MORALITY AND VALUES: WHEN THEY LEFT YOU...

I'm basically going to talk about how parents taught us when we were kids, reflects the kind of person we are now as adults.

  
I'm no sinner nor saint... I'm just perhaps one of those that despite the bad elements that constantly surround us, I still stick to what I believe is good and is right, in general. At times, I find myself playing a role to people I know... making them realize that I may not be not a great example but a good warning to those on the verge of losing their moralities and values. 

Bad (not totally) versus bad can sometimes help for others to see what's up while maintaining tact and some respect. I hate that role but it seems that it has to be that way sometimes because I felt I owe it to my own parents.

  
Growing up as a kid, my parents instilled in my mind... morals and values that helped me become polite and respectful although there are times, I have to admit, that I lose it sometimes... especially when push comes to shove. However, my parents did let me know that integrity and trust can go a long way when it comes to good character. They modeled the behavior that they want us, their kids in the family to display... holding us accountable for our actions and value honesty and integrity. They instilled morals that I would say, assisted us to become men and women with strong characters.

Our parents taught us some valuable things in life that I won't ever forget and which I will instill in the minds of my own children someday. I'm very lucky to have such good parents and here are some things I've learned:

• That a person whom others trust and who does what he/she says do earn the respect of others by his actions... integrity and trust can really do come a long way.

• That winning isn't everything...  whether we lose or win a game, what matters most is that we understand the value of good sportsmanship.

• That we are accountable for our own actions.... unwise decisions and improper behavior have future consequences.

• That there are some things in life that can be addicting and has the potentials to take over our lives.

• That others take offense in foul languages.

• That money isn't everything that makes the world go round... It is greed and power... power corrupts peace and harmony.

• That there are some things in life that can't be bought and buy you real happiness... that superficial things can go away faster before you even realize it.

• That we should learn to hold dear what's worth it... like true friendships / relationships... know which one is real and which ones are the fair-weather-friends (people who are there when you have money or things that interest them but those who will not be there to pick you up when you fall).

• That either you get to be outsmarted or be the one to walk away from pathetic things or situations that will go nowhere.

• That unproductive people... people who got used in spoon-feeding... people who just wait for money to come easy and not working hard for it are just a waste of time, money and effort.

• That wealth acquired through an insecure lifestyle and that is marred by uncertainty, instability and excessive efforts is no wealth at all. 

• That it is easy to hate and it is difficult to love.... all good things are difficult to achieve and the bad things are easy to get... just as it is hard to let go of good things but easy to let go of the bad things.

• That we should learn to appreciate, be contented and be thankful for what we have... smiling at the little blessings we get each day. 

• That patience is a virtue.

• That the acts of this life will be the destiny of the next.

   
There are so many things that my parents instilled in my mind. Sometimes I break them, sometimes I don't or, I only realize it later on... which is still good than not having to remember them. I've been through a lot in my life but with what my parents taught me, I remain a good person as a whole. 

Today,  I get it really ...looking at other people how they waste their lives, I realized how important it is for parents to take some time to instill morality and values to the young.  

  
To sum this all up, my parents did raise me well. I have cheated on my fears.... I have broken up with my doubts and got engaged to my faith. Now, with my moralities and values intact, I'm going to marry my dreams.

To mommy and daddy.... I love you both and thank you! Thanks also to Cody, Maxine and Felisa for being such great models for this blog... including myself LOL! 

CROSSROADS

There comes a critical point in time where critical choices must be made and that's what I call crossroads.



At some point in our lives, we are all faced with a crossroad of some type or another... The changes in our bodies, the changes in intimate relationships, the terrifying disruptions of our status quo, the daily life-and-death dramas which gives us loss of direction, motivation, enthusiasm and self-esteem. We suddenly have our fears, our griefs, confusions, depressions, and furious rages and suddenly the realization that life is all about the choices we make. We are humans... we make mistakes... we miscalculate.

When we make bad calls, it's not simple and never easy to fix. We get hurt, we bleed, we struggle at every piercing pain and we agonize for such snap judgments made that we knew would haunt us forever. We spend all our lives worrying about future, planning for the future, predicting the future that's always changing despite of it becoming the home of our deepest fears and wildest hopes. No one knows the future and the future is never the way we imagine it to be. In the end, we face crossroads of our lives... finding the will to escape... and escaping from the situation is about making a choice.



I am currently at a crossroad and again, I have to make a critical choice. After all, when the dam bursts, what am I supposed to do? Swim, right?

I'm taking a deep breathe right now like it is my last then I'm heading to tread waters again to stay alive. Some things in life just have to be learned the hard way and evading them is counter-productive and eventually destructive. The only way to get through them is to actually go through them.

Thanks, Vincent for the perfect images for this blog.

SCARS

People have scars. We all have scars... scars in all sorts of unexpected places.



Scars are like secret road maps of our personal pasts and histories. They are the very diagrams of all our old wounds. Although our wounds heal in time, still, they leave nothing behind but a scar. Some wounds don't but with some wounds, we carry them with us everywhere... and although the cut's long gone, the pain still lingers.



What's worse... new wounds which are so horribly painful or old wounds that should have healed years ago but never did?

Maybe our old wounds teach us something. Old wounds remind us where we've been and what we've overcome. They teach us lessons about what to avoid in the future.



There are just some things in life that we just have to learn over and over and over again.



There are some people though, who believes that without history, our lives amount to nothing...that at some point, we all have to choose - do we fall back on what we know or do we step forward to something new? It's really hard not to be haunted by our past... by our scars. History is what shapes us... our history is what shapes us... what guides us. Our history resurfaces time and time again and we are left to no choice but to remember that sometimes, the most important history is the history we’re making today.



Photography by: Jomi Garrucho
Thank you, Jomi for letting me post your collection here. :))

A CHILD'S DREAM ONCE UPON A TIME

Sometimes reality has a way of sneaking up and biting us in the ass. I dreamed of so many good things in life when I was a child... child dreams for the future that are life changing and ones that really make eternal difference.

The childhood friends I've had used to sit and talk about it whenever we lazily relax after a fun play. I dreamed of being a painter and a writer... traveling to Greece and France to write about ancient history, life and things that fascinated me as a child... stuff that I read in books. My best friend Pinky dreamed of an ultimate dream... being a movie star. Jovic dreamed of being a professional athlete. Harry dreamed of being a pilot like his father. Other kids I grew up with dreamed of ultimate dreams but did those dreams make an eternal difference in our lives now?

30 years later as I look at my Facebook account and scouring over the profile pages of my friends, I realized that all our dreams back then never came true. Perhaps, our dreams did change along the way. I'm sure we all didn’t like the changes and for some time, we feared it... but we just couldn't stop it from coming. We either adapt to change or we leave the dream behind.

My epiphany today:
It really does hurt to grow not having dreams met when one takes time to think about it. Anybody who tells us it doesn’t, is lying. Pinky never made it to be a movie star, Jovic left life a decade ago and Harry, i don't know. So what? The truth is that even if our dreams weren't materialized... the more things change, the more they stay the same especially in our hearts. The dream is not over till my life is. The future is never the way we imagined it to be but against all odds, we evolved.



Big thanks to Vincent Garrucho for the photos.