At the beginning...

The struggle is real.  To remember.  To go back and understand reasons.  Why this?  Why choose this path?  Why keep choosing this path?

I thought "going back"  to the beginning was to go back to where this service started.  I find the service is not the beginning but midway into the process of journeying.

The year is 1998.  20 years ago.  That renewed encounter.

I find then that the Beginning is Him.  It has always been Him.  It has always been Love.

The Beginning

1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1

A Life called to Stewardship in SEED Assembly

Last week -

pinaalala sa atin kung sino tayo
bilang GK - bagong pag-asa - being Hope
Pagpapalalim kung sino talaga tayo

Stewardship - Katiwala

Roles
1 - Anak - Nagiisang babae
2 - Kapatid - Panganay
3 - Kaibigan - Group of friends
kaklase sa ateneo, performer friends, kaklase ng highschool, roomates
4 - Mission worker - GK
5 - Leader

Most Challenging - Being a Leader

Denial of leadership - May takot

Bakit nga ba may takot?

Poverty of the Mind - inability to overcome challenges
Poverty of the Heart - inability to create connection

Poverty of the Mind -- hindi maka-usad sa solusyon dahil

1 - Lies we tell ourselves
I can't do it - hindi ko kaya yan
I am not good enough - hindi ako magaling dyan
I will fail - ako ay talunan at magiging talunan

2 - Analysis Paralysis
Overthinking

3 - The Linear Mind
there is only 1 formula

Poverty of the Heart -- hindi makapag-connect sa bawat isa dahil

1 - Walls we created around ourselves - binakuran natin ang sarili natin
Past hurts
No under-standing
Social Media (gumawa tayo ng bagong tao - yung perpekto sa social media)

2 - Relationships sa bahay

3 - "Trabaho lang - walang personalan"

Lahat ng ito ang nagbubuo ng TAKOT
Fear of leading, of being a steward

Solution - Values are not lip-service but a solution
Courage
Commitment
Competence
Compassion
Heroism
Hardwork
Humility
Honesty
Honor

When we Lead - We are forced to Good - We become Good

Courage - may panggagalingan - may hugot
Center of Courage is the heart

Taking Courage is Loving
not feeling - but giving despite the sacrifice

Having Courage is having a Strong Heart

My Courage - hinuhugot ko sa pamilya ko na tinuruan ako paano magmahal nang walang kapalit - ipinakita sa akin ang mukha ng Diyos na nagmamahal nang walang kapalit

A Life called to Stewardship is a Life called to Lead each other

Leader bilang pinuno - Taga-puno

a Life called to Unconditional Love with a Strong Heart

Anchor and Center

this is God's Work

GK is God's Kingdom
God's Kingdom is not a place
it is a state of peace
state of solidarity

Heart of our work is the community
but what it really is - the heart of our mission is the community spirit
the community spirit of bayanihan
being hero for each other

this is our anchor and our center

SEED Grad Camp

Pag-asa

Hope in my heart that everything done in good intentions will give birth to the right directions

What is it do we hope for?

Ano ang mga pinakamahalaga sa buhay natin

Madaling umasa kung nakikita - pero paano kung hindi mo nga nakikita?

Hope is about change - transformation - it is about travelling from one point to the other - it is a process - it is a journey. Hope requires commitment

Tita Celia

Hope like commitment is about the Other - never selfish - never about the self - unconditional - isang pagtataya na hindi mo alam kung may mangyayari o wala

SEED Batch 1

Regardless of the risk - we hope, we commit - commitment to hope is a life that is lived life filled - life lived in fulfillment, buhay na itinaya para sa iba ay buhay na puno, buhay na siksik, liglig at umaapaw

Personal story - GK as destination

25 y/o - Before Heaven. Started writing at 25yo but when I joined GK, I stopped writing and started experiencing

GK is not the destination - it is the process of hoping - the journey we choose - GK is not the answer to our hopes - it is the vehicle for us to unlock our capacity to hope - to have a dream. The fulfillment of our hopes is still reliant on us - on you. This is now about leadership - choosing to lead yourself - making a choice and a decision - but make the right choices and decision.

Hope is grace. It comes from a special place - our connection to our faith. It is by God's grace that we witness hope, that we feel hope. Hope crosses the line, leading yourself to where you want to go.

Farm provision 

Hope builds, hope creates.

Hope is encouraged in community. It is not built alone. Danger is the community that discourages hope, dwells on misgivings, on disappoints and failures, where the anchor of hope is not the other - it is about the other - but not anchored on the other - hope comes from our center - our core.

My brothers in GK

Tita Fe

So - What do I hope for - ano ba ang mahalaga sa akin?

My hopes have changed from the self to the community

I hope for land for the landless

I hope for home for the homeless

I hope for food for the hungry

I hope for light for those in darkness

Hope is a transformation

Hope is about commitment

Hope is a process

All hope is grace. So it creates, so it builds.

Hope is real in community

For me - Hope has a name and it is each one of you. As we are community of hope - this is where I draw my hope from - from each one of you.

Ang buhay na walang pag-asa ay buhay na walang dahilan, walang direction, buhay na nagwawala.

Challenge

Hope is made real because it is heard

Solidarity Assembly - Make your dreams come true - honoring God's gift

 

My dreams were simple.

Finish school and help my parents.

My parents' dreams were simple.

Get my kids to finish school.

Every single day was towards that simple dream.

Studied very well, was a good kid.

Did not get mysef distracted.

My ultimate crush was my date to my highschool prom, text text and he asked me out a few times.

But my dream was my higher purpose. 

I had a simple dream.

To finish school and help my parents.

 

Ateneo was hard, all my classmates were all top students of their schools.  I was class salutatorian of my class but classmates also were.

Did not get myself distracted with competition.  I studied very well and always gave it my best shot.

I never got into the honors list, but that did not distract me.

I had a simple dream.

To finish school and help my parents.

I love performing, and I thought was very good at it. I could sing, I could act and I could dance.  and in the performing world - that was the best recipe.

I was entertaining the thought of auditioning for cheerleading but it had a lot of practices.

I gave up dancing in highschool because my parents said it could not put food on the table.  Mag-aral nalang daw ako mabuti.

I had a simple dream.

To finish school and help my parents.

I gave up singing very early because even if I wanted to be a classical singer, I could not read notes. I was in the Ateneo Glee Club. It was a choice of learning how to read notes or studying for my accounting exam.

I had a simple dream.

To finish school and help my parents.

I gave up musical theatre because when I tried doing it professionally, it could not pay much and it could not help my parents.

so I did not allow myself to be distracted.

I had a simple dream.

To finish school and help my parents.

So I did - I finished school and helped my parents.

So I discovered my simple dream gave birth to other dreams, my brothers' dreams.

Because I helped my parents send my brothers to school.

My brothers finished school and also helped my parents.

My mom's dream to have a grocery cart full to groceries became a reality.

My mom's dream to fly with benefits of a flight attendant became a reality.

My mom's dream to go to Maldives became a reality.

And it all started with a simple dream.

Dreams direct reality. Hindi siya predictor of reality, but serves as a compass for the reality we choose. 

 

Dito din tayo nagkakaroon ng reality check, ano ba ang meron tayong hawak na pwedeng magamit to make our dreams a reality. 

What are our strengths? 

What are our interests? 

Big dreams to be in Pinoy Big Brother or become the Voice are good but are these yours?

Start with simple dreams.

Sinplicity of the weekend.

Dreams are reflections, like mirrors, they tell us how we look at ourselves.  Malaki ang tiwala sa sarili, malaki ang tiwala sa katuparan ng pangarap. Usual exercise of looking into a mirror and asking yourself - how do I look at myself?  It might tell you how your dreams will come true.

Choosing to find joy in our dreams. Even in the midst of 

Jerick's story.

I have a simple dream.

For others to see their simple dreams become reality.

This is my gift.

In a lot of sharings and processing sessions with SEs, I would always share about dreams and how important it is to be the starting point.  

All entrepreneurs should start with that singular dream.

But I have found out we have emphasized through the years is the WHY

While we dream, it is important to go back to our WHY

One - this is our anchor point.  Everytime we get lost - we need to go back and be reminded of our WHY - otherwise we can never come back.

Anchor - CENTER.  Dito tayo nangggaling.

Simple dream

Finish school and help my parents - no matter what.

Like all families, we encounter challenges.

For my family - it was being the second family.

Fighting for the simple dream became a challenge.

At some point - I became a parent.

I was the family's breadwinner.

I was my mom's ally - become the disciplinarian.

I had to project that I was stronger.

For me and my brothers we fought for our dreams.

Everytime I get lost - I go back to my family.

Show family photo.

Last year - my father decided to reconnect.  Show family photo with dad.

Show video of the engagement

He fought for his dreams.

Week 1 Value of simple dreams.

Week 2 The journey of realising our Dreams is filled with challenges so we search for our anchor, our center, that always brings us back to our dreams.

Week 3 Fighting the dream killers of hardships, doubt and fear.

Week 4 Race to the finish. Value of our dreams is not in the destination but in the journey, the process.  The race that unlocks who we are.  The race that allows us to be grateful for support, our family. The race that rewrites who we are, our capacity to be faithful to the dream, the promise.

Courage to Commit

- let go - face your fears - this life is not ours

- fulfill a promise

- families

Commitment

1 - having faith

- process of becoming

2 - despite bad times

- long-term

4 - about the "other"

Letting Go - being a control freak

Prayer Journal - May 2010

These prayers led me here - it was about having faith - commitment was about having faith

Commitment's different faces in my life

- my brother disappointing us - he lied to the family saying he was going to school 

- there was this boy from work - i did not feel he had the capacity to commit

A commitment needs to be said - and have faith that it will be the process of becoming

My perfect example of commitment is my mother - during a fight with my father - mothers day special

- Tajen calling - IT IS WHAT IT IS

Commitment is long-term - it is despite of the bad times

Doing the farm is a test of my commitment - whether I was capable - 

Jumping jobs

Then i met the farm

Different times I was a witness of commitment

- Shanon during summit and malolos

- tita celia

- tita aida

- tita tess

- auie and max

- billy

- fabien

Commitment was about myself - but the farm taught me that it was about the "other"

In the farm I realized Commitment is about Shanon, Abby, Loleng, Tita Jen, Rob, Rad, Jeth. 

A commitment needs to be said - and have faith that it will be the process of becoming

Commitment is long-term - it is despite of the bad times

Commitment is about the "other"

Commitment to Family - Pagpaparaya

Commitment to God and Country - unconditional

Solidarity Assembly - Luis O

 What is the title of your book

Solidarity is about hope

Hope is not done alone

GKEF or SEED or GK is not our final destination

Hope's anti thesis is discouragement

Source of discouragement is

Circumstance that will lead to despair

How can hope be real in time of despair

Solidarity is about hope

Hope is not done alone

Being a Builder of hope is about leadership

Solidarity happens because of leadership

Hope is not dependent on your leaders but you

Being good is not good enough

Solidarity happens because of leadership

Leadership is refusing to do it alone

Leadership is about service, accountability, build an authentic community

Solidarity Assembly 5March2018

 Seven ways to be daring

1 stop being scared of looking foolish

2 give yourself permission

3 start before you thibk you're ready

4 constantly push against your comfort zone

5 be unconventional

6 do something you think you can't

7 hang out with daring, bold, and audacious people

Sharing Stories

 https://open.spotify.com/track/0G83uoJhOytmXMMKezC0Yd

Over the holidays, I was reminded of a sharing I wrote back in 2012, to an almost different set of people in the management team.

It may have been a different set of people and challenges back then, but the same spirit echoed then and echoes now - the beats of a thousand hearts to the same drum.

In one of the homilies last year, the priest said Good Soil determines a bountiful harvest. This was what he learned he says, in working with rice farmers. He mirrored this experience with how we have chosen to live our lives. I was challenged with the question then whether I was Good Soil - whether I can bear fruit - whether I can bring about a harvest? Travelled around Bicol, in search for answers.

I realized some things - it was not only whether it was Good Soil - it was also about the right quality of seeds, the right fertilizer inputs, the weather conditions, the time of the year, and the farmer deciding whether it was time to plant. I knew in my heart it was time - a time to plant - a time to start the farm again. I was deadset, insisting it was time, BUT my time is not God's time.

I learned the value of a process - that I needed to respect the process of preparation, amidst challenges and adversities.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

In a visit to a church in Baths in 2009, I received my first heartbeat - written on the holy water font at the entrance of the church - it said - "I have called you by name and you are mine" Isaiah 43:1. This started my faith journey in search of a path that will fulfill this call.

I am still on the same path, despite the challenges and adversities. I have found brothers and sisters side by side treading the same terrain together with me, whether it was easy or difficult - the beats of a thousand hearts to the same drum. My compass still points to the only True North. As sure as the sun rises, I know God will keep lighting the path.


From: "Joni Gail Morales" <jonigail.morales@gmail.com>
Date: Dec 24, 2012 07:52
Subject: A Merry Christmas to everyone!


A Merry Christmas to everyone!

Yesterday was interesting for me. My friend recommended that we visit the Wong Tai Sin Temple because it has been said that whatever it is you pray for in that temple, it will be answered. I was naturally curious - why do they believe? Entering the temple is a god standing on top of a dragon, claiming victory for slaying it and walking further is a company of statues lined up like in a chess set with animal heads, seemingly preparing for war - which I'm assuming are the warriorlords. Walking a bit further is the praying place where all the believers flock to ask their questions and to pray.

This past year, my prayer has been for constant strength - strength of mind and strength of heart. Sabi nila na everyday sa farm ay parang bayani challenge - where you are asked to make the impossible happen. I have no hesitations in agreeing with this. Sa bawat pagreklamo ng mga tao na walang tubig sa farm - na hindi makakaligo o makapagtoothbrush man lang - na walang tubig para makaluto ng kanin para sa isang libong tao - na hindi makapagpatubig sa mga pananim o makapagpaligo ng baboy - hindi po ako tubero at hindi rin ako ang water district - lalong-lalo na wala po akong superpowers to summon the waters of the great seas. BUT one thing I was sure I had - the team. I had the team who supported me in each and every challenge.

When it was the first time we had a hundred guests in the farm who devoured more than we can handle and needed to wash piles of dishes, kahit na hindi nila naging toka, all the kalinisan nanays jumped in to help the kitchen staff clear all the dishes and clean-up. When it was the first time to organize a wedding in the farm, and the grassroots kitchen floor tiling needed to finish in record time, all the foreign interns and construction workers worked day and night so we can have a dance floor. Nung nawalan ng tubig nung expo due to a water pressure problem from the water district, nag-igib ang buong team - discreetly, while entertaining guests in between igibs, so the kitchen and the toilets will have water to use. When we needed to finish a lot of construction and clean-up in the farm in preparation for the expo and we asked for help from other GK villages for bayanihan, all came without hesitation. I feel I was just not a witness to a bayani challenge this past year - I was also a witness of a bayanihan challenge - the challenge to work together with one mind and one heart.

I am grateful for what I have seen and experienced. Through the farm's lens, I am seeing the miracle I've always wanted to see - the miracle of sacrifice, of family, the miracle of love that will end suffering and poverty in this country. This is not by the strength of a few but a thousand minds and hearts having one common goal.

I may have a glimpse of an answer to my question on why people believe their prayers will be answered in the Wong Tai Sin Temple. When you know you are backed up by an army - of warriorheads - all armed and ready for war - all committed to fight and never give up - there is no reason for you not to believe. Now we're building an army and now is the time to believe.

Thank you Tito Tony for the inspiration and sharing the vision with all of us!

Ecclesiastes 3
A Time for Everything

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.

15 Whatever is has already been,
and what will be has been before;
and God will call the past to account.

16 And I saw something else under the sun:

In the place of judgment—wickedness was there,
in the place of justice—wickedness was there.

17 I said to myself,

“God will bring into judgment
both the righteous and the wicked,
for there will be a time for every activity,
a time to judge every deed.”

18 I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. 19 Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. 20 All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. 21 Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

22 So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?