Dear East Two

Dear East Two, I’m sure most of you (if not all of you) dream about “the one.” The person who will appreciate every single thing about you, imperfections and all. Who will be your best friend — someone you can talk to about anything and everything, that will stand by you through the good and the bad . Who will love you unconditionally for the rest of your lives. Alongside of you, I also dream about the person I will one day (God-willingly) marry. In fact, I have even written multiple letters to my “future husband.” Emphasis on future , though. Like the majority of you, I have yet to see who this person is. This is why Valentine’s Day can be a little bit hard. While it is meant to be a beautiful celebration of love, for people who aren’t currently in a relationship, this particular holiday can seem like a slap in face. Everywhere we go, all we see are couples holding hands, surprising each other with thoughtful gifts, making googly eyes at each other across restaurant tables. Wh

Dear Surrey 2, Christmas lights sure are pretty, huh? Come to think of it, everything is so pretty this time of year! I mean, check out the mall. I went to shop for presents the other day and I got very distracted by all the decorations. Each way I turned, something emulated the holiday season via Christmas carol, sparkles, bold colours, "70% off everything" sale signs... A few days back, I decided to visit a jewelry store which, in retrospect, was not the best idea because it was extremely crowded and extremely sparkly. Every clerk was trying to address every shopper's need. I didn't stay for more than 30 seconds because it was just too loud and all the shining stones were burning my eyes. That experience got me thinking about the way I look at Christmas and what it should mean to me, as a Christian. I knew something was off but I couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was... That same day, I came home to a bright, blinking Christmas tree. My mom decorated the

Dear Surrey 2, It has been exactly 385 days since I said "yes" to serving you and this is what I have learned: 272 of you comprise the chapter, 210 of which are active. 37 of you are household heads, 12 of you serve as the core with the help of 10 Couple Coordinators as well as 4 program heads. On average, we have 2 events a month at either 2 of the parishes that we are currently present in, which means that I get to see you guys about 24 times a year. Yet, I cannot place a numerical value, nor even begin to describe how much you mean to me. Last year, I wrote a letter to my future self outlining the things I wanted to learn and the things I wanted to do for you guys. This letter was to be opened a whole year later, and to my happy surprise, yesterday was a whole year later! So, I practically jumped onto my prayer journal, opened the nifty pocket that I knew I kept it in, and began to read. In it, aside from the typical sappy stuff were some of th

"I love you and you are Mine." Dear Surrey Two, I'm writing this in the midst of a beautiful realization that I came to understand on my 160th day of serving you. The reason why I want to share this with you is because you have already shared so much with me! So I want to tell you how I saw our 160th day together. First, it started out with finding out that about 150 of you would be at our February chapter assembly. Truth be told, I was absolutely terrified. Thankfully, the Lord has a funny way of speaking to His children so during the mass before the CA, He spoke to me. Do not be afraid, I am with you. After that, all my reservations, fears and worries started to melt away. Unfortunately, despite the Lord's reassurance, I held on to some negativity. By the time of the CA, all of my worries came rushing back. I was afraid again; afraid that something would go wrong, or I would mess up even though all I wanted to do was make you feel welcomed an

Dear Surrey 2, This post, I admit, is more so for me than it is for you. By this point, I hope that if you were sad from the news of transitions, you are now able to rejoice. The Lord has entrusted you to the strong and gentle hands of a new core! And tonight with your first Collective Household with them, you will see how eager they are to love, honour, and serve the Lord by loving, honouring, and serving you. How blessed you all are to have each other! But what’s it like for me, as a “chapter head emeritus”? I created this blog to record what a year of serving the beautiful chapter of Surrey 2 would look like. With that being said, I also made it knowing I would be leaving at the end of the year, thus my intention was partly to record my last year with you. However, I was completely unaware that my last year would not even be the length of a full year. The earliness of transitions had been a rumor from the start of the year, but once it was announced to be true

Dear Surrey Two, Forgive and forget: a phrase that gets thrown around a lot. Forgive someone who's hurt you, and forget that it happened. Forgive and forget. Forgive and get. Get frustrated, get annoyed, get disappointed. Because you feel like you're the only one trying. The only one making an effort to change. The only one who still gets hurt. Damaged, bruised, broken. How can we forgive if we can't forget the pain? I was reflecting on a past bruise while before the Lord recently when a different phrase popped into my head: Forgive and give. Give your care, give your love, give yourself. Because how can we fully forgive if we don't give ourselves to the receiver? Forgiveness requires humility, and if a Mighty King who is consistently hurt by our poor choices is able to forgive us sinful humans, then why can't we swallow our pride and forgive one another? Time and time again, He is hurt, and forgives. But after being hurt only