U-turn and Crossroads part 1

I was brought to the crossroads of my life at the beginning of the year and along with them were dreams, visits and challenges...

"When the heart is able to ask itself and weep, then we can understand something." 
~Pope Francis' message, Youth Encounter in UST~


The Year of Conversion


Spring came to my life in 2013 ~ my U-turn to the Lord. 

It was symbolized by the birth of the little sage...

who is now two.



The Year of Love
Out of all the people in the world, he chose me. 
He has a heart like my own. 
Centered in the Lord, two-gether 
apart we promised to live our forever now 
~ 2014 onwards ~ 
by loving and serving the Lord right where we are now.

The Year of Faith
Two breaking news left me at the crossroads this year 2015. 

While friends wrote their lists of resolutions ~ I found myself fully surrendering to the Lord's plans this time. His faithfulness is truly remarkable.

15th of January 2015 ~ our Editorial Board Meeting & Papal Visit 
I always knew that, at one point, we have to turn over the journal where I work. The years flew by quickly and I have to face it now~the end of our five-years commitment. 

While I am very grateful to the people who cradled me after I left the walls, thoughts of uncertainty of the future filled my mind. 

The Pope's visit was a big source of hope and encouragement. All his homilies were striking but it was the Mass in Tacloban and the Youth Encounter in UST that touched my heart deeply.

Love's will was measured when my colleagues and I decided to attend the Pope's last homily in Luneta...


Mom said I was crazy... that was the same thing she said when I left for the convent. It felt like that. As early as 3am, I, together with different groups, braved the road towards Luneta. A large crowd already filled the streets of España. Love does not mind the inconveniences. I thought, I just had to be there with the Pope...and we made it!
Sources:
Pope Francis in the Philippines 15-19 January 2015: Full texts and videos
Encounter with the Youth: 
Testimony of Jun Chara and Glyzelle Palomar
Testimony of Leandro Santos II
Testimony of Rikki Macalor
Papal Visit -Philippines 2015 FB

 January 22-February 10, 2015 Visit from friends

"Five years from now... where do you see yourself?"asked a deacon friend 
in his last visit...
A vision discerned in the light of the Holy Spirit's inspiration is "well-grounded" because it is the Lord Who provides...

I repeated that ... the Lord will provide...

Supplement Readings:
 Every Dry Land by Shannan Martin
Abandonment vs. Hypocrisy by Fr. Jacques Philippe [sent to me by my twin heart~ merci beaucoup+]

Comments

  1. Martha Jane OrlandoFebruary 21, 2015 at 11:11 PM

    Yes, the Lord will provide, dear Melissa. What a blessing it is to read your post today! I think of you so often, and continue to pray for you.
    Love and blessings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa TandocFebruary 27, 2015 at 3:13 PM

      Thank you very much Martha. You have always been a faithful praying partner. I look up to every experience that I and my friends have shared [in times of doubt and trials] and it's a joy to see that the Lord has always provided us without fail.

      What a faithful and amazing God we have+

      Delete
  2. Corinne RodriguesFebruary 22, 2015 at 8:45 PM

    So much of faith and hope in your words, Melissa. He knows the plans He has for you! ♥

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa TandocFebruary 27, 2015 at 3:14 PM

      Thank you so much Corinne ~ what joy to have reconnected with you. Yes, I agree that whatever God has in mind is the best for us even if a lot of times, we seem to see otherwise. I put myself in His care.

      Delete
  3. AnonymousFebruary 22, 2015 at 9:50 PM

    Amen, Melissa. It was only yesterday when my lolo was just telling us again that we can never really plan our lives. Well, of course, we can always make plans and do what we can to fulfill our wishes. But when something is not what God intends for us, He will always find a way to take us where He intends us to be.

    I hope to see you again soon! How I wish, though, that you live close by!

    Take care always, Melissa! God bless! :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Melissa TandocFebruary 27, 2015 at 3:26 PM

      I look forward to every surprise the Lord has for me and for my loved ones. God also knows how to soften our resistance... He truly wants all+

      I still have a portrait of you in the drawing pad where you left it ;) I also hope to see you soon.

      Thank you Irene :)

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Soul Friends

Image
Linking into the 'Blogging and Friends' blog hop at Bongo Is Me and  Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease . I met with some friends this day. We've known each other since we were ten and somehow even though two of them already reside in the US, we've managed to communicate all throughout these years. Our traditional lunch at Abe (from L-R: Hazel, Ella, Me, Hazel's parents) 5 May 2012 Sto. Domingo (5 May 2012) Then I went on a date with my childhood friend. I have not visited Him for a while and I longed to see Him (He was waiting for me ). I came home and spent time with my friends online... It was while reading Bonnie's post that I became reminiscent of how my life started in the blogging world. It was January last year when my ARTner and friend for two years in Tagged asked me if I was interested to publish my ideas. I read Fher's blog but made comments on my online journal for discussion. I was a bit hesi...
Read more

ţlīthā qūm

  ţlīthā qūm Mark 5, 41 NIV I wonder how He said it... Was it similar to a song?... a soft whisper...  la Sua voce serena... tranquilla... 'Nowadays, we couldn't distinguish whether one is angry or affectionate ~ the tone with which we say things are the same...' preached the priest last Sunday. ...He  saw her, he called her forward and said to her,  “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.”  Luke 13, 12 NIV There's something in This man... His look... His gaze... His eyes... mi penetra... nel profondo... fino all'anima mia... "He reached out His hand and touched the man. " Matthew 8, 3 NIV ...gently... senza timore... ------- I remember a story recounted by one Peruvian missionary nurse I worked with in North Africa. She was assigned to prepare a teenager for his first communion. He not only looked younger but he was quite smaller than his age. He was all curled up because of an unknown disease. His whole body...
Read more

Of Cups and Dreams

Image
I scooped up TWO EMPTY CUPS before leaving that Sacred place... and whispered something to two Franciscan priests... I woke up and reached playfully inside my pocket to see if I brought them home with me then I wrote Lisa Marie Farfalla about this dream. Empty...cups... It was the night before the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The next day, Corinne Rodrigues wrote  Half Empty or Half Full?  . On the 21st, Savira Gupta wrote something about emptiness:  "Emptiness or a feeling of void is a phase or a moment of pause. A time to observe, understand and digest what I have experienced. It is when I am nudged into looking or deciphering what is meaningful and what needs to be discarded. A time to ponder or be with myself....No judgments or labeling....  Making space for what is about to come" Yesterday, I came across Andy David 's  This Cup of Mine  . Symbols, colors, numbers, dreams ~ Each of us had CUP in mind...  A CUP ...
Read more