It started out as a feeling
Which then grew into hope
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word
And then that word grew louder and louder
Till it was a battle cry
I'll come back when you call me
No need to say goodbye
Just because everything's changing
Doesn't mean it's never been this way before
All you can do is try to know who your friends are
As you head off to the war
Pick a star on the dark horizon and follow the light
You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye
You'll come back when it's over
No need to say goodbye
Now we're back to the beginning
It's just a feeling and no one knows yet
But just because they can't feel it, too
Doesn't mean that you have to forget
Let your memories grow stronger and stronger
Till they're before your eyes
You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye
You'll come back when they call you
No need to say goodbye
Wedding season is in full swing this year, with the greatest percentages of weddings taking place in June, July, and August. The late spring and summer months are popular for weddings due to a greater selection and availability of flowers, better options for outdoor venues, etc. One of the most important aspects of planning a wedding (for the bride, at least!) is finding the perfect wedding dress.
Traditionally, bridal gowns have been white, long, with veils, trains, and detail work. Today's brides have many more options as to shade (ivory, candlelight white, white-some brides even choose color accents and detail work), and length (tea length, anyone? How about knee length?). Veils are optional, with some brides opting for fresh flowers in the hair while others choose between blusher veils, shoulder, elbow, fingertip, waltz, chapel, and cathedral length veils. Tiaras are also popular, with or without a veil.
Current wedding dress trends include asymmetrical cuts-this can be achieved by gathered material up on one side (ruching around the waist), uneven neck or hemline, or bows/rosettes strategically placed. One-shoulder dresses are also emerging this year, probably due in part to Michelle Obama's gown at the Inaugural Ball. Simple dresses are also popular, which offers greater possibilities for accessorizing. And although long, elegant dresses will never go out of style, shorter dresses are becoming more popular, especially for destination weddings-think waves and sand.
Vintage styles are also gaining popularity, especially from the 1950's era. Birdcage veils and tulle skirts are two features of this style. Sheer elements are "in," whether it be the bottom portion of skirt, sleeves, or wraps, today's bride has the "light and breezy" option. While color for the bride used to be a big no-no, today's bride can accent her gown with colored sashes, colored detail work (beads or embroidery), bows (bows are popular now too), and more. If you want to stay traditional but still have color, having a big, bright, colorful bouquet is also a current wedding trend. What about sleeves? Although it seems like strapless has been the staple for the past several years, experts say sleeves are coming back into fashion-light or sheer fabrics in short or three quarter sleeves.
If you are planning a wedding in 2010, you'll have plenty of options to choose from as you shop for your dream bridal gown. From blusher to cathedral veils, tea-length to floor length with train, white to color, you are sure to find the perfect dress and be in style.
The first ever fashion house of luxury ready-to-wear, Chloe has come a long way after its inception in 1952 in Paris. It was Chloe who coined the term ‘Luxury Pret-a-Porter' which means ready-to-wear and the term and the concept gained immense popularity at a time when only ‘Haute Couture' was in vogue.
From apparel to accessories, Chloe makes almost everything that has something to do with fashion. Its eyewear line is especially loved by people across the globe and has found fans in celebrities and the average going people. Chloe sunglasses are known for their style and glamour that would make anyone stand out and get noticed in the crowd. From small to over-sized and butterfly shapes, one can find a wide number of styles because the range is huge and the options are never ending.
Made with cutting-edge optical technologies and the finest eyewear materials, Chloe sunglasses have a huge fan following. If you want to get the guys drooling over you and the girls burning with jealousy, then no doubt go for a Chloe pair. Some of the hottest shades to give you a glamorous look are:
•CL 2119 Sunglasses: This over-sized pair for women is absolutely stunning with the brand name etched in gold bands on the temples. The CL 2119 shades are best suited for fashion conscious ladies who desire a futuristic type look to make a stunning style statement.
•CL 2108 Sunglasses: Feminine, chic and out-of-the-box are the words that best describe this pair. Contemporary with a touch of vintage, this pair is best for all those women who like to show off their accessories. This pair makes a noticeably subtle style statement. Ensuring 100% UV protection, the CL 2108 sunglasses provide maximum comfort and durability like all other Chloe models.
•CL 2104 Sunglasses: These aviator style sunnies for women have a unique appeal to them. Sexy and sassy, the CL 2104 pair is for the stylish females who like to look different. With a western cowboy type appeal, these sunglasses surely make for an interesting buy.
A pair of Chloe sunglasses is a must for all fashionable females who like being the centre of attention by making a fashionable style statement. A little more than moderately priced, a pair from the international brand would spell chic and vivacity like no other. Choose from the best pairs and set the fashion scene afire!
Social bookmarking is optimized for documenting and sharing lists of links to useful information. In contrast, blogs are optimized for creating and sharing content, allowing for commentary while keeping the original content intact.
It is an all-out phenomena and is growing at a sonic boom clip. Understanding social bookmarking gives you the ability to reach millions of users you might otherwise miss. Social bookmarking is the sharing of websites within an online community. Here is how I like to think of it.
This is the process of moving your "favorites" or "bookmarks" (links to web sites you visit on the web) to a web-based service like del.icio.us , magnolia , or Yahoo or Google . These services allow you to capture these links or (URLs) to their service and provide you with settings to keep the link private or to share it with others (make it public). Social bookmarking is a way for Internet users to store, share, classify, and search Internet bookmarks.
There is some debate over how important social bookmarking is in SEO, but the consensus seems to be leaning toward the idea that social bookmarking, along with many other social media optimization (SMO) strategies, is quickly becoming a serious consideration for SEO. Social bookmarking is a great way to make your posts public. There are various places to go for you to post your articles.
Social bookmarking is all about the collective voice. Most of the social bookmarking networks increase the profile of items that receive numerous bookmarks. Social Bookmarking is the flagship of the web 2.0 movement. The basic concept behind social bookmarking is similar to Add to Favorites or Bookmarks that you are most familiar with using your web browsers like Firefox or Explorer.
It is a term for allowing people to publish, categorise and share their bookmarks. Del.ici.ous uses a non-hierarchical keyword categorisation system, know as folksonomy, where user tag their links with one or more freely chosen keyword.
Social Bookmarking is definitely getting a lot easier lately, but there seems to be too many of them. Sometimes social bookmarking sites can get boring if there are not enough of good links. Social bookmarking is becoming the newest and most effective way of producing quality traffic. Social bookmarking is all about the collective voice. Most of the social bookmarking networks increase the profile of items that receive numerous bookmarks.
This is all about labeling the web, making it easier to find the content that you're looking for by passing on what you've found. The labels applied to web sites are commonly known as tags, and over time a kind of taxonomy grows, whereby persistent tags help information to be aggregated and mined for information.
Social bookmarking is a free and easy way to get loads of traffic to your website. It is a new trend in search engine optimization, which has gained recognition as part of a new type of website optimization, termed social media optimization (SMO).? Social Bookmarking, also referred to sometimes as social bookmarketing, is the term used for bookmarking sites on the web and sharing them with friends.
This is certainly the wave of the future. Maybe another video on which sites to use and which sites to avoid. Social bookmarking is an emerging type of a Web service that helps users share, classify, and discover interesting resources.
The concept of an enhanced search, in which data from social bookmarking systems is exploited for enhancing search in the Web. Social bookmarking is a new fashion developed by webmaster today in search engine optimization which has brought up a new type of optimization trend called social media optimization. The idea of marketing your website through social bookmarking is also called social bookmarketing.
To start I would like to say that most people are right, Germany is a GREAT place to visit. I heard on the radio the other day that over 4 million Americans visited Germany in 2005 and to be honest it did not surprise me at all. With so many beautiful things to see and experience who wouldn’t be interested?
Lets start off with the obvious attractions: Castles, German Beer and German Food.
Castles: Arguably the number one attraction of Germany. Castles are one of Germany's most historic prized possessions. With at least one Castle in every single decent sized town in Germany, you will always have a place to visit no matter where your travels in Germany take you. Most of these Castles have nice restaurants inside where you are given information on the historic value of the establishment, not to mention great food in my experience.
German Beer: Many say that German beer is the best in the world, because of this many German breweries are hesitant to give up their ‘tricks of the trade’ many saying ‘its in the water’. Whether this is true or not Germany definitely has a reputation for providing delicious preservative free beer. The German government actually mandates that only a few main ingredients are to be added to the beer and no preservatives can be added, BY LAW.
German Food: I am sure that you all have either heard about or tried some of the typical German dishes, i.e. Schnitzel, Wursts (German sausage) and Spatzle, but what you may not have tried are some of the ‘not so traditional’ but common dishes in Germany. If you are planning a trip to Germany I recommend going to any German restaurant and ordering the house special. Most restaurants, just like in the U.S., have a house special that is different from restaurant to restaurant and will usually be very deliciou
At one time, or another, all of us have experienced insomnia for any type of reason. There are times when lack of sleep just can't be helped, such as: the loss a loved one, going through a divorce, and losing your job.
These are some of life's serious crisis situations, where we have to let time heal, and try not to fall apart in the process. Some of the solutions below will help insomnia, but they will not heal grief.
However, if you are continually staying awake over trivial matters, these solutions will aid you to get a good night's rest. Remember - not every solution will work for everyone, so try the easiest ideas and make them fit into your lifestyle.
Do you have one or more problems, on your mind, that are troubling you at bedtime? If so, write it down and leave it on the kitchen table where you sit in the morning. This is a form of compartmentalization, where your subconscious mind works on a solution, and you and your conscious mind get some needed rest.
You will be surprised what happens the following morning. The problem is much less important or your subconscious found the solution. This technique is so powerful that many successful people use it, even when they don't really have a problem. This keeps you organized, on a daily basis, and you will get more accomplished in life.
That leads into the next idea, which is establishing a daily routine. Your body has a natural cycle, and most of us ignore it. Modern humans are more out of tune with their bodies than ever before, so we have to get back to basics and design a schedule for all tasks - including sleep.
You should exercise every day, but your exercise routine should end two hours before bedtime, at the latest. This allows your body and mind "cool down" time. If you can exercise earlier in the day, feel free to do so.
Exercise will give you extra energy during the day, and help you get a good night's sleep, when you need it. If you don't exercise, don't feel alone, but do take action. GentleYoga postures are a great way to start.
If you find the right Yoga teacher, you will learn controlled breathing (pranayama), stage-by-stage relaxation, and meditation. Each is a powerful technique for winding down before bedtime. You always practice controlled breathing with either, stage-by-stage relaxation, or meditation. Some people practice stage-by-stage relaxation in bed and fall asleep in the process. This is not a bad thing, if your ultimate goal is to fall asleep.
Now let's look at a few other ideas, such as alcohol and hidden caffeine. Alcohol has a way of getting you to sleep, but sleep is often interrupted during the night. One suggestion, if you enjoy drinking: Have one small drink; preferably wine, with your meal.
Caffeine is in coffee, many teas, many sodas, and a variety of other drinks. Drink water later in the day, and give your body a rest from caffeine.
Here are a few actions to take before bedtime: Eat very light, read a book about something peaceful, and take a shower or a bath. You don't have to do everything, but one of the above-mentioned ideas will work for you.
Makeup is meant to enhance features not bring negative attention to you. That's what wearing too much makeup will do; it will bring you unwanted attention. Don't wear too much of anything such as:
i) Eyeliner: dark, thick eyeliner will make you look overdone and will ruin the rest of your makeup.
ii) Mascara: too much mascara looks fake and will flake. It looks especially bad if worn with thick eyeliner or dark blue eye eye shadow.
iii) Foundation: Make sure your foundation is the same color as your skin. Foundation is meant to protect and give the face a smooth look. The magic word is blend.
iv) Powder:The same holds true for powder - not too much. Also, be sure to blend your makeup so there are no obvious lineS
2. Lips
Apply lip liner to completely cover the lips, add color and your lipstick will stay on much longer. Make sure your lip liner doesn't show. Also, your lip color should match your skin tone; wear cool colors if you have cool coloring and warm colors if you have warm coloring. If you want to make your lips look smaller, keep your liner on the inside of your lips. However, if you decide to make your lips look larger, going outside the natural outline of you lips is a mistake. This can look quite messy and unnatural.
3. Appropriate makeup
Wear makeup that is appropriate for the occasion. If you are going to the beach you shouldn't wear the same or as much makeup as you would if you were going dancing. Also, when you are in daylight your makeup should be a lighter than when you are out for the evening.
4. Too little or no makeup
Some women don't wear makeup because they are not sure how to use it and are afraid of being overdone. If you are unsure, start will light colours in your shade. Start slowly and add one product at a time. Maybe start with foundation, add mascara, blush or lipstick. If you are not used to wearingmakeup, using a lot a first may be a little too much for you, so start slowly. The bottom line is a little is better than none. If you are still unsure seek professional advice.
5. Overall look
When your makeup is completed it should look natural. That means avoiding colours that clash. If you have dark skin and hair you will look better in darker shades; light colours will make you look washed out. If your hair and skin tone are light, light colours will look better on you. Dark makeup will make you look older and harsh. If you have oily skin, first use oil control moisturizer and foundation. Then be sure to wear loose powder, keeping pressed powder with you for touch ups.
6. Hair color
Your hair color should also be in harmony with your skin. If you have dark hair and you want to add color, keep it close to the same shade. If you have light hair, use light colors. As you age your skin will lighten, so should your hair color. One last thing about hair color - if you do color you hair be sure you keep it up, don't let your roots show.
7. One last thing
Keep makeup looking fresh all day by doing regular touch ups. Don't let your makeup fade or crease. Smile!!!
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
There were two hearts that met in a dance. That moment was magical. There was a sweet song playing, there was harmony and soon love in the air. They fell in love and started building castles I their dreams and promised forever with all certainty. But, somewhere, in the midst of the fun, they got lost in the dance, something went wrong, but they can never do anything. They were just drifting away, their fortress falling apart. There were so many questions but no one had an answer.
The music stopped and there was silence…
When we truly loved someone, we give our best and let that person see the pureness of our intention. But sometimes, that person makes us cry and hurts us for the wrong reason. That someone must have loved us, but he has not loved us enough to make him stand for what he truly felt.
Now, we are faced with the seemingly impossible task of forgetting. We have burdened ourselves long enough, but we still can’t get out of this emotional trap. Let us remember that the more we try to forget someone we love the more painful letting go will become.
Sometimes, we never had to take that person out of our hearts at all for he will always be there no matter how we drive him away. It isn’t his presence that make this difficult. It is our stubbornness to accept our destiny that aligns forgetting next to impossible. We keep a cold face but deep in our hearts, there is still that lingering hope for reconciliation. Somehow, we still believe that we can rekindle small embers and relight the fire that once burned in our hearts. These thoughts give us hope… but also breed the seeds of loneliness and despair.
The only way to forget is to accept and the only way to move on is to look ahead and let the footprints of the past be blown by the wind of time only then can our hearts find a partner in the dance of life and hopefully never get lost again.
To love and to be loved can be the most wonderful feeling we can experience. No amount of joy can surpass the happiness that we feel when we are in the arms of the person we love the most. When we are in love, it seems that everything in our life is fine, that everything is on its place. A state of equilibrium and high morale will engulf our whole being.
Somewhere along the way, destiny can be so cruel to take away the person that makes each day of our life a fairytale. Our world would start to turn upside down and we just find ourselves empty and broken. Myriads of things would start pouring into our minds but at the end of the day we are left with millions of questions. The hardest to answer could be "how could these things happen?" or "where do I start from here?".
Let's pamper our Dad this Father's Day with gifts that he will surely love. And, what else is the best way to make sure he will love what he gets than giving him a gift card. Amazon.com offers beautiful gift cards to be sent straight to his inbox. Now is the perfect time for us to give back the love that our Dad gave us. Make him the happiest this Father's Day and show him you will always be his sweetest Daddy's girl.
With the sun’s heat penetrating into our skin, perhaps we can’t help but think of an adventurous summer escapade. This summer, try to experience something satisfying, fun-filled but relaxing and of course exciting through exploring the Philippines. You can’t only enjoy the fun of getting more stuff out of your penny; the rich cultural heritage of this country, exotic food and sports adventure will lift your spirits high.
If you want to get tanned and invigorate your body, chill out at any of the white sand beaches in the country. All the excitement await for you in Boracay, Panglao, Coco Beach in Puerto Galera, Mactan Island, Camiguin, Dakak, Honda Bay, El Nido, Pearl Farm, and Siargao.
Don’t fail to add on the list some sports adventure to try on. Cagayan de Oro offers you an electrifying white water rafting adventure. Indulge yourself as well into some mountain trekking, snorkeling, island hopping, kayaking, tubing, caving, scuba diving and a lot more.
Exploring the Philippines wouldn’t be complete without taking a glimpse of some historical sites. Visit Intramuros or Old Manila which was built by the Spaniards in 16th century. This place will take you back to the Philippines in the late centuries. Other historical places to delve include Luneta Park, Corregidor, Vigan and Fort Santiago.
Satisfy your appetite with some tropical food such as balut, kinilaw (raw meat, e.g. fish, squid,), the list is endless. You can find a lot of delicious food in the Philippines that you’ll always crave for. There are also available dishes for vegetarians and health conscious ones.
Now, you don’t have to spend much time fuddling into the best thing to do and best place to go for summer. Pack your bag and head off to the Philippines. It’s the place where you can find everything you’ve fancied to experience.
Don't forget to bring a very comfortable flipflops. Just click the flipflops above to choose from Endless.com's array of beautiful flipflops only for you!
Graduation is one of the most memorable and joyful occasion in every person's life. This momentous event commemorates one's academic milestone. On this special celebration, let us make the graduates feel how proud we are of their achievement by giving the best gifts they deserve.
Jewelry is a timeless token that will forever remind them of their success. Not only that, jewelry are very essential to jump-start their career with confidence. Be sure to choose premium gifts that every graduate will surely love.
Most ladies love the captivating colors and sparkle of amethyst, citrine, peridot, garnet and blue topaz gems. The unique designs, fine craftsmanship and personal touches in each piece will make your jewelry gifts exclusive and truly meaningful. Honor the graduates with gifts that are as valuable as their graduation.
They say that only time can heal the wounds of a broken heart. That time makes it easier to accept the loss of the people we love. It is a chain that all of us go through – falling in love, getting hurt and vowing not to love again, promising not to love again, and becoming miserable all our lives. It isn’t easy getting up on our feet after a crippling fall, but there is just no other way but to stand up and move on.
Nobody wants to become unhappy all his life. All of us know how love can bring magic into our lives. Have you ever realized how good it felt, waking up in the morning, knowing that somewhere out there, there’s a person who’s also thinking of you and feels exactly the way you do? Doesn’t it feel good looking forward to being with that warm sparkling glow in each of us?
Love brings us on the top of the world that we can conquer just about any obstacle that may come along our way. It is a great feeling love is. There’s probably nothing else in this world that can compare to this. There may be many of us who feel that love has passed us by, and finding someone we can share our lives with seems to be such a remote possibility. We watch stranger go by as time swiftly drifts away from us.
We may be in control of our lives but we feel somewhat helpless in out relationships. There is nothing permanent in this world, and not even those we cherish will be with us forever. There is no guarantee that comes with loving. It is always a risk getting involved with someone. But it is a risk that we have to take if we want to find real happiness; for there is no gain without pain. There is no permanence without commitment, and there is no lasting love without constant sacrifice.
The tragedy of love is in getting hurt. The tragedy of getting hurt is not wanting to love again, and the tragedy of not wanting love again is in being alone all of our lives. If it is what we want to be, then we could just stay in our shell and be miserably forgotten. But if it is love we choose, then there’s a promise of a new life, the joy in being able to share that life with someone, and the hope of finding something beautiful and keeping it forever.
Since time immemorial, healing crystals fascinated man with its clear and stunning brilliance which is why it was sometimes used as imitations for diamonds long before cubic zirconia. Healing crystals or rock crystals is the clear variety of quartz gemstone. It was used to symbolize perfection, patience, infinity and purity.
Healing crystals has the perfect blend of availability, affordability, good quality, healing power and fine pleasing beauty. Greatly revered by ancient people, healing crystal is believed to promote mental, emotional and physical healing. It helps one to concentrate and retain learning, stimulate the brain and increase cognition and clarity of the mind. The suitable jewelry to maximize this healing power are earrings which are worn near the brain.
To attain emotional balance, harmonized thoughts and consciousness, you can wear healing crystal pendants or necklaces. These jewelry are worn near the heart, the center point of our emotions and feelings. Wearing these will help you keep a high morale in yourself.
Treat intestinal problems, depression, pain, chronic fatigue, arthritis and other physical ailments by wearing healing crystal rings, bracelets and belt buckles. Worn at the center part of your physique promote a balanced physical healing throughout your whole body.
Healing crystal with amethyst jewelry are the best combination to enhance awareness, positive visualization and attain pureness and depth during meditation. This double healing power is attained because healing crystal is also a good stone for meditation while purple is the color of the third eye chakra.
Sometimes we close our eyes and just listen to the echoes of our hearts. We all fall in love and there are times that we love so much that we lose ourselves in our own emotions. More often than that, we wonder why there are love that grows and love that grows cold.
We would start to search for answers, and try to find where love has gone wrong. But in the end, we find ourselves where we started. We cannot question love when it has its own reasons. Love will always be as it always has been. Silent. Mysterious. And deeply profound.
Many of us believe that love is forever. That love never dies. Only to be disillusioned in the end, when we find our hands empty and our hearts longing. We’ve mistakenly have looked at love as a need to be fulfilled. But love is only a gift given to us. We should not hold it in our hands, for we may never find the strenght to let it go when it decides to leave. We should only embrace its warmth and glow while it lasts, and then freely open our arms when it’s time to say goodbye.
When we fall in love with someone, we don’t want that feeling to end for it is everything we are and everything we wanted to be. We pray that love will stay and grow in our hearts. But if it doesn’t then we should never let our lives be taken by it for life should not end where heartaches begin. There is always a reason why we have to move on. When we have to say goodbye to the feelings we wanted to stay forever let us not wave our hands with a heavy heart, for love will have to set its wing free and find a place where it belongs.
We may have lost it, but then again when we close our eyes and listen to the echoes of our hearts, we will hear that feeling resounding silently forever. Then we’ll know that it has never left us, for the good that we have become because of love will always stay. It will always be there reminding us that we should be thankful and happy not because we have lost love but because for once in our lives that feeling lived in our hearts and made us happy.
Wearing long skirts with long hair either let through or in ponytail, soft spoken with sweet innocent smile, refined and a bit shy, perhaps these are the things that occur first to one’s mind when thinking about Filipinas. Who would not? These are the classic qualities of Filipinas only that it was decades ago.
As modern technologies evolved and brought forth massive changes in every culture, Filipina ladies also changed. One can see these changes straight away from the clothes and accessories they wear until the very details of their possessions.
Alright, so much about the physical aspect. Now, let’s try to look what’s inside, the character that every Filipina possess. In the past you can find them at home helping their mother on the household chores. Some lucky ones were able to go to school, however, they were expected to show an impeccable manner. Most Filipinas then, if not all, were inferior compared to men. Filipinas are known to be honest. They are very respectful especially to their elders.
A perfect mother figure, Filipinas are very caring, passionate, hospitable and sensitive to the needs of others. They are very romantic lovers, faithful, understanding, loving and thoughtful. When given any responsibilities, they have the common sense immerging from their natural intellect. They can be very hardworking and patient.
Compared in the past, Filipinas of the new generation have come out of their shell. You can now see them active in the community. They become more independent and started to let their voices be heard. They have adapted to the modern way of life. Gone are the long skirts and refined personality. Are all these changes due to modernization? The answer in my opinion is “No”.
Tracing back the Philippine history, one can understand why the typical Filipina image changed. Though the American colonization greatly affected their way of life, still it is not the only reason. Filipinas suffered from different types of abuses during war and foreign invasion. They experienced being treated as slaves. They’ve lost their freedom and identity. Despite all the hardships, something special within them overcame it all, they endured with their indefatigable inner strength. They need to change to partly protect themselves from the maladies of human trafficking.
Now, if I were to say what’s inside every Filipina’s heart, my answer is just one. It’s GENUINE LOVE that keeps them forgiving to people who hurt them; positive in spite of life’s adversities; hopeful that better things will come their way; compassionate to others; and strong in facing negative circumstances.
Time may have changed many things among Filipinas but one thing remained, the genuine love within their hearts. It is the kind of love that lets them endure the grievous experiences of the past and the same love that will let them defeat misfortunes of the changing tides of time.
It is believed that ruby is the world's most valued gemstone and the king of precious stones. It is a gem of desire, passion, courage and emotion. Its luminescence, rarity and beauty made ruby rule in the world of gemstones.
Ruby's value is undoubtedly enormous that no other stone has been featured in poetry and romance than ruby. King Solomon of Israel and Job, the gentile and Islam prophet, both famous in the Bible mentioned ruby in their words of virtues.
Amethyst is one of the oldest stone used in the Crown Jewels of England and one of the twelve stones of the High Priest. It was used to adorn the white marble of the legendary Taj Mahal. Amethyst beads were also found in the tomb of King Tutankhamen in 1333 B.C.
A gemstone as awe-inspiring as amethyst is always sought after. Even famous figures in both secular and ecclesiastical history were overwhelmed with admiration to this treasured gem. In fact, Russian Empress Catherine the Great sent thousands of miners to the Ural Mountains of Russia to search for this valuable stone.
According to the famous artist, scientist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci, amethyst is able to dissipate evil thoughts and quicken the intelligence. As such, amethyst bracelets, earrings, brooches, and hair jewelry are ideal to augment cleverness and improve one's state of mind.
Since history up to present, quartz is very important in crystal healing for mental, physical, emotional and spiritual aspects. It creates an overall balance of our well-being by attracting all the seven color rays vital to the attainment of a healthy and productive lifestyle. Quartz jewelry are not just excellent healing gemstone, it is also a prominent jewelry for those who want to attain elegance and fashion.
Wearing quartz jewelry such as lemon quartz, rose quartz, rutilated quartz and strawberry quartz can best allow the powerful life forces attraction quality of quartz to manifest in your body. For a fast-paced career lifestyle, smoky quartz jewelry will help regulates stress, relaxes the mind and aids in organizing thoughts. Gold also stimulates life forces, hence, quartz with solid gold jewelry give a double balancing effects on your health.
It is believed that wearing quartz pendant will help neutralize heart matters especially the rose quartz pendants as pink is the color of love. It will ease pain and contribute to easy heartbreak recovery as well as other emotional stress. To surely attain healing and balance to the fullest, try wearing a set of quartz jewelry complete with a ring, pendant or necklace, earrings and bracelet. You can also add a quartz belt buckle for stomach healing, quartz hair jewelry to work on your mental aspect, and quartz brooches to complement the healing process.
If you are up for an adventure, Cagayan de Oro in the Philippines offers you a very exciting white water rafting experience. I cannot forget the first time I experienced white water rafting. At first I was scared because I do not know how to swim. Good thing, the tour guides were very generous to give us a briefing to let us know what to do and understand the different terms used. It was really really fun going with the flow especially when some of our friends did the flipping.
The thrill in every rapids never failed our crave for an adventure.
After a very enjoyable 14 rapids adventure, a very delicious meal was served for us. We had pork barbeque and a lot of seafoods which were so yummy. Now it made me wonder when will be my next white water rafting experience again.
Wait!? This word really keeps ringing on my ear since I observed that I’m getting in a hurry on some of my plans. But before I delve in deeply, have we ever asked ourselves where on earth this word “wait” comes from? From the worldly point of view, this means remaining or resting in expectation of something. All of us have been waiting for something to happen in our lives even to the extent of being aggravated which sometimes make us stop on every thing we do. Like in my case, I’m getting too excited of what lies ahead of my life until I get to the point of forgetting some of the simplest things life has offered. Every night, before I close my eyes to get a very deep sleep after a long day’s work, I talk to the Lord and ask Him whether some of the plans I set will be realized. I even find myself funny whenever I imagine all my plans as if I’m watching a movie but in this case, I’m the sole actor. We kept on asking God why we are in these situations where we are expected to wait on something to come.
Yes, we all have numerous plans set by days, weeks, months or even years. Even others could be in short or long term plans. In my case, after I finished my BS degree here in the Philippines, the question I have in my mind is, Where do I go from here? What will happen to my life if I choose to be with this or that? What happens if I take this step or the other way around? There are too many questions thatwe seek for answers. There are many roads that we need to take in life, but others may be twistedwhile some are straight as a stick. With this sort-of-confusion ringing in my head, whether to wait orgo ahead of God’s plan, I found out that we just need to imbibe in our own minds and hearts theseconcepts.
Remember, life is an even keel. All of us are perfectly created by God. Our eyes, ears, hands, feet and other body parts are placed in their perfect spots. The number of senses and even the intricacy of our entire human body system have its own raison d’être. I remember the explanation of my teacher about the reason why humans have one pair of ears and only one mouth. He emphasized that we need to have this number of senses for a person needs to listen twice as much as he speaks. So better not pray to have two mouths and one ear because time will come gossips and lies will proliferate not just once but twice. Just wait because life is like a balanced weighing scale. We are the only ones outweighing it. Let’s just keep this equilibrium in state whatever happens.
Don’t run ahead of God’s plan. Yes, it’s normal that we sometimes run ahead of time. In this fast paced world of ours, feeble people are well disregarded. We beat deadlines and plan out things in advance. Human as we are, we always do these stuffs. We even put a schedule on the simplest things we do daily. You bathe, eat, and prepare things as fast as you can even to the extent of forgetting that you haven’t worn your underpants. But wait guys! Have we tried halting and pausing for a while and contemplate on the significant things that we did? Are all these things and plans we have are in accordance to our God’s plan? Sometimes, I seek deep silence for a while after being busy with so many things. Sometimes, I reflect whether I’m not losing out of my plans as well as His plans for me. Then, answers just come along the way barely discernible.
Live life to the fullest. We can never turn back time so let’s make it possible to really live life to the fullest. We should keep our loved ones on our side and value the people around us. Let’s not be always in a hurry coz we tend to forget the more significant ones. Sometimes, it is us who creates not just a gap but a chasm between relationships with other people who are so important within our own lives.
Waiting on what lies ahead is so tedious but we should not forget that every second offers tranquility and peace of mind, every thing that happens reminds us to just be patient because there is a greater glory ahead of us and it pays to wait since He knows we are waiting. He sympathizes, for He himself had a very long suffering and patience towards His people. Human as we are, we tend to disregard this reason, but it is on the latter part when we come to realize the importance of this concept, “waiting”.
Life is great! Because after I occupied my mind with much life’s worries, destiny offered me blessings worth to be shared and new people meant to be loved. Sooner, my mother will give birth to the third child of our family, and this goes to show that I’ll be having a new person meant to be kept and loved.
With regards to my career, I was tasked to do something I really loved to. This is something that is within my inclination. With this, I get to deal and listen to some ordinary people sharing their simple yet fascinating stories in life.
Indeed, sometimes all of us just need to wait. For I thought back and think that life is an even keel and everything is on God’s control especially if we get to live our life to the fullest.
I’m terrible when it comes to picking gifts for my wife. The first gift I gave her was a dress. When I saw it, I thought it was beautiful. But when I gave it to her, I learned again the truth that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Because she said, “Oh Bo, I love you for giving me a dress. Thank you so much. But I suggest you stick to preaching. Your fashion sense is awful.” I pouted, “You mean you won’t wear the dress?” She smiled. “If I become suddenly suicidal, perhaps. In other words, I won’t be caught alive wearing that thing.”
But last month, I hit the jackpot. I finally bought her a birthday gift she really adored. I bought her a book. But it was no ordinary book. It was a gigantic 1000 page book containing beautifully stunning pictures of the most gorgeous places all over the world. She loved the book because I wrote on the first page, “Sweets, when our kids are grown up, I’ll bring you to these places.” She loved the book because it wasn’t just a book. It was a promise. I promised, “I’ll grow old with you. I’ll stay with you forever. I’ll love you forever.” Because I wasn’t really giving a book. I was really giving myself.
My marriage is abundant because these past 11 years, I’ve been giving my time, effort, attention, and energy to my marriage.
Here’s what I learned: Life is not one bucket.
Life Is A Collection Of Buckets
You can’t expect abundance in one bucket when you’re giving into another bucket.
Some religious people think that if they give their time to their religious bucket, their family life will be abundant too. That won’t happen.
I’ve met a lot of religious people who are always in church, attending their religious activities, but they don’t give their time, attention, and energy to their family life. Thus, their family life is empty. They complain to God, “Lord, I gave my time to you! Why is my marriage suffering? Why is my relationship with my kids suffering?”
Simple. Because life is not one bucket but a collection of buckets. If you want to harvest abundance in a particular area of your life, you have to plant in that specific bucket.
Remember: Jesus said “Seek first the Kingdom of God…” If God is first, then there must be a second, a third, a fourth…
Some people think God wants them to give all their time to Him and be in church all the time and serve in ministries—neglecting their jobs, businesses, and families. They reason that “because if I put God first, God will take care of all these anyway.”
Not really.
Even Money
I met a woman recently who said, “Bo, for the past 22 years, I was serving the church fulltime. Without a salary. Today, I’m my 54, and I just realized I have no money for my old age. So I’m catching up, starting a small business and investing for the future.”
In between the lines, I could tell that she was asking, “Lord, why didn’t you take care of me financially? I gave my life to you.”
Many preachers I know simply tell people to give 10% to God. I’m one of the few preachers who tell people to give 10% to God (as a guide, not as a law) and also give 20% to their future in the form of paper assets, businesses, real estate, etc. Why? So that they can keep giving to God in their old age.
Let me state this again: I believe that God blesses us when we are generous to Him.
But because we lack financial wisdom, many spiritual people simply consume all of His financial blessings. They spend it all. Instead of setting aside a portion and investing it for their future.
If you want abundance in your finances, you need to give more time, effort, and energy into your financial bucket. Grow in financial wisdom, learn new skills, read financial books, attend financial seminars, and get financial mentors.
So you see, financial abundance is much more than giving to your spiritual bucket. If you want to grow your money, you also need to give to your financial bucket as well.
Where Do You Want To Have Abundance?
Here’s my question.
What bucket of life do you want to experience God’s blessings and abundance? Another way of asking this question: Which bucket in your life is empty or lacking today?
Give to that specific bucket!
If you want abundance in your “marriage bucket”, give time and attention and love to your spouse.
If you want abundance in your “family bucket”, give more time and energy and patience to your children.
If you want abundance in your “financial bucket”, give time to learn and invest in your financial future
If you want abundance in your “spiritual bucket”, give your time, your service, and your tithes to God.
Season of Delay
Here’s my belief: When you give, you receive.
This is a law in our universe. You’ll even receive much more than what you gave. This is as sure as the sun rising tomorrow. This is 100% guaranteed.
Here’s the great mystery of life: When you give, you don’t lose. You gain.
People don’t see this.
Why? Because between our giving and our receiving, there is a delay. If you want to receive the blessings of your giving, you need to be patient during the season of delay.
People expect instant returns.
But the greatest things in life—a great marriage, a strong family, a happy friendship, financial freedom, and godly character—doesn’t happen instantly.
When you plant, you don’t harvest right away. You have to enter into a season of delay.
So what do you do while you wait?
Keep on giving.
Why Giving To God Is Crucial
Giving to God will train you to give in the other areas of your life. Personally, I don’t believe that tithing is a law for Christians. (Sorry, too long to explain.) But tithing is a great guideline and a fantastic training tool for greater giving. Because the first blessing of giving to God is not abundance but an abundance mentality. Without an abundance mentality, it’ll be difficult to receive abundance in every area of life.
I have a conspiracy theory.
I believe that the entire physical and spiritual universe around you is conspiring, plotting, and conniving to give you massive abundance.
One of the most difficult things to overcome is a scarcity mentality. That there’s a limited amount of blessings in the world.
God is an abundant God, not a God of scarcity.
Today, I meet many people trapped in mediocrity and stagnation today because of their scarcity mentality. They think that God wants them to stay small, live small, and be small.
I’ve met spiritual people who believe they should be poor.
I’ve met good people who believe they should always remain in hardship because they are good people.
I was like this for almost 20 years of my life.
But when I was 30 years old, I changed my thinking. I decided I wanted to become a millionaire missionary. It was crazy but I believed it was possible.
Today, I’m still a missionary. I run 9 non-profit organizations, doing beautiful work in the world. Only one pays me a salary. I can do that because I earn through my small businesses and other investments.
I’ve broken out of that scarcity mentality.
I believe God wants abundance for my life.
And I believe God wants abundance for your life too.
Have you ever met a parent who has a secret desire that their children suffer? Who prays, “Lord, please make my kids poor?”
I doubt it. There are a few deranged parents out there, but a normal father and mother would want the best for their children.
God wants abundance for your life.
No, it’s not primarily money. Abundance is primarily about love. But I believe it includes money—but only so that we can love!
