King and Lesing Through the Years

Lolo Tangking and Lola Lesing's Golden Wedding Anniversary

( Felicidad Cayetano Gamo and Tancredo Aungon Fajutnao)

          What can be a more precious moment than the time when your better half enters your life? Marriage is considered to be one the most special occasion when two individuals get committed in a relationship forever. This Year, my Lolo Tangking and lola Lesing will be celebrating their Golden wedding anniversary.

         It will truly be an affair to remember because not many people make it through the first five years, let alone ten times that number. When lolo Tangking and Lola Lesing first met, Lolo lived in San Andres Romblon and Lola lived in Roma, Mansalay Oriental Mindoro.  Lolo was a small scale businessman then while lola was a simple barrio girl. ‘‘It has brought me joy and love that since our marriage, your lola Lesing has always understood the significance of our relationship, and in our family life, as she stood by me, she has been very devoted to the members of our family,’’ Lolo Tangking told me.

            They truly deserve to celebrate their fruitful marriage life. Imagine they have managed to survive a half century of life's ups and downs together. Over that period of time our grandparents builds a legacy that can't be measured in material possessions, but rather the lives they have touched through their love and faith. Learning from their story, the celebration will be a recreation of their love affair when they began their life together some 50 years ago.

       They have three children: Elcana (School Principal), Jemale (Agriculturist, Gov’t Employee) and Tancredo, Jr. (Electrician, OFW); 17 grandchildren; and 1 great-grandchildren. They raised and educated their children well and actively involved in overseeing their grandchildren.

This event is a reminder of the day on which our lolo and lola united in love to walk through the path of life with each other at all times, be it good or bad. (Shernan)

Anti-Dengue Information Drive

In an effort to prevent the surging number of dengue cases in our Barangay, I conducted  school health information drive on Wednesday (September 1, 2010) to mobilized the National perspective  in stepping up its goal on dengue prevention and control.
Salvacion Elementary School principal in Maliwanag, Mansalay Oriental Mondoro, Mrs. Elcana Gamol along with the teachers are actively joining and supporting the  information drive following the surging number of dengue cases in the country, particularly in our area where 2 mortalities were reported.
The targeted participants in the drive are school teachers and pupils, particularly those children living in the remote area where mosquitoes are prevalent.

KALAYAAN 2010

As long as the Filipino people have not enough spirit to proclaim, brow held high and breast bared, their right to a free society, and to maintain it with their sacrifices, with their very blood; as long as we see our countrymen privately ashamed, hearing the cries of their revolted and protesting conscience, but silent in public, or joining the oppressor in mocking the oppressed; as long as we see them wrapping themselves up in their selfishness and praising the most iniquitous acts with forced smiles, begging with their eyes for a share of the booty, why give them freedom?

Dr. Jose Rizal (El Filibusterismo)

Ang Pamamahayag ng Kalayaan ng Pilipinas ay ginanap noong Hunyo 12, 1898, kung saan ipinahayag ng mga Pilipinong manghihimagsik sa pamumuno ni Heneral Emilio Aguinaldo(na naging Unang Pangulo ng Pilipinas) ang soberanya at kalayaan ng Pilipinas mula saEspanya matapos matalo ang mga ito sa labanan sa Look ng Maynila sa Digmaang Espanyol-Amerikano.

 Ngayong ika-12 ng Hunyo taong 2010, ang sambayanang Pilipino ay nagkakaisa upang ipagdiwang ang ika-112 araw ng Kalayaan.

Things I Believe

I believe life is good.
I believe God is in everything.
I believe GOD created everything we know.
I believe there is no greater love than he that lays down his life to save another.
I believe that I am a member of the Body of Christ, and that He acts in this world through our embodiment of him.
I believe faith, hope and prayers are very powerful weapons
I believe there is a soul mate out there for you
I believe we're all equal.
I believe we can help people.
I believe everyone is weird in their own way.
I believe saying smart things and giving smart answers are important. Learning to listen to others and to ask smart questions is more important.
I believe that when I meditate I feel peaceful.
I believe we should be generous.
I believe brothers and sisters should be kind to each other.
I believe that happiness is a decision and learning to make that decision is a huge part of the reason we’re here.
I believe kids should respect their parents.
I believe I should not whine.
I believe people should wake up early.
I believe people should go outside more.
I believe in nature.
I believe people should use less trees.
I believe we should CONSERVE the natural habitat and rainforest animals.
I believe people shouldn't throw litter on the ground.
I believe people should not smoke.
I believe everything happens for a reason.
I believe in magic.
I believe dogs are preferable to cats, but that kittens and puppies are equally cute.
I believe people should not give up.
I believe love is everywhere.
I believe in asking yourself, do I have enough? Do you really need more money, power, prestige, or stuff?
I believe that God helps us to have a good time.
I believe we live best in a community.
I believe in learning how to fight as if you are right and listen as if you are wrong: It helps you develop strong opinions that are weakly held.
I believe we can protect people in danger.
I believe we should help the poor.
I believe that no one should be denied health care or education for lack of money
I believe it's OK to die but not to kill.
I believe I can work smarter, not harder.
I believe you get what you expect from people. This is especially true when it comes to selfish behavior; unvarnished self-interest is a learned social norm, not an unwavering feature of human behavior.
I believe war should not have started.
I believe war should stop.
I believe we can make peace.
I believe that the best test of a person's character is how he or she treats those with less power.
I believe in the saying “Do onto others as you want them to do onto you”
I believe forgiveness goes a long way
I believe regret is a wasted emotion, learn and move on.
I believe honesty and sometimes silence is the best policy
I believe that pets are good for your health.
I believe only a dog wants a bone.
I believe I can concentrate on what I can do, not what I can't do
I believe on following through on promises
I believe sometimes the best management is no management at all -- first do no harm!
I believe indifference is as important as passion.
I believe that the weaker the argument, the louder the voice.
I believe in organizational life, you can have influence over others or you can have freedom from others, but you can't have both at the same time.
I believe "Everyone else does" isn't a reason; it's an excuse.
I believe children are not born as blank slates to write upon. People are born with their basic personality and temperament. I've seen too many good people who come from bad families, and bad people who come from good families to believe different.
I believe God put that itchy spot on our backs, just exactly where we can’t reach it, to encourage us to be nice to each other.
I believe I work to live, I don't live to work.
I believe minds are like parachutes; in order to function properly, they must be open.
I believe that the intentional celibacy is unnatural.
I believe you can't successfully nor ethically legislate morality.
I believe knowledge is power.

ULING

Haiy…Natatanaw ko na naman ang makapal na usok na nanggagaling sa bukid sa likod ng aming kabahayan. Naamoy ko ulit ang nasusunog na punongkahoy at halaman sa kagubatan. Kelan ba matitigil ang pag-uuling at pgkakaingin sa lugar namin. Hihintayin pa ba ng mga tao na magaya sa ibang lugar na tinabunan ng lupa mula sa bundok bago ito bigyan ng pansin? Kalbong-kalbo na ang mga bundok, halos wala na ring malalaking puno at tila walang ginagawa ang mga kinauukulan upang ang mga ito ay mabigyang lunas.

Pag-uuling (Coal mining via burning of trees) and Slash and burn farming or kaingin continues on the mountains of Oriental Mindoro despite the arrests and cases filed by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) against those involved in the highly destructive method.

I observed the lack of forest guards as one of the reasons why the effort to prevent slash and burn farming failed. There should be one forest guard for every 1,000 hectares according to the law.

They are now having some kind of a cat and mouse game. The moment our forest guards are away, the mang-uuling and kaingineros (slash and burn farmers) will strike. They cannot sustain their presence because forest guards are very few.

Pag-uuling and Slash and burn farming is highly destructive because it burns even young trees and destruct natural resources.

I hope that after the elections, the local government office would request the national government to hire forest guards to help in forest and ecological protection.

This is my simple advocacy for Environmental awareness and Greener Philippines.

~Shernan Fajutnao Gamol

Photos taken at Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro

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WHAT IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES?

God’s love. We all have them. Only we don’t always act on them. How many times have we wanted to say, share or be something but just sat back and let the opportunity pass? These are some of the realizations I have all throughout the training for victory.

I really wanted to share the word of God everyday, but at the end I am no better than the person who didn’t think it and didn’t do it. In fact, I can do it but I fail to do speak not because of my inability or even lack of opportunity, but rather my lack of initiative, commitment and compassion to lost people. This training made me realized that God’s Love is within us, waiting to be shared. Sometimes our love cup is emptied, not because of overt cup emptying, but merely because no one cared enough to fill it. I know, it’s much harder to love someone than it is to merely beat them. In fact, no one ever really wins. The truth is that Love – and only Love – wins. Our love is not to be measured by the minimum of what we can do, nor is it to be limited only to those who appear deserving. Our standard for real love is that God because He first loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins and we have no reasons not to share it.

I’ve always asked God how can I impact other people’s lives through his love.  God had given me quite a strange answer to all the questions I’d been asking Him. Since then, I’ve known that it takes only one person to make a difference. That one person starts a chain of discipleship. He or she may directly impact the life of only one person, but that person may pass it on, and it can travel the world. One action is just one action. But it can light up the way of others for years. I believe that we only have to respond to the challenges to become extraordinary. The lives of countless ‘ordinary’ people who said ‘yes’ to the challenge change the course of history. By saying ‘yes’ and carrying it through, God made them greater than what they were. They became at the very least, ‘extraordinary’.

At the end of the day, I pray I could declare that “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith, henceforth there is laid for me that crown of righteousness…[2 tim 4:7].

V-Ubelt Training for Victory

HAGIS BARYA

Sa tuwing uuwi ako ng Mindoro, hindi mawawala sa eksena ang mga kabataang sumisigaw ng "hagis barya" pagdaong ng barko sa pier. Mahuhusay lumangoy ang kabataang ito. Animo'y nagmamakaawa na hagisan man lang sila kahit konting barya. Hanga ako sa kanilang galing sa pagsisid ang paghuli ng barya na wari'y lamang dagat kung bumulusok paibaba sa kalaliman ng dagat.

Sa aking paghihintay sa pagbaba ng bangka, sumasampa ang ilang kabataan sa gilid ng bapor, marahil sa tindi na rin ng sikat ng araw. Halos kulay sunog na nga ang mga balat nila. Marahil, iyon na ang ikinabubuhay nila. Minsan pa nga, kasama pa nila ang maliliit na bata.
Gamit ang talento sa paglangoy at pagsisid: “Kuya, hagis barya kayo diyan!” ang sigaw nila. Namamaos na nga ang iba sa kanila. Habang ang ibang pasahero ay aliw na aliw na humahagis ng barya, naisip ko na ang baryang inihahagis mo sa dagat ay s'ya nilang ikabubuhay.

Keeping the Hope Alive

Have you ever asked yourself the question “Kaninong buhay ang babaguhin ko?" or “Why am I here on earth?”’. For me, it can only be good to open the repository of joy, share to others and refill it once in a while. Some people fear doing this kind of act because they are suspicious of the concept. They somehow believe that there are people who can do it better or they don’t simply fit with the situations, as if the very act means the abandonment of their career, duties and obligations for themselves. I’m always moved by the efforts of the many good people who have responded to the call for help of other. I catch myself choking on my tears whenever I see or read about the great suffering of many and the heroic compassionate work being done by people to alleviate the pain of others, giving them hope. It is truly awesome and inspiring.

I believe that we only have to respond to the challenges to become extraordinary. The lives of countless ‘ordinary’ people who said ‘yes’ to the challenge change the course of history. By saying ‘yes’ and carrying it through, they became greater than what they were. They became at the very least, ‘extraordinary’. Being one, do not necessarily mean that you’ll be popular, rich or whatsoever, it only depicts the fulfillment and joy that once in you life you became a blessing to other people. Di naman kailangang mayaman ka para makatulong o maging extraordinary, yung talento, malasakit, oras, at pagiging inspirasyon mo ay mas malaking bagay para mabago ang buhay ng iba. Material thing fades, but hope never abandons you. I’ll be the happiest person in the world if someday, at least one person will approach me and said “Thank you, you touched my life”. That's why I'm grateful that I have been blessed with a great circle of friends and relatives that definitely are my support system and act as my crutches in times of need. They are the “extraordinary” in my life.

I know that when I am happy, I am able to imbue situations I find myself in with happiness and even share it with everyone. While there is something good and heroic about giving and sharing to others, I know, in the end, it is simply sustainable and that’s why I will do it not just once in a while but in every situation. Because, when we replenish the well-spring of the goodness from which we shower the world with, we feel better and more empowered. And we must not forget that the hope we give to ourselves is a necessary ingredient if we are to fulfill our obligations and duties to others with joy and with constancy. I remember someone said that you can live for 30 days without food. Eight days without water, and about eight minutes without air, but never for a second without hope.

At the end of the day, we can mess up all we want and as often as we want, it’s our choice. But one thing we can be sure of is there are events, people and missions thrown our way from time to time that open our eyes and remind us that there is good in us, and in everyone. To all of you, who have made a difference in my life, thank you! To my friends and family, I don't get around to saying it much, but you know how much I love you. Ever since I decided to live up the compassion of reaching out the needy and serve others, not only I found a renewed vigor, hope and spirit in living but also an enthusiasm for the work God and found it to be joyful and priceless.

With hope, anything's possible.  Without hope life is meaningless.

Learning From Experience

When you're biking down a gravel-strewn road and you slam into a tree, you learn something. You learn for example, not to look at the cute girls or guys on the sidewalk, but instead pay attention to the road. When you're strutting leisurely along the corridors of your school and you fall flat on your butt, you learn something. You learn not to daydream while you're walking to the library.

Obviously, we can learn lots of things from our everyday experieces. it may not be everyday that we experience something extraordinary. But it's everyday that each of us is molded into what we will be tomorrow.  

Once memories have remained and years have formed every fabric of your being, you realize that growing up has served its purpose.

Somewhere in the Middle

Have you ever been somewhere you didn’t want to be? Maybe it was a job, a town, or a marriage. Maybe it was a stage in life, like singlehood, or a state in life, like a disability. It’s very possible that as you read this, you’re wishing you were somewhere else – anywhere else – living a different life, but you know it’s not likely that anything is going to change any time soon.

It’s the same word he gave a group of people when they were stuck in another country, exiled from their homeland. They’d folded their arms and said, “We’re going to wait this thing out, and when we get home, we’ll start living our lives.”

Don’t invest your energy in hopes of leaving; instead invest your energy in the people around you. The Christian martyr Jim Eliot expressed it this way: “Wherever you are, be all there.” Don’t be physically present but mentally somewhere else, thinking of the future or the past, thinking of someplace else. Our journey with Christ requires that we be fully present in the present.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer called it “this worldliness,” and said, “It is only by living completely in this world that one learns to live by faith.” This focus allows you to see that your life is centered in God and not the place you live or work, not the person you’re married to – or not married to – not how you feel or how you look.

Investing in the people around you is exactly how you find life. So it was God’s plan all along to push them to the edge of their existence, so they would end up centered solely on God.

You may feel like you’re in exile too, but God is still working in your life; and his message to you is: Dig in and fully embrace the life around you.

Center your life in God, not in your circumstances. God is constant; your circumstances are temporary. Ask God, “What do you want me to learn or to do in these present circumstances.”

Change me, God – Instead of asking God to change your circumstances, ask him to change you in the circumstances.

Practice being in the present – Today, whenever you find your mind drifting to another place, bring it back to the present, and ask God to help you stay in the present.

Determine to be a good steward of what you have, instead of focusing on what you don’t have. Make the most of what God has given you.

Whom can I serve?

Whose needs can I meet? Where can I serve? What can I give you? Why are you doing that all by yourself? Who needs something that I can give? When do you need me? Are you OK? Can I get you something?

What’s common about all these questions? They are all seeking a way to serve without waiting to be asked. We were put on earth to make a contribution, but no assignments are given out. Part of serving is looking for and finding the need so you can do something about it before it becomes an issue.

A lot of this is in how we think. It’s all about becoming other-conscious versus self-conscious. Being self-conscious is what happens without any effort. It’s the natural human way of going about our lives. Becoming other-conscious is what happens with some effort and the Spirit of God to empower us.

We were not made to go at it alone. We were made to serve each other so that in community, we all get our needs met. It’s a little like saying, “I’ll scratch your back, and you scratch mine,” but more complicated in that we are all gifted to meet each other’s needs in different areas and different ways that only the Holy Spirit could arrange.

It’s the consciousness that is the key. That and the commitment that once we become aware of a need we can meet, we will immediately do something about it.

It’s always been interesting to me that he didn’t tell us to go out and do good. He said to be eager to do good. That means we are consciously aware of opportunities to serve. If you weren’t thinking along these lines you might miss all kinds of opportunities to serve. But anyone who is eager to do something is looking for it.

If you’re eager to go fishing, you’re going to be looking for the next free day on your calendar. If you are eager to play tennis, you will be on the lookout for a suitable partner to play with. In the same way, if you are eager to do good, you will be keenly aware of opportunities to serve others as they arise. It’s all in our awareness.

You might want to go over the questions again at the beginning of this blog and see if anyone comes to mind as you go through them. Then make a plan to reach out to that person in some way. And finally, think about how you can get into an other-conscious groove. Anticipate needs. Be eager to serve. Ask God to bring these things to mind at all times, that becoming aware of those around you might become a habit you just can’t shake!

Eliminate Negative Self-Talk

Long before psychology came around, God said your thoughts determine your feelings and your feelings determine your actions. If you want to change your life, you've got to control the way you think.

Our minds are really an amazing creation. It would take a computer the size of a small city just to carry out the basic functions of your brain. Your brain contains over one hundred billion nerve cells. Each individual cell is connected with ten thousand other neurons.

In addition, you're constantly talking to yourself--all the time. Your mind is talking to you! You're talking to yourself right now. Research indicates that most people speak at a rate of 150 to 200 words per minute, but the mind can listen to about 500-600 words a minute. That's why you can listen to me and plan today's dinner at the same time.

In fact, our internal dialogue--the conversation we have with ourselves--is at a rate of 1,300 words per minute. How? Because our mind sees in pictures, and you can see a thought in a nano-second!

The problem is a lot of us are like Job, who says, "Everything I say seems to condemn me" (Job 9:20 GN). He is saying, in effect, "Everything I say puts me down." If you are typical to the human race, you are your own worst critic.

We're always putting ourselves down. We walk into a room smiling, but inside we're thinking, "I’m fat. I'm dumb. I'm ugly. And I'm always late!"

God wants us to stop putting ourselves down. When you put yourself down, who are you really putting down? When you say, "I'm fat. I'm dumb. I'm ugly. I'm no good. I have no talent," you're really pointing to the Creator who made you. When you say, "God, I'm worthless. I'm no good. I can't do anything," you're saying, "God, you blew it with me." That's why God says it's wrong to put yourself down.

How do you eliminate negative self-talk so you can become a more confident person?

The Bible teaches the principle of replacement:

"Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right . . . Think about all you can thank God for and be glad about" (Philippians 4:8 TLB).

In other words, don't think about all those weaknesses in your life. Focus on who God wants you want to be and on what God wants to do in your life. I don't know any better antidote to low self-esteem (or to facing your hurts, habits, and hang-ups) than to read God's word every day: study it, memorize it, meditate on it, and apply it in your life.
There isn't a better thing you can do to raise your confidence level than to start believing what God says about you. As I read through the Bible, chapter by chapter, I find a verse that speaks to me. I write it down on a card, memorize it, and then I start affirming it back to God. "Father, thank you that I am valuable; I am significant; I am forgivable; I am capable." Let God renew your mind because "your life is shaped by your thoughts" 


(Adapted from Purpose Driven Connection"

The Best Investment

"The best investments you ever make are investments in yourself - and your education. Those investments always pay big dividends." - Donald J. Trump


Oftentimes people ask me what is a good investment? How to invest in real estate? What business makes is profitable? I always answered back that I do not give investment and business advice because we do not have any relationships yet. I only mentor those in the core team.

In the core team we do not give cheap advice. The information we got and the system we are using can make any ordinary person wealthy and achieve time and financial freedom from zero to 3 years. We give mentoring because we have done it and succeeded.

OVERCOMING THE NEGATIVE

OVERCOMING THE NEGATIVE

Quotes to keep you going:-)

“Man's greatest actions are performed in minor struggles. Life, misfortune, isolation, abandonment and poverty are battlefields which have their heroes - obscure heroes who are at times greater than illustrious heroes.” -- Victor Hugo

"People become attached to their burdens sometimes more than the burdens are attached to them." -- George Bernard Shaw

"We were not created to be eaten by anxiety, but to walk erect, free, unafraid in a world where there is work to do, truth to seek, love to give and win." -- Joseph Ford Newton

"One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn't pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself." -- Lucille Ball

Bringing Pleasure to God

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men" (Colossians 3:23 NIV).

When I first fell in love with my wife, I thought of her constantly: while eating breakfast, driving to school, attending class, waiting in line at the market, pumping gas—I could not stop thinking about this woman! I often talked to myself about her and thought about all the things I loved about her. I felt close to Kay even though we lived several hundred miles apart and attended different colleges!

Just like my love for Kay transformed everything I did, love for God can transform every activity of our daily lives.

Martin Luther once said, "A dairymaid can milk cows to the glory of God." Does that strike you as a strange thing to say? How can an "un-sacred" chore like milking a cow be an act of worshiping God?

Worship is far more than church services with singing, praying, and listening to a sermon. Worship is anything you do that brings pleasure to God. The Bible says, "The Lord is pleased with those who worship him and trust his love" (Psalm 147:11 CEV).

In the Bible, people praised God at work, at home, in battle, in jail, and even in bed! Anything you do can be an act of worship when you do it for the praise, glory, and pleasure of God.

How is that possible? By doing everything as if you were doing it for Jesus and by carrying on a continual conversation with him while you do it! The Bible says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV). And then: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men" (Colossians 3:23 NIV).

The Message paraphrase says, "Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering" (Romans 12:1).

Worship is not a part of your life, it is your life.