Love is long patient,
love is kind,
it is not jealous,
love does not boast,
it is not inflated.
It is not rude,
it is not selfish,
it is not irritable,
it does not enumerate the evil.
It does not rejoice over the wrong,
but rejoices in the truth.
It covers all things,
it has faith for all things,
it hopes in all things,
it endures in all things.
happy valentines day…
Last Sunday, February 4, an article came out from Philippine Daily Inquirer regarding bloopers in the ministry. It was a very interesting article! It talks about a litany of light moments in the ministry of serving the Lord. Ask any seminarian and he has also his own stories to tell. This article is about my light moments in the seminary.
***
A Taiwanese confrere who spoke very little English came to Christ the King. One time, he approached me and asked for a “bowl.” I was wondering why he had to go to our dormitory to borrow a bowl when he could go to the dining hall. Perhaps he wanted to prepare noodles (N.B. Seminarians like noodles). So, in haste I looked for a bowl. When I found one, I immediately went to him but the other seminarians told me he was in the court. I went to him and waved from afar the bowl he asked for. “Thank you” he said. He was already holding a BALL.
(This same Taiwanese asked another seminarian for a “bowl” the following day. He immediately replied, “Oh Father, what will you do with the BELL?”)
***
After the Ozone Tragedy, a fire alarm device was installed in Christ the King castle. Wow! That device revolutionized our seminary life. Being the liturgist of the seminary, it was a good rising bell for the seminarians. Whenever I am all dress up for the morning prayers, I would press the fire alarm and all those still sleeping would panic in getting up from their beds. Akala may sunog. I would run to the chapel and have a good laugh. During morning prayers, there was always perfect attendance!
***
I was not the only one who would play with the fire alarm device. It was very unfortunate because sometimes in the middle of the night, the fire device would suddenly disturb us! That is why, it was announced that we should not play with it. I heeded the rule (I was an obedient seminarian). After a month, one siesta time, while we were in the comforts of our bed having our holy sleep, the fire device suddenly alarmed. All seminarians panicked and immediately ran to the ground floor. Then, a seminarian came to calm us, “Relax, relax” he told us. “Do not panic. It was not intentional.”
I asked: “who the hell played with the fire device?” Others were already angry. The seminarian answered. “The Rector!”
***
More light moments soon…
My website http://fielsvd.tripod.com/ has brought me to level of cyber-interaction beyond what I simply planned! I created that site with the thought of bridging the gap between me and the many significant people who have been praying for me and my chosen vocation.
Fortunately, when I started to have it published and crawled by search engines, several other people also discovered my website and left interesting comments which made me also react to the highest level. Human as I am, this article is a comment on your comments:
“I AM PROUD OF YOU” – this kind of comment makes me blush! I thank the many people who believe in my capacity and who take time to be intimately connected with me through my posted anecdotes and updates. I am also proud of you. You inspire me to do more!
“CAN I DOWNLOAD YOUR YOUTUBE PRESENTATIONS?” – I am still thinking of offering a downloadable page in my website. Wait and see…
“YOU LOOK VERY HANDSOME” – Waaaaaaaaaaa!!! This comment makes me jump for joy. Yah, I also believe I am. Waaaaaaaaa!!!
“I SEE YOU ON TV” – Yes, every Sunday at ABS-CBN Channel 2 at the Healing Eucharist from seven to eight in the morning. I am always the main server. My contract as a Regent in Christ the King expires this April. So, I will only be visible on TV until April too.
“TEACH ME HOW TO MAKE A WEBSITE” – How I wish I could offer a module on web design! As of this writing, there are still four websites-in-waiting, three for the SVDs (Center for Wholeness and Holiness; The Healing Eucharist; Christ the King Wikipedia) and one for the Blue Sisters (Vocation Office). Extremely busy huh!
“SALAMAT SA PAGTATAGO NG CELLPHONE” – Obviously, this comes from a seminarian…! Since they are not allowed to use a cellphone, they surrendered it to me. They could only get it in cases of emergency and urgent matters. I also thank my dear seminarians for their trust and companionship. It’s great to be with you guys!
“NAKAKAMISS ANG PINAS” – comments from Filipinos abroad browsing my site. It is my pleasure to update you all of what’s happening in this part of the world. With the Red Man’s Site, Philippines is just a click away!
“INSPIRING” – Thanks! Whenever I see a notice in my mails that a comment has been added in my guestbook, my inspiration is doubled.
I thank everyone who signed my guestbook. God bless you. It is my own way of saying thank you for including me in your prayers. I might be very far, but with this high-technology, we will always be very near. Till next time! God bless us all!
My dear seminarians in Christ the King were all excited to attend the much-awaited sacerdotal ordination of the Yobel Class. I learned from the files of last year’s meeting that the ordination day should be alloted to witnessing that event.
Our coming to Divine Word Seminary to witness the ordination, however, was not a wonder-of-the-magic-wand kind of story. We underwent several trials before reaching the holy grounds of Tagaytay. This is our story:
Two days before the ordination, we still looked for buses to be used. We already contacted two schools but they could not lend their buses to us.
Friday came. At four in the afternoon, I was about to go to Makro for the marketing when Fr. Glenn informed me that we could not have service bus by tomorrow. Ouch! That was not a good news! Anyway, I still went to Makro but assured him that we would be looking for possible service buses.
While on Makro, I was actually worried how we could find a bus to rent. It was almost six in the evening and we were still inside the commercial center.
As soon as we reached the seminary, I immediately imprisoned myself in the telephone booth and scanned the yellow pages, dialled litany of numbers but no answers.
By seven, when I went to the seminarian’s dining hall, Fr. Glenn already informed the community that the seminarians should commute public buses in going to Tagaytay.
I told them that perhaps we could still look for a possible service bus. Since it was already beyond office hours, the best way would be going to bus stations.
Immediately after dinner, I called up our seminarians Carlo, Jerald and Rjay and in haste we went to Edsa-Taft to check out the Crow bus. We were told that they could bring us there but we have to go to their bus station since they did not have the permit to enter the Quezon City territory. That was also the reason cited by other bus companies. Rjay was right — the greatest compromise would be to rent a bus but its station should be nearest to Christ the King.
Lawton station came to our mind. Yes, buses in Lawton (near Quiapo) were of Cavite-Batangas route.
On the way to Lawton, some formators were already asking me about the bus. It added to the pressure. But deep in my mind, I was still very positive that we could find one. My companions also felt the same, and we drew out the strength from each other.
When we reached Lawton, we were not allowed to enter the bus station (did I tell you we were using FX?). So, we had no choice but to park outside. It was already past ten.
There were only two buses when we came. The first one immediately declined. The last bus offered us a surprisingly 7,500.00 for their service. It was actually very low compared to the regular 10 to 15 thousand normal range of bus fees for special trips. So, we took the deal and agreed that we only pay them 7,000.00. Whoa!
We find a bus in a "no-easy" way. But it was worth it. The memories it gave us in return were experiences of a lifetime. These moments are simply unforgettable!
check out my photopresentation about the ordination in my blogspot. Press "CTRL" and click the link:
http://fielsvd.blogspot.com/2007/02/this-is-moment-that-every-svd.html
