sighs of an itinerant soul

...like a stone skipping upon the pond of time.

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Lord and Father, bless our school and fill its halls with Your Spirit. We know that all our efforts to bring Your Gospel to young men's hearts can only bear fruit with Your grace. As Your Holy Church begins the journey of another year, may You renew all the souls You have entrusted to our care so that the seeds of faith that You have sown may take root in hope that never fades and blossom in ardent love for You and all creation. With confidence in the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mother, Our Lady of Lourdes, we ask all this in the name of Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit as One God forever and ever. Amen. #LSManda (at Lourdes School of Mandaluyong)

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World, meet my grandfather.

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Maybe I should name this cat, always my constant companion during my me-time walks in the school... Any suggeations?

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The air rests from the frenzy of voices and careless steps. There is a fragile stillness of a breath held in suspense until released in a sigh. Only seconds walk these halls dragging itself as it goes; rushed while also hesitant, excited, also afraid. === A Moment's Eternity 11/31/2017 (at Lourdes School of Mandaluyong)

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Un reunion delos gran frailes Capuchinos Españoles desde nuestra madre querida dela Provincia de Navarra. We owe so much to these mighty Capuchins who brought the Order to these islands and built up a fraternity that now ministers to many parts of the world. Indeed, the mustard seed that was sown has now grown into a tree where birds could nest; all is the work of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. (at St. Francis of Assisi Church, Mandaluyong City)

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Ang naghihintay maka-move-on. Umaasang sana di pa naiwan ng byahe, na makakauwi pa sa piling ng itinadhana. === <<Kelan kaya/ mahahalata/ ang pighati sa ilalim ng/ 'yong mga tawa?>> (c)Munimuni

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Palawan Hugot === Sabi ni Ate Tour Guide, ang Palawan daw ay napapalibutan ng natural barriers and protections against inclement weather conditions. Aniya, "Sa Palawan, wala po kayong mararanasang seryosong isyu sa panahon." ...Bes, tara dito. Mukhang santuaryo ang Palawan para sa mga taong gustong makapahinga sa mga pinagdadaanan.

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They say fastfood kills.

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This year's haul from the Claretian Summer Booksale. Fifteen books that fell well within my annual indulgence budget for books. I'm most excited to read "The Privilege of Love" which is a sourcebook of essays on Camaldolese Benedictine spirituality. Early Capuchin Franciscans were influenced by their Camaldolese contemporaries which somehow affected the early development of the friars' contemplative, eremitical spirituality in the context of fraternity. It is a joy to discover this book there, and perfectly in time for the upcoming Albacina-Camerino Postnovitiate Experience. Blessed be God!

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What are you looking for?

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There are memories one welcomes like an old friend. And then there are those that haunts one like a ghost.

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Palm Sunday does not merely reenact for the faithful the short-lived Hosannas of the people of Jerusalem over 2000 years ago. Instead, if one pays attention to the priestly prayer at the beginning of the day's liturgy, it points out to the faithful their expectant waiting for the return of Our Lord and the celebratory welcome they must accord Him as He leads all the saved into the Eternal City in heaven. Although the faithful may, in their earthly pilgrim journey, be like those who before had been quick to deny Christ in the face of daily pains and struggles, Palm Sunday invites all the elect to renew their faith in Jesus and walk in His steps with bravery, steadfastness, resoluteness, and heroism.

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There is silence when you break a smile, A silence that lights up all manner of sounds And makes all hues and colors sing sweetly. There is silence in the shade of your shadow, One that cools the sunshine that makes it And warms to the moonbeams that hide it. There is silence to the touch of your skin, To your soft gait, to your gentle breathing, To your timid eyes that speak with every blink. I have only a memory of that, your silence. It is a deafening memory when it visits. And i can never, will never, get used to the noise.

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I didn't think I still had it in me, after over a decade of not reading any fiction. Then again, it seems I still do: I just finished this 593-page page-turner in just under twelve hours. I wish I had the same tenacity for the required readings we were given for theology, hahaha! FrMooren,OFMCap left this for me before he left for Germany, promising me that it was good. By golly, was that one understatement! Now I can't wait to move on and begin the next thick tome he gave me. :)

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Salamat sa maniningning na alaala at sa pagbibigay ng sigla at lakas bilang kapatid kay Kristo at kahati ng aking puso. :) Sa pagtatapos ng kabanata nating ito, nawa'y maging simula naman ito ng bagong salaysay na magkabaka pa rin nating babalangkasin bilang mga sundalo ng Panginoon at magkabisig sa paglilingkod. Saludos, hermanos. Mi corazon y oraciones siempre estaran con ustedes.

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Session 9 concluded. Embracing the personal invitation of the Lord to sanctity and mission according to the pattern of discipleship that He had inaugurated in StFrancis entails a commitment to an ongoing journey of conversion that clarifies, purifies, and intensifies the seeds that God has planted in our personal history within a particular and concrete historical context. It is a continuing evaluation of where our "center of gravity" lay, a continuing donation of our natural and God-given talents and skills for the mission of witnessing to the Gospel, and a continuing renewal of our commitment to place ourselves at the disposal of Divine will. The freely accepted definitive incorporation to the Seraphic Order is not primarily a commitment to structure nor is it loyalty to institution; rather, it is a donation of self with the pledge of embarking on a journey that sanctifies and vivifies both the Order and the cosmos. Imperfect and frail as we are, and imperfect and frail as the Order is, each friar by his profession commits to strive to incarnate the best, the most perfect, and the holiest that the friar and the Order is meant to be. It is a journey that is marked by the fullness of faith and hope for each friar that takes such a path commits to remain undefeated by his personal inadequacies and commits to a "stubborn" openness the grace of God at work in him: thus, although the indispensable motive is perfection, the actual, necessary, and immediate goal for a Franciscan friar is to possess and nurture a humble, poor, and contrite heart.

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Thursday, 3rd Week of Lent === Let us consecrate ourselves to God everyday, from the very first moment we open our eyes. Let us pray, "Lord God, I love you and I need you. Come into my heart. Bless my friends and family, my work, my daily cares and struggles. These I ask in Jesus' name. Amen." Having thus offered ourselves to God, we deny the devil any place in our lives throughout the day. And at its end, before sleep overtakes us, we again pray, "Lord, thank you." When we do this daily, in faith, we deny the devil any true or lasting power over us--even in our most ordinary moments. === It is supremely exhilarating to begin the day with a carefully and devoutly celebrated Liturgy and a clear, sincere encounter with the Word, thanks to frEgay,OFMCap.