When I saw Jesus

It was sometime around October of 2008 when I had the most unusual dream -- seeing Jesus and the once in a lifetime chance to talk to him. Here's what happened:

It started one lazy saturday afternoon when I was at home doing nothing. My cousin called me up and invited me for a road trip. It was around 6 in the evening when we dropped by an unknown village. My cousin had a 2-storey house in the village so we decided to spend the night there . After a few minutes of trivial conversation, the air suddenly became uncomfortable and people were speaking languages I couldn't understand so I went upstairs and decided to be alone in the verandah. While I was clearing my head, the house suddenly collapsed without warning. Luckily, no one was hurt. And so while all the family members were busy looking for their stuff and figuring out what really happened, I started running away from the house. It was 8pm and I could barely see the road. It was too dark. The village had no street lamps to illuminate the road and everyone was dependent on the moon's light. I was sweating, hardly catching my breath. After running a few kilometers, I saw a lounge and decided to stay for the night. So I made a reservation at the front desk and went upstairs to see the room. And just when i was about to open the door, memories of the past came flashing back. The only vivid thing I remembered was that I cried after recalling the death of my grampa. For the most part, I felt so weak and down. So I prayed out of nowhere.

In my prayers, I told Him everything and asked for guidance. A flashing light suddenly blinded my vision. When the light was gradually fading, I saw a wooden door with an arrow pointing east and a carving that says "ENTER HERE AND GO TO HELL". Another glaring light appeared, another door with an arrow pointing west, "CHOOSE THIS DOOR AND GO TO HEAVEN". I was panicky and confused at the same time so I asked Him, "You have been my Northern Star and guided me every step of the way, so If u were to choose, which path should I take?" the carving that pointed east had emitted the most light.

I deeply sighed thinking that He was right with His decision. "If that's your decision, then I think I've got no choice", I said.

So I went in, the room burning with red flames. And I saw a figure of a man. It was Jesus. I saw Him with a blanket and two fried chicken drumsticks. He handed me the blanket and told me to spread it over the entire room. So I obeyed and the fire went out. The room went cold.

He pointed his hand to the two drumsticks and said, "Give those two chicken legs to a hungry child". Knowing that He was Jesus, the savior, I followed and never hesitated. Outside the room was a 4-year old child who was begging for food so I gave the drumsticks. I could see from his eyes how happy he was. He gave away the sweetest smile and suddenly disappeared. I went back to the room and Jesus then told me about heaven and everything that I needed to know. He assured that it's really not impossible to have a place there. Distracted, I woke up.

After that dream, I shed a tear, not knowing why. All I felt was a different kind of fear, a joyful fear as I recalled. Now, the question still remains untouched, unseen. Why did I have that dream? Is there something I should do with my life, something I've long been searching for that I'm not aware of?

That was the first and the only time I saw Jesus... in my dreams.

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A mother's message to her son's wedding

This touches my heart. There's always a story behind everything. How a picture got on a wall. How a scar got on your face. Sometimes the stories are simple, and sometimes they are hard and heartbreaking. But behind all your stories is always your mother's story, because hers is where yours begin.

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To my Charley on his wedding day-

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I know you think these notes are silly. I have watched you scrunched your face over the years when I give them to you. But understand that sometimes I want to tell you something and I want to get it just right. Putting it down on a paper helps me do that. I wish I had been a better writer. I wish I had gone to college. If I had, I think I would've studied English and maybe my vocabulary would have improved. So many times I feel I am using the same words over and over, like a woman wearing the same dress every day. So boring!

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What I want to say to you, Charley, is you're marrying a wonderful girl. I think of Catherine in many ways like I think of Roberta. Like a daughter. She is sweet and patient. You should be the same with her, Charley.

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Here is what you are going to find out about marriage: you have to work at it together. And you have to love three things. You have to love

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1. Each other.

2. Your children (When you have some! Hint! Hint!).

3. Your marriage.

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What I mean by the last one is, there may be times that you fight, and sometimes you and Catherine won't even like each other. Those are the times you have to love your marriage. It's like a third party. Look at your wedding photos. Look at any memories you've made. And if you believe in those memories, they will pull you back together.

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I'm very proud of you today, Charley. I am putting this in your tuxedo pocket because I know how you lose things.

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I love you every day!

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Mom

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Inspiring Wednesday

Here's a passage that I want to share with all of you:

Friday comes, you go home, and you pick up the newspapers that you weren't able to read during the week. You turn on the television with the sound off. You put on a cassette tape. You use the remote control to jump from one channel to the other, as you try to turn the pages of the paper and listen to the music. The papers contain nothing new, the TV programs are repetitious, and you've already heard the cassette dozens of times. Your wife is attending to the children, sacrificing her youthful years without really understanding why she is doing so. An excuse occurs to you: "Well, that's the way life is." No, that's not the way life is. Life is enthusiasm. Try to remember where it was that you hid away your enthusiasm. Take your wife and children with you and try to find it again, before it's too late. Love never kept anyone from following his dream.

Have a great Wednesday, everyone! Things can only improve.

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Untitled

When he went blundering back to God,

His songs half written, his work half done,

Who knows what paths his bruised feet trod,

What hills of peace or pain he won?

I hope God smiled and took his hand,

And said, "Poor truant, passionate fool!

Life's book is hard to understand:

Why couldst thou not remain at school?"

(a poem by Charles Hanson Towne,

found inside a notebook amongst

this particular person's belongings)

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A True Talent: Jason Mraz

I just need to let the whole world know how talented this man is and that without a doubt, Jason Mraz is one of the greatest artists I've known. First, let's take a peek of his life and find out how he started his career from an ordinary "dude" who loves cats to a renowned song writer, singer and a guitar-enthusiast.

Biography

Jason Mraz, his life-altering journey began with a single word: no. No touring, no recording, no work for a year: "I said, I want to go the grocery store again. I want to do my own laundry. I want to tend to a garden. I want to raise a cat."

Mraz came to the decision after a remarkable four years where he had seen his major label debut, "Waiting for My Rocket to Come" explode off the success of such hits as "Remedy (I Won't Worry)," "You and I Both" and "Curbside Prophet." Shortly thereafter, he returned with his Grammy-nominated, critically acclaimed "Mr. A-Z," which continued his chart success with "Wordplay." Throughout, his reputation as a tremendous live act soared.

But when he took a well-earned break, something unexpected happened: he rediscovered himself. After a few months, "I suddenly woke up and real songs started coming out of me," Mraz recalls. "Songs that I didn't plan on writing. But that just became a reflection of how I feel and the mood that I was in and these awakenings that I was having," he says.

The result is "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." his most self-assured effort to date. In true Mraz style, the 12 tunes are wrapped in clever, observant lyrics and strong, engaging pop melodies, but this time they are inspired "by these moments of self realization, self empowerment and self improvement. I was happy to be able to write an album at the same time I was coming back to earth."

Highlights include first single, "I'm Yours," a warm breeze of a song about finally giving into love and life's possibilities set to lilting island tempo. A demo of the song leaked out into the world a few years ago and has developed a cult following. "I didn't realize how powerful it was until we went to Sweden last summer and 6,000 people sang every word," Mraz says. "I'd never been to Sweden in my life. I thought, it's already got a life of its own from the demo, let's give people a great version of it. I feel like we finally got it right on this album."

Another highlight is "Lucky," a simple, endearing duet with new platinum singer-songwriter Colbie Caillat. "I got word that she was a fan and wanted to work together, so I immediately demanded her phone number," Mraz says with a laugh. He sent her segments of a love song that she and her guitarist Timothy Fagan completed.

Caillat then joined Mraz in a London studio where he recorded the album with producer Martin Terefe, best known for his work with Coldplay and James Morrison (who guests on the intricate "Details in the Fabric").

Terefe, along with songwriter/pianist Sasha Skarbek (who co-wrote james Blunt's "You're Beautiful"), also played a hand in co-writing some of the tunes with Mraz, including "Love for a Child," a searing autobiographical tale of Mraz's parents split when he was five. "I didn't want to share the lyrics," Mraz confesses, "but I just let it rip and it wasn't until playback that I realized how important it was that I needed to write it."

While Mraz and Terefe deliberately kept the music stripped down, they added flourishes that distinguish "We Sing" from standard pop fare, including a gospel choir on "Live High," and operatic embellishments and a children's chorale on "Coyotes."

"Martin is such a funny guy," Mraz says. "He loves the quirkiness and loves to keep the pace going with little surprises so he's always willing to try my goofy ideas," such as bookending "Details in the Fabric" with real voice mail messages from Mraz's good friend and sometime co-writer Bushwalla.

The album takes its title from a piece of art by Glasglow-based doodle artist David Shrigley that Mraz saw in Scotland while traveling... (end of biography).

There you have it. While I was searching for his songs, I stumbled upon this piece that caught my eardrums' attention. A Song for a Friend is a different kind of love song. "It's a love song from a man to another man, in a good way. And that I have a lot of dudes I totally respect and so inspired by this piece," he claims. It's awesome that he sings for his mates. I don't actually hear about it much these days.

I guess this song is literally dedicated to a friend of his whom he treasured so much. The melody and the wonderful imagery -- I just love how a poet like Mraz can put his words to life!

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