Sunday at San Miguel

Yesterday, I went to San Beda’s Our Lady of Montserrat Abbey. I was able to witness their morning prayer or lauds. It was beautiful. 

Then, I walked to San Miguel Parish for the 8AM Sunday mass. 

Since it was Epiphany, there was a blessing of calendars. I was able to have mine blessed, along with my scapular. 

I dropped by St. Jude as this patron has been a blessing to me. I continued praying for my intentions.  

I had Go! Salads’ Sgt. Steak wrap for lunch. 

It was delicious and filling!

It was best paired with their vanilla lemongrass tea.  

I can’t get enough of churches because they are my physical link to the Lord. I also enjoy eating healthily because I would like to think that it helps with my overall well-being. I hope that I can contribute more for my family now that my father is terminally-ill. 

I hope that God is listening to my prayers for a job and continuous blessings for me and my family! 

Faith and Fitness

Yesterday, I started my day with another workout at 6am. 

I finally got the hang of waking up at 5am, so I can say that I have already adjusted to my plan to become a morning person. 

I ate breakfast again at Tropical Hut, and I had their corned beef breakfast meal.  

For lunch, I had the Salisbury steak with egg at Steak Break.  

Then, it was time for my thanksgiving church tour! A favor which I have been praying for has recently been granted. For my first stop, I dropped by St. Joseph’s Shrine at Anonas, Quezon City.  

Their giant statue of the sleeping St. Joseph always reminds me to stop worrying and lift it all up to God.  

Next, I offered eggs at St. Clare Monastery.  

I was able to spot my lucky number, 13! I queued at that platform number, because while I believe in God, I also think that creating my own luck is important. This blog has been an opportunity that I have created for myself. All the events, conferences, and offers which I have attended and received were because of my blog, and that is why I think that luck is merely claiming the chances which I have allowed to happen. 

Then, I visited the National Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus. 

I viewed their collection of reliquaries.  

And for last stop, I went to the Our Lady of Montserrat Abbey.  

It is overwhelmingly beautiful.  

For dinner, I had the limited edition herb and bacon pizza from S&R. 

I enjoyed working out, eating well, sketching my food, and touring churches! I hope that I will continue to create more opportunities for myself in the coming days. For now, allow me to carry on with mindful living as I ease my way into the daily grind.  

Prayer in Action

I never get tired of visiting my usual churches for prayer and reflection. It gives me me a sense of peace and fulfillment to go to places of worship, so whenever my schedule permits, I always drop by my favorites. 

My first was St. Clare Monastery.  

My second one was St. Jude. 

I wrapped up my prayer tour with a visit to Our Lady of Montserrat Abbey inside San Beda University. 

I hope you will also find the places that restore your faith and inspire you to pray. God bless you!

St. Jude, San Beda, and Toastbox

Yesterday, I finally tried Habitual Coffee at Vertis North. I was with Luti, and interestingly, their playlist consisted of Pearl Jam’s greatest hits!

Their flat white was right on the money. It was bold and satisfyingly apt for the sunny afternoon, and grunge rock!

Next on our agenda was the novena to St. Jude at the patron’s shrine in Manila, where we were able to pray for our intentions and give thanks. 

Our next stop was the Our Lady of Montserrat Abbey inside San Beda University. I love the interiors of this quaint chapel, and it has a charm which is cleverly unexpected from the outside. 

It is still one of my favorite go-to places whenever I need silence and peace for reflection. 

For dinner, I had the blueberry and cream cheese toast with tea at Toastbox. They have closed their Philippine operations yesterday, and they begin operations today under a new name, called Nanyang. It will be a rebranded local version of a kopitiam. 

I definitely had a lovely day with my friend Luti and it was fun to explore churches and have coffee while listening to Pearl Jam. I was also lucky to have Toastbox for one last time. I will treasure today as it was truly meaningful. Hopefully, I can have more days like this.