ADVENT is here. Can the New Year be far behind?
There is something about the advent season that makes us look beyond the festivities and celebration of Christmas and the holiday season. It reminds us of the year that is about to end, inviting us to introspect about where we are now and to look forward to where we want to be in the new year that is before us.
This is what I have been working on since Thanksgiving that I will soon be sharing with you just before Christmas – three stories that chronicle our collective life experience in 2020, and a peek into the lives of other people who may not be as fortunate as we have been despite our own challenges, but have nevertheless been given the grace to choose hope over despair, healing over sickness, faith over fear through the power of love, of compassion and a sense of purpose.
For my first story, I will take you to the streets of San Francisco where we will all together witness how some kababayans have far graver things to worry about — the roof to shelter their families, where to get their next meals, what to hope for in the future. They are the homeless people among us, and we will know their stories.
I will give you a peek into the lives of families who even before the pandemic, have been facing the biggest concern of any parent — the threat to the life of their children. We will hear their stories, and how they keep the faith and continue fighting against all odds.
I will also take you to the world of our doctors, nurses, caregivers, especially in the Filipino community — who have been in the front line of our war against the coronavirus pandemic. They are our modern-day heroes. What challenges are they and their families facing? What keeps them going and continue to serve those who have been afflicted by COVID-19 despite the risk to themselves and their families? What do they hope for in the future when many of them have already paid the ultimate sacrifice just so other lives may be saved?
Hearing about other people’s lives helps us look at our lives from a different perspective. I remember reading a poignant line I wish I knew the author of, which says, “I cried because I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet.”
When we look beyond our own needs, wants, problems, desires and care to witness the lives of others, we realize how fortunate we still are, how thankful we are for the cross we need not have to bear, how we have witnessed so many miracles in our own life.
As we count our blessings amid adversity and the challenges of the year that is about to end, may we also open our hearts to be a blessing to others, to be somebody else’s miracle.
Abangan po ninyo ang mga video stories na ito. I will be sharing them on YouTube and different social media platform, and will write about them here in my column.
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The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Asian Journal, its management, editorial board and staff.
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Gel Santos Relos has been in news, talk, public service and educational broadcasting since 1989 with ABS-CBN and is now serving the Filipino audience using different platforms, including digital broadcasting, and print, and is working on a new public service program for the community. You may contact her through email at [email protected], or send her a message via Facebook at Facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos.
