"what is essential is invisible to the eye ..."

This is an excerpt from the book "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupery. The wisdom of the fox can't be overlooked. Indeed, man has forgotten a lot of things in search of that "something", whatever that is, that  he is looking for. I invite you to revisit the Little Prince and the Fox,  and maybe you might be able to revisit yourself along the way. Enjoy reading! - Althea Prudente

CHAPTER 21 - THE LITTLE PRINCE

"It was then that the fox appeared."Good morning," said the fox."Good morning," the little prince responded politely, although when he turned around he saw nothing."I am right here," the voice said, "under the apple tree.""Who are you?" asked the little prince, and added, "You are very pretty to look at.""I am a fox," the fox said."Come and play with me," proposed the little prince. "I am so unhappy.""I cannot play with you," the fox said. "I am not tamed.""Ah! Please excuse me," said the little prince.But, after some thought, he added:"What does that mean--'tame'?""You do not live here," said the fox. "What is it that you are looking for?""I am looking for men," said the little prince. "What does that mean--'tame'?""Men," said the fox. "They have guns, and they hunt. It is very disturbing. They also raise chickens. These are their only interests. Are you looking for chickens?""No," said the little prince. "I am looking for friends. What does that mean--'tame'?""It is an act too often neglected," said the fox. It means to establish ties.""'To establish ties'?""Just that," said the fox. "To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world . . .""I am beginning to understand," said the little prince. "There is a flower . . . I think that she has tamed me . . .""It is possible," said the fox. "On the Earth one sees all sorts of things.""Oh, but this is not on the Earth!" said the little prince.The fox seemed perplexed, and very curious."On another planet?""Yes.""Are there hunters on that planet?""No.""Ah, that is interesting! Are there chickens?""No.""Nothing is perfect," sighed the fox.But he came back to his idea."My life is very monotonous," the fox said. "I hunt chickens; men hunt me. All the chickens are just alike, and all the men are just alike. And, in consequence, I am a little bored. But if you tame me, it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life. I shall know the sound of a step that will be different from all the others. Other steps send me hurrying back underneath the ground. Yours will call me, like music, out of my burrow. And then look: you see the grain-fields down yonder? I do not eat bread. Wheat is of no use to me. The wheat fields have nothing to say to me. And that is sad. But you have hair that is the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat . . ."The fox gazed at the little prince, for a long time."Please--tame me!" he said."I want to, very much," the little prince replied. "But I have not much time. I have friends to discover, and a great many things to understand.""One only understands the things that one tames," said the fox. "Men have no more time to understand anything. They buy things all ready made at the shops. But there is no shop anywhere where one can buy friendship, and so men have no friends any more. If you want a friend, tame me . . .""What must I do, to tame you?" asked the little prince."You must be very patient," replied the fox. "First you will sit down at a little distance from me--like that--in the grass. I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye, and you will say nothing. Words are the source of misunderstandings. But you will sit a little closer to me, every day . . ."The next day the little prince came back."It would have been better to come back at the same hour," said the fox. "If, for example, you come at four o'clock in the afternoon, then at three o'clock I shall begin to be happy. I shall feel happier and happier as the hour advances. At four o'clock, I shall already be worrying and jumping about. I shall show you how happy I am! But if you come at just any time, I shall never know at what hour my heart is to be ready to greet you . . . One must observe the proper rites . . .""What is a rite?" asked the little prince."Those also are actions too often neglected," said the fox. "They are what make one day different from other days, one hour from other hours. There is a rite, for example, among my hunters. Every Thursday they dance with the village girls. So Thursday is a wonderful day for me! I can take a walk as far as the vineyards. But if the hunters danced at just any time, every day would be like every other day, and I should never have any vacation at all."  So the little prince tamed the fox. And when the hour of his departure drew near--"Ah," said the fox, "I shall cry.""It is your own fault," said the little prince. "I never wished you any sort of harm; but you wanted me to tame you . . .""Yes, that is so," said the fox."But now you are going to cry!" said the little prince."Yes, that is so," said the fox."Then it has done you no good at all!""It has done me good," said the fox, "because of the color of the wheat fields." And then he added:"Go and look again at the roses. You will understand now that yours is unique in all the world. Then come back to say goodbye to me, and I will make you a present of a secret."  The little prince went away, to look again at the roses."You are not at all like my rose," he said. "As yet you are nothing. No one has tamed you, and you have tamed no one. You are like my fox when I first knew him. He was only a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But I have made him my friend, and now he is unique in all the world."And the roses were very much embarassed."You are beautiful, but you are empty," he went on. "One could not die for you. To be sure, an ordinary passerby would think that my rose looked just like you--the rose that belongs to me. But in herself alone she is more important than all the hundreds of you other roses: because it is she that I have watered; because it is she that I have put under the glass globe; because it is she that I have sheltered behind the screen; because it is for her that I have killed the caterpillars (except the two or three that we saved to become butterflies); because it is she that I have listened to, when she grumbled, or boasted, or ever sometimes when she said nothing. Because she is my rose.  And he went back to meet the fox."Goodbye," he said."Goodbye," said the fox. "And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.""What is essential is invisible to the eye," the little prince repeated, so that he would be sure to remember."It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important.""It is the time I have wasted for my rose--" said the little prince, so that he would be sure to remember."Men have forgotten this truth," said the fox. "But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose . . .""I am responsible for my rose," the little prince repeated, so that he would be sure to remember.

Lessons learned today ...

Dear God, Thank you for today. Thank you for the wonderful gift of friends, family and colleagues. 

We thank you for the trials that came our way and we thank you for the lessons learned today. 

We ask forgiveness for our failures to love, understand and help. May we also learn to forgive those who have wronged us today.

Finally, Lord, we thank you for the warm weather but we also pray that you send us rain especially to those areas affected by drought and extreme heat.

We ask you to blow cool wind all over the Philippines tonight and may we sleep tight knowing that You will keep us in sight. We love you, dear God.

All these we pray, in Jesus' sweet name. Amen. All is well ♥
Photo by: Althea Prudente, 2012, China

Live to Tell ...

Photo by: Althea Prudente, China 2012
"I have a tale to tell... sometimes it gets so hard to hide it well!" ~ Madonna, Live to tell.

Lord, life is just so complicated that we sometimes

don't know what to do. Sometimes we do something

and it's not the right thing to do. Sometimes, we

regret not doing the things we should have done.

Father God, I ask for your mercy and forgiveness.

Flowers give happiness and beauty to the world, but,

flowers also die. May you continue to remind me

that my life is just temporary and that someday I will

also wither like the flowers. May my life bring

happiness and joy to whomever I meet. This I pray in

Jesus sweet name. Amen ♥

MIRACLES

Let me share with you a poem written by Walt Whitman. Bob Holman and Margery Snyder, About.Com Guides, About.Com.Poetry wrote that Walt Whitman was born on Long Island in 1819, son of a farmer and carpenter who was a liberal thinker and full of national pride; Walt Sr. named other sons after Andrew Jackson, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Whitman grew up in Brooklyn and after a rudimentary public education became an auto-didact, often crossing to Manhattan on the ferry to explore its libraries, theaters, lecture halls and museums.

The poem is entitled Miracles and it simply spoke what I have always felt inside when I see the world. Everyday is a miracle for me and I give honor to the Miracle Worker who unceasingly amaze me. 

M I R A C L E S

Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892)

Why! who makes much of a miracle?
As to me, I know of nothing else but miracles,
Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan,
Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky,
Or wade with naked feet along the beach, just in the edge of the
water,
Or stand under trees in the woods,
Or talk by day with any one I love--or sleep in the bed at night with
any one I love,
Or sit at table at dinner with my mother,
Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car,
Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive, of a summer forenoon,
Or animals feeding in the fields,
Or birds--or the wonderfulness of insects in the air,
Or the wonderfulness of the sun-down--or of stars shining so quiet
and bright,
Or the exquisite, delicate, thin curve of the new moon in spring;
Or whether I go among those I like best, and that like me best--
mechanics, boatmen, farmers,
Or among the savans--or to the soiree--or to the opera,
Or stand a long while looking at the movements of machinery,
Or behold children at their sports,
Or the admirable sight of the perfect old man, or the perfect old
woman,
Or the sick in hospitals, or the dead carried to burial,
Or my own eyes and figure in the glass;
These, with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles,
The whole referring--yet each distinct, and in its place.

To me, every hour of the light and dark is a miracle,
Every cubic inch of space is a miracle,
Every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the
same,
Every foot of the interior swarms with the same;
Every spear of grass--the frames, limbs, organs, of men and women,
and all that concerns them,
All these to me are unspeakably perfect miracles.

To me the sea is a continual miracle;
The fishes that swim--the rocks--the motion of the waves--the ships,
with men in them,
What stranger miracles are there?

PRAYER IN SICKNESS

Prayer has always been my way of healing ... bodily, emotionally, psychologically and even morally.  I believe that if we connect with the Supreme Source of all Power and Love, healing is obtained through His Grace. 

I am an example of physical healing through prayer. 
In 1990, I was diagnosed of having a lump in my left ovary. My doctors prescribed me treatments and even surgery. I opted first to have my treatments oral administration of medicine. I remembered I have to take 8 different kinds of tablets and capsules every meal. I did these for over a year. Several ultrasound checks had been done but the lump never decreased but thankfully it did not increased in size anymore. 

Finally, I decided to undergo the second option surgery. Before I flew to Manila where I chose to have it, I had to resign from my job in Bacolod City. On my last day of work, one of our clients, Dr. Albert Jo, a dentist and a Christian, asked me if it's ok if he can pray for me. I gladly said yes. Dr. Jo prayed over me while I and our secretary prayed with him silently.

I asked my ultrasound doctor to give me a new shot of my lump as I will be flying to Manila the next day. This will save me a lot of trouble of looking for ultrasound clinics there or waste time queuing for one in the hospital. When he did the ultrasound, the lump was gone!  It was simply not there anymore. He said my new doctor must be very good as the lump is gone. I told him about the pray over that just happened that afternoon in my office. Anyway, he gave me my clear film and off I went to Manila.

I already believed I was healed but I still proceeded with my checkup with my new doctor in Manila. She gave me a clean bill of health.

It has been 22 years now since I was declared CLEARED. Every 5 years, I still have my regular checkup as part of my wellness programme. I thank God that I am still healthy and free of any lump in any part of my body. 

Let me share with you my prayer in sickness which I always say whenever I feel emotionally low, stressed, fatigued, physically weak and even undergoing spiritual dryness. May this prayer help you heal yourself and others as we lift our sickness to Him who is the Healer of Healers. - Althea Prudente

PRAYER IN SICKNESS

 - From a bookmark I bought from St. Paul's Bookstore, Philippines

 Lord Jesus,

I believe that you live and are risen.

You are the fullness of liufe,

You, Lord, are the health of the sick.

Today I wish to present to You all my infirmities.

Have compassion

on the sufferings of my body,

of my heart,

and of my soul.

Have compassion on me,

bless me

and grant, Lord, that I may

recover my health.

Let my faith grow

and open my whole being

to the marvels

of your love,

that I may witness

to Your power

and compassion.

Heal me, Lord,

heal my body,

heal my heart,

heal my soul.

Give me life,

life in abundance.

 

Twist of Fate

For some time now, I have been contemplating if a new job is in order. After careful thought, I decided to bring it for divine intervention. I specifically prayed and asked my friends to pray for my intention to have better working environment and new good friends in the workplace too. 

Today, I had a meeting with our HR Officer in charge of my branch. She told me how we performed during the last 3 years and how this year would be very important for the company. Her news and her concern for my well-being as the sole foreign teacher in our branch made me happy and refreshed. We were able to discuss my problems and other personal concerns as a foreigner living in a non-English speaking country.

Has God immediately answered my prayers? Does it mean I will have a better year with the current company or is He just testing me in my resolve to really transfer and find a better company? For sure, I can't easily accept this as a direct answer from him. But still I leave it to my God to help me discern what is best for me given the opportunities presented to me. Maybe, another message would be just wait a little bit longer and a better one will come in due time. 

Whatever it is that will come out of my request and prayer, I trust that God will bring me to where He wants me to be. For now, I have a job and a contract to finish. I will do it to the best of my ability so that whatever comes next, I will be ready for the challenges ahead.

Going out ...

Last night I found an old drama series played by my favorite actor Bae Young Jun. I played it and remembered how it was when I was watching it before. Later on, my focus was not on his pretty face anymore but on the story itself.  The scene started with him rushing off to the hospital to find his wife in life support systems. In another scene in the same hospital, a woman was also worried sick about her husband who was also in a life threatening situation.  As they would bumped into each other from the hospital, to the police station, to the junk yard where the almost crumpled car was, I can't help but fast-track my mind to the scene where they fell in love. Sadly, I turned the video off. His wife and the woman's husband were actually together in the same car when the accident happened. They were on their way to a "honeymoon" destination. Apparently, life had played a trick on them.

Many questions came pouring in. How has life played a trick on us? Have we played along with it consciously or unconsciously?

We are a very complex organism ... physically, mentally, socially, emotionally and even para normally All these have brought me to one question?  How can anybody question there is not one supreme being who has meticulously and perfectly made us. The question of evolution versus creation doesn't make sense to me at all.

Anyway, life is what we make it. We choose what makes us happy and complete. I dare say enjoy life with all its tricks, trials, pains, laughter and folly... we can't have it on our own way and once lost, we can't have it again. Live each moment as if its the last. I'm going out ... the sun is out ! <3 <3 <3