.weekly report.

It's been more than a month since my last post. I haven't been updating my blog as often as I would've liked, which is quite a wonder when you think about it since I am officially on vacation. I have been for the last week, I think. You'd think I'd be coughing up entries every single day, but for some reason, I keep coming up blank.

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The past few days went by pretty quickly. So much has happened that I don't know where to start. Okay, for starters, Lopao and I got caught in this "issue" at school, where we found ourselves being made to explain things we really had no idea about in the first place. But that's that, and I know that by the grace of God, it will all work out for the best. For every single person involved. The final decision is still to be made known to us, but we're pretty much already at peace about the whole thing. Hopefully, everyone else is too.

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At the same time that this has been happening, Lopao's Lola Pat went home to the Lord last Thursday. It was sad and surprising for the whole family, and I know that words cannot even begin to express how they all feel about what happened. But I know that they are comforted by the fact that their beloved Nanay and Lola is already in the presence of God, dancing and worshipping before Him, enjoying all the pleasures that Heaven has to offer. The promise of a magnificent reunion in the future is a beacon of light for the entire family.

I have been going to the wake for the past three days, and on my part, it has been quite a ride getting to meet so many of Lopao's relatives. I couldn't possibly remember all of the names, but I remember their welcoming smiles as we were introduced. I had to get used to him saying, "Si Ellen po, girlfriend ko..." - because I've never been introduced that way before. Yes, I still do get a bit shy around them (who wouldn't?), but as I have told Lops, I fell in love with his family as well. Tita Luz, his mom, is one of the sweetest persons I have ever met, and so is Tita Cora, his aunt. The way they've accepted me makes me feel like a million bucks.

In all of these, I have had a new "revelation", if you must, about us. As we continue in this relationship, I have come to realize that this is not just about two people living and walking in love. This is about families. Now, when I look at Lopao, I do not see him as him alone, but with his whole family behind him. I see him as a son, a brother, a cousin, a grandson, a friend - and that is enough to make me want to treat him in the best way I possibly can. I would never want to hurt a family as wonderful as theirs. And when I see him getting along with my own family and friends, when I witness how he begins to establish his own friendships with these people that have played very large roles in the molding of my life as it is right now, I can't help but whisper a prayer of thanks to God for making us one step closer to coming full circle.

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I still haven't been able to go home to Pagsanjan. I am planning to do so this coming week. I have to. I can't bear to disappoint Nanay again. I have given my word that I will go there this vacation, and I am planning to make good on that promise. I really miss everyone there. Nanay, my titos and titas, my cousins, my babies (of course, babies ng mga pinsan ko yun.. hehe). I have this need to see them and to be with them. Basta, whatever it takes, I will go there this summer before internship starts.

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For some reason, my life is beginning to have some semblance of "normalcy" again. I thank God because it looks like everything is falling into place. God has promised me that this is the year of my restoration - and I am holding on to that promise. I thank God for people who are always there no matter what, and for relationships that do not deteriorate with the passing of time, but instead grow stronger. But most of all, I thank God for His faithfulness, for His Word that is always true, for His promises that are always "Yes" and "Amen", and for His CALLING that is irrevocable and without repentance.

The real me is what the Bible says I am - THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS. Nothing can change that.

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I was able to catch Superman Returns on HBO on one of my lazier days last week. It was a fairly good movie, and Brandon Routh was the perfect casting choice for Superman. However, as I was watching it, one thought kept on recurring in my head over and over.

Superman is who he really is. Not Clark Kent. Superman.

Unlike many other superheroes, Superman is not just Clark Kent's alter ego. This super-strong flying man is the real person. He cannot do anything to change that, because he was born that way. When he becomes the weakling and nerdy Kent, he is not himself. He becomes a person hiding behind a facade.

That's when I realized - We have been born into the life of Jesus Christ. That means we have been born victorious. We have been born strong in the Lord. We have been born overcomers. When we choose not to walk in that victory, when we choose to let defeat permeate into our very beings, we are denying ourselves of the oportunity to be the real persons that we have been created to be. But no matter what we do, that real person can never be hidden for long.

The world will always see the VICTORS in us.

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Two more weeks to internship. Exciting.

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