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thecookedasian beckons!

of serenity and lenten reflections

the serenity prayer

God grant me the serenity 

to accept the things i cannot change; 

courage to change the things i can;

and wisdom to know the difference.

living one day at a time; 

enjoying one moment at a time; 

accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; 

taking, as He did, this sinful world

as it is, not as i would have it; 

trusting that He will make all things right

if i surrender to His will;

that i may be reasonably happy in this life 

and supremely happy with Him

forever in the next.

amen.

reflections

if there's one word i cannot lower case when i blog, it would be God. and that goes along the pronouns associated with Him. i revere Him though i haven't seen Him. i believe in Him though I only knew Him from kindergarten. i trust Him though I sometimes doubt His intentions. i love Him like a son to a father.

never do i feel so small everytime i walk around the mall, when i step into a bus, hike to the mountains, swim to the sea. i recognize his omnipresence and omnipotence. He has a hand that touches everything, changes landscape, breathes one's head to sleep. i recognize my transience, that we are tentative. i am but a tiny speck in His universe, a dust in the wind that will soon become part of the earth.

i chose to reflect on the prayer not because i'm an alcoholic nor an addict, nor i want to be anonymous. the prayer, which has become a mantra of alcoholics anonymous, has one way or another changed their lives for the better and let them look at life at a different perspective, a brighter one. all along He carried me that's why i only see a pair of footprints in the sand. my mettle would've worn out if it were not for Him. He heals me so i can tread further, He inspires me so i know where to go.

the prayer is simple but it is universal. ponder on, search your own prayer.

have a blessed lent.

when pigs bite more than they can chew

"twelve voices were shouting in anger, and they were all alike. no question, now, what had happened to the faces of the pigs. the creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which."

the animal farm has never been the same when greed corrupted the pigs. instead, they lorded than led their minions. every decree they pass was for the convenience of their breed. contemptuous, deceitful, that's what they are. 

a striking parallelism, however, can be observed in the palace by the river with the main antagonist, napoleon, self-proclaiming protagonism with a twist. promising his minions with the good life but hard labor must be spent to deserve this while he and his ilk have already leveraged the good life ahead of the pack. the other animals could only accept their fate and hope for relief in the future. but later, to no avail. he made sure that he protects this benefit. and so, napoleon raised puppies to be rogue and rabid to impose and secure his power. it quite paid off well. all rivals are silenced and warded off from the farm including snowball, his main contender.

not to mention, the halls of batasan with napoleon in multiplicity, have an allegiance of their breed like no other. an allegiance that would extend their amenities, one that would wield greater power. and who doesn't like power? it's like the forbidden fruit of eden, when bitten it consumes you. fortunately though, there are still dignified pigs in these halls, like snowball. pardon the confusion but they still do exist.

and unlike the animal farm, the citizenry are critical and aware and would stop at nothing to defend the dignity of their nation. it will start by careful selection of genuine leaders on 2010. and any attempts to stall this should not be tolerated.

on april 13, the gates of congress will open once again. we will scrutinize these 'men' and find out where their loyalty really lie, for the people or napoleon?

it is unfortunate that while orwell was only intent to denounce stalin's ways during his time, his story seems become more apparent in his distant future and for more governments. history has his way to reinvent itself that's more potent, more infecting.

hope this nation of servants resist the tyranny of (some) public servants. let us put these pigs where they ought to be placed.

i'm thinking bacon and eggs for breakfast.

###

hence, commence!

there is a revolution convulsing

seething, longing, conversing

of part-time rants, raves from solitude 

of long walks and cerebral intercourse

a reason that breathes, a reason that yearns for meaning

there is a season that confounds, that profound

pieces of silver pennies that meld with ferrous scatter

the flightless bird claws the litter, 

oh, what useless matter

prey she is, a pawn to nature's (t)reason

--

the nail rusts without a fight

it sinks deep to hide its plight 

the slightest flick consumes the pile

orange hues dance to the wind's persistence

the ember will soon cease to glow

now the moon and stars seize the night, and warily stoop 

look up and stand up to your volition

the cheshire cat smiled yet again, or is it a smirk?

and she would like the verdict.

###

what's motivating north korea?

any time from now until april 8 perhaps, north korea will launch a rocket that will explore space. so they say. but the rest of the world are thinking otherwise. this is a missile launch in the guise of a space probe. that's what everybody think. 

this rogue state seems insatiable for world attention and it's doing a good job, so far. diplomacy has been quite an ordeal to all pacifists concerned. years of isolation from the global community does not deter them from being isolated even further. they continue to be provocative.

this latest act, only an aerial view of the rocket any country could muster, could define what the world will be getting into days after they launch. japan is readying to shoot down any debris from the rocket, america is vague as to what consequences north korea suffer should they pursue. south korea could only hope for the best. russia and china will just be watching. hmmm...

north korea proclaimed that any counter attack of the rocket is an act of war. indeed taunting. this is not the show everybody would like to watch.

let's just hope for the best. that diplomacy will still work.

but really, what's motivating north korea? why the confidence?

###

references:

http://tinyurl.com/dlvph6

http://tinyurl.com/cgp63j

ha(ra)iku uno: hayup, kumbaga!

ang asong bulol

akay-akay ni tatay

humahagulgol

ang ingay nitong

patong putak ng putak

tuloy nadulas

napariwara

itong baboy sa dampa

palaboy laboy

kibit-balikat

itong kuwagong kirat

kindat ng kindat

kanyang kawangis

ibong nakatihaya

patay-patayan

ang pusang gala

hayan na't paririto

lagot ka birdie

habang si unggoy

humahagikhik, ik, ik!

saka pumanhik

###

don't quit

by clinton howell 

when things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

when the road you're trudging seems an uphill,

when the funds are low, and the debts are high,

and you want to smile, but you have to sigh.

when care is pressing you down a bit,

rest if you must, but you don't quit.

life is queer with its twists and turns

as every one of us sometimes learns,

and many a failure turns about,

when he might have won he had stuck it out;

don't give up though the pace is slow,

you may succeed with another blow.

often the goal is nearer than

it seems to a faint and faltering man,

often the struggler has given up

when he might have captured the victor's cup.

and he learned too late, when the night slipped down,

how close he was to the golden crown.

success is failure turned inside out,

the silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

and you never can tell how close you are,

it may be near when it seems so far;

so stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,

it's when things seem worst,

that you musn't quit.

###