Wrapping Gifts is spelled as F - U - N

Everyone likes to receive gifts. Everyone likes to be surprised. However, not everyone likes to wrap gifts.

And because not everyone likes to wrap gifts, it is either they will give the gift as it is, not leaving an element of surprise. Or they will ask someone from the "Gift Wrapping Station" to wrap it for them, willing to pay a certain fee just to escape the hassle of wrapping gifts.

So, I asked two people about their opinions in gift wrapping -- a crew from a "Gift Wrapping Station" and a customer.

Q: Why do you need to wrap your gifts?

Crew: Para po mas may effort. Kasi alam mo na pinaghirapan mo yung pambili nung regalo. Mas masarap kasi yung feeling na nagbubukas ka ng regalo.

Customer: Kasi nakakahiya pag ibibigay mo sya as is.

Q: Customer, why do you bring your gifts here? Don't you like wrapping gifts?

Customer: Ang hirap. Nahihirapan ako, kasi nalulukot yung wrapper tapos parang ang pangit ng pagkakabalot ko. At least, dito presentable.

Q: Crew, what do you feel when you wrap gifts?

Crew: Masaya po. Kasi nafee-feel ko yung joy nung nagbigay at nung tatanggap ng regalo.

So after interviewing both of them, I shared what I am going to share to all of you. GIFT WRAPPING WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN.

Huh? Really? How?

Before answering that question, let me first introduce to you the ones behind making me say such a statement -- Hallmark Philippines. Hallmark Philippines is the one who produces our all-time favorite well-designed greeting cards and they cater greeting cards for different occasions -- from womb to tomb, even the sweet nothings, they have it for you. They also have some scrapbook-ing materials which I hoard most of the time.

But this time, let us hear them ROAR as they "re-vamp" themselves with their "Mix and Match" collection that will cater different products that will fit your special needs for a particular occasion. And because we are now in the "-BER" months, Hallmark came up with a Mix and Match collection for Christmas.

And last October 28, Ate Maricel Mendoza of A Sweet Cottage had a collaboration with Hallmark Philippines for a Bloggers' Exclusive Launch of the said collection at Commune (Heads up: Commune has found its new home at Polaris Street).

What first caught my attention was the buffet table -- not full of foods but full of gift wrapping materials (signs of a hoarder). Plus how it is beautifully arranged. (OHA!)

Buffet Table of Gift Wrapping Materials

But of course, what really made me happy was meeting new friends, especially the generous people of Hallmark.

(L-R) Ms. Peachy, That's me!, Ms. Helene, Ms. Maricel, Ms. Audrey, Ms. Mansy and Ms. Patty

But, what I really loved the most is that Ate Maricel shared to us her passion in gift wrapping and how she maximizes her resources and how detailed she is when it comes to giving gifts. And we also had a chance to practice our gift wrapping skills using Hallmark's Mix and Match Christmas Collection.

Here are some of my photos:

How can I turn you into something awesome?

Maybe working on the floor can help me turn these into something awesome.

And I just did.

Admittedly, I had struggles. Especially, I have "water-bender" hands meaning, I am having spasms most of the time that is why I had a hard time doing the challenge. But over-all, I enjoyed the gift wrapping exercise.

Yaaaaaay! I had three. (insert SUPER SMILEY ACHIEVE face here)

How can I just stop saying thank you to Hallmark Philippines and A Sweet Cottage? I went out of Commune with a hope that I can still improve my gift wrapping skills and with brand new learnings. Plus being able to drink Commune's great Cafe Mocha and Cupcakes -- HAHAHAHA!!! (Sorry, matakaw lang). Bringing home lots of gift wrapping loots is just a bonus.

At the end of the day -- buying gifts, wrapping gifts, giving gifts and receiving gifts will always be a part of our Filipino Christmas Tradition. It is always be in our hands how to make our gift giving special and how can you make it a memorable one -- not only in giving it but also involving your family in wrapping gifts.

Gift wrapping can be F-U-N.

Just take it easy and

make it a family tradition

to wrap your gifts together.

Recession of Appreciation

We live in a world that forgets to appreciate things -- whether it is a small or big thing. We live in a world that forgets to say "thank you". Anyway, before I go through this blog post, let us check how does my friend, Merriam Webster (hashtag NAKS!) the word appreciation.

an ability to understand the worth, quality, or importance of something.

Let us try to dissect some parts of the definition given to us to have a deeper sense of understanding.

An ability. An ability is something we possess or something that is inside of us. It is like we have the power to do something because it is our nature to do it. Example, we are designed to walk because we have a feet while the snakes doesn't have a feet that is why they do not have the capability to walk.

To understand the worth, quality or importance of something. To understand -- to perceive something because of having an idea of how it is. At this point, we have an idea of the worth or quality or importance of something. Example, you will not judge a person by its cover because you understand the golden rule.

Sad to say, there is now a recession in everything, including appreciation. And sad to say, we cause something to depreciate just because we fail to do our part at least to say thank you or at least to say something positive maybe to a person or to an art (music, food, coffee or the nature itself).

I do believe that every single thing here on earth wants to be appreciated. And I do believe that the reason why there's depression is because we don't make it a point to appreciate a person's beauty -- that we always allow people's flaws to be more visible. GOD CREATED EACH ONE OF US WONDERFULLY AND BEAUTIFULLY -- ISN'T IT ENOUGH TO APPRECIATE SOMEONE'S BEAUTY OR WORTH? I think so. I can even say it is more than enough. We are too forgetful that everyone has a flaws and those flaws, most of the time, makes us human. Why not start to appreciate a family member or a friend's smile or eyes or remind them that THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL. 

Artists like me needs appreciation. When you compare our works to our fellow artists discourages us. Why? Because we don't promote competition -- in real life. We encourage people to pursue their passion -- no matter what it is because pursuing your passion draws you closer to your purpose in life. Those people who haven't found their passion, just keep on finding it, and once you found it FOLLOW IT. DO NOT GIVE IT UP. Remember, living this life is not hard. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE. Stop living a life full of competition -- that life's a bore and it sucks.

How can I say that living in a competition sucks I LIVED THAT LIFE FOR SO LONG AND I JUST CANNOT STAND HOW IT HURTS ME AND THE PEOPLE AROUND ME.

Even coffee shops compete with each other and all of them claim that they serve the best coffee because they use the best coffee beans. Well, maybe at some point, that is how really business works. However, I believe that everything, even coffee making is an art and it is a form of art. Crafting a good coffee or a coffee that is very good to a person's taste buds is not an easy task. That is why I do not really like comparing each one of them but I have to admit that I have a favorite coffee per shop -- will it be fair enough? (At least?)

Don't you know that what you just read is an introduction of what I wanna share today? (Sorry for that intense introduction. Hashtag PEACE.)

Since I just mentioned that coffee making is a form of art. And I also mentioned that we live in a world that lacks appreciation, I am so happy, and my heart is jumping for joy because a place slash coffee shop slash cafe named Recession Coffee in Eastwood City is now OPEN. 

I love their "Pay-as-you-Want" system. That as you order your cup of coffee, he cashier will ask you "How much would you like to pay for coffee, Ma'am/Sir?" and to help you decide, they have a list with funny descriptions, depending on how much you will pay for your coffee. And no matter how much you pay for it, they will definitely serve you an excellent cup.

They serve good pastries as well.

My cuppa of FLAT WHITE

Why do I love the said system? Simply because I am sure that it tests a person's slash a customer's way of appreciating the craft of making coffee slash a great latte art. Also, I believe that it will make us realize that at the end of the day -- every cup of coffee is worth appreciating and the way it can be appreciated is to set a good price for it. And it also works with my craft -- calligraphy.

However, in real life, setting a price is not applicable to appreciate a person. Maybe, the best way to say that you appreciate a person is to thank him or her for being authentic. Do not measure a person's worth by how much does he/she earn or by her achievements because those things are temporary and it doesn't make a relationship last long -- but the heart does.

You can cheer a person up (just like how this cup of coffee cheered me up)

Make it a habit to tell people thank you.

To express your appreciation,

sincerely and without the expectation

of anything in return.

Truly appreciate those around you,

and you'll soon find many others around you.

Truly appreciate life,

and you'll find that you have more of it.
- Ralph Marston

Be Grateful = Be Blissful

I recently started my "The Gratitude Project" which I was able to do faithfully but I was not able to share it to my Social Media followers. I felt guilty about it. I actually prayed to God and said sorry. But He reminded me that IT IS GOOD TO HAVE A GRATEFUL HEART despite of the things I am going through right now.

"Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Maybe you are going to ask me why I still need to do so. Honestly, I wanna inspire people to thank God despite having a bad day. However, I realized that being grateful must be a lifestyle. Writing it down is just a helpful tool for us to be able to practice it.

So I persistently prayed to God. I prayed that He will give me means and ways to start this project and do it in a larger scale. So I thought, sharing it on social media would do or putting it up as a status on my Facebook would fulfill my agenda. But having it as a lifestyle actually did -- and maybe that is the larger scale that I really need to achieve.

But, I realized that having it as a lifestyle is not only the larger scale I was aiming for. Why? Because having a group of people who will do the same as I do it encourages me more to continue living a lifestyle of gratitude.

And last September 19, I met 18 people with different life stories but has the same passion to learn BLISSFUL JOURNAL WRITING by Martine de Luna of Make it Blissful.

The event was a partnership between The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's Brew Your Best Year and Make it Blissful. And for us to be able to get an exclusive invite, we are asked to submit an artwork that is related to "Visualizing your Dreams" and this is the artwork I submitted through Instagram and through mail as well:

A quote by Ralph Marston

The reason why I chose this quote is because this quote encourages me to dream that I am living in the world where my dreams already happened. Why? Because whenever I think that they will happen, they really happen -- maybe not in the way I want it but the way God wants it to happen.

So the event happened last September 19 at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Bonifacio Stopover. Finally, I was able to meet the very wonderful woman who communicates with me everytime, Ms. Nella Lomotan (just a sidenote: check out her very beautiful Instagram feed @nellal) 

 

Lyne (winner of our mini-competition), Ms. Nella (the beautiful girl with a long hair) and of course Martine de Luna
(c) Brew Your Best Year

So Martine started to explain what is blissful journaling and she even emphasized why journaling is important, she also shared some of her tools of trade as she puts the important part of her life on a journal.

And she even selflessly shared some of her Blissful Edition Passion Cards, Gift Paper Book and her Washi Tapes. And we are blessed to take home one Sunday Paper Co's blank notebooks and a lot of new learnings.

And I will share those learnings on a separate blog post.

Sharing my photo dumps during the event:

Our tools of trade plus a surprise gift from The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf

Martine is so generous to share us some of her Washi Tapes and Gift Papers

A healthy sandwich from CBTL

Starting the day right with CBTL's Brewed Coffee

Martine is such a wonderful mom. She brings her beautiful baby girl Krista Valentina to her speaking engagement and she is really behave

Why Krista?

Grabbed my cup of Hazelnut Iced Blended plus our healthy snack, CBTL's best seller -- Banana Chocolate Muffin 

The official photos are uploaded here: Brew Your Best Year x Make It Blissful: Creative Journaling

go hard after the things that make you happy.

go after what you want. FOLLOW YOUR BLISS.

Intense Feelings

My last blog post was about my reflections in life plus my perspective of perfection. And after posting and promoting the blog post on my social media, I received a violent e-mail regarding the post.

The e-mail was like this:

I do not like you. I do not like your God. I do not like your concept of perfection. If your f*** God is real and perfect He must make everything perfect. If He cannot make my life perfect, He is not perfect and He is fake.

After reading His entire e-mail, I just cried. I fell on my knees and asked God for help. I do not know how will I answer him. I am so afraid and I just do not know.

God was indeed faithful, He reminded me of Psalm 56:3

Psalm 56:3

When God gave me or I must say, reminded me of this verse, I prayed for Him the courage to reply to the email. I prayed for the right words as well and lastly, I prayed that I will be able to answer his questions based on the Truth.

However, I forgot to pray for His perfect will. So I went on my knees again and I prayed for His will. So after praying, I decided to open my email and there he goes again, flooding my inbox with his opinions against Christ.

The state of my heart after reading his email -- undecided, sad, in short clueless.

Honestly, I just replied a short message to his emails "I respect your opinion. I pray that you respect mine as well. I would rather die believing what I believe now than to die not believing at anything after all."

So, I kept on praying and focusing on God. I am praying for His will. I was even at the verge of deleting the blog post. But I do not have a peace at all -- so I never did.

The next day, I checked my email again and he sent me a very long message. He told me the reason behind him hating God after reading his message, I was able to understand where he was coming from. However, I did not expect him to say sorry to me because he was really trying to debate with me that there is no God. And I did not expect him to ask me "Why are you so kind towards me?" So I bravely said "because there is a God. Without God, I could have killed you or I could have hacked your account and expose how you shame me. But because He taught me grace, I chose to respond to you in this manner." 

After some time of exchanging emails, I praise God because those intense feelings of tension and threat are now an intense feelings of happiness, excitement and hope.

Happy for him having an open mind and heart to know Christ.

Excited to see him have a personal encounter with Christ.

Hopeful that God will change him from glory to glory.

THANK YOU LORD! Indeed you turn our mourning into dancing. You turn our anxiety to praise. To God be the Glory!

I pray that you we will all choose to respond than to react.

We love because

He first loved us.

- 1 John 4:19

Perfection bore our Penalty

I believe that our Creator is a perfect One. I also believe that the universe is friendly. I believe what the Bible says in Romans 8:28

"He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good."- Romans 8:28

God could just press a reset button every time man fails to do His will. God could just re-create this world the way He wants it. God can actually make us as robots if He would want to. God can control us BUT NO. He actually gave us the free will to do all the things we want to do. He gave us this free will to choose who we want to be. But, we are not free to choose the consequences of our wrong doings.

Wrong doings? Yes. Why are we still here if the Bible says in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death? Also, why are we still enjoying this life if the Bible emphasized in 1 John 5:13-17 that ALL SIN not some but ALL sin leads to death. I believe that even if the end is good but the means are bad, it is still considered a sin. For example, I will steal someone's idea and claim it as my own so that I can get a credit. STEALING IS A SIN AND I MUST DIE.

However, and YES! God showed His mercy despite of what we did that is why He sent His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, JESUS CHRIST TO DIE FOR OUR SINS. A perfect and innocent Lamb needs to die to bear our penalty, shame and guilt.

What's the point? In everything that we do, someone's life will be affected -- whether in a positive or in a negative way, WE ARE A PRODUCT OF SOMEONE ELSE'S DECISION. Adam and Eve was destined to do sin. Let us not blame them for what is happening in this world. Their fall was part of God's majestic plan. His love paid the price for mercy. And now what is our verdict? NOT GUILTY. With that let me share this poem I wrote few years back.

There is no such thing as perfect in this world.
That may sound cliche, but it’s the truth.
The average person admires perfection and seeks to obtain it.
But, what's the point of achieving perfection?
There is none. Nothing. Not a single thing.
That's why pencil have erasers, athletes have coaches, countries have leaders, guns need bullets, cell phones need sim cards and load, and many other more.
Everything is interdependent, things always need other things.

I don't like the concept of perfection.

If something is perfect, then there is nothing left.

There is no room for growth and development.

No place left for a person to gain additional knowledge or wisdom.

Being perfect means being the best of all.

You will never again feel the feeling of becoming better.

Do you know what that means?

For scientist, perfection only brings despair.

It's their job to create things more wonderful than anything before them, but never to obtain perfection.

A scientist must be a person who finds ecstasy while suffering from that antimony.

For some philosophers, perfection means having good life, or the intrinsically desirable life.

But can we really have the life what we desire?

Maybe we can have it but can it last?

When you seek perfection, you'll discover it as a moving target.

Have no fear of perfection- for you'll never reach it.

All of us failed to match our dreams of perfection.

Trying as hard as we achieve perfection, the net result of our hard work is only an amazing variety of imperfectness.

So how can we achieve perfection?

Based on these words, to be perfect is impossible.

But I've discovered that we can be close to perfection.

If we want to be smart, we stick to someone who is smart.

If we want to be wise, we stick to someone who is wise.

Same as to being perfect, if we want to be close to being perfect, we must stick to someone perfect.

But who is perfect in this world?

Is there a person who is perfect?

There is none.

They may look perfect, but they are not.

Only one is perfect, and that is God, perfection only exists in Him.

"He is a rock, His work is perfect;For all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He."
- Deuteronomy 32:3-4

His words are perfect.

His commands are perfect.

They are more accurate than any scientific calculation in this world.

If God commands something, it becomes a law of nature, and nature itself follows.

And if God commands you something, it's so accurate that you won't have to ask why for you'll know it's for your own good.

Nature is God's creation, and so are we.

Have you heard any trees to ask God why they are uprooted?

No, because God is in control.

But then, they don't have the ability to think or talk, but we do, therefore we must better understand when God says we should not be afraid nor dismayed, trust Him with all our heart and not lean to our own understanding.

You will be wise to follow that, for He is our everlasting God who created everything in this universe.

"You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, until iniquity was found in you."
- Ezekiel 28:15

We are perfect once but because of sin, we were separated from God.

That's why we became imperfect and we'll never be perfect in this world.

Seek God for He is perfect, find delight in Him.

Why seek perfection in this world? Nothing lasts forever here.

Why not go beyond this world and seek God instead?

For God is forever around.

My prayer is that we will find our rest in Him. Because in spite of the struggles we may be experiencing, HE WILL BE OUR CONSTANT THROUGH IT ALL. He is with us. All we need to do is to seek Him with all our hearts.

One of my reflections during this year's Holy Week: The cross made me worthy.

You will seek me and find me

when you seek me

with all your heart.

- Jeremiah 29:13

Courage, Dear Heart

My little booth
Photo by Ate Jam San Juan

One step at a time.

Yes.

One step. At a time.

Honestly, this past few weeks, I really feel uncomfortable. Not because I accidentally formatted my phone. Not because we didn't have an internet connection for almost nine days. Not even because of those emails I sent left being unanswered or not because of my unanswered prayers.

I feel uncomfortable and intimidated because people are keep on comparing me to other people -- especially to those who are into calligraphy as well. I do not really feel discouraged. I just feel intimidated to the point wherein I ask myself "Am I not yet brave enough? I left the corporate for this, gave up ministry opportunities, lessen my social life, I almost gave up my friends. Have I not yet given enough? Am I a coward?" 

These questions are just running into my mind. Until, finally, God reminded me of His plans for me. He also reminded me of my purpose. His words just lifted me up and encouraged me. So, I decided to let go of myself and just let God.

I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

- Galatians 2:20 (The Message)

No longer I, but CHRIST IN ME. I was reminded that I AM HIS. And everything I have, even the works of my hands belongs to Him.

I prayed to Him and gave up my plans to God. "Let Your glorious will be done, Lord. I will just take courage and follow You withe everything I've got." And indeed, His plans just happened. I just gave my everything and He is faithful -- I obeyed Him and a lot of opportunities came.

And one of those opportunities is to have my first ever art fair. I am blessed that I was able to join the Pursuit Manila Art Fair that was held at the Knightsbridge Residences last August 1. I am really blessed to be one of the merchants for the said fair.

The Official Invite/Poster

I showcased my handmade/handwritten notebooks plus some of my pre-loved artworks. At first, I thought no one's going to go to be interested but, I WAS WRONG! PRAISE GOD because I was able to meet some people that I just meet on Instagram and also, I was able to have new friends. I do not even expect that I am already an inspiration to some calligraphy beginners. Haaaaaaaaay! GOD IS REALLY AMAZING! 

Such a JOY to meet a new friend, Teacher Joy
Photo by Ate Madeleine @madzsablada

I had a tiring yet wonderful day after the fair. But, just remembering how beautiful the place was when it was filled with creative people who are pursuing their passion, it wiped away all of my worries and anxiety. August 1 will be a wonderful day for me, also, it is a special day for me.

Why? I WAS REMINDED TO BE COURAGEOUS AS I REACH MY DREAMS FOR HE IS WITH ME.

This served as my necklace for the entire day

Before, I was so afraid to sell my notebooks because I thought, no one would like it but during the fair, I received a lot of requests and encouragements. Also, I do not really want to market myself but God just allowed my works to speak for itself. And I am now being encouraged to join other art fairs. COURAGE. LEAP OF FAITH.

Do not be intimidated when you see or hear other people's success because at the end of the day YOUR SUCCESS STORY IS NOT THE SAME AS HIS OR HERS SUCCESS STORY. Honestly, I consider being able to give up the corporate world for being a full-time artist as a wonderful success. Why? Because everyone can leave the corporate world but not everyone was called to be an artist. Some were called to be a businessman or businesswoman. WE HAVE DIFFERENT CALLINGS SO DO NOT BELITTLE YOURSELF. GOD HAS A VERY BEAUTIFUL PLAN FOR YOU. SO DO NOT GIVE UP.

Have Courage, Dear Heart

LittleMsPrinter signing off for now

Take Heart, I have overcome the world

- John 16:33 (The Message)

GOOGOOHIT x LittleMsPrinter

In my recent blog post, I wrote there that I was just dreaming of having workshops and last July 17, 2015 that dream came true. And with that, I was encouraged to do more workshops next month. However, I am really blessed to be invited by GOOGOOHIT to do another calligraphy workshop this month.

The official poster

The said workshop will happen this coming JULY 30, 2015 at Croque Cafe + Bakery. It is located at Ground Floor 833 Dominion Building, Arnaiz Avenue (Pasay Road), Makati City. The registration fee is 600 pesos and that includes materials and snacks. But wait... there's more! A part of your registration fee will actually go to an outreach that GOOGOOHIT is supporting. To have a glimpse of how they support the Center for Community Transformation residential facility in Magdalena, Laguna check out this video from their mission there last May 30.

Honestly, I am excited to show you how does the front entrance looks like.

Grabbed from Croque's website. It is so artsy fartsy! Isn't it?

I am so excited to share my passion once again on July 30. I do hope to see you there. But wait! Is there a sign-up? Or can I just walk-in?

I do encourage you to sign up here so that we can prepare your materials and your snacks as well.

To know more about GOOGOOHIT's activities check out their FB Page. Also, to know more about me, check out LittleMsPrinter's FB Page or follow me on Instagram.


Once again, I do encourage you to sign-up on this click-able Google form link. So that we can prepare your materials and your delicious snacks care of Croque Bakery + Cafe.

You can also email me on littlemsprinter@gmail.com for more details.

GOOGOOHIT is a friendly community of creative types who meet for monthly artsy activities in Makati. Our events help raise funds for outreach activities both near and far.

SEE YOU ALL THERE!!!

Here's the location map going to Croque Bakery + Cafe:

YAAAAAAAY FOR FREE PARKING! Photo courtesy of Croque's website

God can do anything, you know —far more than

you could ever imagine or guess or request

in your wildest dreams! He does it not

by pushing us around but by working within us,

his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

- Ephesians 3:20