in excess

Euripedes said:

When love is in excess it brings a man no honor nor worthiness.

Medea
431 BC

forever grateful

i'll always be grateful to the thirty-six guys who were with me on the vessel for taking care, in their little, simple ways, of their lone female passenger... i can't say thank you enough and i pray that God would bless them and their family with good health and happiness... i pray that God will keep them safe and strong whenever they are at sea... and the love of their family whom they miss everyday whenever they're away, may they be from the marine or seismic crew.

i've never seen anything from them except care, kindness, understanding and laughter. for that, i'll forever be grateful.

cheers to you, my friends!

how not to get seasick

since my first day here on the boat, i've heard of plenty of ways to overcome seasickness. but until the end, only a very few worked for me. these are what they said:


1. eat plenty so you have something to throw up.

2. drink plenty of water.

3. don't eat fruits, especially orange.

4. breathe some fresh air at either port or starboard side, wherever the wind is.

5. go to the bridge and just look at the horizon.

6. don't look at the waves. look at the horizon.

7. don't drink pills so your body will adjust.

8. go to the back deck and breathe fresh air.

9. do not face that way so you won't rock in a forward-backward motion. left-right motion is better.

10. let the fizz out of the soda and drink it.

11.drink pills after breakfast.

12. don't think about getting seasick.

13. don't think of your boyfriend.

14. go to the medic's room. there's less swaying there.

15. don't think about your fight with your boyfriend.

16. take a shower all the time to keep fresh (no wonder the water pump broke down!).

17. run around the boat to keep your blood pumping.

and plenty more but with the same point.

ten days of misery

ten days of misery is almost over.


"one day more, another day - another destiny"

when it's time for me to come home, i'm not that sick anymore. but i've become dependent on the seasickness pill to keep me going. but i've learned. and that's important. i've made friends (though some of them, i don't want to meet again just to keep my peace).

i know i'll be laughed at at the office for being seasick but hell! it's time to accept that this work is not for me. i've had my experience, and that's enough. sometimes, it's been such a struggle, thinking that i shouldn't have asked for this. before, i was raring to go but now... i just want to go home. but i'll miss ravi, peter, nahud, and even rosman! hahaha

i guess this is one of those times where a saying applies to me: "be careful what you wish for." ;)

but then again, i'm not sure i can even call it misery at all. it is a mind-opening experience despite my seasickness. i've learned how to cope up in a vessel with me as the only female passenger; i've learned that people - whatever their color is - are generally good and willing to teach and extend a hand (you just have start talking to them - in english! ;)); i've learned things for my job and i've seen things i never would have seen if i haven't gone and done this job. i've gained friends that i hope i will see in the future and i'm such grateful for this experience! but i won't miss being sick and throwing up almost everywhere at the boat! :)

first day on the job at sea and ....

i've thrown up in front of people...

my only excuse is that i have not prepared myself for that because i did not expect to feel that way at sea. i've been on little boats but never on anything used by the industry i'm at. in one day, i've been on a pump boat, chase boat, work/rubber boat and finally, the seismic vessel. no wonder it made me dizzy and sick.

An Old Irish Blessing

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

My Bible - Part of a Series

Part of a Series (of how many, I don't know -- I guess it's up to God).

when i was in my sophomore year in the university, i had several subjects in one semester. they carry the bulk of my units, amounting to 5 units per subject -- including the lab and lecture: physics, biology and chemistry; include the math and engineering subject. that was the worst semester i had because during the mid-term, the typhoon came and went, leaving us with exam schedules that will not make you sleep until everything's finished.

to top it all, a certain popular girl in the dormitory approached me to attend prayer meetings. at first, i was really hesitant to join because i was thinking that i do not have the time for it. but because i did not want to offend my friend who "recommended" me and the girl, i said i would attend but cannot promise as much participation as i can. she said that it was alright. i can just be there to pray and if i don't particularly feel like sharing, i won't be forced to. they will pray for me. she just asked that i attend and listen to the word of God and be there for the others who needs to share and people to listen to. and so, i attended. i even gave her leave to wake me up during the day if i don't arrive on time.

anyway, for almost a year, i attended the prayers from time to time. i was even prayed over... until it came to a point that i had to leave because i was not comfortable anymore due to a fellow groupmate that i was not particularly fond of. i explained to my group leader that i like the prayers but i do not feel comfortable anymore - how can i pray when the words that come out of my mind/mouth does not say what's really in my heart? and so i left.

it was only a few months after that i realized that that time with the group, was the closest i had with the Lord. i didn't realize it until a few months later that He was with me: in every exam, in every sleepless nights, in every run through the college halls, in every waking moments. in everything, He was with me. He did not ask for anything, only that I be with Him, too.

but, He had done a lot for me. that time with Him will be the most memorable and i'm not sure if there will ever be anything to compare to it. writing it will not be enough but let this be a testimony to God's greatness!

God be with you, too, in every moment you have with your life.

MY Bible

i've been meaning to write this for a long time now. at one time, i've put this on paper but lost it. now that there is time, i might as well write it. it's now or never!

===========================================

in religion class in high school, our jesuit teacher asked us to write our own bible during the christmas break. being very academic at that point in my life, i took my children's bible, re-read, and summarized it. that was what i submitted. i was hoping that what i did was sufficiently accurate because, as i thought, it was My Bible.

after a few weeks, the teacher talked to us about our assignments but held only one paper. that paper, he said, was the only significant assignment he saw. That was the Real bible he was asking from us. Our own Bible. and he asked that particular classmate to read his own bible in class.

he read it in front of the class but the only thing i remembered was that it was his own experience with God. he told of how he was walking on the road at night and was so scared but with God on his side, walking with him, he was safe. now! that is the real Bible, my teacher said.

for a long time, i have been thinking what my real bible was. my "academic" mind was having a hard time putting words about my own experiences. it made me wonder if i truly have one true experience with God that made me really feel that He was there with me or what. through college, i was wondering about that. but then, at one point in my life, more or less after college, i realized that i had something to write about! it took years but i finally realized what my bible is! for a long time now, God had been with me everywhere, but i didn't truly understand. now, i am ready to write my own bible.

thank you, God, for making me understand. it took years to write it but it was worth the wait.

it's now or never

kung di ako, sino? kung di ngayon, kailan? (if not me, then who? if not now, then when?)

--activists' cry

slave to the internet

friendster, multiply, blogger, and now... facebook! i think i'm overexposing myself! :)

anyhow, i was laughing so hard when i found Shoeshine on Facebook! and he even got more friends than me... hmmm let him be. i won't poke him or give him any ideas that i'm also there. let him find me for once! :p

papers

today, i was given my certificate of completion for a training i had attended last week. the paper it was written on was top grade and it brought back an event that i have not completely forgotten. the memory had shown me a simple, but very telling tale, of unfairness in the world...

when E and i were on our way to london on the train, i noticed a family with two kids. to keep the kids busy, the parents gave them papers and crayons they can play on for that hour trip from cam. the kids were about four-five years old and their works were not masterpieces, i can tell you that!

anyway, what i want to say is that i noticed that they were using top grade paper and that they were just throwing it around. i was hoping that the parents would teach their kids to use the papers wisely. i was remembering the kids back home then, their papers almost as thin as onion skin. when i thought catechism in high school, i remember them writing in as much space as they can on their papers because at that time, that low quality paper costs 3 pcs/PhP1. it frustrated me (even now, it does) that in the real world, equality truly does not exist. how i wished (and wish) that the children of this country will enjoy the same opportunities those children in the west have right now. i wish that they can see that that paper they were using is of lower quality, that there is more than that, and that they could have it as long as they are industrious and there are people to support them....

i hope... and i hope...