Jv Samson took me years ago to this chapel in Santa Barbara. Each time, I carry a burden in my heart and after mass, my heart feels lighter as I have had divine manifestations here. One time it was the Pieta image in the exposed Holy Eucharist.
This Thursday, July 18, 2024, we left LA at 5am, and after a few miles, dawn was giving way to sunrise. It made for a glorious image. We went for coffee after mass and dropped off our prayer intentions at 930 am. That’s Thursday morning.
By the time I got home, it was 4pm, July 18, Thursday.
Yet, the letter from Poor Clares Sisters was dated July 15, 2024 acknowledging they are lifting up my prayers for Rachel (RIP) and for Enrique de la Cruz , my hubby’s sustained good health in his next Camino.
The outer envelope was postmarked July 17, 2024, three pm in Santa Barbara. How can that be? Can you recognize the miracle?
It was as if my letter was mailed from heaven, and one day earlier than I wrote my prayer intentions. I couldn’t believe it.
We usually have breakfast with Rina Bentajado then head back to LA. This time, my friend and I went to Roblar Winery, where Rina has a membership. I loved all their wildflowers tastefully curated.
Rina added to the joy of the day by giving us too many gifts. The most important for me was Moonflower or Queen of the night, that has three blooming plants.
We had such a great time exchanging healing stories including books on shifting mindsets, expecting God’s daily nuggets of grace.
What a beautiful experience with two God-centered friends of mine. Please grant them long lives, Lord, and disease-free to enjoy the blessings bestowed on them.
“Agua,” he said. I was ready. He took a sip in my Stanley cup, now his. This cup was a gift from my hubby. It is now #maharlika2023la as he drinks from a straw.
Did he feel our loving care? I believe so, he slept for 3 hours.
When he woke up, he was hungry. I made egg/cheese quesadilla for him. He ate 2 slices, small at that, and pointed to the last of the banana bread and fresh cherries. He got them.
After, I doused him with water and changed his diaper. He is now busy playing.
He was teasing me. He played hide and seek even as I announced, “Change diaper, please,” he kept running away from me and kept smiling as he did. After 3 times, he stopped and cooperated.
When his sister #princess2015la came, I made gyoza for her. But, first, she gave me her painting that she did at camp.
I whispered:”You know why your paintings are good – because you are loving and kind. You don’t hurt anyone.” She smiled.
And then, she fed her brother some gyoza. I whispered that she is a great big sister to him. She smiled.
His brother was about to sleep but as she approached the door, he got down and greeted her enthusiastically, that he forgot he was sleepy.
When his dad came to pick them up, he loudly said, “Hi!” Same with his sister, he warmly welcomed her. When he left, he waved goodbye and gave me a flying kiss. I was so tired, but his smiles gave me such satisfaction.
It is always a blessing and an inspired get-together with Nicole David Yalong, my goddaughter in marriage. I admire how she balances her work as a mom: cooking, homeschooling twins, manage a household, take on creative gigs of singing with her brother at weddings, baking and cooking for family, and still do self care of yoga, exercise, swimming, pickleball and dates with her husband and one on one dates at a chosen French Cafe with her twins, one at a time.
I wanted her to meet Jo Quiambao Dijamco a chef from Pampanga with 30 years of crafting menus, opening restaurants and with sustained high quality. He opened for La Bella Pinseria Romana and now, 1917 Restaurant and Bar in the patio of San Antonio Winery, Los Angeles.
He prepared a sumptuous 4 course lunch for us. We luxuriated in the presence of one another talking about grace upon grace, family, parenting, grandchildren, crafts, arts, music, inspiration sources for writing and life’s challenges. Three hours is never enough when we see each other.
Advanced Happy Birthday Nicole! I love you – you have made mothering an art and a science!
So nourished by the Holy Spirit, the Lord, Mama Mary, Fr. Rodel’s presence, selflessness and patience, we were blessed as a family, ate heartily and with gusto, enjoyed each other’s presence at @incaglendale and @La Bella Pinseria Romana after! It was my sister’s Rachel 40th day anniversary mass, officiated by @fr.rodel with another mass in San Bernardino some hundred miles away, prior. His homily was practiced for all of us to experience what he preached: patience, selflessness and presence to accompany a family healing from losing a beloved!
Fr. Rodel’s meaningful homily, excerpted here:
There are 23 healing miracles in the Gospel of St. Mark
It spoke of Jesus’ heart full of compassion – a love to those suffering, like the woman who was hemorrhaging for 12 years.
I was hospitalized a week ago, my heart went out to those folks crying, yelling, wailing.
Jesus knew their pain. He uses us to be healers, too: therapists, nurses, scientists, doctors, all are extensions of Jesus’ ministry, you are Jesus’s hands, mouths, we are all called to be Jesus.
Here are the three traits we need to be with those who are suffering:
Patience – be patient, those who are suffering are in pain. Respect their timetable for healing.
Self giving – you give yourself to the person suffering.
Presence – the suffering person craves for attention, to know that they are loved, be around to linger with that person.
Jesus wants all to be healed. My doctor said:” I will take care of you, to which Fr. Rodel responds: “I save souls, You save lives.”
What a blessed evening! Thank you Fr. Rodel G.Balagtas for actualizing all these traits, for practicing what you preach!
So nourished by the Holy Spirit, the Lord, Mama Mary, Fr. Rodel’s presence, selflessness and patience, we were blessed as a family, ate heartily and with gusto, enjoyed each other’s presence at @incaglendale and @La Bella Pinseria Romana after! It was my sister’s Rachel 40th day anniversary mass, officiated by @fr.rodel with another mass in San Bernardino some hundred miles away, prior. His homily was practiced for all of us to experience what he preached: patience, selflessness and presence to accompany a family healing from losing a beloved! What a blessed evening!
Why this site? I surmised many of CSUN’s large donors are Jewish. We got to sit with a couple who had sustained conversations with my hubby, a former Department Chair of Asian American Studies, Enrique de la Cruz, a CSUN scholarship donor as I am, though not an alumni and unrelated to CSUN.
The dinner was a bit upscale, pairing salmon and filet mignon, all in wine reduction sauces. They served wine liberally and Russian River’s Cabernet Sauvignon was aplenty. I had a sip and made me wish I was back in Orewa Beach, NZ where a glass of red Devil’s Staircase was smoothly enjoyed.
Even the dessert was inviting – a chocolate Marnier cake with strawberry sauce. Best of all, ease of parking. Hubby knew how to commute, he drove us through canyons and took us through roads lined by mature trees and bushes and unobstructed landscape in some areas, though disturbingly smoggy, even with more electric vehicles on the roads. Population in LA has become dense.
Speaking of dense, folks came on time to enjoy cocktails at the bar, mine was sparkling water with lime. We had several canapés, one we liked was mini ice cream cones filled with diced cucumber and raw tuna – it was yummy.
We were introduced by Suren Seropian to Filiberto Gonzalez. I knew right away that this man is genuine, truthful and credible. How did I make that assessment? His careful sharing of stories, of community icons that matter and as he kept unraveling them, my husband and I kept saying – oh yah, we know him, we know her. Then, the last kicker, he introduced his organization and I knew right away about the organization.
What a beautiful way of meeting a person who describes memories, beautiful encounters of community leaders, future projects eliciting support of live theater, before himself. I told him that I sensed his solid credibility and alignment of his principles with his stories. He nodded. He even described his job interview and of late, the musical, Larry, where he took all his staff to watch on its last sold-out day.
Plays are getting a robust support amongst our community, of late – Mix-Mix (Halo-Halo) that we attended on its last day, though less than sold out, had an engaged audience on a Sunday afternoon, Father’s Day.
I spotted Dean Jeffrey Reeder with his lovely wife and we exchanged pleasantries. Of all things it turns out that Dean Reeder wanted to meet Filiberto. I looked for him, spotted him, and requested his company, then introduced him to Dean Reeder. Before going inside the hall, Dean Reeder looked back and said:” Thank you for that, Prosy.” Of all the CSUN deans I have met, Dean Reeder is genuine, warm, and sincere. He has been supportive of Philippine Chamber, and in walks in Lois Klavir.
What’s philanthropy? CSUN President Erika Beck defined it as a Greek word meaning love and kindness to humanity. More than that, it is leveling the playing field for students in film, as an example, whose donors provide them with the latest in cameras, ARRI and their short films become competitive portfolios. Beyond function, technical abilities, it is the personhood formed at CSUN that makes the students competitive.
One story shared was a parent needed help on the last day of moving out in campus. Only one student stopped to help this parent. This student subsequently got an internship at this parent’s organization and today, this former student is now Vice President of Production Operations.
What a rise, all because of best selves!
Tonight, I went home, more determined to sustain my philanthropy at CSUN, for in this community of over 400 folks, the collective humanity is at its best, donating to students, and enabling them time to focus on their studies and to do their research.
Because of robust philanthropy, CSUN is building so many structures to house places of innovation, collaboration, engineering, research and future development I just wish CSUN develops a robust philanthropy more focused on improving the soulful lives and Doubling the economic wellbeing of teachers, professors, staffers, and even helping out the students in writing, more study abroad programs, and their fullest creative expressions.
More writing seminars perhaps such that students write without constraints of grammar, imagination, and even inviting retired professors to teach short term courses in poetry, literature appreciation, critical thinking, digital cartooning from animators?
What a beautiful, dynamic, living CSUN we are part of, as donors. Thank you for a great experience of collective humanity at its best! Thank you too Teresa Williams León for joining us at our table and where I learned she raised a daughter, now in her first year of college, comfortable to navigate her freshman years as she was raised with love and nurtured abilities with natural fluency in English, Spanish, Japanese and French. Can you imagine her future possibilities much like CSUN students nurtured by a caring administration and development folks? -@Prosy Delacruz
