Saturday, June 04, 2005


Lucban
My family and I woke up at 4:30 this morning and headed straight to Lucban, Quezon. Yes, that's where they celebrate the colorful Payihas Festival and I think its the town nearest to Mt. Banahaw. And no, we didn't go there for the Pahiyas, since that's long been over anyway. We drove (actually, my Dad did) all the way there for 3 hours to attend a healing mass by Fr. Faller (I hope I got the name right).

We went to this place called "Kamay ni Hesus" and in it was a Church and this beautifully landscaped mountainside (is that what you call it?) wherein you could climb hundreds of steps to reach the top where this giant statue of Jesus was situated.

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I never thought my Mom would actually decide on celebrating her birthday on something that spiritual. Being the simple person that she is, she said she'd rather go on a roadtrip with her family than have a lot of guests come over our house or some big venue and fatten those unfit adults even more (hehe, kidding). But I didn't think she would want to go to a faraway Church to hear mass from a priest who's been said to have healing powers. (I have great faith in the priest. He's one of those people who makes you feel God's presence...seriously)

There was even this old man, who after attending the Healing Masses twice, testified that his doctors have declared him prostate cancer-free. Still doubtful?

Believe it or not, during the full 2 and a half hours of our travel going there, I could literally feel the whole world spinning around me. I've been experiencing slight fevers and headaches for the past few days, and this morning's headache seemed like the King of all headaches. BUT, as fictional and cliche as this may sound, I really felt like I was healed when Fr. Faller prayed over the hundreds of people who were present this morning. While everyone else was standing up with their hands raised, I remained seated with my Mom's bag in my hand (I needed something to hold on to) with my eyes closed. Whenever I am in deep prayer, I end up crying, and that experience was no exception. I didn't realize that I already had tears in my eyes, and I quickly tried to wipe them away, thinking that those other people surrounding me might think I'm being melodramatic or something. But that thought was far from what I actually saw after opening my eyes for a second. I saw how people had their eyes shut tight, with their arms above their heads as if reaching for God, and with their faith and belief in the Lord's healing power. I closed my eyes again and began feeling this warm mass of air around me, embracing me even. No kidding. I really did feel that. I was then surprised when the priest said something like "Mararamdaman nyo ang tilang init na babalot sainyo o malamig na hanging dadampi sa inyong pisngi...wag kayong matakot, dahil yan ang Panginoong Diyos na yumayakap sayo."

After hearing that, more tears formed in my eyes.

It may sound like something you'd put in your Gospel reflection or something, I know. And it isn't overly dramatic as you think it is. It's just that...

At that very moment, I did feel God with me. And I was so thankful for having experienced that with the people I love the most. :)

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More (out-of-place/vain) pics! hehe. :)

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That statue must have been no less than 50 feet, but look, I managed to take a picture of it with my Mom and brothers in it too. Hihi.

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That's me with my brother, Nino. We must have been halfway up already. See the background? It's prettier in real life (so are the people in the picture, haha, jk!) :D

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This is me in this restaurant we ate in. It was already past 11 I think when we decided to finally eat Breakfast (so it was more like Brunch already). My brother grabbed my phone, so what else was I to do but...cheese! Haha. Panget. :P

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This is just me being vain. Haha. =P My parents were buying Longganisang Lucban from this shop called "House of Longganisa" so I was left with my brothers in the car. While they were fighting over my brother's phone, singing to the tune of "First Day Funk" and trying to tickle me, I, on the other hand, managed to be vain and took this picture. Harhar.

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Oh, and for something even lighter, we passed by countless shops and establishments during our looooong trip. Here are some that caught my attention:

Cass and Carrie
Gintong Talulot
Internet Cafe/Ice Cream Parlor/Watch Repair (all on one stall)
Jonk Shup (in pink paint)
Waku-Waku Bar and Restaurant
Cherilu Grill (hate the spelling!)
Our Lady of Fatima Maahas Chapel
SALE ^po KAMI! (seen on big banners. I guess they were just trying to be polite)
Ultimate Defense Weapon Store
Bee-Jay Parts ("BJ" wouldve been better)
Joe-Mhar Store (isa pa to!)
Jaa Art Motor shop (Huh?)
Soft Pillow Hotel (Whatta name. Oh, and they had "sinampay" on their top floor for everyone to see, lol)
HAHA Fone Card Station (Wala ng maisip na pangalan)
D'vinia's Special Buko
Cymon's Store
Jer-Jeck's Store
NOT 4 HERE

Mga Pinoy talaga oh! Hehe. :D

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[-real men pray-]
- n|x - was loved at 8:57 PM
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~I will keep your secrets. Just think of me as the pages of your diary.~


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