in Swedish, “ljusa och vackra”
For my sister, Cherie, on her birthday
To many of us who are privileged to know her, she is “all things bright and beautiful”.
I could write a whole lot (!!!) of wonderful things about her, but she is terribly shy and self-effacing: “Manang, I don’t want you to write about me in your blog, okay?!”
But compelled I am to share some bits of memory, that you, too, may be inspired by her caring and generous spirit, of which she is known best for.
I once had a migraine incident during a brown-out in our area. Experiencing terrible pain with no air-conditioning in the heat of the day was plain hor-ri-ble. All I could do was just lie down in Papa’s room, which was the coolest in the house, wishing and praying for the medicine to work soon.
My sister, knowing I was sick, came to visit. After checking on me, she took a heavy mattress and dragged it downstairs, laid it on the floor next to the wide-open front door, where one can get the most from what little breeze that came in. Then she let me lay there and she cradled and massaged my head until I finally fell asleep.
¤ ¤ ¤
A few years ago, her husband gave her an elegant watch for a special occasion. Immediately after, she began saving up (and most likely did a lot of overtime) to buy a similar one. When she was finally able to afford it, she presented it to me and said,
Manang, I don’t want to have something so pretty that you don’t have.
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Happy Birthday, Babe.
You make Papa and I so proud.
♥ ♥ ♥
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All things bright and beautiful,
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All creatures great and small,
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All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.
Each little flower that opens,
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Each little bird that sings,
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He made their glowing colours,
He made their tiny wings.
The purple-headed mountain,
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The river running by,
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The sunset and the morning,
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That brightens up the sky;
The cold wind in the winter,
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The pleasant summer sun,
The ripe fruits in the garden,
He made them every one;
The tall trees in the greenwood,
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The meadows for our play,
The rushes by the water,
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To gather every day;
He gave us eyes to see them,
And lips that we might tell
How great is God Almighty,
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Who doeth all things well.
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All Things Bright and Beautiful, a hymn by Cecil F. Alexander, 1848
I had a goal to find a good excuse to use all of Windows Vista’s “sample photos” in one post.
Happy Birthday, Tami!
Cherie is the person who would not miss na mapa feel sa imo na important ka. If you visit their home, she would see to it that you’re comfortable. Very warm and sweet and appreciative. Kag kita ko gid how much Cherie and Lara love each other. Ahhaaay… na miss ko kamo and the dogs. hehehe..
I Love you, Tami. Mwah! Happy Birthday! And THANK YOU for everything….
you’re a very sweet manang to cherie…
thanks mymy! :-) but cherie really is the sweetest of us all :-)
Cherie is the person who would let you feel comfortable if you visit their home. She’s indeed generous and caring. That’s her gift. And everyone would have wished that they will have a sister like her because she is soooooooo… maasikaso (caring).
Tami, I pray that God will bless you and your love ones (El and your baby, papa, Lara & Jaakko, wowie..) with good health and joy.
Happy Birthday! Mwah!
What an angelic person…
Wonderful pictures! TACK! Thanks for sharing!