I am an artist

I am an artist. I am meant to create art. Artistry is in my blood, in my family line.

When my Lolo Andy was alive, he would stay in his room and type away what I thought were legal documents for the cases he was working on. On the night of his funeral, I learned that he wasn’t slaving on legal documents one-hundred percent of the time but was composing poetry, essays and stories most of the time.

His written art were all about family, virtues, integrity – things that his heart was full of. I could sense his struggle to be a light in a very dark and gloomy world. I could taste the pain he felt when trying to cope with the death of our Lola. I could even feel the warm embrace of love he had for his loved ones. His literature was so alive and real.

While drinking from his cup of words, I felt my soul trace its roots back to him. Part of my identity was revealed. I am part of a song that my grandfather composed in his most authentic moments. Now, my dad, titas, sisters and cousins are joining in, contributing to the harmony.

Lolo Andy and most definitely our forefathers who came before him were artists who painted our lives with color, emotion, sincerity, and passion. This is the reason why the call of the pen keeps wakes me up in the wee hours of the morning and the call of art and color tugs at my heart during unforgettable soul-binding moments.

To my lineage, I must be true. To my gifts, I must be grateful. To myself, I must be permissive. I must let my art live. Awake my soul. Rise my senses. Give glory to the Source of all Good Things. The gift of time, we will not waste.

Color-coordinated

Unlike most females, I am amused whenever my wardrobe matches someone I know. I am thrilled by the coincidental occurrence of two people wearing identical outfits while being in one place at one time. I don't expect my clothes to be unique and one-of-a-kind as my budget only allows me to shop in common stores that have more than 5 stocks of each size of one design... But, it's just funny to meet a clothes-twin.

Since, I'm sooo amused with uniformed outfits, my office friends and I planned a mellow yellow day... We were like sunshine in a gloomy, cloudy day. :)

Hmm... What's New?

I haven't blogged for a long time now. I've been quite preoccupied. Thank God for the free time I have this morning. :) Here are the updates on Polo so far:

Polo turned 2 last Feb 21, 2009. We celebrated it at McDonald's in Frontera Verde on Feb 22 with friends and family.

I stopped breastfeeding Polo one week after he turned 2. This is an answered prayer. I prayed that the weaning will not be traumatic and stressful for the 2 of us. It wasn't automatic but it wasn't difficult either. Marvin was the one who pacified Polo and put him to bed during the weaning week. It helped that we prayed for it to be easy and that we've been talking to about the weaning Polo since he was 1.6yrs old. Yesterday, someone asked him if he wanted to drink milk from Mommy. Polo mumbled, "... (I am) 2 years old," explaining in his own words that he is old enough to drink from a cup. Awww... He's slowly growing out of his "baby" years. *Sniff*Sniff*

He didn't cry during his last haircut and Pedia Check-up! Wohoo! We can expect less stress for Marvin and I on our next visit to the barbershop and doctor. Wihee! Oh, and yesterday, all of us got our Flu Vaccine Shots at home c/o of my sister, Doctor Joanne. It was painless for most of us, btw. I am so proud of you, Ate! Marvin and I prepped Polo. One week in advance, we were telling him about the injection and that his Ninang Joanne would be giving it to all of us. Yesterday, before Doctor-Ninang Joanne arrived, we reminded him about the injection, saying, "Later, Ninang Joanne will give Polo an injection. Everybody will get an injection." Without much fuss or thought, Polo said his usually sweet and cool, "Ok." True enough when it was his turn to get his shot, he was cool -- his usual crying and whining was absent. He even watched his Lolo Dante, Ninang Kaye and Kuya Aia get their own shot before he did. He squirmed a bit when he felt the bite of the vaccine but there were no tears. After the shot, he limped a bit but headed back to our room to play with his toys. Brave boy, I must say! In my heart, I am jumping and cart-wheeling. Yipee! Mana siya kay Mommy. Hindi siya takot sa injection! ;)

He can finally drink from a straw. We tried to introduce a straw to him a number of times. Those attempts ended with him blowing through the straw than sipping from it. Hehehe... During the Holy Week, I was surprised to see him drink from it with ease. Now with the straw, drinking milk from the cup is more fun. It helps us get him to drink his milk.

He can sing! His all-time favorite songs are "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star", "Happy Birthday", "ABC" (which has the same tune as Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star... hehehe), and "Are You Sleeping, Brother John?" It's sooo cute to see him sing on his own when he plays. He just breaks into song or hums and sways to the tune of the song he is singing.

He is now old enough to join kiddie games in Children's parties. Last week, Polo and Marvin attended a children's party. Polo would usually run around, dance or cling to us but this time, he listened to the instructions, watched the other children, joined the games, and even won! Wohoo! Winner! :)

His cartoon movie favorites have expanded. Cars and Bee Movie is still the all-time favorite but now, he requests for "Robinsons" (for Meet the Robinsons, one of the cartoon movies that made me cry), "Lion King", and "Kung Fu Panda." He still complains when you change the channel while he is watching boxing, UFC, and circuit racing (F1, motorbikes, cars, etc). He knows his TV preference. In each cartoon show or movie that he watches, someone has to be "Papa" (or Marvin), "Mommy" (or me), and Polo.... So in "Ratatouille", I am the lady chef and Marvin is Linguini. In "Meet the Robinsons," Polo is Lewis, I am Lewis' Mom, and Marvin is Lewis' Dad. In "Cars", Polo is Lightning Mc Queen, and I am Sally... and so on and so forth. Hehehe...

He already had his 1st kiss! He probably kissed many girls before but this is the 1st one we captured on cam. Look, it looks like he will become a good kisser when he grows up. Hehehe...