... in spite of

weekends are sacred!

that means: i try (emphasis on this) not to work on saturdays and sundays. i try to recover the sanity and the reason of and for the week during these two days. in short i rest, which is often read as sleep. sleep. and more sleep. (...funny how i explain so much for a very simple topic, anyways...)

this weekend was quite unusual because i did try to do something.

on saturday, i was with the ninin and steph and their kids at the pedia onco ward at the davao medical regional hospital. i was with them to "celebrate life" with everyone, yes the kids including their parents. "celebrate life" is a program that ninin and steph implements for their wards under their organization, kythe foundation. it is a monthly activity that helps kids, especially those that have been afflicted with cancer "deal" with their illness in a positive way.

last month, the kids visited a fire station. this month, we celebrated the moon cake festival with them.

there were food from lorings (tasty and affordable pancit and fish with sweet and sour sauce) and a dice game with lots of candies, toys and giveaways, not only for the kids but for the moms and dads, even the nurse got to try her luck with the dice.

i cannot speak for everyone, but i speak for myself when i felt hope surge in me in the short time i was there.

sometimes, it takes the eerie feeling of the hospital scene to remind me to take hold of something no matter how bleak the future seems to be. the kids with their weak smiles, droopy eyes (more droopy than mine), almost bald heads, and tantrums on the side seem to be the picture of joy in spite of.

and for me that is the key of getting comfortable with hope. the "in spite of."

the kids clutching their prizes in spite of the tubes attached to their hands, even if they are not able to hold the six pieces of dice properly.

the parents cheering and jeering, all smiles, waiting for the right combination of the dice for the first prize, in spite of the long hours they've stayed with their wards, the who knows how much bills that they have to settle.

ninin speaking in bisaya, so it would be easier for the people in the room to understand her, in spite of only two years in mindanao.

me, spending time with everyone, in spite of meeting all the people there for the first time.

and the many other "in spite of" s of the world that somehow, one way or another makes everyone breathe a little easier, even just to make it through the next minute.

i was tired last saturday, and did not have the usual saturday i have actually reserved myself into. however, i felt a little hop going home that day. for that day, i chose to give time instead of taking it for myself, yet i never felt as exhausted as a day in the office.