I'm just posting a story I found while reading a friend's blog. I really liked it. I wasn't able to control my emotions while reading and before I know it, my tears fell already. It is a very touching story about mother and son. Hope you will also find time to read this. I have no intention to post again tonight after the previous entry I just published but I really have to share this. It is worth your time.
Here it goes.
After 21 years of marriage, my wife wanted me to take another woman out to dinner and a movie. She said, 'I love you, but I know this other woman loves you and would Love to spend some time with you.'
The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my Mother, who has been a widow for 19 years, but the demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally.
That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie. 'What's wrong, are you well,' she asked? My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news.
'I thought that it would be pleasant to spend some time with you,' I responded 'just the two of us.' She thought about it for a moment, and then said,'I would like that very much.'
That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous about our date. She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary. She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an angel's.
'I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed,' she said, as she got into the car. 'They can't wait to hear about our meeting.'
We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady.
After we sat down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. Half-way through the entrees, I lifted my eyes and saw Mother sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips.
'It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small,' she said. 'Then it's time that you relax and let me return the favor,' I responded. During the dinner, we had an agreeable conversation nothing extraordinary but catching up on recent events of each other's life. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, 'I'll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you.' I agreed.
'How was your dinner date?' asked my wife when I got home. 'Very nice, much more so than I could have imagined,' I answered.
A few days later, my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't have a chance to do anything for her. Sometime later, I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place Mother and I had dined. An attached note said: 'I paid this bill in advance. I wasn't sure that I could be there; but, nevertheless, I paid for two plates - one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me. 'I love you, son'
At that moment, I understood the importance of saying in time: 'I love YOU' and to give our loved ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till some 'other' time.
Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby... somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, 'normal' is history.
Somebody said you can't love the second child as much as you love the first... somebody doesn't have two or more children.
Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery.... somebody never watched her 'baby' get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten. .. or on a plane headed for military 'boot camp.'
Somebody said a Mother can stop worrying after her child gets married... somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in- law to a mother's heartstrings.
Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home...somebody never had grandchildren. .
Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her... somebody isn't a mother.
Pass this along to all the GREAT 'mothers' in your life and to everyone who ever had a mother.
This isn't just about being a mother; it's about appreciating the people in your lives while you have them... no matter who that person is!
Watch your thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your habits, they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes...your destiny.
'Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle'.
The story is somewhat similar to the other story I read in Chicken Soup for the Soul I just forgot the title but nevertheless it has an impact. You will be touched.
Another great video I found in youtube. Here's what's written in the letter:
How tired I am of this unbearable distance between us. How I long for the toll of the recess bell. Have you forgotten me, grown mindless of me? Tell me I am not writing into an abyss, Or that is what will become of my heart.
I've just finished reading 'Pride and Prejudice' and all of a sudden it became my favorite novel. It's charming and heart-warming in its own way. The novel's first line-- "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife"--gives you the idea that the novel revolves around marriage. It gives emphasis on the society of the eighteenth century and the need for young women to find a husband in possession of a good fortune. The motive of marriage is purely for the sake of economic survival.
I will only give a short narrative about the book. It starts with the conversation at Longbourn, the Bennet household, about the upcoming arrival of Mr. Bingley, "a man of large fortune" to Netherfield Park, a nearby estate. Mrs. Bennet sees Mr. Bingley as a potential suitor for her daughters, and attempts to persuade Mr. Bingley to visit him. There are five daughters in the Bennet family. Mr. Bennet seems to prefer Elizabeth, the second oldest, because of her intelligence, while Mrs. Bennet seems fonder of the oldest, Jane, because of her beauty, and the middle child, Lydia, because of her good humor. We follow Miss Elizabeth Bennet through a number of early-18th-century crises her first encounter with the excessively proud and unlikeable Fitzwilliam Darcy; her desire to nourish the growing affection between her older sister Jane and the somewhat unassuming Charles Bingley; her refusal of the proposal of marriage from her odious cousin the clergyman Mr. Collins; her relationship with Mr. Wickham -- who is not all that he would prefer to seem; her visit to Rosings Park, the domain of the Lady Catherine, an aristocrat of great "condescension"; her trip through the Peak District with her aunt and uncle Gardiner, culminating on the grounds of Darcy's huge estate at Pemberley; Lydia Bennet's elopement with Wickham; and eventually Eliza's marriage to a Darcy now revealed as perfectly amiable.
If you haven't read the book, I suggest you read it. It's really a great book. It gives you a lot of insights and a picture of the society of the eighteenth century. I can't wait to see the Pride and Prejudice movie which stars Keira Knightley.
Hirose Michi, a 26 year old teacher dissatisfied with her life, but unable to change it's direction toward a loveless marriage and a less then satisfying career. Everything changes when she meets and bonds with Kurasawa Hikaru, a 17 year old transfer student with his own problems, which mirror her own. Mutual attractions lead to attachment and finally, love. This leads to a situation where they must contend with a society that is not accepting such an unusual relationship. The remainder of the series follows their trials and tribulations leading to a bittersweet, yet hopeful finale.
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Forbidden Love is a story of true, deep and lasting love where the only crime is that Hikaru was born 9 years too late. This series taught me that we should not be paranoid with what people will think if we do this or do that. If it does not conform to their standard so what, at least we're happy right?! We are our own person and capable of making ourselves happy so we should not let other ruin it by dictating us what to do.
I really love this series and I hope that everyone could watch it. This drama moved me unexpectedly. It almost made me cry. I like the role of Takky here as compared to his role on Strawberry on Shortcake. He was adorable in this series since he knows what he wants and he didn't let anyone get on his way. I heard from a friend that ABS-CBN will be showing Forbidden Love soon. Let's just keep our fingers crossed ok?!
Summary At some point, Manato Irie (Hideaki Takizawa) began to withdraw himself from the world. Even when picked on, it's not the real Irie, but an act. However one day he meets a strange girl - Yui Misawa (Kyoko Fukada). Yui, who finds the tedium of everyday life unbearable, teases Manato with her almost too upfront and honest manner. Alone and afraid Manato wavers but finds himself drawn to her. But his feelings for Yui are doomed to be unrequited.
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This is my first Japanese series and I'm not disappointed with it. As a matter of fact, I like it. It was an excellent piece of drama with good acting, strong script, and the extra-a message to send as well. The story is heartwarming, thought-provoking, and meaningful. It will lead you to think further and makes you reflect upon yourself. The actors were fitting for their role and they did a great job.
This series makes me reflect if I really know myself that well. Until now, I'm not sure yet of what the strawberry on the shortcake depicts. Ok let's put it this way: If you were to eat your strawberry shortcake, will you eat the strawberry first or you'll save it and eat it last?
Well in my case, I will eat the shortcake first and save the strawberry for the last bite. Maybe this means that I'm like Sawamura and Manato after all and maybe this is also the reason why I didn't like Takizawa Hideaki in his role in this series.
