The changes of my Life

God is so good to us. After almost 6 years of struggle my mom eventually met a man to be our father. We were always longing before to have a father image that will love us, accept us and give us a better life. We were so blessed because on February 7, 2007 we moved here in the USA to marry the fiancé of my mom. Fortunately, we are so blessed because our step dad is worth more than anything else. He treated us like his own children. He is very loving, caring, understanding and can sense our needs easily. Sometimes he is better than our mom because she is a disciplinarian type. I feel like she is choking my neck. As a teenager I’d like to do and explore many things but my mom won’t like that. I can’t understand her sometimes but I know she is doing what’s best for us. Though she is strict sometimes but I always love her because she's my hero. She is a great mom for me and my brothers.

This is my happy family and for that my life is complete. We enjoyed together by going to church, shopping, swimming to the beach or pool, walking around to enjoy the beauty of nature and visit other places. I got to study in a prestigious school and I know I have a good future.

My life changes very much aside from having a happy family and a very good father. Considering the language, foods and the climate wasn’t as easy as eating peanuts before I have adjusted. It was really hard to communicate with other people especially when I went to school. During my first 3 months in school, believe me or not I don’t really talk. I was really afraid if they will laugh of my English or they can’t understand my accent. I had mixed emotions but later on I started talking when I met new friends. They are all Americans but they are so nice and can understand me as well.

I was so funny about the foods before because it tastes too gross for me. I really like the Philippine dishes but now it doesn’t taste gross for me anymore. I almost like all their foods except the vegetables with dressings. I can’t still dare to eat the raw veggies. It is still gross for me but I am trying my best to practice eating so that my dad will be happy for me. He is sad if I don’t eat all their foods but sometimes he buys Asian foods for us.

I hate winter and fall because those are too cold for me and so we can't go for swimmin to the beach or the pool. "Beach or pool" are freakin amazin for me. mmmm really love it!!! Anyways, I have no choice because it is God’s will and I need to learn and accept it. I told myself many times, this is my life here..This is America! This is it!!!! This is really is it!!!...Tira tira Justine..tira tira Justine !!!!

Part 2 of my happy and sad experiences

This is a good site that I can escape from my happy and sad experiences. It depends on the readers if they will judge or criticize me. Absolutely, I don’t really care as long as I can express myself. Anyways, there’s no other perfect in this world except God. So I will continue on relating about my happy and sad experiences.

Part 2:
The friends and relatives of my dad were already there at the funeral home when we arrived. They were all waiting for our arrival so that the embalmer can start embalming his body. My mom wanted to get inside the morgue but she was very weak and fell on the floor before she gets nearer. She couldn’t afford to witness the helpless body of my dad. My heart was really broke at that time. I felt so sorry about his sudden death and felt so sorry of my mom as well. She couldn’t accept that we lose a father. She didn’t know what to do because she was jobless and totally dependant to my dad. I saw how miserable she was and very confused what to do after the interment. She was always crying day and night and didn’t get enough sleep. I couldn’t afford to see my mom who was in deep sorrow. So I always entertained myself by playing my friends and cousins. You know, during the moment of his burial my mom was confined to the hospital. She fell down on the ground before my dad buried into his grave. It was really a great intense of sorrow and losing her capabilities to face the fact. Though her family and friends were always there to comfort her but deep in her mind and heart she couldn’t survive raising her 2 children and was 2 months pregnant at that time. It was a tragic experienced in my family.

We moved back to Ozamis, and then my mom worked at the Ozamis City Hall thru the aid of my dad’s employer. Aside from that she was engaged in different types of business inorder to sustain the needs of our family. Luckily, my uncle’s mom was helping her financially sometimes and then emotionally and spiritually supported by her mother. After 7 months my mom gave birth with a baby boy at the emergency hospital Ozamis. He brought us joy and happiness to our family. He was a very cute little angel who was sent by God as a replacement of my dad. Pero sadyang mapagbiro ang tadhana at hindi pa niya binigay ang lubos na kaligayahan para sa aming lahat kasi after 2 days my brother was hit by a L300 van and was confined at Medina hospital by a 50/50 chances to live. We kept it secretly to my mom because we knew that she will be shocked again. After 5 days my mom back home and still didn’t know about my brother. When the niece of my dad came over to our house and she asked my mom of what’s her plans about the driver who hit my brother? She was shocked again, and then she screamed like when she knew that my father was killed. Fortunately, thanks God he survived and my mom talked to him on the phone. So my mom came down and trying to be brave because of us.

After 2 months we moved back to the place of my mom because she couldn’t afford to pay a nanny for my little brother. Then she continued her business (buy and sell) and then luckily she passed the licensure examination for teachers on August 2002. So by then we were happy again.

My happy and sad experiences

I was born in Ozamis city, Philippines on January 10, 1994. I am the second child in the family. I can feel all the attention and care were given to me. They always told me that I was their little angel sent by God. I also felt I was my dad’s favorite child and I treasure that forever. We were living in a complete harmony inspite the fact that we’re not having a sheltered life but my parents were striving hard inorder to meet our daily needs. After 5 years we moved to the hometown of my mom in Maranding, Lala, Lanao Del Norte to pursue her college degree at North Central Mindanao College since my dad couldn’t afford anymore the high tuition fees at Misamis University. Back then, our harmonious relationship goes on while my dad working in Ozamis City and my mom continued her studies as well. He went home every weekends and sometimes every other weekends. It depends on his schedule but my mom was happy and contented because he was a very responsible, loving, caring and sweet husband.

I started going to school on June 1999 as a kindergarten at Maranding Central Elementary School. Fortunately, I got a crown as the 1st princess during the Valentines Day celebration year 2000 in the school. My proud parents were very happy and contented. The happiness goes on when my mom graduated in college. We were very proud of her because she made it through even she was a hands on mom and a full time student. Though sometimes our lives were not perfect, there were always the ups and downs because of our finances but still my parents were trying to managed so that they can give us a good and happy life. Then all of a sudden the town Councilor of Lala came to our house with his wife informing our mom that my father got accident. I still remember it was August 29, 2001 at 6:45 in the morning while me and my older brother having our breakfast. It was few minutes after; she arrived home from the bus station after sending off my grandma heading for Davao. She sat down at the sofa and watched the TV. Our innocent faces were very confused of what was really happened. I was still in grade 2 and my brother was in grade 3. We didn’t really know what all was about because my mom couldn’t talk for few minutes. We went to her and hugged her so tight and asked her what was really happened until she screamed very loud that made our neighbors triggered and went over our house. But still we didn’t know yet about the sad news. My mom was really shocked for few minutes. She couldn’t talk. All we heard was her screamed and saw the waters coming from her eyes. I and my brother were crying also as loud as her. Our neighbors were really confused of what was really happened. Until she finally talked in a trembling voice that my father was killed of an ambushed. So our neighbors tuned in their radio and heard the news about the incident. They have heard the name of my father as one of the victims but it was never said that he was killed. Our neighbors were trying to comfort her and told her not to take any impulsive reactions. Who knows my dad was only injured and was confined in the hospital. Unknowingly, my mom already knew that my dad’s body was already at Gamalinda Funeral Homes in Ozamis but still she couldn’t tell us about that. So after an hour my mom told us and it was already confirmed that my dad’s body was at the Gamalinda Funeral Homes and waiting her presence in a way they can embalm his body. It was really a traumatic incident that had happen in my family. I felt it was the lowest and saddest times of my life. At a young age I already know how hard to lose somebody especially a father.