THE HEART THAT FOLLOWS ONE'S DREAMS

Hello everyone! It's weekend and it's time for me to post this blog. :)

If only I have wings to fly, I could have flown like the pollen grains from a flower and live in a place where I could marvel at things. But reality speaks for me that whatever I do, things just happen for some reasons humankind can no longer explain. I would just have to deal with life, its mysteries and what it has to offer me because the moment I was raised from my mother's womb, learned the ABCs, went to school, and now working, it is what I call "curiosity" - "People expect great things from you", just like Mr. Olivander from Harry Potter had said.

I have been living up to my family's expectations. What they don't know is, I have been trying to become what they would like me to become. They always expect me to do great and good things. I sincerely appreciate the idea that my family is expecting me to become a very witty and intelligent person which I am proud to say I did. Logically speaking, a person is always expected to do good and rightful things. But the thing is, "why do I feel so much emptiness after doing such things?". Have I not been recognized for all my efforts? Have I not been genuinely appreciated? Or maybe, just maybe, I have not lived out to my own expectations. I guess not; I just hope so.

For Nth time, my family is always at my back whenever I need them. Through my ups and downs, they keep my afloat in this entire journey. Glad to have my mother because she is my number one supporter and provider in this so-called life. I was able to witness how she was able to raise me up as a well-groomed entity and bring pleasure in my heart with all the things that she did for me. In my life, she had been there; She is always there and she will always be there no matter how painful I treated this borrowed life.

I am so much filled with love but I was not able to realize at that point in time when I did not know what life was all about. If I will be given a chance to sacrifice my own life by giving it to somebody else, I will definitely give it to my mom. The love is so unconditional and it's like a masterpiece in a book that could never be rewritten. There are two things that I want to stress out. First is to follow one's dream while doing the rightful things. Second is, to give our parents the benefit of what sons and daughters should be. They would be happy to see how their sons and daughter are doing in their lives right now.

A THOUGHT FOR REFLECTION:
It is very important to follow your heart in the course of following your dreams but you must learn to use the power of your mind because it might trigger your downfall and it will be a very long process of recovery when you lose yourself in the process of following some irrelevant things that are not meant to happen. Learn to think not only twice but a thousand times before making such decisions in life; Being regretful will never help you. It will just continue to let you down. Come to think of it, it will just add up to your headaches. Be sure to weigh things and by doing so, you are thinking the best possible way on how to find your purpose in life - GENUINE HAPPINESS. :)

Thanks for reading my blog. Until next time. :)

MY THOUGHTS & FEELINGS: SEARCHING FOR ONESELF: ITS LIFETIME PURPOSE

MY THOUGHTS & FEELINGS: SEARCHING FOR ONESELF: ITS LIFETIME PURPOSE: Good Morning! I was 9 years old when I started feeling weird about my life doing different things comparatively to others. I did my assi...

SEARCHING FOR ONESELF: ITS LIFETIME PURPOSE

Good Morning!

I was 9 years old when I started feeling weird about my life doing different things comparatively to others. I did my assignments (except for drawing ones) on my own, I spoke for myself, I stroved for excellence. I talked to people if needed and I never tried cheating that includes assignments and examinations. In short, I am not that friendly and kinda loner. I always choose my friends. I might be talking to you nicely but befriending someone is entirely out of the picture.

When I felt that weird kind of thing, I felt the need to continue doing it. I knew at that point, a lot of people would hate me and worst curse me for being so indifferent. I already accepted that fact because I know I could not please everyone. The moment I stood up in front of them being different is already something I can say am proud of. Those moments of triumph and laugh are considered to be one of my strengths to continue life. But sometimes, it is not all about triumphs and laughs, there are failures, bereavement, fears, pains and tears. When my father had left us, my family is never complete. He was diagnosed with cancer. There was a glimpse of hope for my father because he had lived more than what the doctors had predicted. But then again, he stopped medication when he felt stronger that we never thought it would come back. I felt deprivation of my rights to continue seeing my father. What I thought was, I never doubted God's plans for me and I never asked him why He had let my father die at my early age of 14. It was really hard for me knowing that we were not that close but it was my mother who felt the hardest way on how to carry on. I have seen how she cried many times, how she had loved my father, how that bereavement cause her a lot of pains. Though life at that point was miserable, she stood for what was right. She continued what was supposed to be done and that is to be strong for us. I am glad God gave them to me as my parents. This was the start of my quest to search my own life's purpose.

I did not know where to start with, how to deal with less important things and how to deliver a well-rounded life amidst problems being faced at that point in time. There were a lot of times in this life that I thought I would give up. It was that time after my father's death that I felt like I did not need to eat a lot. So, I had ulcer and took medication for like a month or two. Due to my father's death, I forgot to focus on my studies. I forgot that I had a life to care for. The thing is, I was haunted by the fact that I never gave myself a chance to be so close to my father. There were instances of failing some of my subjects when I was in Junior Year. And because of being preoccupied of my loss, there were a lot of tardiness in school. There were even a point that my mother had to go in school to talk to our school principal because of tardiness. My mother called my attention about it and she knew what I was going through. Instead of acting like an angry mother, she showed me mercy by talking things over. And we got things going. From then on, things went great as if nothing happened. I was able to pass my Junior Year and I had promised one thing to myself - "I will do my best and will make my own mark.". My senior year was my best year in high school getting a lot of recognition from my classmates, professors and mentors. New doors were opened for me to become who I wanted to be. And I succeeded in making my dream come true - "To Be The Best That I Can Be".

The quest for searching is now onboard. College was my epicenter of success as far as schooling is concerned. Thanks to all my mentors and professors in high school who made me feel special in my own way. They never doubted that I could become someone as witty as anybody else. I outsmarted my classmates in various aspects and I finished in Dean's List on my first and second years in college. On my Junior and Senior years, I was no longer part of the Dean's list elite students because I focused more on taking summer subjects. I was predicted to finish Cum Laude but due to bad circumstances, I wasn't able to fight for what was due for me. I had let them ruin my dream at that point in time. But of course, I should never put all the blame to them. What I should have asked by then was, "What have I done wrong?". The momentum was almost there but it was altered right at that very moment of trial. I felt like I was persecuted that I was deprived of my right to become happy and tell the world that I can truly become one great person in my own way. Some of my true friends were there to console me. I did my best to fight for my right but it was not enough. I did not fight till the very end. I am glad I was able to try though. I am glad to prove myself one good reason to smile - "God is always there guiding me wherever I am and whenever I need Him.".

Can you imagine life without love? I could when I was passing through the challenges I have had in my entire journey of education life. I knew for a fact at that early stage of my life that love is only given solely to my family and friends. Love for a special someone is the last resort I had in mind while taking that journey. I was up to the challenges and I had no time to think of love because I forsee love as something that you should not only feel but your other half; And that is the person that you're going to love.

I struggled myself finding myself a job; A job that I could call mine. I mean a job that is worth of my time. It took me a year to finally find a job. And the feeling of having one is like being in love in its own concept. The immeasurable thing that could happen while being in love with your job is the time when you learn to dislike what you're doing. I had 5 jobs so far in this life. And I think I am on the edge of losing the chance of finding myself to what I call, "Happiness". So, before this thing is gone, I told myself, "I wanna go to a place where I could marvel at some things. A peaceful place I never got the chance to go to." This need of fulfilling the search for myself and my happiness and it's lifetime purpose in this life is what I have been dying to do. It's just that I never had a chance to make it happen. I have been trying a lot of way to make this thing happens in some alternative ways. It did make sense but along the way, some weird things happen that I felt like it's not really what I wanted in this life. I also felt like, I am just wasting my time doing irrelevant things. So before this life ends, I want to know my purpose in this life by means of searching myself first. Eventually, when I have found myself. Next thing is, Hello Happiness and Peaceful Life. While finding myself and my purpose in this world, the need of self divination is the most important thing for me. Without this being fulfilled, I would never find the happines that I deserve.

One day, I came across to this masterpiece by Elizabeth Gilbert, "EAT PRAY LOVE". I was able to read and understand the concept of the book. Somehow, we had something in common. Something that we want to find before the thing called, "Happiness" can be found. Some kind of a missing piece in me that I want to find that is way I am so filled with this thing to go on a journey and find myself. I can not differentiate what's right from wrong because of the fact that I am after for something that would benefit me as a person. The need to find myself is a feeling to be done. I do not want to be alone for more years. I do not want to live in misery crying each night because of unfulfilled vow. And most especially, I do not want to die without searching and finding my purpose in this so-called "LIFE".

Life is always telling me to do the right things. I am glad that I was able to grab this life and have the chance to love it. I was given this life to protect it from any kind of harm and to have it shielded from someone who wants to destroy it. The decision of a person speaks of who and what he/she is. It also speaks to him/her whether he/she loves the life that was given to him/her. How would someone say, he/she loves his life, if all the while, he/she smokes, drinks liquor, spends more of his/her time wasted. How would someone speaks about the love he/she has for life if he/she is busy doing worldly things. You know what I mean? How would someone possibly believes someone says he/she loves his/her life if he/she is taught of wrong things in the first place. See how it manages to destroy life if people are busy doing their own nasty things. They always believe that what they are doing is right for them. They were not told that what they were busy doing was immature and completely unacceptable. If you value your life just what you have always been saying, then speak for yourself. Do what is right and preach what you do. By then, God will guide you in preaching how to love life.

Life is giving me a roller-coaster ride thing from time to time especially when I am doing such irrelevant things. I am always stumbled to problems uneasy to face. And what worse, I break down in misery. I learned each day with all the things that are happening around me. I guard my own life. I value this life because God has given me a lot of chance to be happy amidst problems and failures in life itself. Share your life in its own essence and please make sure that you do the right things. It is not bad to do the things we want but we should set our limitations to what we do.

The search is not yet over. I will never find the happiness unless I am able to find myself. I will not give up life even though it takes me a lifetime to search for myself. I will always have the heart to understand what is happening with my life. Understanding the mysteries of life will help you understand the true meaning of it. I have the spirit and blessings of God to guide me in this so-called life. Thanks for reading. Love lots. :)

THE HUNGER GAMES: MY UNTOLD STORIES

Before I begin this blog, I would like to say a few words. To my mentors, friends and family, good afternoon.

To be on board and make this blog is truly a gift. I have been planning to keep an eye of my time to have this thing done but heck, time was so elusive. But here I am, this is really it!

Let me tell you a story about how I acquired the books and how I came about watching the movie.

The first time I ever heard of this was from a friend. My friends and I often call her "Klutz". It was December 2010 when she told me how great this book was from Suzanne Collins. She was dying to buy the book but she was thinking twice about buying it because she was checking her budget at that time. While she was trying to say something about it, at first I was kinda like, "Okay, not familiar". Then she said, "This book was great. Have read a lot of good reviews about this book or have heard that this book was good." And I just replied, "Okay, let me buy that when time permits." It all started there.

I had a chance to buy my collection of Ms. Collins' master piece last October 2011. Just like any other Hunger Games fanatic out there, I never thought that buying the books would provoke me to unleash something deeper from it. A few months ago, before it was announce that they were doing a film of the said series, I came across this feeling or shall I say a need to watch it if it will be filmed. So, I was surprised when I knew that they were filming the first book a few months later. From reading it, to imagination of what it's like to become part of the book itself is really hard to comprehend. What I did was to check my calendar, have my cellphone put some updates about when will this film be on theaters. It was so tiring waiting for the film on theaters. It's like you're waiting for a seed to become a tree or plant right away. I must confess, I am not an overly dramatic fan. But the book is something worth reading and that was mainly the reason why I chose to watch the movie without even thinking twice.

The trailers went on in http://movies.yahoo.com. But of course, I did a check on the trailers right away. I have found it interesting at that moment. It is really something to watch out for. Though the actors were not as great as Meryl Streep and Robert De Niro and any other artists alike, I still found my mind gazing at the thought of watching it in one of the big cinemas. I had believed that since the book was great, I had also concluded that the film will be as great as the book.

It was March 22nd when I started to be rattled at the thought of watching the movie. I remembered telling myself, "This is it!". So, I ransacked all my resources just to make sure I would be able to watch the film on that same day. Gladly, I was able to watch the movie together with my friend, Wilhelmina. My shift ended at 6:30AM and hers was 5:45AM. We really did not care how many hours we waited before we could watch it but it's really worth the wait. We even chose a particular cinema at the Gateway Mall where only 28 seats are alloted. Cool isn't it? So that was the story!!!

Watching the movie with a friend was a fulfilled feeling because we shared good thoughts about the movie and it is something to remember while I am still on my journey in this life. But it is not all about good reviews. There are rooms for improvement.

The one thing that I hated most about in my whole experience on the film was the cameramen themselves or how they went about filming it. I was kinda like thinking, "Hey, did you try to check if you filmed it right or not? or Were you really trained on how to use the camera effectively?" I was really disturbed because some portions of the film were not clear to my eyes. Pardon me but I have to say this, I hate Lionsgate. It's a personal experience whenever I watch a film that they made. Lionsgate has a bad reputation of putting up a film. I hope the next time they put up a film as big as "The Hunger Games", they really need to make it sure they can compete with Warner Bros.

The characters did well in the film. The people in the Capitol was described in the book as elites but when I had seen them on film, they were like clowns to me. But it was how the filmmaker chose the people in the Capitol looked that way. I liked most about Josh Hutcherson who played the role of Peeta's character because he conveyed the needed feelings about the character he portrayed. And he really transformed from a poor-like-scavenger to a handsome victor. There was some lack of feelings with (Jennifer Lawrence) Katniss Evergreen's character. All I could say with Liam Hemsworth who played the role of Gayle, he's adorable. There were some parts in the movie where her eyes were like in blank expressions. If I were the movie director, I could have seen that beforehand. But thing was, they did a great job.

The storyline was kinda incomplete and they changed some parts. I was looking for small details that are needed in the film though. The Capitol should have been manifested correctly and accurately. If we would compare the film from the book, Katniss acquired the mockingjay from Madge, daughter of the mayor and her close friend. I was kinda disappointed that Madge' character was eliminated from the first film. How are they going to survive in the next film? We'll let's see their brilliance out of nothing. :)

What I loved most about the film was the parade where the 24 contestants were introduced. The film has also its way of bringing the emotional side of the viewers. I cried three time but I did the most when Rue died. It was actually a lousy death because her life could have been spared if Katniss was very attentive. But that was how the story in the book went though.

The movie in general, was a wonderful experience for me. It was not perfect but it did well in some aspects. There were some minor details not included but the filmmaker was able to find a way to remedy it. There were some points that they did well but there were some as well that they missed. As a movie critic, I would give it a grade of 7.8 out of 10 for taking me to a different kind of film this year.

I hope that in the next film, it would be Warner Bros. who would distribute the film. I have heard that Gary Ross will not be the director of the second film. Glad he will not be. The second film will be showing November 2013 according to some websites.

By the way, The Hunger Games mania has just begun. I can not wait for the next series to come out. Guys, I hope that you were not bored after reading this blog. Until next time. :)

FIRST PERFORMANCE NIGHT OF SEASON 11 AMERICAN IDOL TOP 13

The AMERICAN IDOL TOP 13 FINALISTS have laid down their piece. A Whitney Houston and Stevie Wonder music archives' night. I was like, "hey, you did it well" kind of thing. A mixed emotion indeed. It was hard to tell who would make it to the finals nigh at this point in time. Just like anybody else, you already have your top pick. But I would like to share my point of view about the performance night.

Joshua Ledet sang "I Wish". I would say he sang it well. Definitely, I am not a Stevie Wonder fan but as I was listening to Joshua, I was kinda like, "Whoa, the voice was great and I couldn't wait for the next performance of him on stage. 8.2 out of 10 for that well-rounded peformance. :)

Elise Testone sang "I'm You Baby Tonight". The performance was okay. I felt like she did it her own style. It's just that it wasn't appealing to the judges. As for me, I didn't like it that either. It doesn't lift me off of the chair. I would say, 6 out of 10 for that so-so performance.

Jermaine Jones sang "Knocks Me Off My Feet". The worst performance among the boys. I don't like his rendition. Or shall I say, was it a rendition anyway? He's like out of tune. He was like he was not prepared at all. I would give him 4 out of 10.

Erika Van Pelt sang "I Believe In You And Me". I was kinda like disappointed because I wasn't expecting her to sing the way she sang the song. She didn't give justice to it. There was no effort to sing the song her way. It was like she sang the song because she needed to perform that night. Not fair enough. I was looking for more. I would give her 6.2 out of 10.

Colton Dixon sang "Lately". The performance was overall good. I wasn't expecting sharp notes from him though. If he would like to survive in the competition, he needs to alot more of his time to practice. I would say, 7 out of 10 for giving his own rendition. Good register on cam huh?

Shannon Magrane sang  "I Have Nothing". The song was not for her. I felt like she wan't even performing at all. This was the worst performance among the girls. The pitch was too low. I dont like the way she hit the notes. It's awful to hear her sing the song. I would say 4 out of 10.

DeAndre Brackensick sang "Master Blaster". I like the way he hit the notes. He sang the song naturally. As I was listening, I was entertained by him. Among all the contestants, he has good stage presence. I would give him 7.5 our of 10.

Skylar Laine sang "Where Do Broken Hearts Go". I like the way she delivered the song. She sang the song as if she owned it. But definitely, it was not as perfect as it seemed. The high notes were great but I was looking for in-depth feeling. There was more important than hitting the high notes. I just hope that next time she will deliver the song as if she's acting it as well. I would say, 7.9 out of 10.

Heejun Han sang "All In Love Is Fair". I like his way of singing the song. It was simple. Nothing extraordinary about the performance but he hit the notes. Definitely, I like it because he was able to sing the song. At the end, what's important is, how you start and end the song. I would say 7.5 out of 10.

Hollie Cavanagh sang "All The Man That I Need". This was my choice among all the performers for this particular performance. She sang the song as if she's a pro. She knows when to hit the notes. Only, I don't like the way she sang the part, "She's all I've got" line. It's like, it's not inline with the band. :) But overall I did enjoy this performance Her voice was very soothing. I would say 9.2 out of 10. :)

Jeremy Rosado sang "Ribbon In The Sky". This performer knows to control his voice from falsetto to normal to high notes. I like the way he delivered the song because it was flawless for me while hearing him singing. I would say 8.0 out of 10

Jessica Sanchez sang "I Will Always Love You". Undoubtedly, she has what it takes to stay longer in the competition. She has what Skylar doesn't have - an in-depth feeling. But I was looking for more in the performance. I would say, 8.5 out of 10.

Phillip Phillips sang "Superstition". This rocked my world when he started singing his piece. haha. Though, he was not as vocally equipped as Joshua or Jeremy for instance, he registered on cam great. The song that he sang was really for him. I would say, 8.5 out of 10.

Hollie, Jessica, Phillip, Joshua, Jeremy, Skylar, DeAndre, and Heejun are my top 6 in the competition as far as that performance night was concerned. :)

But basically, I like Hollie, Phillip, Jessica, Joshua, and Skylar. :)

A TRIBUTE FOR WHITNEY HOUSTON

Hi guys! A great sunday afternoon to all.

I was trying to think of  a topic to discuss in my blog when suddenly I have read a bad news about a music legend. So, I was like shocked why the heck this thing happened. So, I checked for more information just to be able to understand the cause. I stopped for like a couple of minutes to reminisce the greatest time of her life. A life that was only given to her. Let me refresh your mind with her achievements and how she was able to captivate the hearts of millions of people around the globe.

Who would not know that this African-American Singer could break in to the music industry? Who would not know her for her songs, "Saving All My Love For You", "Didn't We Almost Have It All", "Run To You", "All At Once", "I Have Nothing", "I Wanna Dance With Somebody", Where Do Broken Hearts Go", "One Moment in Time" and the never ending hit, "I Will Always Love You"? You can always pretend to unnotice it, but you can never fool yourself about her success and music prowess for the last three decades of monster hits.

WHITNEY HOUSTON was born on August 09, 1963. The third and youngest of the 3 siblings. She was destined to be a professional singer because her mother was a gosper singer together with her mother's cousin, Dionne Warwick and godmother, Aretha Franklin are notable figures in the music industry. She had gone a lot of vocal lessons and solo performances before her big break. She started making it on the music scene when she had her self-titled debut album, WHITNEY HOUSTON. It was released a month before I was born. Funny it is that she was making it big before I was ever born. If I remembered it right, this was the album that made her an exceptional artist when she received numerous praises from well-known magazines like Rolling Stone and New York Times. From that moment on, her life never stopped to grow or let's say progress from being an ordinary person to being an exceptionally great artist or what they call a "SUPERSTAR". The album was considered to be her milestone because it gave her first Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Female Artist for the song, "Saving All My Love For You". She received more awards aside from it. Her second album, WHITNEY was also a huge success though it was not well-received by some critics and said that the material was too similar from the previous album. Though some critics might have thought the album was quite similar to the first, Whitney's success was overflowing because the album had sold more than 9 million albums in the US alone and 30 million albums worldwide. The third and fourth albums were made after her huge success from the two albums. A relative success was again pursued in these two albums with numerous awards. Progress within progress just happened as the music icon became mature. She got her first acting role in 1992 in the film, "The Bodyguard". It was well received by the critics. The movie's original soundtrack, "The Bodyguard", won the 1994 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Its lead single, "I Will Always Love You", became the best selling single by a female artist in music history. Houston continued to star in movies and contribute their soundtrack, including the films, "Waiting To Exhale"  in 1995 and "The Preacher's Wife" in 1996. Success never misses a thing because the word itself is inline on her name. But as they say, success never stays.

We had seen her success over her music talents and overflowing movie offers, but she also had her downfalls in life. As they say, every person does not only succeed, just like anybody else, Whitney had her time of failures in life. After years of roller coaster-ride controversy, Whitney finally sought separation from Bobby Brown. After being married for 14 years, they got separated in September 2006. Good thing was, the court granted full custody of their daughter to Whitney Houston after the divorce was finalized. Life moved on for Whitney, after being out for a year, she released her fifth studio album, "I Look To You". She appeared in an interview on Oprah to promote the album. The interview was billed as "The most anticipated music interview of the decade". The interview was candid that Whitney admitted of using drugs with her ex-husband Bobby Brown. It was unfortunate to know that a superstar was out to abuse herself of using drugs. After years of unnoticed on concert grounds, Whitney embarked on a world tour entitled, "Nothing But Love". Some poor reviews and rescheduled concerts brought negative media attention. Some were speculating that the fans were disappointed in the quality of her voice. But it was said that the world tour was a triumphant comeback for her.

As far as I know, that was the last news I have heard about her. I was shocked and speechless when I heard the news on Television that she's dead. ABC News said,  "her last publing sighting was this past Thursday when she appeared disheveled and like disoriented in from of a Hollywood nightclub.". According to the Hollywood Reported, Whitney was involved in some type of argument with X Factor finalist Stacy Francis that same night at an event. She was reportedly acting "belligerent". It was Febuary 11, 2012 when her publicist Kristen Foster revealed that Whitney Houston had died from unspecified causes of her death. There was no confirmation as to how she died but she was found in the bathtub in her room  at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. An autopsy will be carried out to determine the exact cause of death.

The music industry is totally hurt upon knowing her death. Her family is in great pain right now. I know how it feels like to lose someone you love and go with this whole process especially that Whitney Houston is a celebrity. A celebrity that had captured the hearts of many people. She had always been a great artist. A voice that we always hear on the radio. A morning tune that helps us forget our problems at some point. May we always learn to remember her songs.

Whatever the reason was, facts remain the same, we could never bring her back. All we can do is reminisce the past moments of her life. Life can put us to different heights. It can lead us as high as the sky but it can bring us as low as the ground. It's not bad at all to do whatever we want in this life. But mind you, we should take careful steps of our actions because it could lead us to some sort of things and it might be out of our control. Before we know it, we're dead. It's not bad to enjoy life, but we must set limitations to all the things that we do. If we do, we can definitely have a harmonious and peaceful life. Remember to take good care of your borrowed life. Love and share it with the one you love.

Wherever you are, you will forever be cherished by the people you helped out and inspired. Wherever you may be, we will miss you WHITNEY. :'(

Till next time.