Uncle Saint

In a busy world where both work and life evaporate rapidly, a growing aging society is a prominent fact. Countless numbers of homes are founded to aid the elders. We visited one of them today.

Eleven people spending time and recording the last of their memories in an almost shabby space they call home. We came to visit them for Christmas. This home is different from the ones we frequent; the inhabitants are destitute.

I arrived in haste. I left my office at a quarter to the appointed time. I reached the place an hour past it. The home was located in a public housing in the heart of the city. I was not aware of its presence until today. The residents were responsive; most of them spoke English. The best part was, not a whine was uttered.

After games and gifts prepared were over, I approached each one for the second time to extend my Christmas greeting and to bid goodbye. Smiles were glued on their faces immutably as they were accepting our small tokens. I was one by one grabbing their hands and shaking it, until I came across this particular man. 

We exchanged greetings, myself and him both beaming. Then he said something so sincere it moved me to tears. "All the best for you". All the best for you. When all the best in the world should be showered to him for all the sacrifices and heart wrecking journey he must have gone through, he wholly transferred the prayer to me. All the best for me.

The sun is setting, mine is burning. God has gifted me with marvelous blessings and miracles. The uncle, without any sign of envy or lamentations or remorse, free from material gifts that come and fade, stated the sincerest, shortest prayer my heart has ever heard. I know it floated in small upward steps. It traversed past the clouds into God's listening ear. God's delicate attentiveness hears the deepest prayer.

All the best for him.

Zz

It has been a busy week. I reunite with my pillows and dreams at one in the morning almost everyday. Tiring, yeah.

I met some friends today. I did not plan to take part in it. I intended to go shopping on my own for tomorrow's Christmas party, go home at eight in the evening, and be engulfed by the softness of my cushion when the clock strikes nine. None of it materialized. My night was more meaningful.

Though misanthropy entices me at times, experiencing time elapse with good conversation and hearty cackles make me forget. I am extrovert and introvert, depending on mood. It was a lonesome evening by choice; I caved to a good company. It was a good decision.

Now my clock whispers one in the morning. I am wide awake and sleepy at the same time. My head has decided to retire for the day, but my fingers insist on typing. My laptop sneaks in a weaker truth. It is left with three percent power. I am shutting very soon.

All I Want for Christmas Is..

Apart from my two frontal teeth, that are still intact by the way, I have in mind a list (and a long one, mind you) that I will transcribe on a paper and origamise into an aerial transport. Sealed with a kiss, I will then, with brutally powerful force, along with my pumping heart and transforming soul, send it soaring into the blue skies. The totem will reach the addressee in the North Pole come hell or high water, by hook or by crook. by blood or by tooth. It will land safely on its doormat, the addressee will pick it up, and thus, the beginning of wisdom.

What do I have in there? Not a hard one that St. Nick could not provide. :)

1. Health for my family (You can do this, Santa! :])
2. Meaningful endeavor for me.
3. A watch that I spotted in one of the malls in the city some months ago (While stocks last!!)
4. A Blackberry Storm (This is final. I won't fall for you, Iphone 4.)
5. Shoes from Mitju and tops from Mango (The simplicity of my desires.)
6. A life of gratitude.
7. An extension of humanity with understanding increasing by ten levels, impatience buried six feet under.
8. Acquisition of one virtue a day.
9. Establishment of a deeper relationship with God.

My christmas wish list has turned into New Year's Resolutions. Haha! And it ain't that long!

Oh well. :)

HO! HO! HO!

It's the 8th of December, 2010. A little toss and turn, and waking, and blinking, with some Christmas shopping in between, and whoala! HO! HO! HO!

I saw our office roster for this cycle today. I have already envisioned myself bouncing with joy as I pull my luggage and strutting my way from the domain of our international airport. My family awaits with the biggest simper, stretching their arms to the longest width possible readying to engulf me in their warmest, most flaring welcome. Upon seeing our schedule today, I was astounded to realize that this is just two weeks away. It is so happening!!

Christmas last year was spent apart. I celebrated the birth of God with friends, my home away from home. So imagine my excitement now that time is being pulled gradually into a merry Christmas, with me swaying with it gleefully. There is no place like home. And surely, there is no better place to celebrate the most joyous season than with the people I work hard here for. It's a merry HO! HO! HO!

Sweet and Low

The wasted fact that it is 1123 in the evening and I am still uninvited by my enticing bed and pillows makes me want to draw myself closer to the only thing that keeps me sane: my laptop.

I have been to places, in the world wide web that is. I have taken my daily dose of current events about the place that I live in now and my hometown. I have updated my ever-welcoming Facebook page. This particular site has always been a priority in my cyber life. Not a chance is let to slip without a peak at it, no matter how slim it might be.

I was very low today. So low I dared not talk to anyone in my work place. I was demented; all that glow in me had been sucked out, replaced by a dark cloud and a heavy rain. It felt like being trapped in a quicksand. I was struggling to emerge from it, but it keeps on swallowing me whole. And I caved. The only legacy was a tear of hopes and dreams. But even that miniscule part of me thinned and evaporated. I am left with nothing.

I miss home.

Rapunzel. A Tangled Tale

The name Walt Disney remains unfazed and as impenetrable as the Great Wall. Trumpets of new film outfits with promising offers bellow with might and thunder, shattering every mirror of opportunities against one another. But today, Walt Disney has proven itself to be millions of light years ahead of any of these novices. The reason: RAPUNZEL.

It is an old story inflamed with a new twist. Some ingredients in the recipe has been retained; it is still the same once-upon-a-time fairytale with and-they-lived-happily-ever-after ending. But the middle part is the surprise. I guess action stunts are a necessity in most films nowadays. Rapunzel walks away from her timid and bashful personality. She sheds off her skin to display an unorthodox female of her era. Who would have thought she can kick ass like Elektra did?!

So he is not the prince charming we all hope she will be linked with. There is scarcity in princes now since Prince William is tying the knot. The name is Flynn Rider, or Eugene Fitzherbert to people he trusts. It does not sound so majestic, if you would ask me. But I guess Rapunzel has been introduced to the fact that true love is seeing through someone, acknowledging that someone's true persona, and then accepting every tiniest bit of it. Even if he is not the prince we, girls, dream him to be. Even if he is just a 'thief'. Not that Rapunzel has options.

In our world where being attached to a 'royalty' is every girl's real-life fantasy, Rapunzel teaches us that love is found in any circumstances, in any embodiment, in any character. Love blooms if we just let it. It is the new age fairytale. Gone are the days of a prince saving his princess from a fire-breathing dragon. A knight is long gone along with its shining armor. They now afloat on the river and no one bothers to even recognize them. Now is the time for love taking any shape and any form. For love sprouts from within.

That makes Rapunzel a very interesting experiment. And that is what makes Walt Disney a true scientist of enigmatic timelessness. It is enduring. He is enduring. He still makes my jaw drop in awe the way he did the first time I saw Mickey Mouse on TV. He still makes my heart stop. And cry. And yes, sing.

It's a Masquerade Party, Facebook Style!

An attack of nostalgia is happening. It is clouding the whole of Facebook community. And it is spreading rapidly!

There is a deadline: by the 6th of December, in the year of our Lord 2010, all human visage shall perish from the face of the social network to be replaced by their caricature counterpart that pigmented their childhood. Yes, it is the new era of masquerading!

To show support for the eradication of child abuse, a post of unknown source has been endorsed by friends of friends of friends, heaving with it the philanthropic cause. Inspired by this great thought, hundreds, if not thousands, temporarily forgetting celebrations and poise, immediately changed their primary pictures with no hesitation. The result? A tsunami of childhood memories, happines, and life's simplicity!

Reminiscing followed. Everyone grinned at the recollection of a particular cartoon. Imagination started to work. It excavated long time experiences that had been pushed to the deepest subconscious. Oblivion began to recognize light. It stepped out into exposure.

I am Nicholas D. Wolfwood ^^

Vivid and sepia quality of memories are being uploaded to Facebook. They compose a collage of colorful juvenescence. Once again, Facebook has proven itself to be an effective way of reaching the hearts of souls. It started as a cause, turned into reminiscences (with wistfully authentic music in the background), and now a phenomenon. At least for those who believe in it. For those who embrace the beauty of salad days. And for those who are in a tug-of-war with the kid in them. It is a masquerade! ^^