Gardener in Suma Podcast: My Weekly Podcast

Hi everyone!

This is my first post this year!

I remember that I used to post at least a month 10 years ago even though I am online. Well, that was me years ago.

I would not prolong anymore why I am writing this. I wrote this just to promote my small pet project: my podcast. It’s called Gardener in Suma Podcast.

I don’t even talk about gardening but I chose it just because it sounds cool like how I decided to put jambalaya in my username (lol). Well, the podcast is in Tagalog so that might be a hurdle for those who don’t know or understand it.

Please take a look at it and I want to hear from you how I can improve my content.

Here’s the link to the podcast:

Apple Podcast

Spotify

Anchor

I’m Grateful

Hello WordPress!

If you have read my previous posts, maybe you might wonder what happened to my mother now. If that’s the case, thank you very much for caring. Also, thank you to all who prayed for my mother.

Good news! She is now out of the hospital!

She is now recovering well from her hospitalization since the end of October.

I actually thought we are gonna lose her. Looking back, it felt like there was someone writing a script for us and the timing of the storyline was just right.

It was surreal.

I was about to go home that Sunday afternoon when the doctor called in the morning and asked us to visit her and explain in Filipino what had happened to her (since the doctors find it hard to speak in English). During that time, we brought an iPad for her to meet all my siblings at least online.

The mentality I had that time was that it might be our last moment of seeing her alive. I was ready of what was to come. Or maybe not.

But whatever happens, my heart was ready to face the future of my mom’s condition with courage.

Now I know that taking that leap of faith was worth it.

From this experience, I realized two important things: health and time.

During my five-day stay with my family, though I was worried with what is to happen to my mother, I still felt at peace with just me being there with my family.

Moments like laughing at a botched sinigang, walking in the park with my father, playing with my nephew, seeing my niece smile, riding a bicycle together with my brother, talking to my sister-in-law about a cleaning detergent, meeting a friend of my younger sister, meeting the family of a Japanese friend in a ramen restaurant, and the list just goes on. I know these are simple moments and it only make sense to me.

You just have to be there and experience it yourself.

These are the moments I am thankful I am present.

I never felt that kind of peace of mind and comfort for a long time. It was not a trip to a beach resort, rides in an amusement park, or eating in a fancy restaurant. To me, it was just those mundane moments that left a mark.

When I am in the presence of someone I care the most, those are the moments I cannot help but be grateful. It is the mundane moments that I treasure in my heart.

In spite of my mother’s health decline, I am still grateful. What is important is that she is still alive and recovering though I do not expect her to be like she was before she got hospitalized.

But still, I am grateful!

My mom’s road to recovery

Hello WordPress.

Last week, I talked about visiting my mother. Now, I have some good news!

Last Sunday morning, I received a call from hospital telling me that they would transfer my mother from the Emergency Care Unit (ECU) to the General Ward in the afternoon. The nurse told us also that she can now eat solid food and stand at least for a while. Also, she is now able to sit down in a wheel chair.

I asked if I could visit her and they said yes but only in the hallway of the hospital while they are transferring her to the new ward. The timing was a bonus for me since I was actually planning to go home to Kobe in the afternoon. Because of COVID-19 protocol, we need a special permission for us to enter the ward. I just cannot visit my mother in the hospital on whim unless I am told by her doctor or a nursing staff to come.

So I visited her with my younger brother we were too excited we decided to be there at least one hour ahead of the scheduled transfer to her new ward! For us to be really early, I even borrowed my brother’s bicycle (he has two) and I cannot even remember when was the last time I rode a bike! But well it was all for my mother so either I stumble from my bicycle or do my best. When I rode the bike, I was like a drunk rider who cannot hold the bike handle well. But after a while, my muscle memory kicked in. I can still ride a bicycle!

So after that bike ride, a train ride, and a bus ride, both I and my brother arrived at the hospital during lunch break.

After an almost one hour wait in the lobby/hallway, we then saw the nurses from the general ward pushing the wheelchair for mom to use. We decided to give her iPhone back through the nurse so she can communicate with us her family so we brought it along with us. I and my brother met her at least for five minutes and was able to talk to her for a while. When she complained that her stomach was hurting, we decided to just let her rest and lie on her new hospital bed and took some pictures with her. Just imagine my brother and me with my backpack stuffed with one-week worth of clothing and necessities and my mother’s messy hair.

The timeline for my mother’s recovery is within two weeks. She already spent her sixth day last Sunday. The next step for her is to rehabilitate, walk and sit down by herself, and detox the poisonous toxins caused by the viral infection in her left kidney (medical term: pyelonephritis).

I appreciate all the well wishes and prayers for her.

So please keep on praying for her. 🙏