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Family Secrets

Thursday Letter #14 | Holiday Funk

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Good morning/evening!

Ang nasa utak ko ngayon ay Pilipinas. Kasi nai-imagine ko kung gano ka-festive dun ngayon. Yung ramdam na ramdam mo yung holiday cheer, lalo na sa mga malls. Ang sarap umuwi! Ang tagal ko nang dream na makauwi ng holiday season. Kaso hindi pa matuloy-tuloy. Sa ngayon, magpapatugtog na lang ulit ako ng “Di ba’t kay ganda sa atin ng… Paskoooo… Naiiba ang pagdiriwang ditooo…” like every other December, habang medyo teary eyed.

If we have unlimited funds, we would spend every Christmas and New Year in the Philippines.

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Journaling Secrets

Thursday Letter #13 | What I Love About Journaling

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Good morning/evening!

I found myself in the mood to update my Hobonichi (my planner-slash-journal that’s more like 10% planner, 90% journal). I filled in the calendar page to reflect our recent California adventures, then, out of curiosity, picked up my 2024 Hobonichi to see what my November looked like last year. Some significant events were:

  • nag-last day ako sa work
  • pinanganak si baby Max (pamangkin ko sa pinsan)
  • took French classes
  • early Christmas party with Winnipeg friends (kasi malapit na kaming mag-move to Calgary)
  • watched Wicked with Trix

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Calm Secrets

Thursday Letter #12 | Letters to Self

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Hello from my cozy little home office. Ang aga kong nagising ngayon (5:30AM) which meant more time to read, journal, and write my 12th Thursday letter. After reading my saved articles (hoping to spark some ideas), hindi ko pa rin alam kung anong isusulat ko today. So binasa ko yung latest entry sa journal ko at meron pala akong ginawang list:

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Journaling Secrets

Thursday Letter #11 | Planner Season

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Love my new office space 😍

In the journaling and planner community, September is known as ‘planner season’. It’s when notebook brands start rolling out their new lineups for the coming year. Two of the popular ones I always look forward to are Hobonichi and Traveler’s Company (both Japanese companies).

It’s kind of like when Apple announces the new iPhone each year. I know I’m not going to buy every release, but I’m invested in seeing what’s new. It’s the same with these two big brands. It’s just so fun to browse the new cover designs and themes for 2026, and also temptingly look at all their planner offerings in different layouts and sizes. But in my heart, I already know the single thing I’m going to get. I know that I’ll be sticking with the same planner I’ve been using these last two years: the simple and uncomplicated Hobonichi Day-Free in A6 size.

But alas, I was wrong.

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Family Insights Pals Secrets

Thursday Letter #9 | Expectation vs Reality

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Pag meron akong mga kaibigan na nawalan ng mahal sa buhay, I will say my condolences, sincerely let them know that I’m just here, then give them space. Aantayin ko na lang silang mag-message ulit pag ready na silang makipag-interact sa outside world. Pakiramdam ko kasi yun yung kailangan nila. Ayokong mangulit, ayokong maka-bother, feeling ko pag chinat ko sila ng “Kamusta?” baka mainis lang sila at sabihin nila na, “Ano sa tingin mo?” Pero ngayon na nagkaron ako ng isang major loss sa pagkawala ng lola ko, in my case, mas na-aappreciate ko pala yung kinakamusta ako. Hindi ko pala kelangan ng madaming space. Kasi pag nagsolo lang ako with my grief, ang hirap nyang dalhin mag-isa.

On comforting someone experiencing grief:

I hope we can talk about the truth of the loss, not distract them from that. Because that is what’s going to help them.

The excuse of, “I don’t want to make them feel uncomfortable” but you’re actually making them feel uncomfortable by not speaking about what’s there in plain sight. Don’t be afraid to go to hard places.

— Lori Gottlieb | How to Deal with Difficult Emotions During Tough Times to Support Your Family and Friends Effectively, On Purpose podcast

Nagawa ko ‘to nung nawalan ng kapatid yung kaibigan ko. Siguro dahil sobrang close din namin kaya hindi mahirap sakin to “go to hard places” with her. Kahit few months after, or even years after she lost her younger brother, napaguusapan pa rin namin minsan yung pain at sadness nya. At ngayon na nawalan naman ako ng lola, ganun din sya sakin. Sabi ko sa kanya, kahit ang tagal ko nang pinaghahandaan ‘to at alam ko namang matanda na rin ang Mommy, never pa rin akong naging ready nung nangyari na. At yung pinakamasakit, hindi mo makokontrol yung way ng pagkawala nila. Kahit gano mo pa i-wish na sana hindi sila mahirapan, it’s really out of our hands. Na-comfort ako dun sa sinabi nyang, “Kahit alam naman natin na hiram lang ang buhay, ang hirap-hirap pa rin talaga.” Walang paghahanda ang sapat pag realidad na ang kaharap natin.

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Life Secrets

Thursday Letter #5 | TikTok and Sunsets

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Hellooo. I’m out of sorts lately. Siguro dahil hindi ako naaarawan. O dahil magkakaron na ko. I talked about kung gano ako ka-inlove dito sa bagong bahay namin. Pero kung meron akong isang hindi gusto, yun ay yung position nya. Kasi hindi ako nakakakita ng sunset at sunrise, unlike sa lumang apartment namin na sagana akong makakita ng orange sky. Kaya siguro nung lumabas kami nung isang araw at nakakita ako ng sunset, muntik na kong maiyak sa tuwa.

🥹

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Life Secrets

Thursday Letter #4 | The Mountains Called

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These past few days have been uncomfortable. I can’t wait to move into our permanent home. The cats are obviously uncomfortable too. I feel their uneasiness. We’re currently staying at an Airbnb which is a basement unit, so they don’t get to see any sunlight and can’t do their usual people and car watching from the windows. I feel bad. Don’t worry kitties. One more day! Although the first few days in the new place are guaranteed to be chaos with all the home organization and setup we need to do. All this moving really messed up with my system, and this dingy basement with all the artificial lights isn’t helping perk up my mood. I sure hope this will all be worth it.

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Life Secrets

Thursday Letter #3 | Overdrive

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Hello! Huhu I don’t even know where to start. My mind is racing in every direction because so much has happened over the past few days. I already talked about the chaos of moving and how it was sooo stressful. So stressful that my period came a few days early. It messed up with my hormones and it’s another sign that I have to slow down.

Almond reminding me to relax 🤍

I’ve also been very reflective about friendships lately. This isn’t exactly new, but I think it’s the first time I’ve talked about it extensively in a blog post. I guess it’s just hard to admit that I do feel alone at times. Emphasis to the word ‘feel’ because I know I’m not really alone. Also, spending a few days in New York with my good friend Nick just reminded me of what I was missing. All my closest friends are in different parts of the world, and I still find it hard to reconcile with this reality. We keep in touch regularly but it’s just not the same.

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New York Secrets Travel USA

Thursday Letter #2 | Hello USA!

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