How quickly we forget...

     Last night I had a conversation with my best friend. We talked about many of the political issues that are currently taking place in this country. Its often complicated to discuss politics or religion with anyone. Its so easy to think that our opinions are the ones that should stand above all. It takes a lot to see beyond one's point of view and know that its okay to agree to disagree. The conversation was exactly what I felt I needed because lately I've been so consumed by my own personal feelings toward my own personal world. I needed to be taken outside of myself and realize there is so much going on in the world and in the place where we live in. There is so much work to be done out there. There is a force inside of me that has always wanted to serve others. However, how can I serve others without making sure that I am well myself. This was one of the important points my best friend pointed out in our conversation. We do have to make sure that all is well with ourselves and our families first before we try to step outside of ourselves. I do believe that being an example is the first step. In the process of helping ourselves we inspire others to do the same.

     However, when it comes to national politics it can get complicated. There are elections that have to take place and the candidates are not thinking about making changes, their priority is to get elected first.  It takes a really humble person to think about the issues of the world on a deeper level and to want the same for the world that he or she has for himself. When it comes to a president having to make decisions for the country he or she serves, to be humble is a sign of weakness. A lot has rested on the shoulders of our current president but many people forget that. Everyone wants their issues to be on the forefront of everything. However, our current president has been gracefully tackling the most pressing issues that he has had to face. He doesn't think about gaining political status, he thinks about the millions of people that will be affected by the decisions he makes. Its so surreal that many people choose not to support him because he has not placed their agenda as a priority.  He is much too real of a person that has not been tainted by the wraths of money and political power.  Yet he is in an environment where he can be easily consumed by those things.  I admire his ability to be true to himself, his family, and to the country he was chosen to serve.  To me that is a true servant leader and someone I can trust to make decisions not for quick political change, but for long and enduring change.*

    I challenge folks to pray for our current president that he may be blessed with the wisdom and courage to make the decisions that will benefit us all in the long run.  That he can be the voice to the voiceless and that he can focus on the most pressing issues that affect us all even if it may not be what we want him to tackle first. 

*Barack Obama

   

Visit from mom in NYC (day 2)

     It has been really great to have my mom come visit.  Even though its been raining since she arrived, we have been enjoying our time together.  Yesterday it rained heavily so we decided to make it a movie day.  We finally watched the Avengers together..WOW what an awesome movie!  Though we loved all the characters, my mom's favorite was Thor and mine was between the Hulk and Captain America.  I can't wait to watch it again when it comes on DVD.  After the movies, we went home to have dinner together and then went to Junction Blvd to do a little NYC shopping.  Then we went to Target to get some things and headed home.

     This morning we were planning to go out with my aunt but she had to work.  So we decided to visit Brooklyn and were delighted to have my dear friend Hilda join us in exploring the borough.  We went to Knickerbocker Ave. which is a shopping strip in Bushwick, Brooklyn.  I remembered that my soul sister Gigi took me there when I first arrived in NYC where we did a little shopping and I had my first Jamaican Beef Patty at Tony's Pizzeria.  So my mom, Hilda, and I checked out the cool stores, ate some italian ice cream, and they both had their first Jamaican Beef Patty at Tony's.  We had a great time and they loved the patties!  We still had the whole evening ahead of us so we decided to head on to Coney Island.  I was so excited for them to see the beautiful view of the Verrazano Bridge from the Belt Parkway, however it was so foggy all we can see was the very tip of the bridge.  It was pretty spooky to see it but pretty cool.  I wish they could have seen that view on a bright sunny day...its truly captivating!  We finally arrived at Coney Island and enjoyed some of the boardwalk, the flea market, and Luna Park.  Once we worked up an appetite we headed to Nathan's and scarfed down some famous hot dogs with cheesy fries, which is all part of the Coney Island experience.  There are tons of Nathan's Hot Dogs around the city but the one in Coney Island is the original and its been there since 1912.  I am glad I was able to take my mom and that Hilda was able to join us.  We had a great time!  Below are some photos of our adventures in Brooklyn!

At Tony's Pizzeria enjoying Jamaican Beef Patties

At Luna Park, Coney Island Brooklyn

With Hil at Luna Park, Coney Island Brooklyn

So beautiful my mom : )

The real deal..Nathan's Hot Dogs!

Happy Hilda..so pretty!

Hey, how did this get in here?

Heart attack in a box..Cheesy Fries!

The three musketeers enjoying our dinner!

The fog covering the Verrazano-Bridge..spooky!

Visit from mom in NYC (day 1)

     Summer has officially began for me.  Last week Saturday I finished my last paper to close my first year of grad school.  Since then I’ve been unwinding and slowly motivating myself to be normal again and not a mad scientist doing research and writing papers.  In fact, its been a whole week and I am barely writing this because I’ve been taking a break from the computer for a while.  Though I must say I’m still experiencing anxiety about exams and papers when I sleep at night, but hopefully that will go away soon.  One great way to begin my summer of freedom from grad school is with my mom being in town.  She arrived on Tuesday and I am so happy that she is here.  Just having her here makes me feel peace and hope and most of all LOVED.  There is nothing like a mother’s love and I am grateful that I have my mother’s unconditional love that fills me up.  I truly hope that she is enjoying herself and that we are bonding.  Its the first time she comes to visit on her own so we are spending some good quality time together.  

     Yesterday after I got off of work I came home and she had made an AMAZING dinner.  After I ate we headed to walk the Queensborough bridge together.  It was so much fun and good exercise.  We walked all the way to 5th avenue to visit St. Patrick's Cathedral.  Then we went through the Rockefeller Center and headed on to Times Square.  We took tons of photos (some are below).  Then we finally sat down at McDonald's in Times Square to eat hot fudge and strawberry sundaes with large fries...YUM!!! It was truly such a fun and beautiful night.  We were both so very tired when we got home that we fell right asleep! 

On our way to walk the Queensborough Bridge in LIC, Queens
De camino a cruzar el puente de Queensborough en LIC, Queens

Halfway across the bridge!
Llegamos al medio del puente!

At the Rockefeller Center Garden
En el jardin del Rockefeller Center

Two roses in the garden
Dos rosas en el Jardin

Jumbo Coca Cola!
Coca Cola gigante!

Mmm Jumbo Mug of Tea or Hot Chocolate..
Que rico una gigante taza de te o chocolate..

A beautiful night in Times Square
Una noche hermosa en Times Square

Waiting for the Subway
Esperando el tren

   

In a bit of hibernation....

Grad school has been really getting the best of me.  So many assignments to complete and so little time.  There has been so much I've been wanting to share but have not been able to balance it out with schoolwork and other obligations at this time.  Prioritizing continues to be a learning process and although I do attempt to plan my daily activities, sometimes you just have to just go with the flow...

I struggle with the fact that I get inspired the most when I have a lot on my plate.  I wonder if its just the anxiety that builds up to creativity.  When I have all the time in the world to dedicate to creativity, that is when I least feel inspired.  Yet right now, in the midst of final papers and exams, I want to write, draw, paint, and collage.  A few weeks ago I had the strong urge to write a poem in the midst of writing a paper.

I called it a "Psalm of Lament and Hope" and it truly spoke to the way I have been feeling lately.  I share this very personal piece of me hoping it may bring some light to someone who can relate.

Time has been passing

and I have grown increasingly anxious 

with every second that goes by

as I try to cope day by day

I ask myself

will you go or will you stay

I feel an ache in my my soul

as I think of my poor 

broken emotional fragile heart

that does not want to part

from this unfinished canvas we once called love

and even though it was too soon to tell then

taking a step back now to breathe

has left me without oxygen

Will we stand the test of time

will we accept that a series of unfortunate events took place

which caused grief, rejection, and too much to face

which caused anxiety, resentment, and frustration

because no communication was taking place 

As I ask for guidance from up above 

I wonder can it all be mended by forgiveness and unconditional love

that although we have both been broken down to pieces

that we allow God to transform and release us

from our own imperfections and ego behavior

so that we can come together

or maybe we have been deeply scarred 

and have been losing connection 

and can no longer rely on our intentions

I don’t have any answers to these questions

but I know that I want to be the person that God has made me to be

and I want to be with the person that God has placed on earth for me

I hope and pray to God that it will be thee.

It has been a very challenging time for me of which I have been seeking clarity and truth.  In the midst of the struggles, however, I must acknowledge the many blessings along the way.  I see that God is opening doors for me and I pray for courage to enter them in faith.   I do see a ray of hope in the horizon that I could not see before.  I will continue to pray and trust that God will make everything work out for the good.  I will be relieved when this semester is over and I can dedicate more time to self-reflect, share, and get creative.  

An act of kindness...

Yesterday I woke up wanting to stay in bed. It's been a very difficult Lenten journey for me, so difficult that I didn't even make it to church. I have been stressing about everything in my life so much that I just wanted to pull the covers over my head. How many of us have had days like this one?

However, God always finds a way to pull me out of my mess. I received a text message before noon from my dear friend Diana. We had been trying to get together for a while now but things kept coming up. That morning she decided to come visit me and really lifted my spirits. I got out of bed took a shower and before I knew it she was at my door with food, gifts, and her darling dog Lily who brought me joy to see. There is something about dogs and how they make you feel like you were truly missed.

I want to express my sincere gratitude for such an act of kindness from my friend, who may have thought that what she did was nothing but it meant the world to me. Her presence and act of kindness truly lifted me up. God had a plan that morning and He was determined to make it happen. I thank God almighty for such wonderful friends in my life who take time to serve others and to share a special part of themselves with me. I want to say "Gracias amiga" for being open to God's will and for your beautiful act of kindness.

Spiritual Sunday

It has been a challenging couple of weeks, filled with ups and downs. It seems like one minute everything is okay and the next minute things become challenging again. It is easy to think that things will never be the same, or to lose hope, or even to feel that God is not available at the moment things get hard. However, I am grateful that I have not allowed any of those moments of doubt to completely consume me. I continue to pray through it and spend quality time with God and with loved ones to help me through.

Below are a list of photos from the past couple of weeks, they all have meaning in my life and have all to do with my relationship with God and with loved ones. As they say, "A picture is worth a thousand words" and can immediately trigger a memory, these all come from good times.

On my way to class every Tuesday, I stop at Andy's to get my morning tea and I get a short but sweet message attached to my tea bag each time. This message reminded me of the thought I had of spending my summer in Chicago this year (still praying and contemplating on it.)

I took this photo at Sunday Mass this morning. The English readings always have a neat reflection at the beginning. This is a reflection to the Gospel of John 2:13-25 "the Cleansing of the Temple."

This is from my Lenten Reflections booklet I read every morning. Ever since I read this one, I have been truly having several unplanned moments in my life that I can truly see as graced moments. Last Thursday I ended class at noon and usually would come home but stuck around and ended up having a great conversation with friends at school. We even discussed the possibility of starting a social work blog together (praying that we can make it happen). On Friday, my boyfriend (Diego) of almost 3 years and I went for dinner. We had no idea where we were going but ended up having a wonderful Greek dinner and spending some time perusing the shelves at Barnes and Nobles. Those are just two examples of several unplanned moments turned graced moments in my life lately.

I received this beautiful journal from my darling friend Hilda. The funny thing is that she had been telling me about the gift since my actual birthday in February, but was telling me she was not done with it yet. The journal contained some really meaningful treasures that reflect her beautiful and big heart and soul. The real gift for me is just to have her friendship, but she is one of those people who truly invests in her loved ones. I am very lucky and blessed to have her in my life. I will definitely be "keeping track of all the feasts of life during this chapter in my life."

On Friday, at my internship it was one of the counselor's last day of work there. His students were so sad to see him go and he was also very emotional to leave and begin his new journey. One of his students brought his guitar and at the end of the day we were in my office singing the song "the good life" by OneRepublic. This was the message that was written on his guitar and I just had to take a photo of it. To me it truly reflects how much meaning music has during our adolescence.

Just like old times...

Today I had the privilege to reunite with some of my co-workers from my previous job who have become true friends in my life. I've been so caught up in my graduate studies and just balancing everything else in my life that I hadn't taken the time to reunite with them just like old times. Honestly, my friend Christine reached out to me and reminded me of how important our lunch dates were and how important they continue to be. We have had some of the most deepest inspirational conversations with each other in just that short break we would take at work. I honestly feel that some of those conversations empowered me to follow my dream of continuing my education. So here we sat once again, coming together to share a delightful meal and some deep conversation about where we are in our lives and where we are going. I am truly grateful that we were able to come together at such short notice for some much needed fellowship.

I can't express how important friendship has been in my life. During good times and bad, it is my friends who have given me the strength and courage to take leaps of faith and when it felt like I had lost my way it is they who have reminded me of who I am and what is important to me.

Some quotes on friendship dear to my heart:

"No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends."

John 15:13

"A friend is a gift you give yourself."

Robert Louis Stevenson

"A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words"

author unknown

"The road to a friend's house is never long."

Danish Proverb

"Don't walk behind me, I may not lead; Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend."

Albert Camus