Jerusalem. He rested at Jacobs well and while
there he asked for water from a Samaritan woman. She showed no
kindness as she recognized the Jew in Jesus. He began to talk about
the living water that which will not make her thirsty again. This
encounter with Jesus changed the Samaritan womans life. Jesus
stayed in that town for two days, according to the gospels and
preached the good news.
Faith is the living water; that which DRIVES us. We thirst for
Jesus. We want to know Him and we want to be with Him. Simply,
we follow His will and obey His words.
BELIEVING that Jesus makes it better for me. It is hard it is very
hard.
Its difficult to share to give up my extraswith the less
fortunate. Its difficult to give 10% of my earnings as tithes as Im on
a strict budget. Its difficult to spend an hour attending mass as I
have to go on overtime. It is difficult to give a lecture on marriage
and the family when Im a battered wife. Most of all, it is difficult to
forgive a person who has figuratively murdered me by speaking
untruths about me. Now, how would I believe if this is the way of the
world?
Going back to Scott Peck, life in this world is difficult. Going back to
Stings song, through the difficulties, its best to let go and let God in
our lives. - ejs

Dusk by: ccanare

July
Reflection on: How fortunate we are to have
divine Blood so near to us, to offer it to the
heavenly Father for the sins of the whole world!
Strengthen our weak human wills so that we will not only not run away
from the cross, but welcome every opportunity to shed our blood in
spirit in union with your Precious Blood, so that, dying to ourselves in
time we might live with You in Eternity. Amen
Everyday we encounter different kinds of difficulties, problems, letdowns, frustrations and the like. My one daily cross a lifetime ago was
riding the Metro. I think of it as a race. To get to the Metro, you have
to be quick to get to be first in the ticket/token booth, get to be first in
the queue, get to be first in the car and most of all, get to be the first
to be seated. Then once youve reached your stop, theres the second
lap of the race. You stand up and push your way to the door to get to
be the first to get off, get to be the first to exit the turnstile, get to be
first to go down the stairs or up the stairs, and then race your way out
to the street. With all these, you win a No Prize! Yay! Was it worth
it? I really dont know because with all of these, I think Im always the
last and I am none the wiser about this race.
Anyway, I kept thinking that my fellow Metro riders must have already
forgotten about courtesy. When people were pushing their way in, I
was able to get into the car without literally walking into it, just got
pushed in, so to speak. Also, I have had two bracelets which broke
because it got caught in another passengers bag, the other got caught
in anothers hair clip. Im told its the same elsewhere in the world; its
just that where I come from, we are just beginning to experience
this. So I crossed out lack of courtesy; this is just the attitude you
have to have when you decide to ride the Metro.
Next, I thought about population, better yet, congestion. Since the
Metro is the faster option to get to your destination despite the long
queues especially during rush hours, it should come as no surprise to
be in the company of probably half the Philippine population this time
of the day. True enough the Metro Manila area is the most populous
in the entire country and the Metro and LRT already run through most
of the major avenues of the business districts.
And this is just getting a ride to and from work, everyday. -ejs

Fire tree by: ccanare

August
Reflection on : With Mary Immaculate, let us
adore, thank, implore and console the Most
Beloved and Sacred Heart of Jesus in the
Blessed Sacrament.
One slow day at work my officemate and I were
talking about the gross corruption of government
officials. We were comparing what the ousted
dictator did during his 20+ rule to those who came
after. I said that there wasnt much difference really
except that before due to limited media exposure, the
public wasnt really aware of how much government
funds were being siphoned away by the dictator.
With the last two terms of the presidency, current one
excluded, there were paper trails proving how much
money was being deposited in government officials
accounts. Some of them caught and punished while
some were, because of political clout, still able to
continue in office. Surprising? Not really because it
has become some sort of a tradition amount elected
officials.
My officemate and I then came up with different ideas
on how to correct this malady. I said that it would be
good to close the countrys doors to the world so that
we can right what is wrong not only in terms of politics
but socially and culturally as well. Her opinion was to
kill everyone and let only the new-born survive a
radical tabula raza. This way, the survivors would
know nothing of the past and therefore start a new
world order in this case a new country order.
This is a mighty different method of carrying out
positive change in our country. No savior, intercessor
or aggressor needed just a population wipe-out with
only the innocents, literally, allowed to survive. - ejs

Flowers by: ccanare

September
Reflection on: Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows
Prayer of St. Bonaventure
Lady, who by thy sweetness dost ravish the hearts of
men, hast thou not ravished mine? O ravisher of
hearts, when wilt thou restore me mine? Rule and
govern it like thine own; preserve it in the Blood of
the Lamb, and place it in thy Son's side. Then shall I
obtain what I desire, and possess what I hope for; for
thou art our hope.
Most holy Virgin and Mother, whose soul was pierced
by a sword of sorrow in the Passion of thy divine Son,
and who in His glorious Resurrection was filled with
never-ending joy at His triumph; obtain for us who call
upon thee, so to be partakers in the adversities of Holy
Church and the sorrows of the Sovereign Pontiff, as to
be found worthy to rejoice with them in the
consolation for which we pray, in the charity and
peace of the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
The season is here to shed my colors
Yellows, oranges and browns
When the last one falls to the ground
I then leave you to winter's keep and welcome,
O blessed sleep
I'll come back soon
Wait for when I wake
my new green coat I grow
As spring melts winter's snow
And once more a new life we'll make
In each season of life's course. - ejs

Leaves by: ccanare

October
Reflection on: The Rosary
I had a student in college who requested to be
baptized. We asked her why and she said, If I dont
get baptized, I will not be able to get married in a
Catholic church. It was a simple enough reason,
really. One day, that same student saw me arranging
the contents of my bag. She took my rosary beads
and asked if I pray using those; to which I answered,
Everyday. She asked me to teach her how which I
willingly did and then put aside the rest of my stuff
forgetting about my bag and all. I told her what
prayers to say and in what state (spiritual, emotional,
mental, etc.) she is to be in while saying the prayers. I
was expecting to be asked what I mean by that,
instead I was asked how come the Hail Mary had to be
said 10x.
In the simplest way possible, I likened praying the
rosary to that of a child persistently asking his mother
for something. In a way, we are being persistent as
well as consistent in our prayers to make it more
meaningful . The rosary help us to contemplate the
life of Christ and Mary . It is a prayer of guidance,
petition, offering, and mostly a prayer to express love
for Mary. - ejs

Fields by: ccanare

November
Reflection on: Dearly Departed - Remember
not their offenses and negligences, but be
mindful of the Lords loving mercy
The one thing I admire about my faith is forgiveness. One of the
truths in my faith is that when I confess my sins I am assured
that those sins will be totally erased and everything will be in a
clean slate; thats until I commit sins again.
When we get hurt by somebody we know or somebody we just
met, we remember the hurt, the pain inflicted upon us and that
memory stays with us for the longest time. We may have
forgiven but not forgotten. Sometimes, we even keep a file of
the specific hurts we suffered from people even classify
according to the degree of the hurt inflicted or according to the
names of the people who inflicted the pain. This then leads to
making plans on how to avenge ourselves given the
opportunity. Now, isnt that being human?
My faith calls for going beyond our human nature and living out
our being made into our Makers image and likeness. In this
regard, when people inflict pain because the basic teaching is
loving each other as our Maker loves us we are expected to
forgive that person and forget the pain inflicted. Its very
difficult to do that, truly, I know.
Loss of memory; or amnesia or even to suffer from Alzheimers
disease especially in cases of past hurts. It is a case of true
forgiveness when one has truly forgiven another he should
do away with the hurt/pain and not just bury it somewhere in
his heart or in his mind. A case of when responding No
problem or Its all right, no harm done or even I accept your
apology to anothers Im sorry the hurt/pain felt should then
be thrown out into the River of Forgetfulness where there is a
big bold No Fishing sign this I learned from a lecture I
attended a lifetime ago. - ejs

Paradise Island by: ccanare

December
Reflection: Prepare the Way
When the month of December finally is here, the
countdown to Christmas begins to cause panic panic
at being ready for the noche buena and the visitors
for Christmas, what to give to whom and how much to
spend on those, when to take a leave from work to
get to spend the holidays with loved ones, what
clothes to wear for the Misa de Aguinaldo, what MIFF
movie to watch with the kids and so on and so forth.
For me, this season becomes stressful as I make it a
point to be able to attend the nine-day Simbang Gabi.
So on December 15 (the anticipated mass) I rush from
work only to find myself in a traffic jam and get to
church with the sermon about to finish. That is true
for the whole nine days. Well, the effort is there I
suppose but what about the attitude?
Christmas has a whole new meaning for me since 7
years ago when my dad died on the 26th. Sure, I still
celebrate it with all the trimmings and preparation but
on the 25th, instead of looking forward to resting after
the rush of the season, I make plans for next days trip
to the cemetery and deciding what time I would
attend mass for my dad. Then instead of having our
family reunion on Christmas, we now do this the next
day . Its a whole new way of looking at the season,
really a reminder that we are just passing through
and looking forward to celebrating Christmas with our
Maker. - ejs

Trees by: ccanare