A Beautiful Season

But Mary treasured up all these things

and pondered them in her heart.

- Luke 2:19

A Complete Family Once Again
Only Daughter Obedient One returned to Manila yesterday. She was here for a total of 25 full days.

I've visited her often, so it is not like I don't have time with her. But this is the first time since she moved to Manila nine years ago that she has been able to come back home for an extended stay.

Last year, I spent my Christmas with my sister's family in the US, and only daughter was with friends in Manila. This year, with the family complete once again, we had a lot of bonding and family togetherness.

First Grandson Forerunner and Second Grandson Full of Hope are growing fast, and have begun to grasp the essence of family. Third Grandson Joyful One is being lovingly nurtured and looked after.

Daughters in love God given and Chosen One have already blended well into our family. They know that they're well-appreciated, and deeply loved.

And my three children First Born Son, Worshiper, and Obedient One, brought up in an environment of acceptance and trust, are now secure and confident as young adults.

I love all of them, and they all love me back. We all have a special place in each others' hearts.

A Beautiful Season
I went to Manila on the last week of November for Obedient's birthday, planning to stay only for two weeks, but my return flight had to be rebooked because of an unexpected storm that hit our islands.

Obedient One's birthday

Thus, when Obedient One arrived here on December 16, I had only been back home three days. I wasn't able to do much preparation for the season's festivities, as I had hoped.

Nevertheless, everything still turned out to be beautiful.

On the day Only Daughter arrived we celebrated the first night of Hannukah with my friends Lyndon, Ann, and Pat. For the next seven nights, every evening at sundown, she and I lit the Hannukah candles in a quiet ceremony, followed by a simple meal.

Obedient, Pat, Ann, Lyndon, me

A few days before Christmas, we were finally able to put up the tree, with the help of my two grandsons, Forerunner and Full of Hope.

Christmas Eve was spent with Ernie's sister Sue and her family, a special time for all of us.

Obedient, grandniece Hannah, niece Tisha, grandnephew Justin

front: SIL Sue, me, DIL God-given, grandson Forerunner, 

back: second born Worshiper

BIL/SIL Vito and Sue, me

My Family

front row: Forerunner, Full of Hope, Joyful One

second row: God-given, me, Chosen One

back row: Obedient One, second born son Worshiper, First Born Son

On Christmas Day, we had lunch at home, after which we opened our gifts...

Family, with my 13 year old furry daughter, Sammy

Second born son Worshiper and his wife Chosen One celebrated their 5th wedding anniversary on the 28th: a delicious lunch at their home, then coffee and cake at a nearby pastry shop.

second born son Worshiper, his wife Chosen One, and their second born Joyful One

An Unexpected Sickness
On the last day of the year, December 31st, I woke up feeling sick, something totally unplanned.

The last day of the year is when I would take time to look back over the year, reflecting on the significant events of the past months, and choosing a name as my theme for the month and the year that is ending.

It is also a day when I prepare the New Year table with my touches of simple elegance, my special way of saying good-bye and thank you to the old, and welcoming the new.

With me feeling sick, all I could do was choose the one word that best described the month and the year. I held on to the word Provision, but had no inclination to reflect about it, much less to sit down and journal my thoughts.

I slept for the most part of the day.

All I managed to cook for that evening's dinner was the soup.

I also prepared some chocolate sauce for the fondue that ended up being too watery.

As for the table setting, I had to be content with the bare essentials.

Well, everything still turned out to be beautiful.

Worshiper and his family arrived early in the evening, loaded with a lot of food. Within minutes, my son had taken over my kitchen.

Meanwhile, God-given  next door was also busy in her kitchen, preparing more food for our year-end family meal.

Surprisingly, I was already feeling well when we began eating our last dinner for 2014. 

New Year's Eve dinner

Making Memories Together
Worshiper and his family slept over, and stayed with us for New Year's day. 

With Obedient One helping me with the dishes, cleaning up after meals was fast and easy.

On two occasions after New Year, I was able to host a special meal for dear friends: dinner on January 3 for Mario and Violeta and their son Daniel, and lunch on January 7 for William and Ruby and their daughter Stef.

There were also more family bonding times during the early days of 2015: a post New Year dinner with Sue and Vito, then lunch at the beach last Saturday, the day before Obedient's return flight to Manila.

A Mother's Heart
What I loved about the past weeks was how everything seemed to be light and easy.

Because I had already bought my Christmas gifts in Manila, and most of the family meals we had were planned by my children, I did not have my usual long lists of things to do, or buy.

Each day was mostly agenda-free, and hassle-free.

There were no schedules to run after.

Above all, this mother's heart was just so glad to have her daughter home.

On many evenings I would brush her long hair till it was shiny and soft. Each night, we slept in the guest room together. And each morning we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast together.

Now that she's no longer around, when I go to the deli shop to buy freshly baked croissant, beef pastrami, and pepper jack cheese, I'll think of her. Each time I cook angel hair pasta with olive oil, garlic, and bell pepper, she'll be on my mind.

Family.

Each of them is precious to me.

I won't always have them near me, but I hold each one dear to my heart, asking Abba Father often to draw them close and keep them safe from the enemy's schemes and assignments.

Meanwhile... the season just ended is another beautiful chapter in my life story... and the snapshots of precious memories will be safely tucked within my heart's treasure trove for many years to come.

Thank you, Abba Father, for the beauty of this season... and thank You for the precious memories that You have allowed us to make.

You are the giver of every good and perfect gift...

Above all, You are the reason for this season.

May we never lose sight of that eternal truth.






To read the continuation of this story click on this link:
A Beautiful Season part 2 (A Sense of Calling)