28. April 2010 by admin.

Early this month, I wrote about a  project being undertaken by a non profit organization called Spirit Jump 2010.  

As I have resolved and committed myself to share in whatever way I can ,   I urged the help of some of my friends and  awesome kids  who were willing to share their talent with those people, especially the young children stricken with cancer.

Prior to the distribution of these priceless  cards,  I would like to give you a glimpse of what they have done - the end product of their remarkable time and effort  :

From these raw materials:

To these priceless wonderful  results:

My heartfelt gratitude and thanks to the tiny, fragile, soft  yet sturdy hands of the students.  They’re truly talented awesome guys !

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26. April 2010 by admin.

I realized that the formation of our new choir occurred in spring time and that  its  first recital, so to speak,  happened during the same time and Easter season.   Was it a coincidence or was it really God’s plan?    We all know that Easter season usually takes place during spring  time  as it is correlated with one another since  both entail new life.  It is during this time of year wherein we start to feel that warm weather and see trees and green grass growing leaves, and flowers  blooming nicely.    Spring is my favorite time of the year, not so cold and not so warm.  It is a new beginning, a renaissance ,  the time of year where one can see light at the end of the tunnel!  

Yes indeed, a light for the new choir despite the lack of resources!  There were overwhelming blessings that   came about.   From one member to 15, from an amateur to an expert guitarist, from one to many different voices,  it is truly amazing!   Some of the members were so generous to share their treasures by providing brand new binders, inserts and their musical instruments of their own volition. Such remarkable kindness, only you can see here from this choir! However, it was the members’ mutual love of music and dedication to the service which made it easy for them to learn the new songs and hone the God-given talents.  We may all know that we have been given a gift, although we’re not the best at singing or playing the musical instrument. We may not be the perfect people, perfect singers but when we sing we are reminded that we can share a gift, i.e. God’s love  and ultimately share the same to everyone.    

The first performance came. Majority arrived as scheduled and dressed in proper attire.  We helped each other in the logistics requirements.  The choir space was tight and the chairs were lacking, but the choir was flexible and focused.   It was a pleasure to sing in such a beautiful tight yet cozy space with all of them facing the congregation.  As the one leading, I saw to it that everything is in order, everyone feel relaxed and joyfully singing the songs.   

It was only after the mass that we were able to chill out …at last we successfully did it!   The people and the leadership of the Apostolate applauded and congratulated the choir for the great job.   In fact, one of the leaders was teary eyed because he can’t believe that the choir has evolved to a notch higher level. 

With the said encouraging and flattering comments,   deep inside we were happy and thankful for the opportunity to share our God given talents, our joy in music and hopefully to impart God’s good news to our fellowmen despite our weaknesses and regardless of who we are. 

With this, I hope I was able to share with you some lessons and tips on how attitude of choir members can shape the success of a newly organized choir.   

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8. April 2010 by admin.

Last February, I received a communication from the Apostolate requesting me to guide and lead the singing  during the mass.  Wow, what an effortless request! But little did I know that it was a form of spiritual leadership accompanied by a critical responsibility brought upon on my shoulder.   

What could I say?  How could I say no to the call for help for God’s glory? I simply responded in  affirmative,  and everything started there! I thought that was one way of touching me to be of help to others in the humblest way I can, which incidentally is one of my advocacies in life.

As a brief backgrounder,  my choir experience dates back during my childhood days.  My kids buddies and I used to sing as members of the choir and it can be attributed to our love for any kind of music, from pop to slow rock and …..the liturgical music!   I   learned my church songs, first from my parents, then from my older siblings, my music teachers who were nuns in our school and from the church where I used to go. But my love  for music didn’t stop there, it evolved  and it continued up to these days.

As I prayed for God’s guidance,  the present responsibility wasn’t a burden at all  - as I said I  can sing and has a little knowledge of playing the guitar.  Some  generous people from the other parish showed up to help in the singing for the first time, then the second time with only one, but with God’s blessings, the group blossomed with more or less 15 people volunteering to be part of the team.    In all honesty, I felt a sense of relief and the assurance from someone up above that everything will be all right!  I realized that the success of the choir does  not depend on the person leading it, her talents, her skills but on God’s keeping control of it.  And that makes it amazing! 

Our  kick-off meeting/rehearsal really went well, probably because the members are musically gifted in their own rights but I believe they were also commissioned to be part of the new choir.  We started our rehearsal with a prayer and some kid stuffs as part  of our agenda. And thereafter the rehearsal began.  I say, Amen. Welcome and congratulations to the new members! From one to 15 members – a combination of the young at hearts and the real young ones with the youngest member, Erynn who is only 6 years old! That makes it even more amazing! 

As a sense of duty, I felt the need to share series of  thoughts and knowledge gained since childhood days from previous choir masters who were experts and considered “maestros” in the field of music. Most probably some of the members may know this already but for purposes of reminding everyone, I would like to share the first batch of the said thoughts with my colleagues and other “newbies” out there who are contemplating to organize one and/or simply be a member of a choir.  

“Singing is Praying Twice”

I have heard this over and over again as far as church choir singing is concerned.  According to some, the said saying was first coined by St. Augustine.  However, based  on an article published in the Catholic online forum,  it was clarified that what St. Augustine wrote simply means that when you praise God thru songs, then something happens to the song of the praiser” because of love. Part of the excerpts of the original translation cited: …”he who sings praise, is not only singing, but also loving Him whom he is singing about/to/for….”.   

In any case,  the message being conveyed by  St. Augustine only implies that whether or not you are a choir member,  one should deliver the songs very well, with respect, with love and with  the purity of intentions. When the choir sings together with the congregation, it is like everybody is praying together.  In fact, Jesus said this that “…when two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them”.  

There are also times that when you sing during the mass and the song coincidentally fit well to how you feel at that particular time, like if you feel frustrated, bothered, broken hearted, abandoned or in any state of emotion, you tend to cry out to the Lord thru the songs and then you realize that your eyes start to have “clouds” and even to the extent that the   tears start to flow down on your  cheeks.  But after that , you feel some kind of an unexplainable relief, giving you a new hope and a form of healing from the Almighty.  Have you experienced this before? Believe me, it happened to me not only once but many times! 

Relevance of a Choir 

Having a choir in the church or any community plays such a vital role in its  overall devotional related activities. As they say, music is essential to liturgy.  The choir can be beneficial in leading the congregation in prayer-song.   The choir music especially if sung well soothes the feelings, inspires and motivates the listeners to join in the singing.  The job of the choir is to help the people sing with them because without the choir, the faithful may indeed be lost. Hence the need for a quality music at mass.

In view of the importance of the choir in the liturgy,   it may be imperative that the choir practice very well the songs to be sung so they would be confident during the actual singing presentation. Similarly, a well rehearsed choir would be able to impart the message of the song and eventually be able to shape and pave the way for the true faith of those who worship.  

Choir members absolutely doesn’t have to be professional singers….anyone who has the knack, committed  and is willing to volunteer their time and talent for the love of God, are the perfect members you could get.  What an awesome gift from God!  All the  best to  all of us! 

Note: The next topic that I would be blogging on would pertain to the benefits of being in a choir, the choir decorum and some vocalization tips (minus the piano)!

If you feel the article was useful ,  please feel free to comment and it would be greatly appreciated.  If you don’t have comments,   it is okay I do understand.  But just the same, it would still be good to hear your thoughts , pleasant or unpleasant!

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17. March 2010 by admin.

There are compelling reasons why I would like to write about St. Patrick’s Day   as exception to the rule and a slight deviation from the primary objective of my blog site, particularly for the month of March .  Nevertheless, for those who have been following my site, you will still find more or less useful tips for women in this article as you read along the way. 

Here are the rationale:

1.    In recognition of and with due respect to St. Patrick whom I do admire for his courage and endurance.  At a very young adolescent age he already faced such challenges, trials, and great achievements in life.

2.    The Gothic Cathedral of St. Patrick in Manhattan always makes me feel at home and the memories will always be there as far as my love of music and spirituality is concerned. 

3.    In appreciation to my colleagues in the local community where I belong, specifically to the amazing and beautiful Irish ladies  who are always there to lend a hand and be a friend   and they all know who they are!                        

Every 17^th of March,  the feast of St. Patrick is celebrated worldwide  in a variety of ways.  St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland as he was responsible for the conversion of Irish people to Christianity.  In Ireland,  St. Patrick’s Day is both a national holiday and a  holyday  of obligations.

Here in New York City,  the celebration of St. Patrick’s Day is considered as one of the major tourist attractions  - it is a great experience if you are visiting the Big Apple on a crisp spring day break!    The St. Patrick’s  Day parade is the main highlight of this event where hundreds of  thousands of marchers    participating and a vast crowd of spectators along the fabulous street of 5^th Avenue.  What is exciting in this event is the unique color green overshadowing the entire gathering.   Regardless of nationality and creed,  you will see people wearing something green and silver or gold glittered green hats and accessories in a festive atmosphere.  

I had the privilege to witness how St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated at the local level.  In our community, the event was started with a mass in the morning by the Irish-descent parishioners and friends and it ended with a dance in the evening.    Apart from the Irish food (corned beef with cabbage, among others) and  drinks,  there was a program with Irish music being played and the traditional Irish dance  by the pretty young ladies with their  elegant traditional costumes.  It was just so   unfortunate my cam was not at its best at that time…..as I bravely went to the auditorium on a  rainy, windy and stormy night ….for St. Patrick’s sake!   It is also during this year that the 1^st Annual Soda Bread Contest was held.  Entries were displayed on the table but since I have to go ahead for another occasion I didn’t get the chance to witness who had the most yummy and mouth-watering soda bread.  Incidentally, I  had this really funny experience about what soda bread is- I thought all along that probably the main ingredient is soda (drinks), hence the name soda bread until my friend corrected me that  it’s soda because it uses baking soda as a rising agent instead of yeast!  Honestly, I would have wanted to try on  how a traditional  soda bread tastes like.  Maybe someday,  once I got a sample of it, I will definitely write an article about it with the ingredients and the preparations as well!  You see, I got a tip for you – about the “soda” thing!  

Sure, the color green and the “shamrock” symbol were visible but what was important was the camaraderie among themselves, the fun  and the pride of their culture and heritage.   This kind of  mood is contagious that even the non-Irish New Yorkers consider themselves as one of them on St. Patrick’s Day!

To all of you, Beannachtai na Feile Padraig agat!  Blessings of the Feast of Patrick to you!

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5. March 2010 by admin.

As a tribute to my Mom,”Inay Aying” (who was in herself an epitome of an ideal homemaker and an empowered woman in her own right)  and to all the women worldwide,  myusefultips.com will reserve the month of March blogging on various tips on certain matters concerning women in general. There are other complementary reasons: 1. The International Women’s Day is celebrated globally on March 8, 2010; and  2. The Month of March particularly in the US has been designated as the “Women’s History Month”.

I have always been proud and enjoy my life as a woman — not just because we have certain privileges in some aspects compared to men but because of our unique and matchless qualities  which men could not ever have. Oooopss, I hope there’s no male chauvinist in this room! As earlier pointed out in my previous blogs, I continuously believe and support advocacy rights of women in the workplace , family and the environment-all relating to gender equality and women empowerment.

In my home country, I used to participate in women’s activities in observance of the International Women’s Day. Normally, the activities are organized by government representatives as well as the civil society, including women’s advocacy groups to commemorate this day and to highlight women’s contributions. Basically, it is the day where delegates of women’s groups from all walks of life in any part of the globe gather together at the local level in recognition of their struggles and challenges, their victories and their future.

For 2010, the United Nations (UN) which plays a vital role in spearheading this global event has came up with this particular theme: “Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all” - which is pretty self explanatory and straightforward.

I would like to encourage you to join in any related event during this day where ever you are and do your bit for the advancement of women! So, make a difference to ensure a brighter, safer and rewarding future of your girls!

I would like to leave you with some trivia about International Women’s Day

Did you know that…..

• the first International Women’s Day (IWD) started on March 19, 1911 (to commemorate the day that the Prussian King promised to introduce votes for women in 1848 which gave hope for equality but which he failed to keep)?

• the said date was later moved to March 8 in 1913?

• the first UN conference on women was held in Mexico city in 1975?

• the IWD color’s logo is purple and white and features the symbol of Venus, which is also the symbol of being female?  Really? OMG!

• majority of the world’s 1.3 billion absolute poor are women?

• women receive between 30 to 40 percent less pay than men for the same work?

• the IWD is a public national holiday in some countries such as , but not exclusive to Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine (all belonging to the former USSR), China and Vietnam?

By the way, there is a so called “International Men’s Day” (every 19th of November). Ever heard of it?  This is  to honor the achievements and works of the amazing and wonderful men in our lives!  Cool!

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