and because I found it, i will blog about it! Hinei Ma Tov

I have been searching for the song Hinei Ma Tov. You know the feeling when you found something that you don't exactly know the title but you just remember how it sounds like. Hay! its overwhelming as if I found a special thing that I have been looking for so long hours!

This song was special to me. I remember my childhood days. I was reminded of the kids singing in a group with their time machine and a speaking song book named Psalty  --- The Kids Praise. They used to sing this song in one of the volumes of their albums. Well, I think that is good about music. It is not only a tune that you hear but it would also bring someone back to good and bad times in the past.

Hinei Ma Tov is a Hebrew text of Psalm 133:1.

"How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!" (NIV)

More than sharing how significant this song to me, i would like to give emphasis to the message of the song. It is really pleasant to see people around the world: brothers and sisters in church, family living together in unity. In unity there is peace and there is progress. By being UNITED we can reflect the love of the Lord to other people who does not know Jesus Christ. Again, Hinei Ma Tov!

Behold What Manner of Love

I miss singing! I miss being in a choir or even singing solo, trio, or duet. If my friends would read this, I am sure they will have negative reactions on what I am saying right now.:P Its been a long time since I sing and I wanna come back! I really do!

Sad to say, I think I couldn't sing like before. When I entered college, most people doesn't like hearing me singing. It's not self-pity. Its fine with me, no problem with that because I myself doesn't like to hear my own voice. (haha) More than that, I found out that I am tone deaf. Besides, Its not on my career path and I don't have time for it. Maybe it not really my calling. (Many excuses right?) :P

I just miss singing and being on stage. Well, I still thank the Lord for a season in my life I had experienced being on the art of music. And at least somehow, I experienced joining competitions and even sing to a big number of crowd! Thank God for that.

When I was elementary, my friends Micah, Jane, and I used to join ACE (Accelerated Christian School) Student Convention in a trio, solo, and duet contest. The song that we rendered that time was entitled "Behold What Manner of Love" as trio. Here's a song from youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqvXE4BP5Ro

The message of the song is about the love of the only one God who gave us his son Jesus Christ. Now, those who accepted Him as Lord and Savior are called the son of God. We shouldn't be sad, I should be rather I must be glad!

Knock, knock! a desire to reach others?

August 4, 2011
Journal Entry
It’s Thursday, the time of my practicum is in the afternoon. Again, I have to go long hours of travel to get there at the office. I think it will take me almost two hours for me to be there. It was sunny day; the typhoon was over, Thank God!
I arrived at DFA at exactly 2:13. Our South American Division was so busy during that week. I think they are preparing for a meeting that would be held at Brazil on this month. However, even they are so busy, I was not. I didn’t do much today.
I was just asked to find some documents, photocopy papers, to get something from another office, to answer the phone, and do what I could to help them. My tasks on this day were just light but I am happy to help them.
The highlight of my day is not on the work, but on the people around me. I had a chance to talk to Ms. Nadia. Though it was not a very long talk, but somehow, I had a chance to have a glimpse of her background. We also talked about applying at DFA, taking FSO exam, and I also had shared my interests and some of my dreams to her regarding my career. It was fun talking to her. One thing that I observed about her, even though she has a tons of things to do she manage to smile, talk to different people in and outside the office with respect, and with a smile. She considers every people who needs her help. As a result she gets along well with her boss and with her officemates. I want to be like her when it comes to managing stress, and how she gets along with the people around her at the work place. By the way, Ms. Nadia is a Muslim, despite her busy-ness, she didn’t make it a reason for her not to fast. I pray she’ll know the true and only one God while she is fasting. The day was over, I logged out at 6:22 pm.

Typhoon and me at work!

August 2, 2011
Journal Entry
It was raining, the classes had been cancelled because of a typhoon but still I am not excuse to go to my practicum. As I was in the bus, all I can see was I think majority were office workers because most of them wear corporate attire, so I assume it. If not office workers, I know that they went out from their house to go to their workplaces. I think this is what differs when you are a student and when you are working. Even there is typhoon; there is no choice but to go to work. More often than not, the reason is not because of professionalism but most, not all, is because for the income.
While in the bus, I was imagining when the time I am working will I also be like them? Will my reason of going to work is about my salary or I am just being professional? Well, I think if I would work those two will be my reason.
I finally arrived at DFA at 9:07 in the morning because I went out of our house the same time I went out yesterday, so the time of my arrival is almost the same time. Again, I say good morning with a smile to Ms. Nadia, and she smiles back to me.
My task for today was to organize files according to countries and to use a puncher on the files afterwards. Looking back, I remember Coach Joannie Agawa taught us how to make it done. It was an easy task but it will test your patience. It is a clerk work, but I would not make it less important job. In fact, somehow, it is crucial because those files were needed for reference; those are important documents that must be kept. Organizing it would make our director or her assistant’s work somehow lighter. Again, I finished the tasked.
As I have said, the classes were cancelled, so Dive and I had planned to extend our time at the office. However, the clouds were so dark outside, heavy rain poured out, so the Office advice us to just go home. The Department also declared that the office hours is only half day. Everyone was already allowed to go home.
I and Dive logged out at 1:08 pm. Joy was absent; she preferred not to report to the office because of the typhoon.

Honor OAA people!

August 1, 2011
Journal Entry
(Office of the American Affairs)
It’s Monday again and I have to wake up early in the morning to go to my practicum at DFA. I was excited to work but waking up early in the morning at exactly five makes me unagitated. But still, I have to fight the feeling and reflex my muscles. This made me realized that working isn’t really a fun thing to do. The good thing about it is that you’ll get paid, but it is full of sacrifice. I think studying is better than working though.
After struggling if I have to stand up on my bed or not, finally I got dressed up and at seven I went out of our house. I came at DFA at 9: 06. Yes! I was six minutes late and it’s not a good record for a person who is representing our School and God.
I finally arrived at the office, and of course say ‘good morning’ with a smile to the people that I see. This is what you called being polite and it is done to be ethical, also to show how good your God is in your life. I asked Ms. Nadia Benito, of the things that I must do doing the day. I feel the adrenaline during that time.
She doesn’t have idea what I should do, so she told me to just ask our Director. Before that, I was sitting on my desk and I realized that I had been calling Ms. Nadia, ‘Najda’ ever since I met her; I’m calling her with the wrong name. A lesson: know and honor the people around you by calling them with their right names! Good thing, Ms. Nadia was so kind, she still talked to me nicely even I often call her with the name that is not really hers.
Enough about that, Sir Gines gave me a task: to retype, summarize, edit the grammar, and to make an outline copy of a document. I don’t know if I should mention it here, so I better not say it to be safe. Another challenge again for me to do that kind of task: to retype, to summarize, to make an outline is all fine with me, but to correct the grammar – I’m not sure about that. However, I still have to do that so I just pray and really study it and to give my best so that the outcome would be well. I finished it and gave it to my boss. Then another tasked was given to me but it was easy, I just have to continue retyping a document. After all the tasks, Dive, Joy, and I logged out at 12:02 pm. It was a fulfilling day; I had done something that I never did before.

THE benefits

July 21, 2011
Journal Entry

This is the highlight of my week. I had a chance to see our very own Vice President Jejomar Binay. This is what I am saying that it is a great privilege to be an intern of DFA. You will have a chance to meet dignified people. More than that, you will somehow feel that you are part of what they are doing. On that event, I also met the Ambassador of Washington to the Philippines, others are General Consuls, Ambassadors, and ABS-CBN and GMA reporters like Mariz Umali.
What happened was, Ma’am Joc called me last Wednesday evening and asked me and my friends to come to DFA at 7am. We were assigned to help on the registration of an event on the Policy Making of the heads of the consular post for our Kababayans abroad.
The meeting took from 9am-6pm. There were consuls invited to speak, there was an open forum, a bureau of immigration speaker, and of course, our Vice President. The topic was focused on human trafficking and other issues of Filipinos abroad.
During the meeting, there was also morning snack, lunch, and afternoon snack that we also had a chance to have. While the Ambassadors were eating, there was a chorale from DFA that sang and entertained them. What a very nice day. I am looking forward to more events at DFA.
Joy, Dive, and I logged out at 5:05 in the afternoon. We were so tired that time. However, the day was very fulfilling and it made me wonder about my future career. I was encouraged at the same tome challenged! I said to myself, someday we the diplomats are going to meet again.

The consequence of being LATE

July 19, 2011
Journal Entry
On the second day, I was late. For that, I missed going to Malacañang (The lesson: I should not be late again). I regret that I missed seeing the President of the Philippines.
So Joy and I stayed the office. I was asked again by our Director to retype two documents – to make a soft copy of the Model Extradition Treaty and an Agreement between Federative Republic of Brazil and __________ on Mutual Legal Assistance and Criminal Matters. The files were already an existing document and I was asked to retype it directly to the MS Word. It took me five hours to finish it. Joy helped me in retyping the other document: The Agreement between Federative Repubilc of Brazil and ________ I am just thankful that my director is kind. He didn’t pressure me to finish those documents. However, I finished retyping the Model Extradition Treaty and passed it to him.
Well, what I did even though it took me 5 hours to do it is so tiring. However, I am happy that somehow I contributed even a small thing for the Philippines. Imagine, I made a soft copy of a draft of a treaty from Brazil that would be reviewed by our government. I thank God for that.
I was just hoping now that I would be able to increase my skills more like simply as typing so that I would be able to help the office to work more efficiently and effectively. I logged out at 3:26 in the afternoon using my DTR. Dive came back from Malacañang with stories about her experience. And I together with Joy hoping that there would be another chance went home with Dive with happy thoughts that the second day of our ‘on job training’ was over.