Making a difference--

For my first posting, and before I get my writing juices going in all direction, I pay homage to a young woman, Marie, who passed away suddenly in March 2009. I met her through a most ordinary way; she was my temporary caretaker, the "yaya" during an elective surgical procedure I underwent two years ago in Manila. Through her, I was given an opportunity to learn how a farmer raises his family in one of the provinces in Luzon, Philippines. Through text messages and letters, I learned of her struggles to raise a little baby, sell vegetables in the town market, save money to sell halo-halo under the mango trees in her yard. In 2008, she took in an abandoned niece and through her, I became sort of a fairy godmother, becoming the recipient of a child's letter, telling me how she got good grades in school.

Marie passed away due to hypertension during pregnancy. It took her suddenly. She left a toddler, a niece, grieving husband, family, and friends. It pained me to think of her demise especially since her death would affect the existence her niece and her son.

I was in for a pleasant surprise--the community lovingly came together. Marie's brother and his wife took in her niece Maryjoy. Marie's husband, while still grieving and mourning is valiantly raising their son. I on the other hand continue to write a modest check, to make sure that both children are fed and clothed. I continue to worry about the future of these two kids, neither of whom I have met. All I have is a photo and a thank you letter from an eleven year old who just learned how to write and was in first grade as a ten-year old.

When friends tell me that they are conflicted as to whether they have made a difference, I believe that they have. Giving our time, if not our money, to listen to someone's heartache or share someone's good news or even the bad, that is making a difference. When you care for a pet, you have made a difference; when you can genuinely feel happy for your friends' success and emphatize sincerely in their times of sorrow or confusion, you have made a difference. When you share your fortune with others, that is making a difference. Making a difference is about giving of our time, our attention, our talents, a part of us, and it is about having a generosity of spirit for others to bask in their light.



---appreciation---
---This blog site would not have been possible without my friend Shan's help, who painstakingly created the blog and patiently led me to it, she named it aptly to pay homage to a place that is part of her heritage, a land she loved and all that is in it and for this I thank her. She is a sampaguita in my garden of friends and forevermore, maraming salamat.

---Feel free to partake in the goodies of life.