Everyone can be creative so says the author, Merlee Cruz-Jayme, of the same title of the book. I had this narrowed understanding of creativity in the field of fine arts. I thought being creative is just for people who have talent in drawing and putting color on the blank canvas, that one should produce a painting to be called creative. Thankfully, my limited understanding of creativity came to an end when I was catapulted to the grown-ups world. As an adult, I discovered that being creative could not be boxed within the corners of a frame of the world's most famous painting.
The author, Merlee Cruz-Jayme, put it simply that everyone can be creative in their very own way. Life has offered everything to us to think outside the box, or even inside the box to find the talent of creativity within us. For sure, it will not be an easy journey finding your own creativity, but life has its ways to always take you back and keep you on track. The simplest thing within our reach can be a catalyst of creativity. Jayme's experience as an ex-nun definitely helped her in fortifying her creativity and it served her well in choosing a career in the field of advertisement. But we do not have to enter a convent and be an ex-nun, so we can find our creativity and a career. We have our own moments of realization and sometimes it takes patience, discipline, and fervent prayer to find what we are looking for.
The book, Everyone Can Be Creative, is a good companion in discovering and rediscovering the creativity within you that may be hidden or just stuck in the corner covered with dust. This book will definitely take you on a step by step journey in claiming back the passion of creativity you may have lost in the process of organizing and fixing your life. It is never too late to get back on track to living a creative life. Be bold and be you.
But first, do not forget to pray and ask for guidance in the new chapter of your life in finding and honing the gift of creativity from above, from the One who makes everything possible, from the source of creativity, the Creator of all things in heavens and in the earth. Get ready and fight a good fight and let your creativity shine like it has never before.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt asked the lady cashier if F. Sionil Jose's books were all on sale. Her fascination with Jose's book urged her to buy his other works to complete The Rosales Saga novel series where The Pretenders belong to. So she went back to the bookshelf in one of the parallel bookshelves. As she returned to the counter to check the discounted price of F. Sionil Jose's book, she decided to double-check the official receipt from the lady cashier, and upon careful scrutiny, she noticed that one of the books she already paid for was scanned at its regular price of 475 pesos, that got the shock out of her. She thought she had the advantage, but it turned out that she was at the disadvantage.
She was cool about the mistake and thought that she still had a change. The lady cashier was a little panicky and apologetic as she tried to come with a solution for overcharging her customer. The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt was looking forward to the change, but it turned out that payment through debit or credit card was difficult to retrieve for some accounting reason, the accountant would be able to explain. Surprisingly, she was still calmed about the predicament of not getting back her excess payment.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt waited for some moments for her concern to be resolved. She observed patiently as the lady cashier called for a back-up. Help came from another lady who appeared to be a store manager. She suggested that additional purchase could fix the problem, that the lady in a pink t-shirt would have to add books or other items from the book store to compensate her excess payment, and supposedly her change to be.
She did not want to cause trouble or inconvenience on the part of the lady cashier and store manager. Willingly, she accepted the suggested solution. She went back and forth from the counter to the shelves and vice versa in search of a book or books that would be equal to the change she was supposed to get. In finality, she went for 2 books from F. Sionil Jose and 2 refills of Dong-A color green sign pen for NBS to compensate for her unreturnable excess payment.
It was not a pleasant experience, more so the lady in a pink t-shirt and a knee-length maong skirt was surprised at herself for not losing her temper even though it took her long and 4 trips of back and forth from counter to bookshelves and bookshelves to counter just to find the right items to remunerate her overcharge payment. It was also getting late and she badly wanted to go home, but she was not overcome by annoyance or impatience toward the cashier or the situation and circumstance she was under.
When she was asked to fill out a small paper survey form, she gladly answered the needed information. It was a return and exchange survey form, she was not sure of some of the details needed in the form and for the assistance of the lady cashier. She got a response from the staff that they would be the ones to take care of it and submitted the form right away.
Everything did not go smoothly at NBS, yet she was satisfied with how the inconvenience turned into satisfaction. All by God's grace. The lesson learned is always to double-check your receipt before leaving the store, ask the cashier if the books you want to buy for so long are on sale because sometimes they miss putting a new price or sale tag, if possible be patient with everyone, and lastly, always be ready for the surprises in your life.
She was cool about the mistake and thought that she still had a change. The lady cashier was a little panicky and apologetic as she tried to come with a solution for overcharging her customer. The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt was looking forward to the change, but it turned out that payment through debit or credit card was difficult to retrieve for some accounting reason, the accountant would be able to explain. Surprisingly, she was still calmed about the predicament of not getting back her excess payment.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt waited for some moments for her concern to be resolved. She observed patiently as the lady cashier called for a back-up. Help came from another lady who appeared to be a store manager. She suggested that additional purchase could fix the problem, that the lady in a pink t-shirt would have to add books or other items from the book store to compensate her excess payment, and supposedly her change to be.
She did not want to cause trouble or inconvenience on the part of the lady cashier and store manager. Willingly, she accepted the suggested solution. She went back and forth from the counter to the shelves and vice versa in search of a book or books that would be equal to the change she was supposed to get. In finality, she went for 2 books from F. Sionil Jose and 2 refills of Dong-A color green sign pen for NBS to compensate for her unreturnable excess payment.
It was not a pleasant experience, more so the lady in a pink t-shirt and a knee-length maong skirt was surprised at herself for not losing her temper even though it took her long and 4 trips of back and forth from counter to bookshelves and bookshelves to counter just to find the right items to remunerate her overcharge payment. It was also getting late and she badly wanted to go home, but she was not overcome by annoyance or impatience toward the cashier or the situation and circumstance she was under.
When she was asked to fill out a small paper survey form, she gladly answered the needed information. It was a return and exchange survey form, she was not sure of some of the details needed in the form and for the assistance of the lady cashier. She got a response from the staff that they would be the ones to take care of it and submitted the form right away.
Everything did not go smoothly at NBS, yet she was satisfied with how the inconvenience turned into satisfaction. All by God's grace. The lesson learned is always to double-check your receipt before leaving the store, ask the cashier if the books you want to buy for so long are on sale because sometimes they miss putting a new price or sale tag, if possible be patient with everyone, and lastly, always be ready for the surprises in your life.
In this time of the pandemic, have you ever wonder what God has been up to? Where is He in this uncertainty that we are all facing now? What is He doing when people are dying due to CoViD-19? Is there hope from all of these? Will there be a better tomorrow for all of us? These are only a few of the questions, we may be wondering and pondering since this pandemic took off and blatantly destroyed all our planned trips, promotions, career move, business endeavor not only in the year 2020, but as well as the years to come. Maybe, this pandemic changed our priorities and plans and turned our lives upside down.
There is no telling when this effect of the pandemic will end, some say it may take about two to three years for us to return to normal or get used to the 'new normal'. Some are skeptics if we can ever return to the normal set up we are so used to. And again, you can't help but wonder where is God behind all these uncertainties? No one knows, no one is certain, but one thing is for sure God is at work, that despite this global pandemic, He is still in control. He is the Sovereign God.
In David Allan Hubbard's book, What's God been doing all this time?, he ran us through God's business and that is His divine plan of saving humanity from all our iniquities. He is in the business of saving us from our enslavement to sin. He devised a plan, a perfect plan, just to save us from our very own destruction without compromising His disgust to sin. He knows that sin is not good for us and of how sin can harm and pull us farther away from Him. We are created in His image, thus we are required to be holy in His sight and presence, but because of the mortal sin committed by our ancestors Adam and Eve, their disobedience to God and distrust of His love for humanity led us to our death and separation from our Creator.
It was a tragic episode in human history, but God had a plan and would not let us rot in our own demise. He intervened and made salvation available through His only Son, Jesus Christ, for those who believe in him. It is The Great Rescue and His mission is to redeem humanity.
Hubbard's book will help you get a picture and perspective of what the Bible is all about from the beginning to end. It may give some answers to your questions about salvation and the redemptive power in Jesus, and we can rest assured that God is at work of saving people spiritually, physically, and emotionally in this time of the pandemic. May we always experience the true peace that can only be found through Jesus, our solid rock.
This past week I participated in a week-long prayer and fasting. It is the third time I joined this prayer and fasting in the church I am attending since November 2019. This week-long event is held twice a year among the church members. For the first two times I participated in prayer and fasting with the church, I fasted with my social media and online browsing, but this time I chose partial fasting where I fasted one meal, originally I intended to two meals and I was successful on the first day, but for the days that allowed I decided to have it as one meal since work and other activities demanded that I ate at least two meals a day. I felt like a failure, so I prayed to God for forgiveness and understanding of my iniquities.
When I was young the only knowledge I had about fasting was people do this during Holy Week. In my young and ignorant mind, I tried to participate with the intention of pleasing God in my own little ways. I remembered that I even tried not to eat meat or any food that has meat during those days even though it was the only viand I would like to eat with rice back then, I did not want to eat fish and vegetables. I guess you could that I always failed. There was an idea implanted in me that meat is dirty and it pollutes and corrupts our body if eaten during Holy Week. I was young and with limited and confusing knowledge about faith and God. And It thought prayer was just a one-way communication with God, so I could tell Him my wants and needs.
Prayer and Fasting are spiritual disciplines we need and must practice in developing a personal and intimate relationship with God. That's how I see them.
Prayer has been my constant means of talking to God since I have come to know and experience Him on a personal level. There are moments that I cry while remembering His mercy and grace in my life, how His redemptive power gives hope and joy in my once bitter and angry life. God also answers in our prayer, though they are not verbal and some are not given right away, still, there is something miraculous in the way God responds in our prayer and sometimes it is really hard to explain, that it seems like it is beyond human comprehension. Christians coined it as Spirit-filled prayer for us to live a Spirit-filled life.
Here are definite answers I got from the booklet provided by the church about prayer and fasting:
This is the suggested pattern of prayer found in the booklet:
Every day there is an assigned Scripture for what we prayed for and I got to journal my thoughts on the soft copy of the booklet through the Write on PDF app on my android phone.
All by God's grace, I was able to attend and participate in the Prayer and Fasting week. We were reminded that prayer and fasting as a church or as an individual were not just one or two times event in a year, it could be a once-in-a-week routine, depending on your chosen day, and it was also suggested that it could be on Friday. I still have a long way to go and a lot to improve in the areas of spiritual disciplines of prayer and fasting, and I praise God for guiding me and providing opportunities to be closer to Him, and as He always does, staying close to me. By His grace, may we always turn to Him in prayer, whether in joy or in pain. God bless our brave hearts!
Arlene Reacts: The Lion King 2019, Hakuna Matata means No Worries Pero 'Sana All'
Sunday, January 17, 2021
It means no worries, philosophy, Hakuna Matata. It means no worries for the rest of your day, Hakuna Matata.
The Lion King is one of my favorite animated films from Disney, though I was not as excited when a remake was announced. I could not picture out how a live-action The Lion King would turn out, and I did not want to risk an episode of disappointment. I did not show or express interest in the news, but I did wonder what would be the end product of their attempt. I even thought that Simba and the rest of the characters would take the form of humans or they would have counterpart human characters in the live-action movie. Silly me! But it turned they were still animals, and that was for the better.
It was the year 2019 when the remake was shown in cinemas worldwide, and as I mentioned I was not interested so I did not bother to know when exactly was the dates of showing here in our country. A year had passed, 2021 arrived, and candidly I had the urge to binge-watch my all-time favorite Disney movies, those that had remake from recent years. The Lion King was my fourth movie in the year 2021 and my third from Disney.
Aside from the plot and moral of the story, another thing that I really loved about the movie was its musical aspect. The songs sang in the film were filled with meaning and inspiration, and definitely, anyone would sing along to the songs once they heard them. While watching the remake, I could not help but sing with Simba, Pumba, and Timon during their Hakuna Matata musical production, I was not even sure if I typed the correct lyrics at the beginning of this blog post, but anyway I just loved the song that it even became a theme song of my life during my teenage years, when I was so fearful of what others might think about me. And of course, let us not forget, the duet between Simba and Nala, again, I could not help but fell in love with them. The song Can You Feel the Love Tonight? was such a heartfelt song that despite the fact that animals sang it, no one would be able to resist the message of the song. It would make you sigh and say 'sana all'.
'Sana all', but Hakuna Matata!
After pondering for quite some time which book to get, she finally picked two hard bounds and one soft bound of contemporary fiction and hid them at the bottom shelf. She noted to buy them if her budget would permit them to be bought.
Only a few steps from that unpopulated corner, she made her way to the more exposed bookshelves which held more of the popular book category. It catered a bit more pricey books compared to what could be found in the corner where she just left off. There were paralleled shelves with a little space in between enough for just one person. Regardless of the book price in that area, she browsed with expectancy hoping to find books with sufficient discounts that would allow her to buy the books. A book by F. Sionil Jose always got her attention whenever she went to that area of the book store. She had an unusual fascination with classic Filipino authors ever since she came to realize that reading Filipino books was not a bad choice for her next reading escapade. That books written by classic Filipino authors were worth reading for.
She chose The Pretenders by F. Sionil Jose as her first book from his works. The title intrigued her and she wanted to know the pretenders in the story. But, that would take some time for her to discover the answers to her curiosity, and not too soon. She still had others waiting to be read on her bookshelves at home, and the first come first read policy was strictly implemented.
Upon entering the book store, there were tables with books on them in the middle aisle straight from the entrance, some with big discounts. They were huge discounts like from 365 pesos price of the book down to 25 pesos, and that was like 93% off. Wasn't that amazing for a thrift reader like her? She got two books about the healing powers of honey and vinegar, which were more on the category of an organic and healthy lifestyle.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt made a mental note that she had enough. She reached the limit of her budget for book buying. She returned to the unpopulated corner and brought out the three books she hid at the bottom shelf. In total, she had six books, two hard bounds, and four soft bounds.
Her cash was not sufficient for the total amount of the books, but it was a relief that the lady cashier accepted the debit card mode of payment. As she waited for the cue, she had doubts and uncertainties if it was wise and practical to spend money on those 6 books. She stood there in the line feeling conflicted. She was next in line before a couple who bought a lot of office supplies with lots of long bond paper. The agony was taking a toll on her and she just needed a step to get away from the line and return the books on their respective shelves or stay on the line and let the cashier punch her purchase.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt finally had her moment with the cashier. Carefully, she placed all her skeptically chosen six books on the counter. The lady cashier was nice as she joyfully scanned the books and announced to her that there were more discounts than she expected like those two books with a price tag of 50 pesos were actually 25 pesos from 365 pesos or 195 pesos was actually 156 pesos from 475 pesos. She thought the prices were already the final discounted price, but there was more. She felt giddy every time the lady cashier made an announcement of bigger discounts she could get. That genuine smile would never leave her face as she heard the good news.
to be continued...
At first, I could not relate to what I was reading, I almost put down the book and proceeded to the next one. I thought this book was just about a boy-girl romantic relationship and I was getting sick of that topic. But it would be a waste if I let this book pass, so I decided to give it a second chance. I stopped reading this book and let some times passed by. Giving it the rest both of us needed.
Love and Light by Zara Louise is a book full of hope, forgiveness, and of course love and light. Every page took me back to the time I was nothing when I thought I was so full of something, where in fact I was just a fool pretending I got it all together, but deep inside I was broken. I was glad I gave the book a second chance and a time to redeem itself to me.
This book also reminds me that everyone still has a chance in life, that it is never too late to start over again, especially if it is with God this time around. Nothing is more wonderful than living a life surrendered to God, to Your Creator, the Designer of this vast universe. It is not easy to surrender, the process is hard and difficult, but you and I are never alone in that journey. He is with you every step of the way to thrive in life with courage knowing that you are good enough. That you don't have to please people or meet their expectations so you can feel and find happiness or satisfaction in doing so. And that life is not all about people pleasing and giving away your own happiness while others take advantage of you. You can serve others and be kind to yourself all at the same time. Don't beat yourself up just to do the hustle-bustle in this busy world of temporal things. Be brave and take courage in God's love, kindness, and provisions for you. You are well equipped of the blessings, gifts, and grace God has bestowed upon you to live a life of purpose, meaning, and happiness. You are not lacking in any way. He created you just for the right purpose. So continue to thrive and grow where you are planted and let the only true light shine upon you.
I am Hua Mulan.
Sort of I was her, I thought I could identify myself with her during those times I was having an identity crisis. I would love to sing the theme song Reflection, though I was completely aware I was out of tune and I did not care. I just wanted to pour my heart out while singing the song within the comforts of our house.
I grew up looking and admiring Mulan's character. She is loyal, brave, and true, such noble values that are definitely hard to live by.
The announcement of a live-action film of Mulan had me grinning from ear to ear. I was expectant since they confirmed the actor to play the title role, and it was none other than Liu Yifei. I thought she looked familiar and I was not wrong I saw her somewhere. The Return of the Condor Heroes, that was where I saw Yifei. I did not like her before since I first saw the animation version of The Return of the Condor Heroes and I detested her acting for the role and for even trying to copy an anime character. And that was me a long time ago, petty and so determined to protect the purity of my beloved anime heroes.
Liu Yifei is an American Chinese actor who played the part of Mulan in the live-action film by Disney. I liked how she portrayed the character of Mulan and thought she was the perfect actor for the role. She emanated the humanity of Mulan in the animated version and stuck with it like she came out from Mulan 1998. I was glad the production team did not force the singing and theatrical effect in the movie. The live-action film stood by for its own originality that it would never leave a bitter taste after watching the movie. Some would say that it was not faithful to the storyline and some of the characters of the animated version, but the changes were delivered with much gusto and careful consideration of the story's cultural background.
It was unfortunate that Mulan live-action film 2020 did not stream in major cinemas all over the world due to the CoViD-19 pandemic and a lot of other issues. Instead, the movie for the most part only streamed online. There were some who were greatly disappointed and on my part, I was not much awaited since I was not fond of going to cinemas. I just thought that maybe they were disappointed because the film did not receive the attention and clamor it deserved.
In conclusion, I was happy with what the movie offered to me. So, you should try seeing the movie too.
I am Manocot, Arlene Cahanap, signing off for now... good night.
///.
The lady in a pink t-shirt partnered with her knee-length maong skirt strut her way as she walked across the paralleled department in one of the biggest malls in their town. She cat-walked as if no one was around her in that public place that was always populated with different people on any given day.
While carrying a paper bag full of wooden key chains she bought from a Christian book store, her next stop was the most reputable bookstore chain in the Philippines. She glanced at the sale signboard as she slowly passed by the floor to ceiling window panels. Salivating over those discount sales was an overstatement, but nevertheless, it was a sight to see a bookstore with 50% off signs.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt was feeling giddy as she browsed a few selections of books on sale. Hardbound and softbound. Fiction and non-fiction. Local and international authors and publishers. There were a quite few selections of printed books in an industry that was dying little by little due to the emergence of the digital age in the publishing world.
Spectators said that e-book or electronic books would soon replace the existence of the printed books and people would no longer want and need to buy printed books in a physical book store. But the lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt begged to disagree.
Dropping by to an NBS branch was a routine for her whenever she went to a department store and always looked forward to discounted or bargained books. That day at NBS was like any ordinary day for her, except for health protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After filling out the contact tracing form, she swiftly entered the haven of any book lover. She browsed books like she normally would, reading the title and the author of the book, turning the book and glancing the price at the back, and pondering whether the book worth the price or wishing when it would go on sale. After some time of wishful thinking, she would return the to its original place, properly.
At one corner of the book store where no one seemed to notice that place, the lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt took an interest in surveying the corner. It had books she wanted to buy not so long ago.
to be continued...
I felt nostalgic as I watched the live-action film Aladdin by Disney. I was excited and felt like there was a bubbly feeling inside me. I was giddy and anticipation overwhelmed me. I was a sucker for Disney movies when I was a kid, who wouldn't. And I have this feeling that the kid who fans over Disney movies is still there somewhere inside me. Though as an adult I read articles and watched YouTube videos that criticized Disney's approach in handling the story where they change something to make it acceptable and appropriate to their young audience. The intention is good, they want to sell a feel-good movie inspired by existing stories that have a different representation. One can never go wrong in choosing a family-oriented and heartwarming movie from my Disney favorite films, and one of them is Aladdin.
I could just scream inwardly when I heard that there would be a remake of Aladdin. I was excited, yet I never intended to watch it in cinemas, how ironic, and I was just waiting for it to stream online. I wondered how the whole team of filmmakers could pull off such a grand production presented in its animated counterpart. I was having my doubts about the ability and capability of Disney to realize such an ambitious project, and also if they would find the right actors to give life to such wonderful characters.
In the first few days of the year 2021, my doubts about the movie were proven completely false. The live-action Aladdin by Disney was gorgeous. They had the right actors for Aladdin, Jasmine, and Genie. They pulled it off. I loved the song and dance routine like it was a musical theater production in the form of a film. It had also expressed firmly the struggle of Princess Jasmine in becoming the next Sultan of their kingdom. I didn't expect that one. I thought it was all just a romantic fling between a thief and a princess and how they could defeat the villain of the story, but it was more than that.
I think we can all identify ourselves with all the characters from Aladdin, Jasmine, Genie, Sultan, Jafar, Hakim, Dalia... at some point in our lives. They are us one way or another. I believe that just like Jasmine, we should not stay silent and go speechless when we are required not to be.
Nevertheless, this is a fun and good-feel movie for the rest of the family. You must watch it!
Through this blog, it is my first time reacting to a movie I watched. I thought I should just go for books, but I guessed we could also go get inspiration in movies just like I thought so.
The first film is Weathering With You. I saw posts about this movie for quite some time on one of my social media accounts. I was interested since I heard that the main characters of the animated movie Your Name made a cameo, but my curiosity was not enough to make me want to watch it during those times.
Ever since I was a child I have been fascinated with animated movies and the likes so it is only natural for me to watch this kind of film whenever I find the time to browse the internet and find an interesting film to get myself busy in times of idleness or if I want to have a break from reading books.
Weathering with You or Tenki no Ko is a kind of movie genre that I will definitely get myself into. It is heartwarming, full of drama, and has a sprinkle of romance. I got teary-eyed as I watched an animated film like this. I didn't expect that it was flavored with fantasy I thought it was more like the word 'weather' in the title was something like the struggles that the main characters experienced in their lives as teenagers. In literal meaning, it seems like I was wrong in my assumptions with the title, but in figurative aspects, I guess my assumptions make sense. It's like weathering with you means going through with you or with someone in facing struggles and challenges in life particularly in our society.
I admire how the characters defy the odds in realizing what their hearts desire the most. I had this thought of how I wished I could be brave like them, young as they were, they already determined what they want and what to do. Yet the plot of the story clearly showed the limitations of their desire at its resolution part, and as what the society expects them to behave. They are young and have to answer to the authority which presents the realistic part of the story. There are consequences they have to accept after pursuing their desire while neglecting their safety and without the approval of the people who are in charge of them.
This film burns with passion and warmth despite its rainy and watery season setting almost throughout the movie. Let's keep weathering!
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