in the twilight zone...

ugh. today was not a good day. well, i take that back. it was a fairly good day...a great day, actually, save this morning's catechesis lesson with my 1st graders. i don't feel like going into much detail, but let's just say i'm a bit discouraged. i know i'm not a pro teacher, and i know it's not going to be easy, especially in the beginning, but it's hard starting off i guess. i repeat, ugh.

on a brighter note, david & i went to stanford mall today (near palo alto) and did a bit 'o' shoppin! shoes, gloss, and a couple tops for me, and a couple tops for david...and one of them is mint green! (ok that looks like highlighter green but the mint green doesn't show up on this background...) can you imagine it? i bet you can! =) stanford mall is sooooo like an outdoor version of southcoast plaza. our first comments as we pulled up were "whoa! are we in irvine?!" so, at the beginning of our mall visit we were excited for the change of city scenery and were thrilled to be somewhere that reminded us of our other home.

...it only took us about 20 min. to want to get back to the city. we're so not used to the uppity anymore.

p.s. if you didn't notice, click on david to find a surprise!!!

laaazy days...

i'm beginning to feel the pangs of attending a school that's on a semester system. i'm tired. =/ so is david...we were talking about how we are not used to having such long periods of class. right now i think we'd be at 10th week and about ready for finals if we were at uci...but we're only in month #2 and have about 2 more to go!!! * sigh *

with that said, i'm still enjoying what i do to a certain extent...it's just that i'm tired and me being tired makes me lazy. i'm learning a lot in all of my classes, and not to sound corny or anything, but the more i learn the more respect i have for people in this profession. it's A LOT of work to be a teacher!!! well, a good teacher, at least. i suppose you could get by with not doing any work for your students, but what good would that do? and with all the observations i have to do it's neat seeing different teachers in action, and different groups of kids, as well.

last week the teacher of the class i TA for had to leave for a few days and i got to teach the kiddos a couple lessons!!! oh my gosh it was soooo intimidating because it was 5th grade and i wasn't too familiar with the curriculum. BUT, thank goodness things went smoothly and i think the students learned a little bit from me!

and, last sunday was my first time teacher the 1st graders religious ed. it was so much fun!!! i think next time, though, i need to think of more creative ways to get kids involved and interested in what we are learning. but it's nice because i only have 12 kids...we're a small, but intimate group!


i feel old talking about this stuff....


on a more exciting note, THE GIRLS CAME TO VISIT!!! =) we had fun hanging out...but sad to say we didn't get to catch up that much because they were here just for 2 days. =( they came up friday night, and we ate at cheese factory in union square. then, on saturday we went shopping in gilroy, and had a night out on the town at luna lounge in the city. they left on sunday, but not before i took them to the filipino bbq restaurant i take all my guests: manila sunset! =) so, if y'all ever visit me, be prepared to eat there!!! it's really good!!!


speaking of really good...

i'm in this big room at the university center on campus where students can just come in and "study" (kinda similar to those rooms at the bottom of the student center at uci) and there's this group of girls sitting right near me talking soooooo LOUD!!! they seem like hiphop heads cuz they keep talking about hiphop "culture" and playing music OUTLOUD from their laptops........and they're SINGING!!! OUTLOUD!!! haha...i guess it's cool, but it's like, a study area! we're supposed to be studying!!! not discussing the hiphop artists of the 90's for everyone and their momma's to hear!!! i'm sitting here and i'm thinking to myself, man if the irvine peeps were here (you know who you are!!!) we would be having a hayday. AND we would probably try to compete with them by singing Light the Fire In My Heart Again or Building Community full out with actions and all! HAHA!!! you know we would!!! =D ah...i wish...

A Message for YOU:

krystle: hey there! yeah, things are going well up here, thankfully! david says hello, too!

jfish: it was good seeing you at the wedding, too! God is definitely laying down plans for me up here...he never wastes time!!!

meechy: i miss you, girl! dang, i don't even think i was able to see you before i left since you were in DC. but, hopefully i get to see you real soon. hope you're doing well! say hello to the rest of your crew for me!

charles: wow, charlie, you are a definitely a rhymer! ur smart! ;)

reg: oh reg, how i miss thy pointed foot & hand! :)

joyce: oh how i miss YOU so!!! hope you are doing well...still singing, i bet! we need to GIG soon!!! i know, i know, i'll send you my schedule. and the money for mel. haha!

ang: my dear, you are so missed. thanks for the messages and texts...you always remind me that i have such great friends down there. how's work? school? being a servant? life? ah, my friend, we must at once reconnect and discuss the fruits of the bountiful haaaaaarvest! :) +AMDG for life!

gian: hey, man. glad to see you're still one of the few who's blog i can always trust to be updated. hey, since you do update all the time, can you like, post all the happ's of the socal world i miss so much? come on...it'll be like a daily newsletter or something. DO IT!!!

noreen: i miiiiissss yoooou!!! you're pic's from the 5-0 are B-E-A-uuuutiful! gosh, you guys must have had an awesome time...YAY! thanks for your text last week...i wouldn't have missed your wedding for the world!!! the few hours i spent there were PRICELESS. :)

irish joe: hey, dude...get with the program!!! i've had this blog for like 5 months or something. haha, jk...but yeah, it's been a while, joe! i hope to see you soon. david and i are just fine! thanks for praying for us always!

fred: hey, freddy! when are you gonna come to frisco and visit? ;) hope you're doing well!

francia: seriously, right?! the time has gotten away from us, as it usually does...especially from me and you! haha...oh how i miss thy loose-ness. HAHA...ew that sounds gross. joke lang! how are you, anyway? flirted with any boooys lately? haha....jk. you know i love you and i'm just playin'. :)

kirsten: how's your hair? you know, every time i see someone with a mohawk or colored hair, i think of you. really! how's 2nd year treating you? call me up, friend! let's chat!

pia: thanks for the reminder, ATE!!! yes, singing with dan is way cool...he's so not how i pictured him to be, though! but, i learn a lot from him...not so much on the musical side, but on the inspirational side. loooove how your house looks!

'shank & LOG: i pray for you guys every day...hope you're doing well.


thanks, everyone, for all of your thoughts, prayers, and messages. it's nice to hear from you guys and i'm grateful you all are doing well! sorry if i forgot anyone! but know that i pray for you all (seriously, i really do!) every day, and hope that you all are in healthy spirits and along God's path!

where has the time gone?

all things are possible...

today i had lunch with my old high school english teacher. (i know...kinda wierd, huh?!) he's a jesuit priest now (he wasn't ordained yet when he was my teacher) and teaching at usf in the english department. anyways, i saw him on campus and we got to talking and met up for lunch today...it was really good hearing what he was doing nowadays and stuff. he's an intimidating man -- very intelligent and can come off very snooty...like one of those rich filipino men that seem to think they know everything. well, anyways, once you get over being intimidated he's actually a great person to conversate with. so, we got to talking and.............somehow we got on the topic of faith sharing communities and how there's such a need for them, especially for young adults, and.........HE OFFERED TO HELP ME START UP A COMMUNITY HERE!!!!!!!!

isn't that stupendous?! now, i told him i was gonna pray about it and see if it's possible...talk to some people here and there...but i sat there in awe, because the Holy Spirit was sooooo working through us! i mean, i've been thinking about starting another LOG up here for a while but i didn't know if it was possible or if it was in God's will. and so, when i would pray about it i would alway come away with the thought that if God really wanted to happen, he would find a way...and i think He did with this one!!! now, of course nothing is set in stone and right now we're just exploring possibilities. see, this priest that's gonna help me is a bit of a conservative, so i have nooo idea how he will feel about bringing a bit of contemporary music into the scene. in the end, it may not turn out to be another "Liwanag," but then again the fruits of the Spirit are all beautiful no matter what, right? he wants to start out with no more than 5 people, so that we can build a strong foundation and go from there. I'M SOOOOO EXCITED!!! i called david right away and he's super excited as well, and is eager to start it up with us!!! we will see what happens...

in the meantime, i humbly ask for all of YOUR prayers for this new beginning. i don't know what is going to become of these ideas and thoughts that we're having, but i know that if it's God's will then what's gonna come out of it has to be AWESOME! so, please pray for us as we begin to walk by faith and see where God leads us...





p.s. thanks, gian, for giving me a shout-out on your blog. i saw my name, so i read. been a while! haha...jk. i actually DO read your blogs even if there is no mention of dianne. and, i should probably be typing this as a comment on YOUR blog and not mine...hmm....



p.p.s. i miss you, liwanag.

...just SOME of the cousins & family at lola's 90th bday celebration. this was after all the guests had gone and we were cleaning up.

Catechesis: instruction by word of mouth

thanks to all who left sweeeeet messages on my blog. I MISS YOU ALL so very much! sorry for the lack of update, but there is never a dull moment on this side of the state!!!

my newest news: i'm got a position volunteering as a catechist for 1st graders!!! =) i'm sooooo super excited about this one, because 1.) i get to have some teaching experience, 2.) i'm teaching my most favorite subject: RELIGION, and 3.) i get to teach the little ones! i really couldn't be more blessed to have this opportunity. oh how i wish there was a sonshine bookstore/catholic traditions here so that i can stock up on material and goodies! they do have this one store but it's more for church stuff...incense, priest vestments, etc. but yes, i'm so excited to start...nervous, but excited!

other than that, everything else is pretty much the same. school keeps me busy most days, but i'm finding it bearable thus far. i'm also one week into the spiritual exercises, which have been very grace-filled and special moments with just me and God. this one time i prayed in the carmelite monastery across the street from si church, and the sisters were doing those latin chants...i don't know what they are formally called, but anyway, it was beautiful! a bit creepy for the first minute or so, but once you really listen to them, it's really an awesome experience.

serving in the choir has been a neat experience, as well. it's different, though. i like singing with dan...and, believe it or not, he's not a perfectionist as some would think! well, i guess i just really thought he'd be more strict and really precise with notes/timing/etc...but i find him to be soooo relaxed. he focuses more on the spiritual side of the music...always closing his eyes or gesturing with his hands so that we can FEEL and PRAY what we are singing. the piano player is way cool, too...she's real jazzy and spices our music up a lot. of course, i still like my ex-piano player at interfaith better!!! ;) yeah mel! go julliard!!! =D

oh and GUESS WHAT?!?! yesterday, david was dropping me off at loyola house to see my spiritual director and we saw....TATYANA ALI!!! yesiree!!! it was truly her...and she looks indian. she looked at us, too...haha! and that's when we recognized her. i suppose she's continuing her education there...but cool, huh?!

anyways...you know, the more and more i learn about teaching in my classes, and the more i'm around students and other teachers, i really start to feel like this is truly what i'm supposed to be doing with my life. to be honest, i was never drawn to teaching in a classroom before. i always felt like teaching was a career that most people in this world could do, and i always wanted to have a career in something that was challenging for most people...a job that not too many people would choose. i don't know why...but it probably had something to do with me wanting to go where i was needed. but, as i observe these teachers and learn about all that goes into teaching, my respect for this profession has grown immensely. and the more i think about it, the more i realize that almost anyone can get up in front of a group and talk their brains out and try to input information into students' brains...BUT it takes a special soul to really allow a child to grow -- grow in knowledge AND in spirit AND in compassion.

and i take my inspiration and instruction from the best teacher i have ever had...Jesus.