BLOG CLEANING

Since it's a Sunday, i'll try to disinfect and clean up this blog from all my trash by posting a different entry. From now on, if you find yourself reading an entry that's rant and whine-free, then it only means one thing - BLOG CLEANING'S ON GOING.

-----------------

ON BEING GRATEFUL

Just came home from a seminary. For the weekend, we became a foster family to one of the seminarians in their immersion program. My sister and I heard about the invitation during one of those masses we've attended and it was so sad to hear that out of the 49 seminarians who are in need of a foster family, only 12 families signed up at that time. Since we've experienced adopting a seminarian a year ago, we asked our parents if we could adopt one again for this year.

So yesterday, i met him after i came home from duty. He's on his 4th year already. Quite talkative, and he seemed to be so at home already. I was thinking that maybe, they were trained to mingle with people. Little did i know about him until mom told me his story.

Ok, i shall give him a name. Call him Mar. His life is like a pang Maalaala Mo Kaya entry. Made me think that those stories on tv do happen in real life. He grew up in an orphanage. At age 3, his parents separated. His dad, a wife-beater. His mom, born from a rich family who eventually lost their riches. Just like the other rich kids, she didn't know how to cook or to fend for herself that out of need, she married his dad. Of course they couldn't stand each other that they have to part ways. There were two of them in the family. Mar was left with his maternal uncle. His mom brought his younger brother with her. During reunions or special occasions however, he could hear his relatives talking about his mom. The kind that he couldn't take. The kind that as a young kid, made him hate his mom for leaving him with his relatives. So at a young age of 10, he wanted to find himself. He left his uncle's family and he found himself in an orphanage. It's from this orphanage that's being run by a priest that he found family. Not the kind that there's a mother or a father figure though. This is from this orphanage where he grew up until he decided to enter the seminary.

I need not tell every details of his story. Maybe i could post another entry for him. Anyhow, what I'm just trying to tell myself is that, i have to be grateful for having this kind of family that i have. After meeting Mar and after hearing his story, i realized that not all people are given the chance to have a mom or a dad. Not all people have a family to gain support from. That there are people who basically live on their own. That no matter how independent i am, i couldn't picture out myself surviving without my family.

Mar was so grateful that he was assigned to our family. I'm more grateful though. His presence made me appreciate the little blessings that i have. His presence made me appreciate my family the more. My feeling of gratefulness was even more affirmed during the homily when i heard mass tonight. I could remember well the exact words of the priest:"Someone who's not grateful doesn't know how to look back: at people, at circumstances or experiences."

Looking back, there are a lot of people and experiences that i have to be very thankful of. I need not mention these here but basically, what i wanted to say is that i couldn't find ways of how to pay them back.The reason i guess why I'm in this crap hospital is because i feel that this is one way of paying back those people who have helped me all along. I'm here because i couldn't keep all those blessings I'm receiving to myself alone. Fact is, i don't think i'm innately generous. I just feel so obligated to give back to others the blessings that i receive. I'm not claiming that i'm kind or good-natured for i really am not. If i am, I'm no longer alive posting this stuff. Good people die young, right?