Reliving a Grandparent's Love

It is 6 pm on an evening in the summer of 1971. The velvety sun is almost ready to set on the horizon. Men, beast, and machines ground to a halt. The church bells ring in cadence like a poignant poem as the recitation of the Oracion emanate from her red belfry tower. Canlubang once again seems to be suspended in time except for the three iconic black chimney towers of the Azucarera which continue to waft-up a cloud of smoke as the melodious birda chirp while perched from the giant caballero tree(fire tree). Inside an ancient home still bearing the scars of the previous war, an altar raised to the wall sits the glass-encased image of the Cristo Rei in between Maria and San Jose. “Ave Maria Purisima. Sin pecado consebida” ("Hail most pure Mary, conceived without sin") a common exclamation is uttered as my grandmother leads the Santo Rosario(Holy Rosary) with her whole family. With our tiny palms clasped, the litany of prayers in Spanish is recited in unison by the grandchildren some of whom would remember by heart even until this very day. As the prayer ends, the young would pay their respect to our elders by uttering “mano po”,and touching the back of their palms held by our tiny hands to our foreheads to accept their blessings. The tradition is culminated with the blowing of the candles by the child in-charge who set the prayer table. Candles that end up clean after each prayer would mean a soul is under the grace of God. Too much candle-dropping on the candelabra would mean it is time to see the priest and receive the sacrament of Confession.

Lola Feling – Healer and Grandmother

Long before there were Chiropractors and Physical Therapists, my lola was known to be an esoteric mang-hihilot(Chiropractor). She attributed her gift of healing from a dream when she was young. In her vision, the Niño Jesus was in pain and in need of help. Not knowing what to do, the little boy imparted to her the knowledge of dealing with bodily sicknesses through manipulations and chiropractic massages. She applies coconut oil and strips of medicinal herbs to diagnose the area of strain and apply different massaging techniques. Grandmother also performed a diagnostic ritual to determine the cause of an illness called *Tawas (alum). This ritual is performed with a variety of other material such as a holy scapular, banana leaves, coconut shell, and some incense. One notable case she had was about this man who stayed bed-ridden at the hospital for so long until the doctors finally gave up on him. Thinking there was nothing to lose in using an unconventional way of therapy, the wife requested for grandma’s help. All what lola did was to ask for the patient’s shirt and performed the ritual of Tawas with it. The following day, that man was at her front door looking so well as if nothing really ever happened.

When my grandma was not battling the supernatural, she fulfills the role of being a mother who takes care of her whole family. On days when she arrives home from the palengke(market), grandma never fails to bring in our favourite bibingka (rice cake) as a pasalubong(take home present) or those native cocoa balls she kept in a jar for dessert. I also have fond memories of seeing her in the kitchen cooking those hot chilly recipes. According to her, it was a test of having a Bicolano(Bicol province) blood in us if we can endure such hot palatable dishes. Sitting on a rocking chair by the window on hot summer afternoons fanning with an abaniko (weaved native fan), we are all ears to her funny stories which either make us role over the floor with laughter, or be sleepless for many nights from her tales of the paranormal and myths.

In my later years as a boy, while the rest would collect play cards to trade, I gathered stampitas and rosaries and lovingly shared this with my grandmother. What ever level of spiritual conviction I may have in God today I am most certainly sure my grandmother played a strong part in it.

Lolo Jose - My Grandfather

I had a strong admiration for my grandpa who dressed quite impressively for a man who has reached his twilight years. Having a well-framed body and a good posture, it’s a no surprise he captured the attention of the elusive Felisa when he courted her. Being a butcher’s son who grew up during the wars of the Spanish-American-Filipino wars, Jose was privileged to own the very first car in their hometown while the streets still swarm with caromatas (horse drawn carriages). With a young brood on hand he took all their belongings and migrated to Canlubang where he worked for the Azucarera del Calamba (Canlubang Sugar Estate) as a personal driver for the owners of the company for more than fifty years outlasting two foreign occupations in the country and a tyrant dictator.

At the crack-of-dawn today he walked for a few hours from Barrio Mill to Barrio Old Stable armed with his favourite stick to ward off the unruly dogs that would come along his way. Even ten years into the future he would still refuse a beautifully engraved cane gift from my dad. Instead, he kept it on a corner of his bedroom with no intention of using it. Why should he? He can still carry two buckets of water without any problem at all at age eighty. I wonder why our family loves mornings. Mom loved mornings, I as well watch sunrises, and grandpa feels the same. Is there something magical about the dawn of each day? Perhaps, somehow we all cognitively process the rising sun as a beam of hope to our faltering faith, right?

After several stops along the way talking with his fellow old timers such as Mang Emong (Mr. Emong) - the boxing trainer at the Labour Hall, and Mang Dodo(Mr. Dodo) -the family photographer, he brings home a bag of freshly baked pandesal (sweet bread) bigger than an adult’s fist. As the aroma of hotly brewed kapeng barako (native coffee) coffee hangs in the kitchen, grandfather chimes an improvised bell made from a WWII bomb shell suspended at the back of his porch. The fowls from his small backyard farm scampers in a feeding frenzy as I watched with awe our aviary friends scoffing on the ground as if there is no tomorrow. Grandpa has just prepared a pinoy (Filipino) breakfast of daing (dried salted fish), itlog (egg), sinangag (fried rice), and of course our favourite butter Dairy Cream to go with the bread. After each breakfast, I would sit down next to him at the sala(living room) where he examines the pages of The Manila Times . Today headlines the student protests of the First Quarter Storm and while I enjoyed its cartoon pages.

I noticed he is never idle. When ever you can’t find him inside the house he must be in the chicken coup or at his small bodega (stockroom) where all the books, magazines, oil paintings, and materials forgotten by time that he refuses to let go are still stocked. There were times I saw him there fixing my shoe on a jig or sewing my ripped school uniform. The most memorable thing grandpa did on weekends would be to borrow the Yulo’s vintage cars from the company garage where he works and fill those gargantuan cars with his grandchildren treating them for a night joy-ride around Canlubang’s scenic places. A quick stop at the market site to get some Serg Chocolates for all his apo (grandchildren) to munch was a sure delight.

Somebody was quoted as saying, “One will never be a grandfather without stepping down from his easy chair.” I guess this statement is very true with my grandfather who managed to fulfill his life in a very short earthly time.
Surely, we would all agree that the impact of grandparents is not often felt until years later. Looking back, we acknowledge their sacrifices and tell stories about their gifts of love that only a grandparent can provide and I miss them dearly for this.




*The TAWAS is used to 'cross' (sign of the cross) the forehead and other suspicious ailing parts of the body as prayers are being whispered (bulong). It is then placed on glowing embers, removed when it starts to crack, then transferred to a small receptacle of water. As it cools, its softened form spreads on the water surface and assumes a shape that may suggest the cause of the illness, often one of several indigenous forces: dwarfs, devils or other evil spirits (na-nuno, na-kulam, na-demonyo). The water in the vehicle is then used to anoint the ailing part or parts of the body to counteract the evil forces or illness. The Tawas is then discarded and thrown westward, preferably into the setting sun.

The White Slaves of America

There is so much untold history out there that America and the Western countries seem to suppress giving an impression of a collaborated hidden world agenda that prevents many inconvenient truths from coming out. The 21st century economies triggered an influx of migrant workers from every corners of the globe to the first world including from the developing countries. But back in the 17th and 19th century there was also a similar demand for foreign workers in the countryside and emerging cities of the New World. The astonishing part about this is that the conditions on recruiting and employing these labourers are still prevalent in the modern times, yet quite surprisingly not too many know about. If you are picturing a scene straight out of Alex Haley’s Roots, you are dead wrong.

North Americans are so hammered about White guilt for enslaving Black people that they are made to feel eternal reparation should be done for whatever plight these people might have had in today's world as a result of slavery. Long before the first Black slaves arrived in America, slavery was already institutionalized in the ancient times by Egypt, Greece, and Rome and some other Muslim countries. Such institutions were a mixture of debt-slavery, punishment for crime, the enslavement of prisoners of war, child abandonment, and the birth of slave children to slaves. Starting in the year 793 AD, the Vikings made frequent raids in Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean area, Ireland and Scotland and turned slavery as the pillar of their commerce. The Nordics marauders sold their “Thralls” to the Byzantine and Arab markets. Slavery was abolished in the Scandinavian culture when Christianity was introduced. In the 17th century, British America’s thirteen colonies created a huge demand for labour. This was at a time when Britain was suffering from a huge number of unemployed poor people living in the urban areas. Displaced from their land and not being able to find work in the cities, many of these people signed contracts of indenture and took a one-way boat ride to the Americas. The establishment coined the word “indentured servitude” for those who could not afford to pay their passage. It is a legal agreement enforced by the court binding them to work for an employer with no wages from three to seven years until their land and sea transportation including lodging had been covered. The papers were often forged by many recuiters. who conive with kidnappers and press-gangs. Although the papers do not literally specify a lifetime of bondage, the slave-owner had the legal right to increase the length of term on the slightest pretext.

Because of abuse of the system the indentures on British citizens in the Colonies were not legally enforced unless it bore the endorsement of the British Magistrate of the isles hence, they can bargain for their deal before leaving for North America. Non-British immigrants were in a worst situation since no law protected them from unscrupulous recruiters. They were forced to negotiate with their future masters before leaving the ship. England’s next door neighbour, Ireland, quickly became the biggest source of human livestock for English merchants. From 1641 to 1652, over 500,000 Irish were killed by the English and another 300,000 were sold as slaves. The population fell from 1,500,000 to 600,000 within a decade. Irish fathers were not allowed to take their wives and children to their voyage to the Atlantic ripping families apart. In 1650, over 100,000 Irish children between 10 and 14 years of age were taken from their parents and shipped to work for the English Settlers in the West Indies, Virginia, and New England. In the same decade, 52,000 Irish women and children were sold to Barbados and Virginia. The list goes on and on.

The White slavery in America was an expansion of the same practice from the mother country, Britain. The legal form of contracted indentured servitude was just in reality a lifetime form of slavery. . The center of the trade in child-slaves was in the port cities of Britain and Scotland: Press gangs were hired by local merchants to roam the street seizing by force young boys for the slave trade. Children were driven in flocks through the town and confined for shipment in barns. What was outrageous was the fact White children were openly seized from orphanages and workhouses and made to labor in factories for up to sixteen hours locked-up and without any breaks. Children who fell asleep during work were lashed into wakefulness by a whip. Children were also beaten with the use of iron bars called “billy-rollers”. Thousands of children are mangled by factory machines that left them disfigured or disabled for life without any compensation. These Mills and kind of treatment continued to spread to the New World.
The White “freights” transported across the Atlantic took nine to twelve weeks of travel. They were cramped below the deck of the ship and prone to experience outbreaks of contagious diseases which often results in the loss of half of the human cargo. Also, before leaving the port from England, they are given food rations that are supposed to last up until the entire journey. Because the amount of food issued was usually inadequate than not, many starved to death before reaching their destination. And if a person dies half-way across the journey, the surviving family members had to shoulder the deceased fare including their own. Usually, travelers start their journey with sufficient funds to pay their way only to be overcharged when they arrive thereby causing them more money to owe and longer serving time with their new masters. Soon as they arrive at the port of entry, Whites were auctioned on the block with children, men and women separated from each other. Black slaves cost more than the White slaves. Between 1609 until the early 1800s, two-thirds of all the White colonists who came to the New World came as slaves who cleared the forests, drained the swamps, built the roads, sweated in the fields, and died in hellish factories. Since they have no rights, fugitive slave laws applied to them when ever they flee their masters. Black slaves were often not used beyond the limits of human endurance because they are expensive compared to the White slaves of Britain considered to be its unwanted “surplus population thus so easily expendable. The call for the reparation on the effects of slavery should not strictly be focused on Blacks alone. What should be done is to correct the ignorance and deliberate suppression of the truth that once upon a time, humans treated their fellow human beings like merchandise. Slavery in all forms should be rid among all the nations of the world.

Did you know that the expression "kidnapping," (originally kid-nabbing) had its origin in the abduction of poor White children to be sold into factory slavery in Britain or plantation slavery in America? Did you know that the expression "spirited away" likewise originated with the White slavers, who were also called "spirits"? The word "slave" itself is derived from the word "slav," a reference to the Eastern European White people who, among others, were enslaved by their fellow Whites, by the Mongols, and by the Arabs over a period of many centuries.


Reference: They Were White and They Were Slaves: The Untold History of the Enslavement of Whites in Early America and Industrial Britain: by Michael Hoffman

Claveria's Decree of 1849 - On Filipino Surnames

From the beginning of the 12th century people from Europe started using surnames but it took several centuries before everyone was using it. Generally, surnames are derived from the names of male ancestors (patronymic) although occasionally, it could also be metronymic. An occupational title was also a cause to use as a forename. Since people in the old days can pinpoint almost where everybody else lived, they used Topographical surnames as a means of distinguishing them from others with the same name. Another factor for making up surnames was by means of Nicknames. This indicates people use description and truncated names of their original names. Overtime, humans interact and migrate, so languages evolve due to changes in pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.

The orginal way of naming filipinos during the pre-spanish times was patronymic, descriptive and concise. This means every personal name was taken from the name of a father, a grandfather, or their male ancestors adding a description of their physical appearance, prowess, occupation, ethnicity, habits or events.
When the spaniards arrived, the friars started baptizing the conquered population and made them choose the different names of catholic saints. Many people from the mountaenous areas of Luzon, Mindoro, Palawan, and Mindanao where able to escape the fate of the subjugated ones. Apparently, christianization worked so well that most people shared the same last names. This confusion prompted the spanish authorities to force them to change their last names unless they can prove they have been using such names for generations. Another early Filipino custom that created a problem was that siblings took on different last names like they had always done before the Spaniards came. All these "problems" resulted in a less efficient system of governing the general population.

On November 21, 1849 Governor General Narciso Clavería ordered a systematic distribution of family names for the natives to use. The Catalogo Alfabetico de Apellidos was produced and approved names were assigned to families in all towns. Civil servants assigned family names in alphabetical order causing some small towns with only a few families ending up with all names starting with the same letter. Names were also issued based on the town of origin. “A” for example was issued to primary capitals, “B” for secondary towns, and “C” for thirtiary towns. Surnames were also based on the first letter of the town. Before the modern human migration and inter-marriages among ethnicities, one can tell the hometown origin of an individual based on their Iberian last name. There was this story about a civil servant in Guinobatan, Albay during the day of the promulgation of the Claveria-Decree wherein in his haste to get the list from the capital and in order to avoid carrying a thick book of names randomly tore the “O” pages and issued it to the populace. But, in spite implementing regulated Castilian names, there were also clear indications of flexibility in choosing surnames. , i.e., the direct descendants of ancient rulers were excluded and were permitted to maintain their surnames. There were those who were ordered to take on unique surnames (usually names of flora & fauna) to make them more visible. Of course one could not argue the fact that there are indeed funny names issued to unsuspecting Indios by mischievous Spanish civil registrars.

The Chino Mestizos however were allowed to hold on to their Chinese surnames. This was authorized by the administrators so as not to lose their lineage and culture. There were also occasions that the Catholic Filipino Chinese would blend their native names to that of a Christian name, this adaptation is unique and is one of its kind in the world.

The Claveria’s decree though often maligned, was in reality one of the greatest gift of Spain (aside from Catholicism) to the filipino people. This paved the way for the native and non-natives alike to integrate as fully accepted citizens of the society. Thus, this explains why many Filipinos today bear Spanish names although they may not have Spanish blood.

Claveria’s explanation on the decree:

“During my visits to the majority of the islands, I observe that natives in general lack individual surnames which distinguished them by families. They arbitrarily adopt the names of the saints as their last names, this results to the results in the existence of thousands of individuals having the same surnames. Likewise, i saw the resultant confusion with the regard to the administration of justice, government, finance and public order and the far-reaching moral, civil and religious consequences to which thismight lead, because the familynames are not transmitted from the parents to their children, so that it is sometimes impossible to prove the degress of consanguinity for purposes of marriage, rendering useless the parochial books which in Catholic countries are used for all kinds of transactions.” he continues,”for the purpose of catalogue of family names has been compiled, including indigenous names collected by the reverend fathers provincial of the religious orders, and the Spanish surnames they have been able to acquire, along those furnished by the vegetable and mineral kingdoms, geography, arts, etc. In view of the extreme usefulness and practicality of this measures, the time has come to issue a directive for the formation of a civil register, which may not only fulfill and ensure the said objectives, but also serve as the basis for the statistics of the country, guarantee the collection of taxes, the regular performance of personal services, and the receipt of payment for exemptions. It likewise provides exact information of the movement of the population, thus avoiding unauthorized migrations, hiding taxpayers, and other issues.”

Of God and Gods

The heavens fascinate me. I have always gazed upon and wondered at the stars not because I worry about the sky falling, but because I have a strong feeling someone out there observes us as like we all live in an ant farm. We were brought into this world inheriting the beliefs of our religions, of Gods, and Angels. I myself still strive to the best of my ability to know my faith, but should we just follow blindly and entrust our eternal salvation upon the shoulders of any religious institution? In the Medieval times the Church persecuted people who in their view had “heretical” ideas about how the universe was created. Whenever there were clear conflicts between their philosophy and the Christian faith, the latter always prevailed. It is sad to know that many amongst us still refuse to explore far beyond these religious norms fearing it could cast their soul into eternal damnation. Since the first hominids moved out of Africa up until today, man has learned to take dominion over his environment. Thanks to modern science, we now know more than ever about the human body, explored the richness of the earth, landed man on the moon, sent probes to our celestial neighbours, and grasped what the rest of the universe could offer. Most of us by now could clearly distinguish between a rocket and a “chariot of fire”. Shouldn’t modern science and the advancement of technology expand more our understanding of the bible; Who God can be; how we were created; and if ever we truly are alone in this universe?

Atheists would argue that the cosmos had no beginning and that “matter is self-existing and not created.” But modern science has been able to prove that the whole of the universe expands daily and that galaxies continue to accelerate away from each other due to an unseen force called Dark Matter. If this is an established fact based on scientific evidences, by reversing their movement day after day, wouldn’t they all meet at a single point? This hypothesis is called Singularity. If we all agree that the universe had a beginning, then we can ask ourselves another question – who caused such creation? If the agnostic’s belief that matter self existed were true, then one has to logically maintain the idea that all things could just pop-out any time out of nowhere defying all the concepts of Physics and Engineering! On the other hand, if we agree that the beginning was caused, therefore: what was the cause? The Bible states, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Genesis 1:1) and from this, we believe a superior God who exists in a higher dimension, was the cause and did it with perfect arrangement, and reason.

The human saga is often passed on through creation myths among different cultures based on something. Has it ever occurred to you how God created us? Were humans truly fashioned out of mud? If you believe firmly that man evolved from the apes, why then, are there still apes around? Did God create us first-hand or did the Almighty use emissaries as instruments of our creation? Archaeological evidences seem to side with the theory of evolution, from ape to modern human. If not for the “missing link”, pro-creationists would stand no ground on the debate. The $13 Billion U.S Human Genome Project began formally in 1990. It was a 13-year effort coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health with the cooperation of several countries with the purpose of identifying the 25,000 genes in the human DNA. This research could help in curing man’s illnesses, stop ageing, and possibly resolve once and for all the long standing argument between creationism and evolution. In this project, scientists have been able to decipher the vertical genetic development of life on Earth and found out that the human genome contained not the anticipated 100,000 to 140,000 but only some 25,000 - a little more than double those of the fruit fly (13,601), and barely 50 percent more than the roundworm (19,098). Results also showed that the human gene is relative to most chimpanzees and other vertebrates, invertebrates, fungi, plants and even yeast. A single source of DNA for all life on earth was also noted enabling scientists to map out the evolutionary development of how more complex organisms evolved from simpler ones to higher life forms. This result of genetic sequencing indeed appears to uphold the theory of evolution. But within all their findings appear a strange discovery that touches the core of the “evolution or creation” topic. It showed that the human genome acquired an extra 223 genes of alien origin that do not have the required predecessors not through gradual progression, not vertically on the tree of life-but horizontally, as an insertion of genetic material from bacteria. The implications of these scientific findings support claims by other scientists and observers of having extraterrestrial beings visiting or colonising Earth in the remote past engineering the primitive hominid Homo erectus through several genetic manipulations to create the human race as we know now the Homo sapiens.

Do yourself a favour today and look up to the stars tonight. Ask yourself: Are we truly alone in this universe? The “gods” up there could just be smiling at you then.

José Gabriel Funes, the director of the Vatican Observatory, admitted the possibility of extra-terrestrial life in an interview with the Papacy’s inhouse daily L'Osservatore Romano, titled “The Alien is my Brother”.
The paper quoted him saying, "As an astronomer I continue to believe that God is the creator of the universe,"
"It is possible, even if until now, we have no proof. But certainly in such a big universe this hypothesis cannot be excluded."
“This is not in contradiction with our faith, because we cannot establish limits to God's creative freedom,” Funes continued. “To say it with St Francis, if we can consider some earthly creatures as 'brothers' or 'sisters', why could we not speak of a 'brother alien'? He would also belong to the creation."
Sources: Z. Sitchin, DGE Bulletin, The Human Genome Project

Passage to Hades

Sadness cloaks as dark veil in this moonlit night
Voices echoing like ancient belfry towers
Earthly vessels that contain thine flesh and blood,
Lay cold deep within the bowels of mother earth.

Must fire consume the Phoenix to resurrect,
When the resurrected could not join the living?
We carry sepulchres in lifetime journeys,
Only to die again as if we are not dead

Oh great Fire Bird shed thy tears on their ashes
Their passage to the land of Hades, so untimely
If my fervent pleas to Cronus be heeded
My treasure I will give to the oarsman of death

Row,row, row my joy back to me dear Charon
Cleanse my every sorrow with the waters of Styx
Let me rewrite all the pages of my life
And take hold of every fleeting moment with them

Letting Go

I went for a late coffee break at Tim Horton’s last night when I chanced upon a helpless little bird on the pavement. It doesn’t look injured, but it looks like it was confused, cold, and seemingly incapable of flying. It was a good thing people who rush their way into this busy cafe did not trample upon the poor creature. Worried about its impending doom, I took hold of the bird and held it with both of my hands. I was a bit careful not to put so much pressure on the young sparrow, while at the same time careful not to lose it. The more I gripped, the more it chirped. I wanted to take it home, feed it, then set it free whenever it is capable. But my subconscious thoughts told me to set it free immediately. I was a little apprehensive about this, and tried to contradict myself. I let lose of my grasp and away it flew to a nearby tree; far from the crowd and the traffic passing by. I just hope it will survive the coming Canadian winter which can get nasty and bitterly cold.

Pondering about this made me think about a new chapter in my life. You see, I have a younger sister. When we were little kids I made a promise to her that wherever I go someday I will help her, and take good care of her. This childish vow never left my mind through out the years. After being in Canada for more than eleven years I finally was able to fulfill this dream. Lately though, in spite of all my advice and sharing of experiences, she wanted to move from Toronto to Vancouver. It seemed to me she wasn’t too interested in facing this whole new life with my help, or with me around. Perhaps, she has some other personal reasons which she refuses to share. Maybe she is just another one brave individual who wants to tackle a brand new world by her own. Confirming this with her, I felt disppointed; she was too. I was completely adamant againts her ideas and stood on my ground.

Now the little bird still speaks with me in my thoughts as I remember it chirped in my hands as if begging for its life. “Dear sister, I am afraid to let you go. I really worry about what might happen to you in that far away place. You see, I am just shielding you from all the troubles a strange land would give. We are eight thousand miles away from home. I do not want you to experience pain, failures, and frustration. Why are you so willing and brave to face all of this when I can lay everything perfect for you? Since Mom and Dad passed away I am paranoid to lose another one. Let my pain and experiences guide you. Use it and repeat not my struggles.”

Today, I still wonder if that bird ever survived nature’s elements that night. Could it be dead by now, or is it out there happily flying free in the air? Should I let you go sister or should you entrust your future to an age old promise?

The Scorpion and the Wise Man

There was an ancient story about a wise man meditating by the river. In the process, he saw a scorpion that crawled on the rocks and fell on the water. Disturbed by this, he momentarily stopped his meditation and tried to save the poor creature from drowning. As he tried to save the scorpion, it defended itself with its venomous sting causing him severe pain on his hands. After making sure the poor thing crawls back on the rocks he tried to focus back on his meditation. Some seconds later, he observed the scorpion back on the water and struggling for its life. So he halted his prayer once again and tried to save the arachnid from killing itself. Instinctively, the scorpion stung him once again with its tails and causing the man terrible pains.

As all of this happens, another man was observing from the top of a ridge. He yelled to the wise man, “You fool! Why do you keep on saving that creature only to harm you over and over again?” The wise man answered, “Don’t mind me my friend, my nature is to save, its nature is to harm.”

In this life, how many times did we act like the wise man trying to save the scorpion? Have you ever been hurt just because you tried to save another person from hurting themselve once, twice, or over and over again? Have you ever caused pain to your loved ones and acted like you never cared because you were so selfish about your own feelings? Where you ever like the old man sitting by the river judging people by what they see instead of helping those in need?

Man’s relationship with God is like the old man and the scorpion. In Eden, Adam and Eve was expelled because of sin and through this the whole of humanity lost the opportunity to gain an eternal life. But our God is a loving God who in spite of our constant infliction of pain still manages ways to save us even to the extent of giving up His precious Son so that we can partake in the glory of God's heavenly kingdom.

We do not have to live the life style of a monk or a saint to demonstrate love to our fellow man. Let us all cease living selfish lifestyles and be like little Christs in this world. Start caring for the less fortunate even on the simplest of ways. Each good deed takes less weight on the cross Christ carries on his shoulder. The lighter Christ takes our burdens to Calvary, the better this world can be for man and his eternal salvation.