December 30,2025

 

Come Oh Holy Spirit, please fill the hearts of thy faithful, please enkindle in us the the fire of Your Divine Love, send forth Your Spirit, and it shall be created, and You Oh Lord, shall renew the face of the earth.

** *** **

It is my dad's 10 year death anniversary.

As we were coming home this morning from Polo Park, Mari asked me how old did her grandpa die.

He was almost 83.

His actual last breath was so peaceful.

I was playing the Divine Mercy Chaplet in a song continuously in a loop.

My 3 other sibling, Pong, Dave , Chubby and I were huddled in one corner of his Cardinal Santos hospital room.

I glanced at his direction, and I sensed, he was no longer with us...

I was kind of on auto-pilot.

We knew the  drill.

I was assigned to accompany his body from the hospital morgue.

It was dark and very cold in the sub basement of the hospital.

Something I would have wanted not be in the first place but was not inclined to disobey the instructions given to me by our oldest brother.

Dad had the longevity gene while mom did not. She left us almost 2 decades before dad.

I will almost remember Dad's eyes of recognition when he saw me.

Thank God for the grace to be able to rush from Qatar to be with him on his last weekend on earth.

He was not able to speak much. Just grunts and groans.

It was in one shift where my oldest sister and I were on watch, that he expressed something that somehow, almost made me break down crying.

Just held it all in.

Hazel had to repeat twice what dad was trying to tell me...while I feigned  I did not hear..

For some reason, I wanted to keep it all in.

Dad had a devotion to St Faustina and her Chaplet of Divine Mercy. He showed us by example each good Friday, to be on our knees praying  each 3pm for some time then each day  until the Sunday after Easter Sunday.

I am grateful to him for this wonderful legacy.

I thank my dad for his attempt to erase the hurts that transpired between  us with his saying "Sorry, Ni, sorry."

Thank you for showing me courage and faith, that there is nothing to fear with our ultimate end and last breath.

It can be as smooth and calm as his and mom's.

** 

What does Christmas mean for you as an individual?

It means Hope, Peace, Joy and Love of  Our God, The Father ,Son and Holy Spirit's WORD made FLESH so we can have a chance to be one with Him and reunited in Heaven in the afterlife.

How can you integrate the practice of worship into the ordinary moments of your life?

I can unite everything to my worship to God by offering every minute and every second to Him, especially the tasks that I find hard to do and the aches and pains that make me miserable...I give it to Him for Him to take and receive.

Remembering and singing this mass offertory song...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfAdxm5cZJA

The Gospel Readings for today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RxTCpk-sUc