I Don't Know About You, But I'm Feelin' The Christmas Spirit

Probably because for the first time, I'm truly celebrating Christmas. Last year I had just gotten back from treatment, was still a bit anxious, and was still adjusting to life in Manila again. The year before that, my family and I took a cruise where I had to be rushed home because of an attack. This year, I'm completely happy. I'm back in straight, everyday school for the first time in two years, making new friends there as well as keeping my old friendships strong, part of a happy family, and, thanks to God, have not had an attack in quite some time. 2013 was a blessed year for me indeed.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Priorities

This photo was taken a while back, but I recently came across it while sifting through my laptop library. Upon arriving at the St. Tropez village of Balesin Island, an employee took us on a tour of the rooms. Instead of jumping on the bed or looking out the windows to the beachfront view, I knelt down in front of this trunk and oohed and aahed while the guide told me it was a replica of a trunk they found in France. My best friend Nicole snapped a picture of me worshipping the glorious trunk. :)

Russian Royalty

I stumbled upon this photoshoot on Tumblr called Russian Royalty, and it is just stunning.

                                                   

Check out more of her photos! http://www.doedeereblogazine.com/

One Year.

What better way to celebrate one year of being home and healthy than stumbling upon this little gem?

God and His Neon Signs

"There may never be a sign, no flashing neon light, telling you to make your move, or when the time is right."--Hilary Duff, "Why Not"

Sorry Hil, but this time I'm very happy to prove you wrong.

First, I want to share this picture:

It was one of many Tumblr pictures I had saved to my phone about three years ago. I had dozens of other sightseeing pics saved to inspire me to travel the world someday, but this had stuck out as my favorite. It reminded me of the tree gateway Aslan created at the end of the Prince Caspian film, and that scene is still one of the few film clips that can make me cry. Every. Darn. Time. Anyway, I loved the idea of this gate opening up to the ocean and the mountains beyond. To me, it was completely otherworldly and fantastic. The sad thing is, when I found it on Tumblr, it was never captioned, so I had no idea where it was. I actually thought it didn't even exist, that it was from a movie set, or Photoshopped.

Second, I want to share my current situation:

About a month ago, my friend Pilar told me about this liberal arts college in Europe that she was applying to. I looked it up, found out they had a history major, and fell in love with the idea of applying there next year. I was feeling really certain of my decision, until sem break ended and I found myself back in Ateneo. I started feeling like I didn't want to give up my Ateneo experience just yet. But I also knew that I've dreamt of studying abroad ever since I was a wee 10-year-old devouring the S.A.S.S. novel series (Students Across the Seven Seas). So I felt myself pulled in two completely opposite directions.

Then yesterday, I decided it was time for a change in my desktop wallpaper. I decided to look up Lugano, the town in Switzerland the college was located. This photo popped up.

Needless to say, my jaw dropped. This is the sign I've been waiting for to go full speed ahead and not look back. Thank you, God.

A Sign From The Heavens

I found this on my Tumblr dashboard:

"Okay but seriously if you are attending college while experiencing any sort of mental illness then you are an impressive human being. Even if you don’t always make it to classes. Even if you don’t always do your homework or pass all your tests. You are doing something that is incredibly difficult when so many of the odds are against you, and regardless of what you are studying you deserve a Ph.D. in being a total and complete badass."