A beautiful poem to end the year with

Barely 48 hours from now, we will, as usual, ring out the old and ring in the new (please do so without lighting firecrackers).

It’s the time of year when a little reflection won’t do you and I any harm. It can even be cleansing. Try it. Good for the heart and for the soul. It can make you feel lighter and brighter, too.

To help us along, I’m printing a beautiful "alphabet poem" contributed by Herschel Juinio of San Jose State University, San Jose, California, who, if you recall, last year also sent Funfare an inspiring poem about Mother Teresa.

"This is one of the nicest and most beautiful uses of the alphabet that I have ever seen," wrote Herschel. I agree. "I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Whoever came up with this ‘poem’ must have had some divine guidance. Very impressive!"
"Although things are not perfect
Because of trial or pain
Continue in thanksgiving
Do not begin to blame
Even when the times are hard
Fierce winds are bound to blow
God is forever able
Hold on to what you know
Imagine life without His love
Joy would cease to be
Keep thanking Him for all the things
Love imparts to thee
Move out of "Camp Complaining"
No weapon that is known
On earth can yield the power
Praise can do alone
Quit looking at the future
Redeem the time at hand
Start every day with worship
To "thank" is a command
Until we see Him coming
Victorious in the sky
We’ll run the race with gratitude
Xalting God most high
Yes, there’ll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Zion waits in glory...where none are ever sad."

Herschel ended his letter with some kind of a prayer that goes...

"I am too blessed to be stressed!" The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.

The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything. Love and peace be with you forever, Amen.

Nice thoughts to end the year with, aren’t they?

Retreats by Fr. Corsie for 2004

A lot of Funfare readers have been asking about Fr. Corsie Legaspi’s healing schedule. This early (and don’t tell me I didn’t remind you), Funfare is putting out the schedule from Jan. to March, 2004.

A new four-storey building now stands at the crossroads of Binakayan and Kawit in Cavite, overlooking the national highway, which has become the hub of retreats conducted by Fr. Corsie as part of the activities of the Coming Home Retreat and Meditation Center.

The Center was founded in 1997 by the Pinagpalang Kamay Healing Ministry Cooperators, Inc., a sister organization of Fr. Corsie’s Pinagpalang Kamay Healing Ministry. Since then, it has been successfully conducting two-day retreats for terminally-ill patients every month.

New retreat modules have been lined up for 2004 to include not just the terminally-ill but also the emotionally distressed and the spiritually adventurous. Retreats for the first quarter of 2004 are as follows:

•Healing the Wounds of Separation (Jan. 24 and 25), a retreat for men and women struggling with emotional pain of separation. It is designed to help participants work out their repressed grief and anger in a safe, non-judgmental setting calculated to arrive at acceptance, healing and hope for the future.

• Retreat for the Sick and their Caregivers (Feb. 28 and 29), a retreat for terminally-ill patients and their loved ones (or their caregivers) with the aim of enlightening patients on the subject of death and dying, helping them cope with the later stages of terminal illness, and ultimately teaching them how to die with grace. Thus awakened, patients learn to live a fuller life for the remainder.

•Spiritual Empowerment Through Meditation (March 27 and 28), a retreat for men and women seeking a deeper spiritual life. There is such a thing as "spiritual faculty intelligence." Once awakened, this takes on a guiding role in directing life choices. Meditation awakens the participant to vision and values, making him deeply honest with himself, causes him to be reluctant to inflict harm, and helps him become keenly aware of the meaning of his existence. Meditation also helps to recapture the ability to see life with utter simplicity, as through the eyes of a child, and experience the Divine Presence in a personal way.

(For inquiries or registration, call 046-434-8759 or 046-878-0069, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. All enrollments must be reconfirmed one week before retreat dates. For more information, call Araceli Altmann Linsangan at 0917-6055428.)

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