November thoughts

By Karen Galarpe

And just like that, it is November. November 11 to be exact. 😀

It now seems a lifetime away when things were more hurried and fast-paced, when workweeks meant going through EDSA traffic and trying your best to arrive in time for your shift, no matter if it starts at 5 a.m. when most countrymen are still fast asleep.

My OB said the COVID-19 pandemic has given us a gift -- the gift of slowing down and appreciating the passage of time.

I agree. The past 20 months saw us slowing down, working from home, spending more time with family, counting our blessings, and simplifying life. While others may have been itching to resume normal lives, I think I am one of the few who enjoyed the community quarantine and thrived in this setup. I've had more time to read books, declutter (an ongoing lifelong process), meet friends though not in real life but online, sing (hello, WeSing classmates 🎤), and ahem, shopping online -- for needs like groceries, furniture, and clothes, and wants like books...and more books.

One of the books I bought on Shopee recently is Heart On My Sleeve by Em Guevara (yup, one r). I know Em, as she was my classmate in grad school in UP. I would also see her around during press conferences and media trips as we both covered the lifestyle beat for years. So I know how deep and fun she could both be. She had the best jump shot in Thunderbird Resort by the way when we were there a long time ago.

Anyway, back to Em's book which she published herself. It's a collection of her columns for various publications. I like how Em takes us through the phases of her life, from EMerging to EMphatic, EMboldened to EMpowered. Reading it, I feel like she's just in front of me making chika about her precious fur babies Matilda and Shakira, or her crummy date with that guy who wanted to put popcorn in her mouth on their first date. 😝 It took me awhile to finish the book, even though it's just a slim one, because I would read only a chapter a day after work or during lunch break. It was good to just listen to someone making kuwento about anything and everything after my mind has been processing hard news all day. But yes, just one chapter a day, so there would be Em again the next day making kuwento, this time about heavy stuff like grief and why choosing not to forgive will eventually let someone hold power over us.

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Another book I got this pandemic season is Where Is God In a Coronavirus World? by John C. Lennox, published this year by Church Strengthening Ministry. What a timely book, right? To date, over 250 million worldwide have contracted COVID-19, and more than 5 million have died of it. These statistics make you wonder indeed -- why is God allowing this, and where is he?

Lennox, a math professor at the University of Oxford, does not lecture in the book, but with the reader asks the same questions. And then he puts a name to our feelings, looks at past pandemics and disasters, talks about what pain does, and why things are the way they are. He then says that as a mathematician, he knows some questions may never be solved, and maybe we should be better off asking a different question. There is more to this little book (just 67 pages including endnotes) and I highly recommend this for reading.

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Anyway, so what have you been thinking about and reading lately?

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad. Proverbs 12:25

A delayed appreciation for vitamins and other supplements

 By Karen Galarpe

One, two, three, four, five. I counted the tablets and capsules in my hand this morning after breakfast. There's vitamin C, zinc, multivitamin, fish oil, and vitamin D3.

Growing up, I took vitamin C or a multivitamin daily as my mom was worried I wasn't getting enough nutrients. I was thin, and was a picky eater too.

When I started working after graduating from college, I would sometimes buy vitamins -- not just a multivitamin but vitamin E as well for good skin.

But when I became a single mom, sometimes funds would be tight that I didn't buy vitamins anymore. I would only take them when my sister based abroad would send me some.

So that became a habit -- just take vitamins when there's a supply. They were not on my regular shopping list.

More than a year ago, a college classmate said she was selling vitamins and asked if I would like to buy some at around P1,300 per bottle. I said isn't that expensive? She said it would only amount to around P11 per capsule. So I bought some, but in my mind, it was only to help her make a sale. 

Last April, I tested positive for COVID-19 (I'll write about it sometime. That deserves a longer separate post). My doctors suggested I take the following supplements during the course of my illness, on top of other prescription medicines:

• multivitamin/multimineral
• vitamin C
• zinc
• quercitin
• probiotics 
• vitamin D3
• omega 3 (fish oil)
• melatonin

Post-COVID, here are the supplements my attending doctor said I should take:

• multivitamins
• vitamin C with zinc
• vitamin D3

So these are what I am taking now, the three post-COVID-19 supplements, plus I added fish oil supplement because I like it. As for quercitin, it is hard to find. For probiotics, I turn to yogurt instead. 

Another doctor said I should take selenium to boost my immune system but I haven't gotten around to ordering it yet.

So there, I now take vitamins and supplements every day. Although we could get nutrients from our food, sometimes a little boost from supplements would be a great help. What supplements are you taking? ☺ If you're not taking any, maybe it's time to take some, especially with the current COVID-19 pandemic.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: I'm almost done reading This Season of Grief, a collection of stories, prayers, poems, and information on dealing with grief. I realized I am drawn to reading books about grief such as Joan Didion's The Year of Magical Thinking, Dr. Ernie Santos' The Big C: From Cancer to Christ, and Paul Kalanithi's When Breath Becomes Air. Though the content of This Season of Grief may seem sad, there is hope in each story, each poem, each chapter.

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VERSE OF THE WEEK: I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations (Psalm 89:1).

Be a hope bearer

By Karen Galarpe

When times are uncertain, such as what has happened since last year when the COVID-19 pandemic hit us, it is understandable to be nervous, afraid and pessimistic. After all, everyone is affected, and every business, every company, every school and government is faced with a challenge we haven't met before--the coronavirus. 

Children are no exception. And while they may not voice it out much, they have their worries and concerns too.

My five-year-old grandniece, for instance, frets that she could not go out to visit us or her favorite mall where her favorite toy store is located.

Other kids lament that they could not see their classmates, and it's been harder on those whose schools had to close.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Jeremiah 29:11 which goes: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

I take comfort in the fact that no matter how bleak or difficult my circumstances can be, God sees everything and is there with my best interest at heart; He is my hope and my future.

Wouldn't it be good to spread such message of hope to others, even to kids? Church Strengthening Ministry recently published "Hope Bearer: Lessons of Hope and Courage in Times of Crisis and Change" with this same motivation.

The book is actually a compilation of modules or lessons one can teach kids aged 4 to 12 in Sunday school or at home, online or in person.

It serves as an easy-to-follow guide for parents and teachers and even aunts and uncles to teach Bible lessons which can impart hope to children especially during these times of uncertainty.

Each lesson has an activity which may be an art project, as well as a Bible passage and memory verse, and discussion questions to guide the child in applying what he or she has learned.

My fave Bible verse (Jeremiah 29:11) is discussed in the book's Lesson 2 (God wants to give us hope and a future). Using the Bible story of Moses' birth and how he ended up being raised as the son of Pharaoh's daughter, the lesson brings home the message that no matter what, God looks out for His children. The art project called for is a pyramid to be made using paper, crayons or paint -- so easy and apt for the lesson.

May we be hope bearers ourselves and inspire others around us, even children, of the hope they have in God. 

VERSE OF THE WEEK:  Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14