Rx: a cherie a day

the ventilators were not particularly menacing at work, one night.  even the telemetry monitor showed no more than occasional bigeminies. 

i had just finished my last rounds and my paperwork, with plenty of time to spare before blood draws, the next turning, and more patient care.  i was wanting to read.

brandy, our unit secretary, was kind enough to lend me, and later give me, a devotional book, from where i not only got snippets of God’s wisdom but was overwhelmed by  stories of His magnificence, in man-made structures.

have you ever known this, for instance:

that the us capital has architecturally designed structures, that regale visitors with a panoramic view from the Washington Monument?   the White House stands to the north, the Jefferson Memorial to the south, the Capitol to the east, and the Lincoln Memorial to the west.  the most powerful city in the world was designed as a perfect cross.

and on top of the Washington Monument, the centerpiece of the nation’s capital are these latin words: Laus Deo, meaning ‘Praise be to God.’

indeed praise to our God, the God of all creation, of magnificence, of all-encompassing love!

i was in awe, in my little nurse’s corner, of the architects who came together to put such meaning to their design and structure.  and to think i’d been to washington so many times and paid no mind.

how apt that they referenced the Bible as the cornerstone of their buildings, in this country’s capital.  is it to remind us that God is watching over the greatest country in the world?  is it to tell us, that no matter the state of the nation,  to always put God above all things?

laus Deo!  may our liberties remain unshaken, our nation continue to live!  may the voices or four score and seven years ago and yonder be always heard and not fall on deaf ears!

laus Deo!  may justice prevail, especially for the 911 victims, in the effects of the bailout plan, in the endless politicking for personal gains!

laus Deo!  may equal rights and the preservation of dignities find their way to everyone’s heart.  stop the atrocities to children, the people of different sexual persuasions, the immigrants, the poor, the women!

laus Deo!  and may peace reign in this land of plenty, and extend to other shores!  may the awesome and deeply meaningful beauty of those structures translate into different languages and bring the message of loving our neighbor as we do Him!

laus Deo!  and may He bless us all!

good boy po si kuya.  he is one of only 4 in his class of 25 who made it to the AIG (gifted daw po)  program - a black girl and boy, and a white girl, and him.  they have ‘advanced’ lessons with an AIG teacher every wednesday.  i just find it amusing.  marami-rami rin kaming kakilala dito from different schools na AIG din mga anak nila, at bibihira ang Pilipinong bata na hindi nag-e-excel sa klase.  kahit hindi sila AIG, usually above average pa rin.

sobra lang dami homework.   but he likes it, he says.  so sana, ma-maintain naman ng anak ko.  sharing lang po.

aj having a meltdown because i said no to gum

power has its ways.  can you just imagine -the richest of the rich honchos themselves are the ones asking for a bailout.  with this financial aid (at the taxpayer’s expense) allowing them to sort of go scot-free with their pockets brimming full of cash (ours), with no accountability, what happens to the ordinary guy living in  an ordinary street? 

we can’t afford to declare our own bankruptcy because nobody will even notice,  ergo, no bailout for us.  will there be enough cash for money lenders, though, say, for those who want to buy a house?

will there be enough money left  for healthcare, even?  i wonder how this will affect cost and supply, the general care of the sick, and just the mere affordability of it.

what in the world is going on?

a patient can have gazillions of diagnoses on admission, and even during the course of hospitalization.  one person almost always has a history of maybe 5 or more of the commonplace ones like:

COPD

pneumonia

hypertension

diabetes mellitus

myocardial infarction

plus maybe 5 or so again of an assortment of others too technical to mention.  working in acute care, i thought i’d seen it all.  until one got me stumped, and sent me smiling to the nearest computer:

restless leg syndrome

while matthew was in school, i riffled through his papers on his desk at home, and found this.  all the words,  from the title down,  are his. 

the hot day poem

the water is

hot.

the sun is

hot.

the light is

hot.

what can the weather make hot?

summer.

to explain.  a few months back, i started to post something here,  and deleted it mindlessly,  hoping to repost at a later time.  too late the hero.  when i opened this page next, i found a poem under Comments!  haha!  one thing led to another.  thank you, dear friends!  i almost ‘lost’ this, too, as it was the only one among my blogs i couldn’t move from the old blogpage.  thank God for husbands!  mine saved my day, my precious collection of verses, and me.

enjoy!

Monday, June 23, 2008
——
————–error————-
will post something here later…..
 
Monday, June 23, 2008 | Permalink
                            
Comments
I came upon this cyberspace
To see what’s on this writer’s place
And like a ghost i chose this night
To make a post before you write.
I shall come back a day or two
Retrace this track to bother you
But not until I leave a trace
Before you fill this empty space!
aaloverajr.

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 25, 2008 11:40 AM
haha!
then oblige i will in the swiftest fashion
lest the knight desert the space in question!
Posted by: Cherie | June 25, 2008 01:07 PM
Please save this space
To your friends who race
This empty place
Soon will be filled with grace!
Hehehehe
Posted by: Betchay | June 25, 2008 08:30 PM
a maid has wandered, what a sight!
a beauty to behold in flight!
i might concede to leave this corner
for all you painters to make over!
Posted by: Cherie | June 25, 2008 08:52 PM
Alas, too soon Cherie has spoken !
Sun, stars and moon, her vow is broken !
So shall this space unto this day
will be a place, no words can stay
But this my spell can be undone
I’d like to tell ‘tis just for fun
For even then this is her blog,
She’s chooses when she wants to log!
aaloverajr.

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 26, 2008 09:16 AM
Oh this is neat, yes this is nice;
A pleasant treat, what a surprise!
Now Betchay’s in - she’s in the roll
Where have you been, dear precious doll?
aaloverajr.

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 26, 2008 09:19 AM
i do so want to log, dear sir,
that henceforth this truth be made clear:
this Road once mine, is now yours, too
to paint with hues of green and blue.
dear betchay, thee fair maiden come!
join the frolic - be not wan!
and all who love a song and rhyme -
come! come! shining Actors of our Time!
Posted by: Cherie | June 26, 2008 10:12 AM
Glad to join this time so dear
Making our hearts grow near
It may be just a rhyme this time
Know in your heart each verse takes time
You guys are so precious and so sweet
It’s all because our trust was built

Posted by: Betchay | June 26, 2008 07:54 PM
twas but a cold stretch of Nothingness,
but now alit, alive, and warm, no less!
with yellowbells, poppies, trees so lush
a resting place for the wanderlust!
the maiden is back! she renders more color
to once a humble Garden, now of splendor!

Posted by: Cherie | June 27, 2008 12:26 AM
dare i join these bards accomplished?
wafting words from minds so akin
to Shakespeare’s adroit hand which bore
scenes on a midsummer night’s dream?
permit me then if you will fancy
the space in question fill with beauty
a “trying-hard” i may be called
oh why did i approach so bold?
’twas Cherie’s missive a challenge brought
the will to answer my thoughts have fought
the left side reasoned with words to win
the right side snubbed with the highest chin
thus lopsided my head brings forth
patterns i hope would bring such mirth
colors that shine in contagious gaiety
interweaving designs on this glorious tapestry
Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | June 27, 2008 02:04 AM
a gifted bard, a minstrel true!
what Fortunes have i dared to woo?
thy presence, sir, is sure to call
a festive gathering of them all!
Posted by: Cherie | June 27, 2008 02:24 AM
a blessed day, ‘’’’’iwin, my friend !
this leisure may I recommend;
its pleasure sweeps an arduous throng
of pressures heaped from all day long.
In short a time, I deem two days,
this game of rhyme is now a craze.
a blog post of six underscores
so swiftly have roused distant shores !

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 27, 2008 11:09 AM
may isang mamang sa isang salu-salo naanyayahan
subalit siya’y nagdalawang-isip kung ito’y dadaluhan
pagkat sa natanggap na paayaya may pasabing nakalagay
ang isusot ay dapat payak at hindi makukulay
oo nga’t siya’y palaging naka-barong tagalog
na nagbabadyang mahal na Baya’y kanyang iniirog
kaya kung sa mga salu-salong magarbo’t magara
siya’y mangimi pagkat kasuota’y kupas na’t makaluma!
….
….
….
….
Posted by: Manoy Doro | June 27, 2008 02:39 PM
my code of silence now is broken
the floodgates of my soul is open
friends, i look, and lo, a vision
of wonder and imagination
this exchange of words and ideas
will give us wings to fly and free us
from selfish thoughts that make a prison
of our creative minds that reason
our festive sharing may extend
from these islands to world’s end
peoples of every race and color
fill this space with joyous splendor
will you oblige that i invite
friends that they too may write
and join our souls in celebration
of poetry’s candor, wit, and passion?
perchance this space be limited
to Cherie’s friends so intimate
pray tell me if that fact is so
my vision then to overthrow
Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | June 27, 2008 04:01 PM
Kapitapitagang ginoo,
Salamat po sa pagdalo!
Gayak na Wika’y maningning pa sa ginto
Tala’t bintuin katumbas nito.
Paanyaya ko po’y walang hangganan -
Maaari n’yo po bang pagbigyan?
Mataimtim nating Balagtasan
Bantayog ng pagkakaibigan!
Posted by: Cherie | June 28, 2008 07:11 AM
sir iwin do ask all who chance
upon this nook for a little dance!
for thus in gaeity do we move
in perfect rhythm to the groove!
Posted by: Cherie | June 28, 2008 07:13 AM
sir alfonsoveck, my thanks are profuse;
this gathering was caused by your genius.
faithful lovers of rhyme and song,
join the mirth, here you belong!
Posted by: Cherie | June 28, 2008 07:33 AM
sirs alfonsoveck, iwin, and manoy doro!
i pale mightily before you!
such poets extraordinaire you are
i tremble to see you from afar!
in vain, i try to wax poetic
in truth, i quake - a poor mimic!
but heart, oh heart! do come, do hear!
the jubilation and the cheer!
from north to south, from east to west
everyone’s welcome to this writers’ nest!
Posted by: Cherie | June 28, 2008 07:41 AM
Whoaw, hahahahaha hands up my friends !

You guys are awesome !!!
Posted by: Betchay | June 28, 2008 08:44 AM
betchay! sweet maiden!
thanks to you, this blog is swingin’!
Posted by: Cherie | June 28, 2008 02:44 PM
Hindi ko hangad na mapagwikaan
Ng mga linyang tinukoy ni Gat Jose Rizal
Na ang ‘di daw marunong magmahal sa wika
Ay masahol pang amoy sa malansang isda
Kaya nga’t pilit inalala ang aking balarila
Binalik aral sarili nating salita
Upang di malimot ang pinanggalingan
At tagumpay na marating ang patutunguhan
Ang mga katagang binitiwan ng ating kaibigan
Si Manoy Doro na ating kinagigiliwan
Nagbigay hamon, nanghimok na tunay
Upang tayo rin sa sariling wika’y mag-alay
Ikinagagalak kong mapabilang sa inyo
Mga tapat na kaibigan, alam kong tutoo
Sapagkat may taglay naiibang talento
Na inyong binabahagi sa sinomang tao
Maraming salamat. Magandang araw sa inyo.

Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | June 28, 2008 04:19 PM
ang galing!
Posted by: Manoy Doro | June 28, 2008 04:48 PM
Salat man sa talasalitaan,
ako ngayon ay kinasihan
ang saloobin ay itala
sa angking mainam na wika.
Kay Manoy Doro’y nagpapasalamat,
sa udyok niya’y aking naisulat
sa sariling wika’t balarila
ang kaunaunahan kong tula !

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 28, 2008 10:22 PM
sa wakas…
Posted by: Manoy Doro | June 29, 2008 02:24 AM
My 12 hours gone to Uncle Sam,
This owl now needs nocturnal balm.
This vagabond longs for the moon,
but hears instead the sun’s soft croon.
So then the chirpy “Mom, can we play?”
Meets hugs and kisses and “Not today.”
Life has painful choices, true.
Now for slumber. Adieu.
Posted by: Cherie | June 29, 2008 06:05 AM
good night, fair madame
to bed, i too will hurry
thoughts of you my friends
my dreams will carry
until the dawn brings again
a new hope, a prospect
for sharing bright ideas
our lives to connect

Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | June 29, 2008 07:27 AM
Don’t wait until tomorrow -
in our dreams we do find
ideas we may borrow
from alcoves of our mind.
While in a state of slumber,
the exploits we partake
we may no more remember
the moment we’re awake !
jaaloverajr.

Posted by: Alfonsoveck | June 29, 2008 10:30 AM
do apologize for barging in
just realized there’s a party in here
couldn’t help to take a little peek
as i read well informed words and recognize a couple of faces
pardon me coz i’d been gone awhile
my mind’s a bit foggy from a weary journey
if the lady of the house will not object
can i visit next time when i’m a bit fresh
Posted by: eng | June 29, 2008 03:33 PM
Mga kababayan ko
Salamat sa paalala nyo
Sa ating wika’y isusulat ko
Katagang tinatago sa puso ko
Ako po’y di manunulat
Pagiging makata ay buhat
Sa bayang kinalakihan
Bulacan po ang pangalan
Ako’y lumisan at namaalam
Sa pagnanasang mangibang bayan
Aking napagalaman
Ang pinanggalingan laging babalik balikan.
(Aighht you guys are contagious ! LOL)
Posted by: Betchay | June 29, 2008 06:32 PM
akin pong itutuwid
dilang medyo namilipit
ako po’y matagal ding nalayo
sa bayang iniibig
di ko nais ihanay
aba kong likha kaninuman
alam kong kayong lahat
ay “guru” sa inyong larangan
pagdamutan po nyo
itong munting obra ko
maligaya na po akong
tawaging kaibigan ninyo!
Posted by: eng | June 30, 2008 12:57 AM
I chanced on this spot:
Color, shade, pigment and hue,
my attention caught
If i may impart
my little hands can imbue;
a haiku to start.

Posted by: Joseph Alfonso | June 30, 2008 07:41 AM
dear eng, a warm embrace, my friend!
our waiting game, now a mime’s end!
welcome, too, j. alfonso, lad -
a talent manifest, like your dad!
trabaho po ay panggabi
kaya’t sagot ko ay huli.
paalam na muna, pahinga -
sa tulog ko dulot ninyo’y saya!
Posted by: Cherie | June 30, 2008 09:27 AM
i’m still alive my dear friends
just busy with a few exams
but i will check from time to time
how you’re doing, sirs and madams
Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | July 1, 2008 02:13 AM
oh my! oh my! what a feast !
i am dining with nobility
forgive this humble servant for being euphoric
as I never partake in such a grand banquet
vibrant colours that paints this sheet
words of wisdom, expressions of glee
if only I can frame this masterpiece
i shall hang it in place worthy of accolade….

Posted by: eng | July 1, 2008 01:27 PM
this early morn with resolve i haste
to visit this celebrated page
and lo i saw before my eyes
a picture fair of paradise
is this an impression of our land?
our philippines so proud and grand
mayhap our host this picture post
to quiz our wits at the utmost
suffer me then to now express
my gratitude and happiness
to cherie’s endeavor for us all
running and spinning poetry’s ball
Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | July 3, 2008 02:05 PM
the pleasure’s mine, the honor, too,
that such grand poets here pursue -
a sentiment, a song, a rendezvous -
such skill, such gift granted but few.
feel free whenever, fly and soar
bask, and soak in poems galore!
this empty lot of heretofore
thank heavens, is empty no more!
Posted by: Cherie | July 3, 2008 02:35 PM
have we all our task concluded?
has cherie said the final round?
i hope not, because words are endless
and topics of the world still abound
awake, my friends, from your stupor
sharpen your wits once more
for me this day is just beginning
let’s fill it with words of color
Posted by: ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ iwin’ | July 29, 2008 02:36 PM
No wonder why I was pulled this way
To this place that has long gone astray
Our dear Sir Iwin paved the way
Tickled our fancy and shouted hurray.

This gathering of great soul & mind
Like brothers and sisters each we find
This place is a refuge for us to unwind
A force so strong that pulls and binds.

Come back my friends and make amends
Throw a line or two and lets pretend
Like a river flow of thoughts transcends
Revisit this site and meet new friends.
Posted by: Betchay | July 29, 2008 10:10 PM
back from the doldrums, my heart you’ve won -
flying, have spread my wings.
the curtain is up, the show goes on -
and on, till the fat lady sings!

ps. thanks much, kuya iwin! betchikins, wonderful, superb job!!!!

Posted by: Cherie | July 30, 2008 11:07 AM
Old friends and new
I say Hi to you
This game you play
I find so new

Yet as I thread
And openly read
No pounding head
As I retire to bed

In fact, now awake
I follow your wake
Dear friends this game
I find not lame!

Excitement fills me
As I look and see
At the lines before me
That invites with glee

Oh that I may find
The words to write
And join the game
To my hearts delight!

Till then dear Sirs
And Madams too
I bid farewell
Till my next line or two

Posted by: Tes | July 30, 2008 03:28 PM
go to sleep, my dear friend,
let the day come to an end.
in the morrow recommence
life’s journey of song and dance!

ps. warmest welcome, dear tes! you are a natural!
Posted by: Cherie | July 30, 2008 04:43 PM
Alas I returned for no reason at all
But to join dear friends in this marvelous wall
I tried to write and rhymed instead
The things I feel as I learned to thread
I thought I could never write a verse or two
For it is not a game I play to woo
I never had the talent; much more a clue
But friends have encouraged and taught me to
Dear friends I salute you for now I do
Play this game with verses, that is true!
I am not only grateful but ecstatic too
Since this page I found, I am no longer blue!

Posted by: Tes | July 31, 2008 10:48 PM
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i was reminded just recently to write on this after reading my friend marissa’s fuming blog on self-righteous people.  another friend, mel, commented something like they serve as training ground for practicing self-control.

true.    

what gets me, though, is how easy it is for people to vilify others in the pathetic hope that in doing so, the listener, who’s put on the spot, will believe that they are the good ones, and sides with them.  really, how low can people go?

kung si A at si B merong di pinagkasunduan, they should both have the decency to keep their mouths shut.  a private matter is exactly that - private.  when one of them does have the audacity to seek an audience, WE, on the other hand, should have the maturity to pretend disinterest, and say it’s none of our business.  see,  if we don’t nip things in the bud, the aggressor  feels the magnanimity of his claim and keeps going.  already, by opening his mouth, he is starting trouble.  why should we help an idiot turn a private quarrel into a social event?

but then that’s the thing.  this self-righteousness business can be a vicious cycle.  it is so easy for everybody to flame the fire by participating, not caring that they’re running the red light of friendship.  and at the end of the week, lahat ng self-proclaimed members of the better than thou corporation ay nasa simbahan, nag a-amen.  haay!

a leopard will never change its spots, maninira at maninira yan kasi siya lang ang magaling.  but, kung matalino ang isang tao, will he weasel himself out of a possibly good relationship just because yung kabilang panig e siniraan na? 

as somebody once said,  “the hypocrite’s crime is that he bears false witness against himself.”  (siya lang ang magaling)  “but only the hypocrite is really rotten to the core.”

nuff said.

so, guys, how’s it been?

these recent, ah, saaavvvvyyy, changes swirling like hula hoops before my eyes, leave me either wide-eyed, or blinking interminably, or just plain staring with my chin on my hand, in front of my monitor whenever i open my blogpage.

how, in the (already insane) world of mamahood, can i fathom all these?  much less find the time to act on them?  seems to me like i’m in a time warp.  gotta hurry this and hurry that - or bam!  posts gone!   meanwhile, innovative, breath-taking blogs paint various pages.  i visit here and there, and whoa, again, i am transfixed, google-eyed.

i am drowning, and at once also in awe.  what technological maelstrom.  i approach it as a child would the beach waters the first time, gingerly.  and yet i welcome it as i do the transfromation of day into night, with resignation.  push has definitely gone to shove, the message being we’ve gotta move,  as we’ll all  be sucked in anyways.

ah well.  let’s see.  has anything else changed?  i still do the laundry the same way, vacuum the house the same way. as far as 7 hours ago, my husband still drove the same way, which means there’s still hope for my now blurring learner’s permit.  AND my 6-year-old battered nokia still gets me connected with anybody who’s a cell phone user.  whew!  what a relief!  speak of paranoid!

man!  these friendster tech changes are getting me all squirrelly!  my conformist self wars with my  doggedly conventional.

i was the first one among my friends to notice or at least voice out the new look on friendster, and much like a person who feels something ’funny’ in her body and consults a doctor, i am constantly imploring the help of all powers that be, which means all of you in the know - and, because he has always been on-call on my most desperates, st. jude, the patron saint of the clueless.

meanwhile, a glimmer of a resolve.  gotta schedule sitting on this sometime.  maybe between marinating the chops and cutting aj’s hair.  or something.  without burning the house down.  as this is a feat that’s guaranteed time travels to eons unknown, and therefore equally guarantees this traveller getting stuck, snagged, or maybe even detained forever somewhere.  a bummer, really. 

however, there’s no raising the white flag.   yet.  with luck, i might catch up before menopause.

alas, age is catching up. no matter the countless trips to the parlor, the daily before and after shower rituals, there’s no denying the times.

my son likes to pull out my white hair, and he doesn’t stop until the one he’s holding is plucked out of its root. there isn’t a lot now, but it only takes one to send me on a mad dash for that new best friend of the vain - the ol’ reliable tweezer. matthew was at it at one time, when he made a pronouncement: i can’t believe i’m doing this!

puzzled, i said you’ve been doing it.

he said, no mom, look!

i looked. he was taking a particularly tenacious white hair out with his teeth.

(hahahahahaha!)