Must Read

Last week, my office mate suggested me to follow the blog: Everything in Budget
Since then, checking this site is in my to-do list every day.

Today, as I opened the site, the first post caught my attention.

Man Searches for the Owner of a Lost Wallet

The entry goes as follows:

As I walked home one freezing day, I stumbled on a wallet someone had lost in the street. I picked it up and looked inside to find some identification so I could call the owner. But the wallet contained only three dollars and a crumpled letter that looked as if it had been in there for years.

The envelope was worn and the only thing that was legible on it was the return address. I started to open the letter, hoping to find some clue. Then I saw the dateline--1924. The letter had been written almost sixty years ago.

It was written in a beautiful feminine handwriting on powder blue stationery with a little flower in the left-hand corner. It was a love letter that told the recipient, whose name appeared to be Michael, that the writer could not see him any more because her mother forbade it. Even so, she wrote that she would always love him. It was signed, Hannah.

It was a beautiful letter, but there was no way except for the name Michael, that the owner could be identified. Maybe if I called information, the operator could find a phone listing for the address on the envelope.

"Operator," I began, "this is an unusual request. I'm trying to find the owner of a wallet that I found. Is there anyway you can tell me if there is a phone number for an address that was on an envelope in the wallet?"

She suggested I speak with her supervisor, who hesitated for a moment then said, "Well, there is a phone listing at that address, but I can't give you the number." She said, as a courtesy, she would call that number, explain my story and would ask them if they wanted her to connect me. I waited a few minutes and then she was back on the line. "I have a party who will speak with you."

I asked the woman on the other end of the line if she knew anyone by the name of Hannah. She gasped, "Oh! We bought this house from a family who had a daughter named Hannah. But that was 30 years ago!" Would you know where that family could be located now?, I asked. "I remember that Hannah had to place her mother in a nursing home some years ago," the woman said. "Maybe if you got in touch with them they might be able to track down the daughter."

She gave me the name of the nursing home and I called the number. They told me the old lady had passed away some years ago but they did have a phone number for where they thought the daughter might be living. I thanked them and phoned. The woman who answered explained that Hannah herself was now living in a nursing home.

This whole thing was stupid, I thought to myself. Why was I making such a big deal over finding the owner of a wallet that had only three dollars and a letter that was almost 60 years old? Nevertheless, I called the nursing home in which Hannah was supposed to be living and the man who answered the phone told me, "Yes, Hannah is staying with us."

Even though it was already 10 p.m., I asked if I could come by to see her. "Well," he said hesitatingly, "if you want to take a chance, she might be in the day room watching television." I thanked him and drove over to the nursing home. The night nurse and a guard greeted me at the door. We went up to the third floor of the large building. In the day room, the nurse introduced me to Hannah.

She was a sweet, silver-haired old timer with a warm smile and a twinkle in her eye. I told her about finding the wallet and showed her the letter. The second she saw the powder blue envelope with that little flower on the left, she took a deep breath and said, "Young man, this letter was the last contact I ever had with Michael." She looked away for a moment deep in thought and then said Softly, "I loved him very much. But I was only 16 at the time and my mother felt I was too young. Oh, he was so handsome. He looked like Sean Connery, the actor."

"Yes," she continued. "Michael Goldstein was a wonderful person. If you should find him, tell him I think of him often. And," she hesitated for a moment, almost biting her lip, "tell him I still love him. You know," she said smiling as tears began to well up in her eyes, "I never did marry. I guess no one ever matched up to Michael..." I thanked Hannah and said goodbye.

I took the elevator to the first floor and as I stood by the door, the guard there asked, "Was the old lady able to help you?" I told him she had given me a lead. "At least I have a last name. But I think I'll let it go for a while. I spent almost the whole day trying to find the owner of this wallet." I had taken out the wallet, which was a simple brown leather case with red lacing on the side. When the guard saw it, he said, "Hey, wait a minute! That's Mr. Goldstein's wallet. I'd know it anywhere with that bright red lacing. He's always losing that wallet. I must have found it in the halls at least three times."

"Who's Mr. Goldstein?" I asked as my hand began to shake. "He's one of the old timers on the 8th floor. That's Mike Goldstein's wallet for sure. He must have lost it on one of his walks." I thanked the guard and quickly ran back to the nurse's office. I told her what the guard had said. We went back to the elevator and got on. I prayed that Mr. Goldstein would be up.

On the eighth floor, the floor nurse said, "I think he's still in the day room. He likes to read at night. He's a darling old man." We went to the only room that had any lights on and there was a man reading a book. The nurse went over to him and asked if he had lost his wallet. Mr. Goldstein looked up with surprise, put his hand in his back pocket and said, "Oh, it is missing!"

"This kind gentleman found a wallet and we wondered if it could be yours?" I handed Mr. Goldstein the wallet and the second he saw it, he smiled with relief and said, "Yes, that's it! It must have dropped out of my pocket this afternoon. I want to give you a reward." No, thank you, I said. "But I have to tell you something. I read the letter in the hope of finding out who owned the wallet." The smile on his face suddenly disappeared. "You read that letter?" "Not only did I read it, I think I know where Hannah is."

He suddenly grew pale. "Hannah? You know where she is? How is she? Is she still as pretty as she was? Please, please tell me," he begged. "She's fine...just as pretty as when you knew her." I said softly. The old man smiled with anticipation and asked, "Could you tell me where she is? I want to call her tomorrow." He grabbed my hand and said, "You know something, mister, I was so in love with that girl that when that letter came, my life literally ended. I never married. I guess I've always loved her."

"Mr. Goldstein," I said, "Come with me." We took the elevator down to the third floor. The hallways were darkened and only one or two little night-lights lit our way to the day room where Hannah was sitting alone watching the television. The nurse walked over to her. "Hannah," she said softly, pointing to Michael, who was waiting with me in the doorway. "Do you know this man?"

She adjusted her glasses, looked for a moment, but didn't say a word. Michael said softly, almost in a whisper, "Hannah, it's Michael. Do you remember me?" She gasped, "Michael! I don't believe it! Michael! It's you! My Michael!" He walked slowly towards her and they embraced. The nurse and I left with tears streaming down our faces. "See," I said. "See how the Good Lord works! If it's meant to be, it will be."

About three weeks later I got a call at my office from the nursing home. "Can you break away on Sunday to attend a wedding? Michael and Hannah are going to tie the knot!" It was a beautiful wedding with all the people at the nursing home dressed up to join in the celebration. Hannah wore a light beige dress and looked beautiful. Michael wore a dark blue suit and stood tall. They made me their best man.

The hospital gave them their own room and if you ever wanted to see a 76-year-old bride and a 79-year-old groom acting like two teenagers, you had to see this couple. A perfect ending for a love affair that had lasted nearly 60 years.

*******

does time need to take away all those years  just for two passionate beings to be together?

A Woman's Responsibility to Teach

As I was cleaning my files, I came across this wonderful  story. Here's the story:

Elder Frank Croft was a missionary in the southern United States in the early day s of the Church. He taught the gospel in an area where some of the people became very angry at his teachings. A mob of armed men forcefully took him into the woods, where they told him to remove all of his clothing above the waist. They tied his arms and body to a tree and prepared to lash his back until the blood flowed.

Elder Croft had no alternative but to do what the mob asked, but as he was doing so, a letter fell from his pocket. It had been written by his mother, who lived in Utah. A short time before, Elder Croft had written to his parents telling them about the mob violence, and this letter from his mother was an answer to his concerns. 

The letter said:

My beloved son, you must remember the words of the Savior when He said, 

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven;”

 also 

“Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.” 

Also remember the Savior upon the cross suffering from the sins of the world when He had uttered these immortal words, 

“Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Surely, my boy, they who are mistreating you Elders know not what they do or they would not do it.

Sometime, somewhere, they will understand and then they will regret their action and they will honor you for the glorious work you are doing. So be patient, my son, love those who mistreat you and say all manner of evil against you and the Lord will bless you and magnify you in their eyes and your mission will be gloriously successful.’”

The leader of the mob picked up the letter and began to read it. His face and eyes were so hard and cruel that Elder Croft knew no sympathy would come from him. He closed his eyes and waited for the beating to begin, silently thinking of his home and his beloved mother. 

He opened his eyes a few moments later and found that the leader had seated himself on a nearby stump and was rereading the letter. His face had undergone a great change. “Much of the hardness and cruelty in his face were gone; his eyes were slightly dimmed by moisture. His whole personality appeared to have changed. He would read a line or two or a paragraph and then sit and ponder, and deep down in the Elder’s conscience was the hope, yes, the conviction that the man’s heart had been touched by the loveliness and beauty of his mother’s letter.”

The man finally arose and said, “‘Feller, you must have a wonderful mother. You see, I once had one, too.’ Then, addressing the other member of the mob, he said, ‘Men, after reading this Mormon’s mother’s letter, I just can’t go ahead with the job. Maybe we had better let him go.’ Elder Croft was released and went his way” 

*After reading and pondering what I've read, I remembered my Mom and all of her teachings which benefited me a lot. Since I am away from home, the only thing I can do now is to do what she taught me and surely I know that I will be safe. I miss home, but come December, I'll see them again.^_^

Met Stuff

While having my ritual of studying for the upcoming Board Exam for Metallurgical Engineering graduates, I came across one slide which contained some words from the Old Testament that include some MetE terms that are very familiar to me. I cross-checked the passage in my King James version edition of the sacred book. It says:

“SURELY  there  is  a  vein  for  the silver,  and  a  place  for  gold  where they fine  it. Iron  is taken out of  the earth, and brass*  is molten out of the  stone.”  Job 28:1-2

*Of course brass can’t be “molten out of the stone” or taken out of the earth as it is. Coz as we know, and MetE’s must surely know, it is an alloy (or a mixture) of Copper and Zinc.

Well, that made me realize that truly, the scriptures mention a lot about metals, ores, precious gems and other MetE related stuff. So my curiosity again overpowered me and instead of studying for tomorrow’s review, I scanned the scriptures and looked for verses which contain the said MetE stuff. And here are some of what I’ve found:

Genesis 1:11-12

The  name  of  the  first  is  Pison: that  is  it which  compasseth  the whole  land  of  Havilah, where  there is gold ; And  the  gold  of  that land  is good: there  is  bdellium*  and  the onyx*  stone.

*bdellium - Aromatic gum resin; similar to myrrh (aromatic resin that is burned as incense and used in perfume)

*An onyx is a really beautiful variety of chalcedony (a quartz) that has black and white bands. During your spare time (just like NOW), you can quickly browse the net and search for pictures of precious stones/gems. They really are so eye-captivating!

Genesis 13:2

            And  Abram  was  very  rich  in cattle,  in silver, and in gold.

Genesis 24:22, 35, 53

            And  it  came  to  pass,  as  the camels had done drinking,  that  the man  took  a  golden  earring of half a  shekel* weight,  and  two  bracelets for her hands of ten  shekels weight of gold;

            And the LORD hath blessed my master  greatly;  and  he  is  become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds,  and silver, and gold,  and menservants, and maidservants, and camels,  and  asses.

            And  the  servant  brought  forth jewels of  silver,  and  jewels  of gold, and  raiment,  and  gave  them  to  Rebekah:  he  gave  also  to  her brother and to her mother precious  things.

*shekel - The basic unit of money in Israel

Genesis 41:42

            And Pharaoh took off his  ring from his hand,  and put  it upon  Joseph's  hand,  and  arrayed  him  in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;

Genesis 44:8

            Behold,  the  money, which  we found  in  our  sacks'  mouths,  we brought  again unto  thee  out  of the land of Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold?

Exodus 3:22

            But every woman shall  borrow of  her  neighbour,  and  of  her  that sojourneth  in  her  house,  jewels  of silver,  and  jewels  of  gold,  and  raiment :  and  ye  shall  put  them  upon your sons, and upon your daughters ; and ye  shall  spoil the Egyptians.

Exodus 11:2

            Speak now in the ears of the people,  and  let  every man  borrow  of his neighbour,  and every woman of her neighbour,  jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.

Exodus 12:35

            And  the  children  of  Israel  did according to the word of Moses ; and they  borrowed  of  the  Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold and raiment :

Exodus 20:23

            Ye  shall  not  make  with  me gods of  silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.

^_^ What I’ve learned from my Sunday school teacher is that “god” with a small “g” refers to idols or anything that’s worshipped aside from the Supreme Being who created us all. So be careful to what/whom you are referring to by using the proper letter.

The following series of verses from the 25^th chapter of Exodus mentioned a lot about gold, as well as silver and brass. Here, the Lord commanded the children of Israel to offer the Lord the said metals to be used to build a tabernacle, the ark of testimony, a table, and candlestick (as shown to Moses in the mount). We can also see here how the Lord gives commandments: very clear and exact (measurements, position, etc).

Exodus 25:3, 11-13, 17-18, 25, 24-26, 28, 31, 36, 38-39

            And this  is the offering which ye shall take of them;  gold, and  silver, and brass,

            And  thou  shalt overlay  it with pure gold, within and without  shalt thou overlay  it,  and shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about.

            And  thou  shalt  cast four rings of gold  for  it,  and  put  them  in  the four  corners  thereof;  and  two  rings shall be in the one side of it, and two rings  in the other side of it.

            And  thou  shalt make  staves of shittim*  wood,  and  overlay  them with  gold.

            And thou  shalt make a  mercy* seat of pure gold:  two  cubits*  and  a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof.

            And  thou  shalt  make two cherubims  of gold,  of beaten work shalt  thou make  them,  in  the  two ends of the mercy seat.

            And thou  shalt overlay  it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. And thou shalt make unto  it a border of an hand breadth  round  about, and thou  shalt make a golden crown  to  the  border  thereof  round about. And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof.

            And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood,  and  overlay  them with  gold,  that  the  table  may  be borne with them.

            And thou shalt make the dishes thereof,  and  spoons  thereof,  and covers thereof,  and  bowls  thereof, to  cover withal :  of pure  gold  shalt thou make them.

            And thou  shalt make a  candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the  candlestick  be made :  his shaft,  and  his  branches,  his  bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same.

            Their knops and their branches shall be of  the same : all it shall be one

beaten work of pure gold.

            And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes  thereof,  shall  be  of pure

gold. Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all  these vessels.

*shittim - Shrubby thorny deciduous tree of southeastern United States with white flowers and small black drupaceous fruit

*cubit - An ancient unit of length based on the length of the forearm

*mercy refers to the Hebrew atonement-cover. Note that it was a golden slab of the same dimension as the top of the ark. A winged cherub was placed one arch end.

*snuff - of a greyish to yellowish brown

**More scripture hunting next time.=) Ang dami pala talaga masyado.hahaha Hope you are not yet bored, please continue reading my additional notes below. Arigatou/agyamanak/daghang salamat/thank you very much!=)

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

It is sad to know that other people misinterpret us that we do not rely on/read the Bible, only the Book of Mormon. But I do not blame them of course, it is a challenge actually for me to help them know who we really are, what we do, as well as our beliefs.=)  

So to clarify things up, we use the Book of Mormon, NOT as a substitute to the Bible, but as another book that testifies of Jesus Christ.

“The Book of Mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the Bible. It is a record of God's dealings with the ancient  inhabitants of the Americas and  contains,  as does the Bible,  the fulness of the everlasting gospel.” (Introduction, Book of Mormon)

As a matter of fact, we study the Old and New Testament in our Seminary and Institute classes, Sunday School (this year’s curriculum is focused on the New Testament and last year was the Old Testament), as a reference to lessons in every Auxiliary organization, and a lot more.=)

There. =) I hope I’ve helped you increase your understanding and knowledge. Thanks!

***You want to have a copy of the Book of Mormon? I would be very grateful to GIVE you one. Just tell/text/call/e-mail me.=) It’s for FREE of course, just promise me that you’ll read it.=) Have a nice day!^_^

REFERENCES:

The Holy Bible. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. 1979.

Wordweb. 2006.

Only Love

♪♫ 2am and the rain is falling

Here we are at the crossroads once again

You're telling me you're so confused

You can't make up your mind

Is this meant to be

You're asking me* ♫♪

actually it's 2:21am na (the sky has just finished crying) and i'm still wide awake. meenn, i can't sleep! since the start of May, napaka-aga ko ng matulog, around 2 or 3am.. hindi ko ito gusto, every night ginagawa ko ang lahat para makatulog na, pero ayaw padin ng systema ko.=(

sana once the review starts, maaga na ako makatulog..this is one of the reasons why I miss school..yung napapagod ang utak mo kaya imbis na mag-aral pa e mas pipiliin mo na lang matulog. [who agrees with me?hehe]

there.. sana makatulog na me..5am ang call time later. good luck, 2 and a half hour to go, matutulog pa ba ako?? still, good mor-night everyone! -_-

*Only Love is the title of this song, that's why I chose this to be the title of this entry.=)

Cheesy Lines

Cheesy pickup lines are fairly high risk and sometimes work on romantics or if you catch someone off-guard. Using cheesy pickup lines to humor someone or to break a period of silence is a better choice than using one as an opener to get a date. Cheesy lines should generally be restricted to as a joke for people you already know or if you're completely drunk and oblivious to the consequences such as a slap or a drink in your eye. 


So here are some cheesy pick-up lines I've copied from my friend Betty's facebook account:

alam mo para tayong chess piece.. white ako, black ka or vice versa..

'coz no matter what, we couldn't be together..but still we're trying to invade each other..

what is your favorite letter in the alphabet?

kasi ako..i love U.. :)

U don't have to be a degree holder to achieve ur dreams,

mai mara2ting kah,,,

dito sa puso ko...

alam mo qng kanta ka lang, ilalagay kita sa playlists ko, tapos irerepeat kita,

para ikaw lang ang paulit-ulit kong mapapakinggan

Huwag kang matakot kung isang araw maging pula ang buong paligid mo,,,

nasa puso na kasi kita

Alam mo kung magiging subject mo ko, gusto ko ako ang pinakamahirap,,,

para sakin ka babagsak... 

sana may wifi na lang din ang puso mo,,,

so that i can always connect to your heart...

sana load balance ka na lang para lagi kitang nache-check,,

Sana twitter account ka na lang..

para nasusundan kita.. 

Simbang gabi ka ba?

gusto kasi ktang kumpletuhin,

Sana camera na lang ako, para naca-capture ko bawat ngiti mo,,

sana libingan na lang ako, para anuman mangyari ako pa din huling hantungan mo,,

Luxury car ka ba? Ang gara mu kasi,

"ayokong mawala ka,,,lagi man kitang nakakalimutan, gusto ko lagi kitang hawak,,,

--> cellphone 

sa lahat ng book,,isang book lang ang hindi ko maintindihan,,,

yun ay ang tiBOOK ng puso mo

naiinis ako sa FB,,kasi laging tinatanong,,,

Whats on my mind?

Eh Ikaw lng naman nasa isip ko alangan namang ishare pa kita,

"para kng matigas na tae,,, ang hirap mung ilabas" 

-->feelings 

nasaan k kagabi,? kaya pala wala ka sa panaginip q,

posporo ka ba? eh d posporo n rin aq,,para match tayo,,

did you like it?=) Pinoys really are good in these kind of stuff.haha

Hello, Facebook!

I'm back in using Facebook.☺ I badly needed to communicate with my young women, and the easiest way is to convey my messages through Facebook. So I created again an account last August 22, 2010, after deactivating my account last November 23, 2009.

Well, this time I have only one purpose. That is, my account will only be for my LDS acquaintances, relatives, and no more.

Good luck on my facebook-ing again!☺

Sana Maipasa Ito!☺

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Health (DOH) is pushing for a 400% increase in the tax on cigarettes. The tax hike would bring up the price of a cigarette stick from P2 to P7, and a pack from P30 to P120.

The DOH said the move would help reduce the number of smokers in the country, deter the youth who comprise 20% of the smoking population while allowing government to raise revenue to bring down the budget deficit.

DOH research shows that 4 out of 10 Filipino adults smoke, while over 20% of Filipino smokers are between 15 to 20 years old.


http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/-depth/08/12/10/raising-tax-tobacco

YEHEY!! Like it, like it! Hindi na magiging tambutso ang bibig ng mga kaklase ko!=)

Blessings Do Come Unexpected

Earlier this week (Tuesday, I think), I received an e-mail announcing the last day of registration for the Engineering Summit 2010. I browsed through the .jpg poster and learned that the registration fee is only 200php for Eng'g students from UP, and 500+php for those studying at other schools. I became interested in the said seminar when I've read that a talk on the "Engineering for the Environment" will be discussed.

I consulted the situation with Annie Rose, my super roommate and batchmate, and she became interested too. We agreed to register the next day. When Wednesday came, I've realized that I only have 400php left in my allowance. If I will register in the Eng'g Summit, I'll only have 200php to use till Saturday, which is 3 more days! But I really wanted to join.

On my way to the ESC office, I received the following text message from Kaye, a MMM representative:

          Hello Hazel! You are one of the recommended students for the Engineering Summit. I can't locate you in Engineering since last week, and I need to give you your invite. Can you please drop by the ESC office today?

Wow! I was so surprised. That big blessing really was unexpected. I also feel grateful that the department consider me as a potential student leader.☺

I can't wait till it's Saturday na.. Gusto ko nang makinig ng talk ng prominent and successful people from various Engineering industries.☺

Emotional Quotient

Your Score: 50

45 - 54

Congratulations! You have very high emotional intelligence. This is good news! EQ counts for twice as much as IQ and technical skills combined in determining who will be a star performer. Your level of EQlikely has been and will be a driver of your high performance for years to come. Areas to work on: While you are doing well - don't forget to take time out of your busy day-to-day activities to stop and reflect on what brings you the greatest meaning in your life. If we fail to do this on a regular basis, we risk becoming tranquilized by the trivial. Sedated by the small details. Yes, deadlines need meeting and goals must be achieved. But if we are working toward goals that are not in alignment with our key values and greater purpose, we face becoming hostile and cynical - losing the reason we are doing 'all of this' in this first place! This translates into less joy and enthusiasm for our work - resulting in a diminished ability to be effective, at ease, and on purpose. As William James said: I have no doubt whatever that most people live, whether physically, intellectually, or morally, in a very restricted circle of their potential being. They make use of a very small portion of their possible consciousness... much like a man who, out of his whole body organism, should get into the habit of using and moving only his little finger... We all have reservoirs of life to draw upon, of which we do not dream. ** I just remembered something my Professor in IE 3 shared with us. It's that our Emotional Quotient (EQ) can tell us more about our future, not our IQ. So I searched some sites that offer free EQ tests, and I took the quiz. Here's the result.☺ This is from: http://www.ihhp.com/

Friends for Life

Always try to help a friend in need

Believe in yourself

Be brave...but it's ok to be afraid sometimes

Study hard

Give lots of kisses

Laugh often

Don't be overly concerned with your weight, it's just a number

Always try to see the glass half full

Meet new people, even if they look different to you

Remain calm, even when it seems hopeless

Take lots of naps..

Be weird whenever you have the chance

Love your friends, no matter who they are

Don't waste food

RELAX

Take an occasional risk

Try to have a little fun each day.
....it's important

Work together as a team

Share a joke with friends

Fall in love with someone..

....and say 'I love you' often

Express yourself creatively

Be conscious of your appearance

Always be up for surprises

Love someone with all of your heart

Share with friends

Watch your step

It will get better

There is always someone who loves you more than you know

Seize the Moment

Hold on to good friends; they are few and far between

Indulge in the things you truly love

At the end of the day... PRAY

........ and close your eyes 
And smile at least once a day!

**I received this funny inspiring animals message as an email from my Auntie Deliah Conor who is now at Vancouver, Canada with her family.