Twists and Turns

It’s a pleasure to be tagged again! Che and friends,here are my 10 “Pleasure Points”:

-Having a heart to heart talk with Him in a very quiet place like an Adoration Chapel, an empty church, or Grotto (love the one at Christ The King in QC) and savour His great unconditional love.

 

-When Kyla declares I am the best mom in the world, hugs me really tight, and say I love you so much, Mommy!

 

-When Mond says the three magic words in a very sleepy voice. He knows I have difficulty in sleeping so even if he’s already sleeping, in between snores he would check on me and say I love you with a kiss while extending his arms to hug me.

 

-Watching Kyla and Mond enjoying each other’s company. You may not believe it but water can be inexplicably thicker than blood.

 

-Waking up with shower of sweet kisses from Mond and Kyla.

 

-Capturing a beautiful sunset and other sceneries/subjects in my digicam.

 

-Overseas trips… be it for work, pleasure, or both!

 

-Helping a stranger and getting a sincere thank you and warm smile in return.

 

-When Mond buys me a blueberry cheesecake in an ordinary day. It makes my day extraordinary!

 

-Salitypers who add meaning and colour to my life

 

 

It was a thirteen hours flight from Suvarnabhumi Airport (Bangkok,Thailand)  to Flughafen Airport (Zurich, Switzerland) but I stayed wide awake on board the Thai Airways.  Evidently, I was exceptionally thrilled to step my feet in Europe for the first time!

 

 

 

Upon reaching the immigration checkpoints, I was asked to present my letter of invitation but unfortunately I submitted the said letter to the Swiss Embassy when I processed my visa. Luckily, I found my name card (the only one I brought) in my wallet that bears my company headquarters address in Schaan, Liechtenstein – my destination!  After checking it carefully, the officer smiled at me and handed back my stamped passport.

 

I got my luggage pretty fast and to my great relief, I saw a man waving my company name’s placard waiting for me outside. He genially welcomed me and briefly introduced himself as our company chauffeur. After helping me to carry my things in the van, the chauffeur asked me to hop in and told me to be prepared for more or less than an hour ride from Zurich to Liechtenstein and off we went. I was greeted by the infamous Swiss Alps.

 

 

It was very remarkable as if I just saw a painting coming alive! I wouldn’t want to miss even just a morsel of the magical experience that I had to gaze right and left because the scenery was so stunning and breathtakingly beautiful on both sides of the road. Being there is like living a fairytale. I can’t help but admire the local cows which graze alongside the main road.

 

 

I was so engrossed looking at the picturesque view that I was surprised we already reached Liechtenstein.

 

 

(FYI: Liechteinstein, described as the jewel at the pulse of Europe, is the only one of two principalities left where the prince still lives in his castle up at the top of the hill. Its 34,600 inhabitants claim that you have to take a bit of time to get to know the 160 sq km gem as its small size has nothing to do with numbers. If you happen to visit the place, plan for a short trip (20 minutes) to Austria.)

 

Upon reaching the IV Centre for Dental Education, the training already started so I only had time to freshen up, quickly change my clothes and joined the group straight away just in time for the first topic.

 

 

 

Oh well, It was a long story — My Singaporean boss made a mistake in booking my air ticket and that was the reason I travelled alone. I’m supposed to travel with my Thai and Vietnamese colleagues. My Swiss boss was very worried but thanks God I made it in one piece.

 

As anticipated, the training was monotonous and my mind was preoccupied by the sceneries outside that I have yet to explore.

 

 

 (continuation 1)

 

Finally, the first day was over. I didn’t bother about the jetlag and the exhausting seminar. I was energized by the grandeur of villages at the base of gorgeous towering mountains.

 

 

Nonetheless, the locals call it a day a bit too early (they leave the office between 4 to 4:30 pm and the whole place is deafeningly quiet by 6 pm) for a person like me who has adapted working long hours in Singapore (regular working hours ends at 6 to 7 pm and could extend up to 9 pm on busy days) so I had no choice but to call it my day too. So there I was, being welcomed by Hotel Linde - a small family-oriented guess house running since 1898. I had a sumptuous dinner at Linden-Pic Restaurant

 

 

 

and a good night’s sleep in its cosy room with sound-insulated windows. Early next morning, I woke up fresh and rejuvenated. 

 

 

After having a big breakfast of fresh milk (probably the freshest milk i’ve ever had),  toasted bread with fresh cheeses, (name it, they have it and oh, how i love ‘em all!) and fresh fruits

 

  

 

my colleagues and I walked back to the training centre. We passed by grazing cows

 

 

 

 

and beautiful archetypal Swiss houses.

 

 

(continuation 2)

We took our time walking and didn’t consider the fog a nuisance (correct me if I’m wrong but when you live in Asia, you tend to appreciate the cold weather) and we continued taking snapshots until IV headquarters.

 

 

The second day of training was very interesting as we got the chance to mix chemicals and make our own composite (a white filling material) and tested it in a tooth model afterwards. (As expected, we were not allowed to take photos inside the laboratory.) We all did well so the day went on smoothly and ended early.

 

My colleagues and I got the chance to see more of the tourist attractions. Fortuitously, our hotel was located at the centre of Schaan

 

 

    (photo courtesy of the Hotel’s website)

 

which is just a few steps away from the bus station

 

 

 and Dux Chapel (The Chapel of St. Mary of Consolation)

 

 

 

built in the 18th century.

 

 

My colleague, Wanpen, and I took a bus ride to Vaduz (capital of Liechtenstein)

 

  

 and enjoyed the sights on our way

 

 

most especially the vineyard (owned by the Prince of Liechtenstein)

 

 

situated near Vaduz Castle 

 

      

                   

where the Princely Family lives since 1938.

                            

We alighted at the main plaza

 

 

   photo courtesy of Schloss)

 

and headed to buy some souvenirs.

 

to be continued…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My other wing has been cleaved away from my whole being and it made me off-colour – physically immobilized and mentally debilitated. I’m feeble and there’s nothing I could do for now but sing..,

 

YOUR LOVE

 

It’s not the flowers, wrapped in fancy
paper
It’s not the ring, I wear around my
finger
There’s nothing in all the world I need
When I have you here beside me, here
beside me

So you could give me wings to fly
And catch me if I fall
Or pull the stars down from the sky
So I could wish on them all
But I couldn’t ask for more
‘Cause your love is the greatest gift
of all

In your arms, I found a strength
inside me
And in your eyes, there’s a light to
guide me
I would be lost without you
And all that my heart could ever want
has come true

So you could give me wings to fly
And catch me if I fall
Or pull the stars down from the sky
So I could wish on them all
But I couldn’t ask for more
‘Cause your love is the greatest gift
of all

You could offer me the sun, the moon
And I would still believe
You gave me everything
When you gave your heart to me

But I couldn’t ask for more
‘Cause your love is the greatest gift
of all            

You could give me wings to fly
And catch me if I fall
Or pull the stars down from the sky
So I could wish on them all
But I couldn’t ask for more
‘Cause your love is the greatest gift
of all
Your love is the greatest gift of all
Greatest gift of all

 

 I can’t function properly… I can’t possibly fly high with one wing and I wish to have my other wing back very sooooooooooon to restore my wellbeing.

 

 

During my daughter’s first month of permanently staying here in Singapore with us, we always attend an English Mass where she enjoys singing along with the choir while patiently following the lyrics in the monitor. She always look forward to Sunday as we have inculcated in her young mind that it’s a Family Day as well as Jesus’ Day. She likes it when we kiss and hug each other during the exchanges of Peace Be With You.  

 

She became more excited when my mum joined us to take care of her while waiting for the papers of her official nanny to be approved. One Sunday, I informed her that we are going to attend Tagalog Mass with Mama Vie (my mum). We chose to do so because my mum is beginning to feel homesickness. To my enchantment, she asked… “Mommy, are we going to have Kiss Be With You also in Tagalog Mass?”

 

As one of my favourite priest puts it, “GOD is foolishly generous and lavishly gracious”. I bet He is and will always be! I will not be where and what I am today without His marvellous work of wonders…

 

My husband and I have been taking into account many options we have to “complete” our family. We’ve gone to the extent of applying a job in other liveable countries that offers family visa like Ireland and Australia while waiting for our Permanent Resident application here in Singapore to be approved. For several years, I entrusted my precious child in the care of my next-of-kin in the Philippines while working unstintingly in a foreign country to secure her a beguiling future. It is rather poignant that a number of folks lug the conception that I am a callous mother for doing so. They are not sentient of the incalculable times that I had to endure the pain and anguish of being separated from my child predominantly when she succumbs in asthma attack. I had countless wakeful nights which later developed into insomnia; I was repeatedly caught staring blankly at work; and my tears of longing and wretchedness just flow frenziedly while I am on a bus or train ride.

 

At last, the long wait and our enormous sacrifices paid off! My family just got hold of our Permanent Resident status of late and perceptibly, my “completed” family was the biggest birthday gift I’ve ever had. I will be ceaselessly grateful of God’s munificence and I am looking forward to another decade of a GOD-blessed life for I know He has ample supply of gifts up there! J

 

 

 

I have a deep fascination in literature but I find it very exasperating not being able to put my thoughts into words at times. I started my blog recently through my husband’s encouragement not to put my aptitude into squander. He stalwartly believed I am bestowed with a gift after reading my innumerable epistles. Big thanks to him for letting me salvage my rusty brain and long lost confidence. Honestly, I didn’t look forward to be applauded in my endeavor but I feel indebted to my unwearied readers who adore my panache. I’ve always been self-effacing whenever people thinks highly of my capabilities. Candidly speaking, it won’t take me so much time to write an article like this if I really had the gift. Having said that, I never fail to remember my high school classmate who never strives to study but when it comes to writing he constantly produces awe-inspiring essays on the spot. I also had a colleague previously who effortlessly turns her thoughts and emotions into brilliant prose and poetry without burning midnight oil. Those for me are the epitome of bona fide gifted writers. In fact, I just discovered more of them in my new found leisure pursuit of reading featured blogs in friendster.

You might think I am playing meek but I will be adamant to say I’m just being ingenuous. Yet no matter how I concede that I don’t have the gift, I outspokenly think I have the potential that requires substantial assiduousness. What made me say so? Modesty aside, I’ve won first places in essay writing competitions during my high school days. Back then, winning is a must therefore I tried hard incessantly so as not to thwart my mentors. I only swayed with the conception that I can be a nascent commentator when I garnered second place in an editorial writing contest in a Press Conference attended by private and public schools in my province. I was telling my fellow contender that I didn’t give my best as I bluntly wrote down whatever came into my mind about our subject (Marcos Regime) when out of the blue my name was called to receive the award. It was utterly unexpected that my exaggeratedly active lachrymal glands made me whimper.

I was then obliged to partake in Regional Press Conference which exposed me into a broader perspective of journalism. I was overly motivated to write more often to the extent that when I feel terrible for doing ghastly things, I’d write to my mom saying I was remorseful and I ought to be chastised. Being branded as the mischievous brat in the family, my mom thought that was silly of me. It can’t be helped as it became my (bad) habit. Each time I don’t have the nerves to say something in person I’d write a letter as an alternative.

At a snail’s pace, my penchant for writing brought me sweet conquest as I was able to touched people’s hearts through my unassuming compositions. I’ve never seen my dad shedding tears until I delivered my high school graduation address which I wrote myself. I implored my adviser I’d rather write my own than frantically memorize a piece written by a connoisseur that may even trigger my stage fright. It took me several days to finalize but it was worth every drop of tears that flowed in my listeners eyes. It was one of the most unforgettable days of my life. I painted warmhearted reminiscence for my spectators that landed me to be invited as guest speaker in my beloved alma mater in elementary six years later. I decided to use English-Tagalog-Ibanag in my speech giving a special consideration to my audience. I was commended for keeping my feet on the ground and was told that if my dad is still alive, he will be very proud of me. Evading a heartrending recollection, I clandestinely thanked my mom for passing me her proclivity in writing.

To my treasured faithful readers, please accept my gratitude for believing in me. I owe you every crumb of my triumph. I wasn’t born to be a writer with all certainty but I yearn to continue writing every now and then (as long as time allows me to) not to brag about myself but to inspire, touch, — and sanguinely move people’s lives.

Truly, God works in wonders! I might have prayed myriad times for a knight in shining armor to come in my rescue when I was down and out but never did I expect Him to be exceptionally magnanimous to give in to my unfeasible reverie — in His own sweet time…

My sympathetic friends never got worn-out from encouraging me to start afresh and overcome my irrational fear when I was on the road to recovery from a spiteful connubial experience. I’ve tried my best to do so but the idea of getting into another relationship after my failed marriage seemed preposterous for me. I convinced myself compellingly that I would never ever love again. So when I was introduced to an architect through hackneyed SMS, with all honesty I describe myself as a separated woman with one precious child and don’t believe in love. Surprisingly, he requested whether we could share camaraderie by means of writing and asked if I could send him a snapshot of my baby and evidently, myself. He was in the Middle East then, working in a small Interior Design company. He was brutally forthright to divulge that we couldn’t continue being text mates as he’s not earning that much to sustain those unreasonably expensive phone cards.

Without shilly-shallying, he became my first pen pal ever. I knew it was too stale for my predilection but out of intense boredom, I gave it a shot. What’s more, I felt at ease not being able to see him personally as I deem befriending a complete stranger from another planet shouldn’t harm me in any possible way. We then went on exchanging photographs and bits of info about ourselves and to my enchantment; I learned that he was born on August the 15th too! It was the very same momentous day I gave birth to my lovely little princess. And coincidentally, I also share the same birthday as his late father. ‘Perhaps we were meant to be friends’, I thought gleefully.

In the lengthy process of getting to know each other, we discovered that we both have trivial and noteworthy things in common. We are both a zealous fan of Garfield. (You may find it hilarious but his signature seemingly resembles Garfield’s face.) And halfheartedly, he revealed that he was also once grief-stricken and has not wholly recovered since. His fiancée apparently dumped him for a wealthy Japanese man and that’s how he deliberately landed in KSA. ‘It was too painful to bear so I have no choice but to go miles away to get her out of my system’, he acrimoniously recalled.

Undeniably, it felt like we’ve been rob of our greatest dreams. It was indeed a vast catastrophe for us to have ridden the same wrecked love boat but unfalteringly, we traded consoling words to haul up our dampened spirits and reconstruct our self-worth — week after week. That’s how we found ourselves smiling buoyantly again, gradually becoming oblivious of our past heartaches, and unstoppably sharing stories about almost anything and everything under the sun — even the minutest details about ourselves, the things that rouse our interests, and the people that surround us. And we before we knew it, we became the best of friends after a year of bartering inspirational, brain stimulating, and therapeutic epistles. And yes we really did, without seeing each other in person.

What happened consequently never ceases to amaze me until this very moment. According to the grapevine, an enamored eligible bachelor has implausibly fallen for an alienated woman with a child in tow! When he confessed his feelings unwaveringly, I had sundry indescribable emotions. My intensely awakened senses reminded me not to be naively gullible to cast my trust to a man I have never met in the real world. So holding back the sudden rush of euphoria I felt initially, I advised him tirelessly to find an unattached woman he robustly deserves. But the more I pushed him away, the more he clung snugly until one fateful day — he flew back to the Philippines and he valiantly traversed the way to my far flung province to meet my family and my daughter to prove his utmost sincerity. My family was profoundly impressed by his genuine intentions when he asked my little girl to address him as daddy the moment they met. It was simply unbelievable and dreadfully exhilarating!

Truth be told, I must say I have also inadvertently fallen for him since time immemorial. I was just too petrified to admit it to myself or to anyone. I knew in my heart that he is the sort of man every woman desires to be with but I kept my reservations because on the contrary, I am obviously not the kind of woman a man would ever dream to cherish. I was then caught in the crossroads of indecision on whether to accept him and take the big risk of being hurt again or stuck to my own sworn words never to love again. Though my family adores him as much as I do, they were uncertain too in accommodating his proposal to let him take good care of us. Except when he began to give my daughter monetary support, all our qualms began to fade away.

‘That overconfident fellow must have been powerfully hit by cupid’s arrow’, I thought while wearing a wide grin in my face. It felt surreal but I started to digest the truthful circumstances instinctively. The love-struck chap is undoubtedly harmless and benevolent so what’s there to wait? I booked an air ticket back to Manila, elated and overwhelmed to finally meet my bizarre second chance. Amazingly, everything just fell into place. I found myself mesmerized by him and felt my heart soar to the skies like never before. I have never met a man quite like my twin soul — and what a quirk of fate has brought us together! I didn’t just grab a ‘big catch’ in my providential hands — I believed God made a mammoth miracle He specially tailored and perfected for a hopeless romantic ME!

 

 

While you are too preoccupied in either savouring the gift of life or dealing with its daily warfare, one fine day you’ll find yourself waking up flabbergasted on how things and people around you have changed tremendously. More often than not, time flies left unnoticed. When I think about it, I still couldn’t reckon the fact that I’m turning thirty years old this year. Looking back on my life’s unimaginable cache of stories, I am probably one of the youngest people on earth to have experienced the most astonishing twists and turns in my barely thirty years of living.

To those who were kept in the dark (unintentionally), I had unplanned pregnancy just a few months after I successfully passed the Dental Board Examination in June 2001. I can still vividly remember how terrified I was to break the news to my family. Of all folks, I am the least expected to commit such disgraceful mistake. It took me some time to ultimately surrender to my fate and gather enough strength to come out in the open. And it turned out to be the most difficult moments of my life. Just envision how infuriated my family were during those times and you’ll know what kind of ordeal I went through. But no matter how exasperated they were out of disappointment, they eventually allowed me to tie the knot with my first forbidden love for the sake of the budding innocent life inside my womb. I felt a twinge of relief after my impromptu wedding but never did I imagine how intricate it was to be entangled with the wrong person. Right then and there, I was left in the lurch without a choice but to face every single day as never-ending struggle.

Scarcely three months after I gave birth to my precious little angel, I decided to seek for a job abroad out of extreme anxiety. Ironically, I found an odd opportunity in Taiwan and I was desperate enough to accept the offer at once. That was one of the most crucial decisions of my life. If I don’t take action hastily, my awful baby and I will have to beg my family to take us back in their loving arms to be able to recuperate from stumbling upon a rough path.

Braving the storms, I took immense accountability for the consequences of the biggest gaffe I have ever done. I did my best to convince myself that life isn’t that bad after all. Being scrutinized, judged, and ridiculed is but just a part of the vindictive society we live in. What matters is I have been blessed with a priceless bundle of joy that instantaneously became the pillar of my strength. With the most wonderful gift of my own flesh and blood and with God’s unconditional love, I was dogged to surmount every stumbling block the world throws me.

During my stay in Taiwan, I endured horrifying adjustment and excruciating pain. I invested so much of my life, my emotions, and my dreams to keep my family intact but to no avail. After some time, I finally woke up from harsh reality in spite of choosing to stay blindly in love for almost a decade. Yes, it took me ages to realize that my estranged husband is a hopeless case but since then, nothing stopped me from restoring my sanity. Subsequent to being fortified with ample time to give it a careful consideration for the sake of my child and the vows I made before God, I determinedly relinquish my ever-turbulent marital relationship for the reason that I find no worth from holding on anymore. There’s simply no turning back and it was one of the most significant verdicts I have ever made in my whole life.

Conclusively, I filed an annulment case in 2006 and I was granted with a favourable judgment early of last year. Going through all the gruelling court appearances, giving testimonies, and losing huge sum of funds are remarkably laudable. I am very fortunate to be given a second chance to find the best partner and live a blissful, well-structured family life I have always dreamed of.