Dear Gwapa / Little Girl / Phoebe Dawn…
Depending on both our moods, I would call you in any one of
these terms of endearment that I have for you little girl. You make me so happy
and so worried all at the same time.
Happy, because I see so much of me and of Papa Emar in you.
You are feisty, head-strong, independent, intelligent, funny, organized, artsy,
protective of your Kuya Paul, impatient, “sungugan” and tall like Papa, pretty,
“maarte” all rolled into one bundle of energy trapped in that supermodel-built
body that you possess Phoebe Dawn.
This worries me because I don’t think you’ll ever be fat
again with “lugaw” as your favorite meal. You were once a “chubby” baby. When will
you eat rice and “sud-an” gwapa? You eat almost everything except at meal
times, you would only eat “lugaw”.
Never mind. We can’t force you. You’ll get there in due
time; and we hope quite soon. This brings me to my first LIFE lesson for you,
that is, to be mindful that you cannot change the people surrounding you – even
loved ones dear to you. You can only change yourself and at your own pace, too.
Accept this reality and you’ll be at peace.
At six-turning-seven years old, you love expressing your “true”
self and I love that about you. You draw, sing, dance and play like you just
don’t care. Don’t ever lose this part of you, Phoebe Dawn. This is your second
LIFE lesson. Be true to yourself, to your principles, to what you believe is
just and right and live a guilt-free, much happier life. No regrets!
You want to be a nurse because you think your Kuya Paul is
going to be a doctor (which I’m not sure is happening anymore, as he wants to
be an “author based in Canada”) and you’ll like him to get you as his nurse. When
I first heard this from you, it made my heart swell a thousand times over. Please
remember this third LIFE lesson, that is, to love and cherish your family. Because
when Mama and Papa are gone, you’ll only have your Kuya Paul. Respect and care
for each other, no matter the circumstance.
As I write this blog (and love letter for you little girl),
you are four days’ shy from celebrating your seventh birthday. I still cannot
believe I was able to raise you and raise you well in the past seven years. I did
not plan my life, as should be. I ran wherever the wind took me. The wind,
fickle as women, took me to your Papa Emar and that’s when I truly started
planning. This is the fourth LIFE lesson gwapa. Plan ahead BUT dream big and be
flexible. Don’t let the critics get to you. Move forward, follow your plan or take
a detour. Whatever it is that will give your life meaning, value and purpose,
go ahead! Just do it.
You might think I’m writing this too early in time. You’re only
seven. You wouldn’t understand what I’m blabbing about here. Guess, I’m hoping
that someday you will. You see, I learned these LIFE lessons while living,
experiencing life and I don’t want you to commit the same mistakes I did. But
as I write this, I realized that I cannot prevent that from happening really. We’ve
all got free will. This is the fifth LIFE lesson little girl. To know that you
always have a choice. You can even choose to ignore the lessons I’ve written
here and come up with your own as you go through living, experiencing YOUR life
(still hoping you’d find this valuable though). Choose what’s best for you.
Choose good. Choose kindness.
Kindness… This brings me to my sixth LIFE lesson for you,
Phoebe Dawn. Always be kind. You can never go wrong with kindness. Be kind to
your brother, to your neighbors, to your friends, teachers and classmates, to
community workers, to strangers.
When I got pregnant with you, Papa and I chose carefully the
names we were about to give you. We wanted you to have a beautiful name, one
that you can be proud of, one that you can use to change the world – or at
least make it a better place to live in.
Phoebe is a name found in the Bible, a woman who fervently
served God through Apostle Paul in
his Epistle to the Romans, verses 16:1-2. It means, “bright and
shining”. Of course, we paired it with Dawn, which means “Aurora, the first
appearance of daylight or daybreak”.
You are our “bright and shining Aurora”, Phoebe Dawn, and
may you bring that sunshine to others as well. Serve others. Pray “that God may
plant in your heart His purpose for you”. Find your purpose little girl and
spread that sunshine.
This should serve as your seventh lesson, befitting of your
upcoming seventh birthday on February 16, 2017.
Happiest birthday Gwapa / Little Girl / Phoebe Dawn!
Love lots,
Mama Jima
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