WHAT CAN I GIVE YOU THIS CHRISTMAS?

Panahon na naman ng kapaskuhan. Panahon na naman ng exchange gifts.  Last Tuesday (Dec. 17, 2013) ay Christmas Party nila Diko Amiel sa school.  He told me that he will shoulder the gift for his teacher.  I usually buy their teachers a gift during Christmas. But this year, nagkusa na siyang siya na ang bumili ng gift for his teacher.  Natuwa nama ako. Pero may twist pala yun. Dahil in return, I have to pay for his exchange gift.  Well, pumayag na rin ako kasi at least, nakalibre man lang ako sa iba.  He went to PCBS and bought not only for two persons but for four.  I asked him why he bought four. He said he will give it to two others. He asked me to wrap all the gifts which I gladly did.

Wednesday afternoon nang bumaba siya at sinabing ililibre niya raw ako ng pagkain sa labas. I am trying to diet these days.  Yes, diet on Christmas.  Sadista lang ang peg ko.  Hahahaha!  But dahil ililibre niya ako, kinalimutan ko na muna ang pagpapapayat.  I told him I want to eat in Jollibee.  Habang nasa daan kami, nasabi niya sa akin na gusto niyang i-donate ang pera niya.  I immediately told him na sa akin niya na lang i-donate.  Hahahahahaha!  Pero hindi niya ikinatuwa yun. Huhuhu! My next suggestion is sa church niya ibigay.  He refused again.

Among my kids, it is Diko Amiel who knows how to save.  Siya ay may pinakamaliit na allowance sa school pero siya ang may pinakamaraming naiipon.  Minsan nga, humihiram pa ako sa kanya.

Inside the Jollibee ay kainan kami at kuwentuhan.

Order namin

Me:  Kanino mo ibinigay yung dalawa mo pang regalo sa Christmas party niyo?
Amiel: Yung sa isa kong classmate na babae.  Hindi kasi sila magkasundo ng nanay niya.  Yung isa naman, sa isa kong kaklase na may problema rin.

Me: Sa Sunday ay My Birthday Gift to Jesus sa church.  Doon mo na lang ibigay ang gusto mong ibigay.
Amiel:  Gusto ko kasing bigyan e yung tao talaga na nangangailangan.

Kain uli kami.  Ang tagal kasi ng hamburger dumating.  Hahahahaha!

Me: Si Ayan na lang ang bigyan mo.  Nanghihingi sa akin ng tsinelas yun.
Amiel:  Ganon ba? Ok( Si Ayan yung member namin sa church na former drug addict na ulila na sa ina na may ibang pamilya na ang ama na  nag-iisa na lamang sa bahay na laging pumupunta sa aming bahay para makikain na gustong makitira sa amin na nanghihingi ngayon ng tsinelas).

Dumukot si Diko Amiel sa kanyang bulsa.

Pambili ng tsinelas

Nang hapon na yun.  Tuwang-tuwa ako kay Diko Amiel kasi nilibre niya ako.  Priceless kapag nililibre ng anak ang magulang.  Pero ang higit na priceless ay ang matutunan ng anak ko na magbigay sa iba.

Amiel:  Papa, masarap pala sa pakiramdam yung nakakapagbigay ka
Me: (Speechless)

Naalala ko tuloy yung usapan namin kahapon ng isang miyembro na namatayan ng tiyahin ng kanyang asawa.  Dahil daw sa may ipamamana yung namatay, nag-aaway-away na raw ang mga tagapagmana.  Naisip ko tuloy na minsan, masama pa yung may iiwan kang materyal sa mga anak mo pagyao mo.  At natutuwa naman ako na ma-realized na kung natutunan nga ni Diko Amiel sa akin ang pagiging mapagbigay sa nangangailangan, masaya na akong iyon ang ipamamana ko sa mga anak ko.

Tamang-tama naman ang kuwento kong ito sa journaling ko today.  Sabi kasi sa Psalm 41:1-2, "Blessed is the one who considers the poor!  In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him; the Lord protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; you do not give him up to the will of his enemies."

Isa pang naalala ko ay yung kantang, What Can I Give You This Christmas?  Nasagot na yun ni Diko.  Sana ganuon din ang sagot sa ating lahat:)

A SHELTER FOR MANY

It is my nature to be accommodating.  I would like to make people feel comfortable with me.  It gives me pressure to have guests because I would like to give more than I can just to entertain them.  And I feel disappointment if I feel that I am not able to do so.

Last Sunday, December 8, 2013 was our Family Sunday in the church.  As always, we had an invited speaker. And as the occasion calls for, he would be speaking about the family.

When his turn to speak came, he started with giving prophecy to families through the painting of his wife.  Yes, his wife paints and the painting has a prophetic meaning.  Prior to the giving of painting, the speaker asked about my family.  I told him some of my family members were not around.

They had to give three paintings.  The first went to our lay leader's family. The said family was asked how do they understand the painting.   I was expecting to be called and since only two of us in the family were present that Sunday made me feel uncomfortable.

But I was not called after our lay leader instead another family was given the painting. While the second family was listening to the prophetic meaning of the painting ready by the painter herself, the third painting was visible to me.  I love the painting but was not ready to receive it. I think everybody was expecting that our family will be called the first but was not called the next.  So, I was relieved and thought that no painting will be given to me.

But I was wrong.  I was called.  And I was happy to accept the painting that I instantly fell in love with.

The Painting I love

Just as the other two families were asked what do they think of the painting, I said mine.  I told the speaker and his wife that the color green that is predominant in the painting is my favorite.  It symbolized hope and life.  And every family needs hope for it faces different challenges.  The fruits of the trees symbolized the calling to every family, that is, to bear fruit not just biologically but spiritually and other forms of growth. I said to them that although I have many children, I keep on considering more children especially in youth of the church.

The Prophetic Meaning I Claim

Our deaconess (woman church worker) could not agree more and was in tears when she was hearing the prophecy to me.  She said to herself, "He is really the prophecy,"  She shared this when we were talking with each other after the service.

I was so grateful to the giver of the painting.  Not only the painting is beautiful, but also meaningful.  After all, I was not wrong to be helpful and accommodating to other people, to less fortunate people.  To others, I was too kind to a fault.  But the prophecy tells me otherwise.

They say that "A picture/painting speaks of a thousand words." I say that a prophecy fulfills itself even after a thousand years:)