hopia!

hi prenships!

I was hearing mass at the office one afternoon and the priest spoke so slooooowly that I must have dozed off with my eyes open. I’m sorry I don’t mean any disrespect but if he drives the way he says mass and I was at the passenger seat, I’d be pressing on an imaginary gas pedal…and flooring it! I appreciate the act of sanctifying every word and aspect of the mass but with him talking so sloooow, my mind kept wandering to other mundane stuff like the FB shoutout I read the previous night AND the work waiting to be finished AND the cute guy I saw last weekend (the priest finished one short sentence in the amount of time I was able to conjure up all these thoughts) …when suddenly I was jolted back to the ceremony as if someone gave me a Gibbs-slap (it’s the urban term for a slap to the back of the head). And then I felt shame… it wasn’t the priest I wasn’t listening to – it was the Lord I was being impatient with.

This reminded me of an incident in the office.

I had an officemate who was entrepreneurial…she sold everything from fruits to loads to hopia to candies to cracker biscuits (skypleks she calls them no matter what the brand or kind of biscuit). One time, I could literally hear my stomach growl with hunger and as I was just thinking (more like dreaming) of buying from my officemate something to munch on, when my boss asked me, “Maan, pwedeng pahinging isang ‘opia?”

Did I hear him right? Was he also thinking what I was just thinking of doing – getting some hopia? Was he asking me to get him some hopia from Lenny (woops!! I said the name of she-who-cannot-be-named!) As I stared at him wide-eyed for a full 10 seconds, in disbelief of what I had just heard, he repeated himself (twice! this time a little bit slowly as if I was a five year old retard), “Pweeeedeeng pahiiiingiiii naaang isaaang ‘opiaaaa?” I just kept on staring and he was looking strangely at me, probably asking himself what has gotten into me. When he showed me the report I had just submitted earlier, it finally dawned on me what he was asking for, “Pwedeng pahingi ng isang KOPYA (of the report)?” aahhhh!

That’s how we are some of the time… well, that’s how I am many times. It sometimes gets difficult for us (ok…just me) to hear Him…maybe because I’m the one doing all the talking. Or maybe I just don’t want to listen. Or maybe I only hear what I want to hear.

One time, while I was at church doing my “prayer time”, I kept on asking God to speak to me…to give me direction…to tell me what I need to do…to show me the way…to tell me who He’d be sending as my mentor…if and when I’ll be in love (nyeee!)….when I heard, loud and clear, “Stop talking, my child. Listen and you will hear!”

So I stilled and stopped talking for the next hour and I listened…but all was silent. But it was in that silence that I heard…and felt God’s presence. I felt His peace…His gift…His love…His friendship! And I realized that that’s what I need to do…not just with Him in prayer…but also with my family and my friends…and yes, with priests who speak real sloooow. I need to stop talking (or let my mind wander) and just listen to what they have to say. For what they have to say may be God’s message for me.