"nights spent living."

this memorial day weekend was definitely all about how i invested into the evening. when the sun was out...i was resting at home, working out, washing my car, watching house and law & order, and cleaning around. at night...i went to nicole's debut in rancho cucamonga, lounged it up at dba with the homies for rachel's graduation celebration, enjoyed the awesomeness that is love, resonate and dined at bj's, and kicked it at josh's going away bbq. at a time where days are being filled up with big events and things are happening so quickly...it was nice to enjoy a peaceful and chill weekend.

on a random note...i'm getting excited the vacations to come in the summer/fall time. san francisco for sure. nyc is a possibility. las vegas once or twice is a must. the philippines stands a chance. london and paris are barely probable but still possible. after a year and a half at concorde...i could definitely go on some adventures. july 7...come sooner!

waiting to exhale - jl

"harder, better, faster, stronger."

hours spent around newborn babies inspires so much contemplation. these babies are just starting their lives...so much uncertainty around them. you can only catch glimpses of their future through their parents and family. i look at my own life and i ask myself...

"when did i grow up?"

how did i grow up? seriously...where has the time gone? how did i go from being generally care-free last year to taking care of new lives and people in need? my older friends are getting married and/or starting families of their own. others are graduating and moving on to higher education or the beginning of their careers. vocations are being made for a lifetime. i'm going to be a nurse along with the rest of my peers by the time fall arrives. experiences and moments best savored in slow-motion but are lived in a blur.

i find my answer in the father holding his child for the very first time, tears coming down his face with the biggest smile possible. i know it through the classmates i spend 40 hours a week with...and my family and friends that have the rest of my time. i got it by looking at nurses assessing their patients, making small talk with them throughout the day. i realize through every small act of kindness throughout the hospital and on the streets. it's just like the beatles' song...

love, love, love.

in every moment i witnessed love, experienced it, created it, invested into it, multiplied it, divided it, lived it, shared it...i grew up. i have glimpses of each moment by looking at my family, my friends...all my loved ones. i see it through strangers and familiar faces alike. their lives, their love, my love is a confirmation and affirmation of my growth.

everyone gets older, not everyone grows.
love is the only thing that makes that possible.

however fast it happened...i'm blessed to be aware of it. as i continue to grow...i pray that the love in my life gets stronger, keeps maturing. no matter the challenges on the way, no matter the experiences that occur, no matter of the uncertainties that the future provides...i'll keep loving.

as john legend would put it...
where do we go?
who knows...
but each day gets better.

love extraordinarily, grow extraordinarily - jl

"the best is yet to come."

the lakers have just whomped the rockets once and for all this season. this has just been one of many highlights this past weekend. i got to chill with my dad in little tokyo and enjoy a great lunch at shabu shabu house...the original is still the best (but yojies is my favorite...family ties ya dig). even though plans for gyu-kaku ultimately failed on friday...dub, jee, matt, fred, arthur, and i had quite the exquisite seafood dinner at king's fish house.

i finally watched the wrestler, seven pounds, and last chance harvey. i recommend all these movies for your viewing pleasure. superb storytelling and acting with plenty of lessons to learn along the way to the closing credits.

the crosstrainer end-of-the-year party went down last night and it was good to see everyone chill out and eat to their hearts' content...thanks to the taco lady. it's been a different kind of season for me since i didn't go on any retreats and i had to focus more on school but it's been a spiritually rewarding one for me nevertheless. i look forward to coming back next season in full force.

i started maternal/child health on may 13, and at this point in our journey to be nurses, my class is starting to see the finish line. we're less than 8 weeks away from graduation. i'll save my thoughts on concorde for a better time. i'm just excited knowing that starting this week...we're going into full acute-care mode. that is definitely good news as we don't have to drive ridiculous distances to perform long-term care anymore. i've learned much from those experiences but it's time to move on and learn more things...and for that i'm happy.

july 7 is slowly becoming a reality.

anxious but focused - jl

"it's a celebration, b@#%#es!"

i apologize for being m.i.a. but may has been a very busy and exciting month so far. after a year without one, i got another disney pass when i went there for charlene's birthday. i spent the afternoon at disneyland after clinicals in sun city with charlene (of course), achi, crystal, tiff, pat, christian, sibs, yambeezy, big ray, fred, matt, martin, meagan, jibs, and katrina. i don't know why i didn't renew my pass earlier haha. i forgot how much fun i had going. another may 8 has passed i'm now 22. i celebrated my birthday in a peaceful and pleasant way at home with family and friends. enough noise and good vibes to make it a party but just the right amount of everything else to set it apart. thanks to everyone who came and showed some love. anavie was not in attendance because on may 7...she gave birth to ever marian leelin! i'm so happy for her and mike and i can't wait to visit them and see ever. she's going to be the closest thing to having a niece for me. speaking of which, my sister left for the carmelites on may 9. my family and sibs, nikki, and charlene went over to the Sacred Heart retreat house in alhambra to drop her off. we met a couple of the sisters there and i must say that they are quite amazing. an hour over there convinced me why my sister chose the carmelites. as sad as i am to see her leave...i'm happy that she's finding her niche to serve God in a whole new, better, and bigger way. i can only hope she'll be happy and lead a more fulfilling life with this vocation. later on that day, i went over to swasdee's for aimee's graduation dinner with pat and tiff...only to find out she wasn't there yet. as much as we wanted to wait for her to arrive, we had to make our way over to manna in k-town for matt's birthday dinner so we left. manna was dope as always...good and enormous amounts of food. matt got drenched twice in champagne. the usual laughs and good times. i don't think i'll have korean bbq for awhile haha. mother's day this year was unique. less than 24 hours after we dropped off my sister at the carmelite house, my family visited her to attend the may crowning ceremony. it was a beautiful experience that i was glad to be a part of. from the rosary to the mass...it was a seized opportunity to cherish the awesomeness that is the Catholic faith. last night for the first time in a long time...kp, nick, christian, matt, big ray, and i went monday night bowling. i miss the days when we used to go every week but i'm glad that we still go when there's time in our busy (and getting busier) lives. today...i spent my day off from school having lunch with aimee and dub. we went over to ichikawa at the commons for some shabu shabu. it was aimee's first time eating shabu shabu and i'm happy to have made her a fan. it was our first time eating there and i must say it's not too shabby. good environment and good service. i wouldn't mind coming back. we got our dessert fix at yogurtland and proceeded to spend the next hour sitting and relaxing on the bench outside mesmerized by the dancing water fountain haha. ah...the simple joys in life we take for granted. summer is supposed to start next month but things are already heating up...get ready or you might get burned.

peace and love - jl

"in the still of the night."

no one can control time.

sometimes, we want to stop it for a little while to enjoy a cinematic moment or take a break from a stressful period. other times, we just want to speed it up to get through some rough moment or arrive at some beautiful destination in our lives already. it's utterly ironic that when we surrender ourselves to life...time slows down and we get the miraculous opportunity to cherish a moment in life. we have a chance to know all there is to know about that moment and memorize it to the fullest.

when we stop trying to control the time in our lives...
we have the time of our lives.

here's one of the numerous examples life has given me...

i spent my friday night with fred, dub, arthur, mike b, matt, jay, and jee eating at yojie's shabu shabu in cerritos. it was a simple yet great time with the homies over a good (and large and crazy delicious) serving of food and drinks. there was nothing extraordinarily special about this experience. it was like many of our other numerous adventures and gatherings. there was a moment during the night where i took a rest from dining and just reclined at my chair. i looked around the half-circle we were dining in and i got a panoramic view of everyone else. dub, jay, matt, and arthur to my right with jee, mike b, and fred to my left. everyone was eating, laughing, and enjoying each other's company. i'm sure they all had their current challenges, problems, and such...but i didn't see that when i looked at them. everyone was simply...happy. i was happy, too. it was at this point where i stopped caring so much about everything else but the joy i felt in the present and everything that belonged to that moment...that time slowed down and i was able to truly and absolutely appreciate this night with friends.

the moment when i'm doing what i love with the people i love...

this is where amazing happens.