RM Day

 

Happy birthday, Namjoon! 🎂🎈🥳🎉 

May happiness - deep and true - be yours today and everyday. May this new year in your life be filled with realizations of the many exciting possibilities in your horizon... and may the Almighty bless you always with the right endeavors to pursue and the right timing to pursue them, the right motivation to inspire and energize you in pursuing them, the right people to accompany you with passion and joy in your pursuit, and may success and fulfillment walk with you every step of the way; and may the Almighty favor you with wonderful outcomes that make your heart sing at all times! 🙏🤗❤️  Most importantly, may you be surrounded by love, love, love, and more love... lots and lots of deep and true love - at all times, every second of everyday, all the days of your beautiful life!  🙏🤗🥰❤️💜

Thank you for being such a great leader for BTS, a good role model for young people in your love of learning and patronage of the Arts, your commitment to your artistry, and your kind and loving ways towards your BTS brothers and ARMY.   

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Photo credit: The first image was grabbed at the BTS fan page on Weverse while the second image was grabbed from RM's IG page - thanks for the loan.

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A special holy day...

 ...in honor of our Blessed Mother + some nostalgia.

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by PAM

My day started at 4:00 a.m. as usual today, but it wasn't an ordinary day because, today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Nativity of our Blessed Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, in our Roman Catholic faith.  And so, my day started with a Mass, celebrating the blessed Mother's birthday.  I went for the online 5:40 a.m. recitation of the Holy Rosary followed by the Mass at the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag where my siblings and I (except one) were baptized.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MAMA MARY!

I was born and raised in Manaoag, Pangasinan.  My family moved to Manila when I started elementary school.  My siblings and I used to go home to Manaoag every summer and stayed with our maternal grandparents.  My grandfather was a farmer.  Growing up, we enjoyed going with him to his farms especially during harvest time where our grandmother and her cousins brought the farms' produce to the different marketplaces in the province, and would bring us goodies of various kinds when they returned.  We used to wake up very early in the morning and ride in our grandfather's cart with our dogs.  The cart was pulled by his cow or carabao, whichever he preferred to accompany him for the day.  After the day's work, he would take us to the river where we swam like there was no tomorrow with the cow/carabao and the dogs!  Haha...  It was especially enjoyable when it was raining, and we raced to the river in the rain.  The water current would be faster than usual, and we rode the current using plastic basins - water tubing style.  Sometimes, our grandfather would take us to his family's orchard, where we picked fruits and have a little picnic under the trees.  During the picnic, he would often tell us about his stay in Guam, USA as an overseas worker, and where a sibling and a number of cousins of his reside.  It was during these picnics that I learned to speak English from him.  The first English word that I learned, I learned from him... and it was "salt".  

Later, our visits became less frequent, especially after our grandparents passed.  These days, we rarely visit but whenever we do, we'd always pass by the Minor Basilica first.  So, I feel very 'at home' in hearing the Mass from the Minor Basilica... it brings back memories of our childhood with our grandparents.

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Because the Blessed Mother is our Patroness...

Today is extra-special because, for the first time in two years, we finally are able to hear the Rector of our University (University of Santo Tomas or UST) give the "Rector's Report" - a tradition in our University.  Our Rector is a devotee of the Blessed Mother, and so, important events in his Rectorship are usually held during Church Feasts that involve the Blessed Mother.  

The annual Report usually covers all the accomplishments of the University in the previous AY, and it is submitted to Rome - to the Pope, since UST is a Pontifical University.  This particular Rector's Report covers the accomplishments of the University from January 2020 to July 2021 - at the height of the pandemic.  The Rector invited top administrative and academic officials to attend in-person at the Grand Ballroom of the Blessed G. Paredes, O.P. Building - home of our Office for Alumni Relations. I feel honored and very fortunate to have received an invitation to this very special event.  And, it was extremely humbling to have been mentioned by the Fr. Rector in his Report.  

I particularly love what he said in his 'Reflection and Conclusion' (1:21:55 mark in the video): "How did the University get through the first 18 crucial months of the pandemic?  Responding... was essentially love's labor... we accompanied our students in their struggles, both in their academic and personal lives... we learned the value of meaningful connections with fellow members of the Thomasian community... in the process, we experienced what it means to be truly blessed with life, with health, with friends, with family.  The pandemic taught us the value of what it means to be a Thomasian community.  We are a community that looks out for the welfare of each other during a time of great uncertainty... we are a community guided by the virtues of 'Tria Haec' (these three): faith, hope and love... what reverberates are these two messages: be grateful, be open to others.  Gratitude enables our spirits and allows us to see as the direness of our reality, whereas empathy opens our hands and palms to reach out to those who need our time and resources.  Gratitude and empathy are the principles that allow us to redirect our focus on the things that we can change. And, also, together they inspire change from within ourselves driving us to serve with humility and sincerity; and allowing us to touch the lives of those around us in ways we never thought possible. 

The Rector of the University of Santo Tomas,
the Very Rev. Fr. Richard G. Ang, O.P., Ph.D.

"The Lord has given me the opportunity to lead the University at a time of great uncertainty and ordeal.  With His unending grace, we have seen the light of this day.  We have gone past the episode of the darkest hours of this pandemic - I hope and pray...  We did not experience complete campus closure during the pandemic... we were made to experience this once-in-a-generation global health crisis for a reason. We were meant to survive... there is truth to the saying, 'the enormity of the tasks that the crisis demanded from us may have been too much for each and everyone, but not enough to break our spirit as one Thomasian Community.' More than a time of hopelessness, the pandemic is a defining moment that brought out the best in us.  It is a time that brought Thomasians closer to one another, and closest to God.... never have I seen this University so united, so strong in the face of adversity.  May God be our beacon and strength in the coming days, all the days of our lives."   

His words were, indeed, relatable.  It was like hearing our own thoughts from the deepest recesses of our hearts.  The whole event was indeed wonderful... but more than anything, it was GREAT to see colleagues and friends in our dear Thomasian community after a long, long time!  Thanks be to God!

After the event, I was able to finally see my new (physical) office... albeit temporary.  It is located in the same building... I just needed to go a few floors up.  It was great!  I went home today with very light spirit... very happy, and ready to start working hard once again for my beloved University and for God's greater glory!

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Photo credit:  The first photo was grabbed from the online Mass at the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag.  Thanks, YouTube, for the video link.  All other photos featured in this post belong to me.  One was taken by someone else for me.

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Tiny mini break with "the Queen"...

 ...because it's badly needed.

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by PAM

Relaxing at my sister's 'plantita' haven...

'no place like home', indeed!

I spent the last three weeks or so mostly 'imprisoned' in my 'little office' in my bedroom - working on a number of tasks and a 'major, major' deadline, which I, thankfully, beat last Friday.  

I still work from home most of the week.  My real office at home is located at our attic... but I've been too 'in the zone' lately to even climb the attic.  The ideas come rushing early in the morning... by 4:00 a.m., and I feel that climbing the spiral stairs to the attic would 'spill' the ideas from my head. Hahaha... So, after my morning prayers, I immediately move from my bed into my office chair, and allow my keyboard and little notebook to catch the ideas... first, as jumbled words that make no sense.  By noon, and after three mugs of coffee and a quick breakfast bite though, the words 'rearrange themselves' in sentences and paragraphs that make some sense that they actually excite me!  The excitement usually burst to a surge in energy that I usually dissipate to a 20- to 30-minute exercise... with BTS music, what else!  Haha...  After breaking a sweat, I go for a quick trip to the shower.  All that make for my noontime break... and then, I continue working with a refreshed mind.  This time, I let my imagination guide me to organize the burst of ideas in the morning... and transform them to a professionally composed material that is worth-sharing with colleagues at work.

And then, the evening comes... by then, I'd be too exhausted to do anything else but eat, browse the www for a little bit... and fall asleep.  The whole cycle repeats itself.  Today, however, it's different.  I woke up early in the morning, and went for the 6:00 a.m. Sunday Mass as I usually do.  And, I resolved to NOT DO ANY WORK!  So, after Mass, I had a good breakfast with my sister, and just spent the whole morning hanging out at our front yard. My sister is a 'plantita' (a person with green thumb and uses it to grow plants with much gusto).  I enjoyed the cheerful chirping of the birds atop the tree, and just soaked up the sun 'peeping shyly' from the thick dark clouds and the cool after-rain breeze.  It was good!  I felt that my mind got refreshed. If the bounce of my hair is any indication that the 'tiny mini break' did my body well, then, the whole decision to abstain from work is very good! 

Sometimes, you just need to say 'no' to the constant 'nagging' of work in your brain.  Just because you work from home does not mean that you need to work yourself to death lest others think that you are not working hard enough.  At the end of the day, it's your output and the outcomes of your hard work that matter and the real indicator of your efforts.  No matter how much we enjoy our work, rest is still necessary.  We can work very hard to our heart's desire, but we also need to give ourselves time to recuperate.  This is what the weekend is for.

And so, today, I will continue indulging myself to things that make my soul sing.  The songs from a previous post (on BTS, who else?) still hum in my head, especially "Spring Day".  So, today, I take advantage of my new-found empowerment against the bondage of unchecked enslaving passion for work by enjoying more of BTS's music.

♫ "You know it all, you're my best friend... 

the morning will come again

No darkness, no season can last forever."🎜

 

That music video (MV) afforded BTS the 2017 Mnet Asian Music Award (MAMA) for Best Music Video.  This is their first win in a five-year winning streak: 2017- "Spring Day", 2018 - "Idol", 2019 - "Boy with Luv feat. Halsey", 2020 - "Dynamite", 2021 - "Butter"; and their second nomination in the same award category.  Their first nomination was in 2016 for the "Blood, Sweat and Tears" MV.  To date, these make BTS the winningest group in the history of MAMA in this category (5 wins), and they have garnered the most number of nominations (6), too, in this category.

Personally, "Spring Day" reminds me of my "birthday post" in this blog from July 2020 - at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.  In that post, I let off steam from the pandemic-induced stress, and I also spoke about the promise of spring.  It turned out that that was the last birthday that I celebrated with my father. He passed in December that year. He was not afflicted with COVID-19 but his old age-induced sickness was aggravated by the limited access to health care that time due to the pandemic. After my father passed, I became very attached to this song by BTS. While it is quite sad for me, I continue to listen to this song... especially when I am under a lot of stress and I need to dwell in the warmth of my father's love to keep going such as in my recent post here. 

The song almost accurately describes the longing for a loved one... and the hope that someday, such longing will be soothed by eventually meeting that loved one once again. The superb rendition of the group of the beautiful lyrics, on an easy-on-the-ear melody, is remarkable. The blend of the melancholic singing of the vocal line that exposes raw emotions and the moody rendition of the rap line of verses that attempt to mask pain with toughness grips the listener's longing heart in a tug-o-war between vulnerability and emotional resilience.  If one listens to the song, one will be left in emotional pieces... but when one watches the video, one will find solace in its hopeful theme.  The group conveyed hope effectively, and it is amazing!  This is probably the reason why the group won the MAMA Best Video for this one - very well deserved, indeed!      

So, I thank BTS for this song, especially the brilliant RM and SUGA, and their music industry 'father', Bang Si-hyuk (or "Hitman" Bang), for composing and producing this song.  As of this writing, the song has not fallen out of the Melon Music Top 100 Charts since its release as the title track of the BTS album, "You never walk alone" in 2017.  As such, ARMY fondly refer to it as "the Queen"... and rightfully so, too.

Alright, my 'tiny mini break' is over... time to start getting into 'work mode' again.  Let's go!

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Photo credit:  All the photos in the collage featured in this post belong to me.  They may not be used for other purposes.

Video credit:  The owner of the video featured in this post is indicated in the video itself, Hybe Labels. Thanks, YouTube, for the video link.

References:  MAMA website, Melon Music Chart and BTS Official Website.

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JK Day

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JK! 💜

It's "JK Day" to everyone who speaks the BTS language in a universe that's strewn with the beautiful purple hearts! 💜 So, I'm just dropping by to greet our one and only 'golden maknae', Jeon Jung-kook, or simply 'JK'.   

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JK! 🎂🎉💜

Stay good, happy and healthy, JK.  Thank you for being the sweet and thoughtful person that you are in your own unique way, and for being God's blessing to many, many people who are just getting by through life because of the daily inspiration that you bring through your music, tremendous talents, good vibes... and just being you.  Lots of love to you today... and always! 🙏🤗😘💓💜  

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Spotlight on our Golden Maknae

To celebrate this young man's special day, let's recall one of his own favorite BTS songs, "Euphoria"...

♫ "I'm so happy, I can't breathe...

Take my hands now...

You are the cause of my euphoria..."🎝

Such an awesome vocalist and a performer, JK is.  And he gets better still... he leaves us breathless with his talents.  And he gets even better as an individual, too.  We are simply in awe... and just very proud of him.  

And now, "Euphoria" with his BTS brothers...

♫ "When I'm with you, I'm in utopia..."🎝

And because we will always be with him, and he with us, in 'our own purple universe', here's a tribute to that purple loyalty, "Still With You" - a song that he wrote and co-produced for ARMY, which was released on limited media platforms in June 2020...

♫ "Behind the faint smile that looked at me

I will draw a beautiful purple shade.

Though our footsteps maybe out of step

I want to walk this path with you.

Still with you..." 🎝

The song has a lovely Spanish sonata vibes about it that makes you want to stand and sway a bit.  It highlights JK's fast-transitioning voice that allows him to sing with his very own romantic tone without losing the accessible 'K-Pop' appeal of the song he sings.  It is very unique, actually... and this transition adds to the already very thick quality of the BTS sound where his voice is central, being the main vocalist.  Most of all, he is able to create that 'purple universe' where the mutual 'purple loyalty' between him and ARMY makes millions of purple hearts beat in the lovely rhythm of this song. 

JK's impressive vocal prowess that's continuously evolving was on spotlight in the song, "Stay Alive" - the soundtrack of the digital comics on Webtoon, 7FATES: CHAKHO.  It was produced by another BTS genius, SUGA (Min Yoongi) - a brilliant record producer.  The song was released in February this year.  

♫ "At the end of this endless nightmare

that I don't know if if it'll ever end

You raise me up everyday..." 🎝

This song is an evidence of JK's limitless capabilities as a vocalist.  He singlehandedly provided that patent BTS 'layered' vocals quality with his very own voice.  He showed the range of his vocals depth - rhythmic, power, falsetto... and he sang with emotion whether in whisper or in 'full-throttle' power... and all the transitions were seamless, smooth - beautiful.  SUGA's brilliant production put one JK voice quality on top of another, piling thin and thick 'slices' of JK's beautiful vocals that make the listener's spirit fly on cloud 9.  The song served as a 'catalogue' of the various things that JK can do with his singing voice with SUGA's beautiful tapestry of sound as a background, even enhancing the effect of JK's voice to the listeners... bringing JK's voice in parcels of 3D notes that burst in the ears in alternating soft-fast-powerful-slow motion - too beautiful! The notes keep playing in the ears after hearing the song in a long time.  A genius vocalist and a genius producer... ahh, ARMY is too spoiled!  We only get the very best from BTS!  It's no wonder why ARMY's 'purple loyalty' is limitless, too. 

And speaking of 'purple loyalty', JK wrote another song that he released on the 9th anniversary of BTS's debut last 13 June 2022.  It's his song for ARMY, and it was released also on limited media platforms.  It's called, "My You".  It's beautiful... and the "my" and the "you" can go both ways... 

♫ "All these lights are colored in by you

All these times are precious due to you...

On a starry night

Hope my you sleep tight

Shinning purple light

Thankful to be by your side now."🎜

Sometimes, the most beautiful sentiments are felt deeply when expressed in the simplest of words.  Sometimes, the true profundity and sincerity of sentiments or ideals are best expressed not in abstract words but in words whose meaning is easily understood... heartfelt, relatable, straightforward and will not be subject to misinterpretation.  Sometimes, expressing the depth of one's affection - love - can be felt not by the poetic beauty of verses but by the humility in offering one's self through the warmth of simple but comforting words.  JK hit all that with resounding success with this song... that's why we know that he has been growing as an artist, and slowly occupying all the rooms for improvement when he started as a very young main vocalist of BTS.  And he is able to do it because he has something that not so many brilliant artists like him has paramount in their hearts in pursuing their artistry - LOVE.  And, he gives it away piece by piece in every song, in every performance, in every conversation with ARMY.  

JK did not go for the usual thickly layered BTS song production quality for this song.  He kept it brief and simple... after all, 'simplicity is beauty'.  He went for a 'conversational approach' rather than singing an 'editorial' about life.  Sang with the calming beauty of JK's voice, "My You" is a 'simple serenade on a quiet starry night' for the subject of his affection: ARMY.  And ARMY identifies with it... and all 'starry nights' for ARMY henceforth will be accompanied by this song... and JK.  As such, through this song, he made himself even more accessible to ARMY... whenever they need a conversation with one who doesn't really know them but love them so much.  This song is that song that takes them to a 'private' conversation with JK... where JK offers nothing but love. 

And because 'love begets love', JK has our love, too - always.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JK! 💜     

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Photo credit:  Photo belongs to JK, grabbed from his Instagram (IG) page.  Thanks for the loan, JK.

Video credit:  The owner of the videos featured in this post are indicated in the video themselves:  BTSPurpleYou, Hybe Labels, Bangtan TV - thanks for the loan of the videos.  Thanks, YouTube, for the video links.

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