jm's Life: The Best of 2009

Life is like a book. And it is indeed full of various chapters. Some are good while others are not. But once you read the whole book, you realized that every part, good or bad, makes up the entire story.

Year 2009 is just a chapter of the past 18 years of my existence. So many things has happened. I've been through ups and downs. And in betweens, literally. :D And before we welcome 2010, let me look back at the past memories that made a change and added some spice to my already wonderful life.

• MY WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEYWhile most of moms lie how beautiful or handsome their children are, my mom loves to tell the truth. I remembered it was early 2009 when my mom woke me up in the middle of my good night sleep. She was yelling, "Jimboy, gumising ka nga! Yung mga pinagkainan mo nagkalat! Napakatakaw mo! Tingnan mo nga yang itsura mo! Para kang elepante!" She was absolutely brutally honest with me most of the time. Hehe. It was painful for me of course. But it served as a wake up call for me. It was then that I became aware of what I was doing with myself. I was so depressed then that I did nothing but eat and sleep, then eat and sleep, eat and sleep, and finally, eat and sleep. I was gaining too much weight! Hearing my mom said those harsh words, I took the time to look at the mirror and realized that my mom was totally right.
  
  Watching on television, I chanced upon this local movie called My Big Love. It was a story about a fat man falling in love with his personal trainer. It was in the movie that I learned about the 5 steps towards weight loss. Step 1: Ask yourself. Step 2: Start today. Step 3: There are no shortcuts. Step 4: Motivate yourself. Step 5: Be happy. Inspired by my mom's brutal words and Tony Gonzaga's encouraging ways, I decided to finally take responsibility with my weight and my health. And my WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY started.
  
  It was March 2, 2009 when I enrolled on a fitness center and hired a personal trainer. Slimmers World Fitness Center was located on SM North Edsa and was an hour and half away from home. It was time, money, and energy consuming to travel from Hagonoy to Quezin City for three times a week. And the fact that I travel before and after I exhaust myself from working out on the gym, it was kinda afflicting. But everytime I felt like I would falter, I just looked for ways to motivate myself. I remembered every after a session, I would go to a Penshoppe store in SM. I would just stand in front of the boutique, stare on maniquins and imagine myself wearing one of those clothes. I know I looked kinda stupid then. And for sure the security guard was keeping an eye on me. Haha! But I did not care. It was one of my motivations and it worked.
  It was also then that I took the time to study different kinds of diet strategies. Along with excercise, I also underwent on a strict low-carb diet. I inhibited myself to a cup of rice per week. I also avoided white breads. And even spaghetti, my favorite food, was restricted. On my weight loss journey, limiting my food intake was definitely the hardest. I could exhaust myself from working out on the gym and felt overfatigue, I really dont mind. But restricting myself from my favorite foods, that was like a mortal sin. lol. So while other people were indulging on tasty meals, I was in the corner eating bland foods. Mga loko pa nga kasama ko sa bahay. Sa harapan ko pa talaga kumakain ng masasarap. Mga naiinggit pa. Hehe. All the excercises and dieting was really difficult for me. And there were times then that I felt like giving up. But thinking I could finally wear a small size tee and skinny jeans, and to eventually bent down without my "kuyukot" being shown to the public, lol, I was able to get through it all. I was 235 lbs when I started this whole journey. My target was weight 170lbs. I did not get any 170lbs. I got 160lbs instead. :)My Weight Loss Journey is perhaps one of the most unexpected and one of the best things that has ever happened into my life. No wonder it took up so much space in this entry. Hehe. I was a fat creature since I was born. And no one has ever think that somehow I could manage to narrow my weight down. But I did. And I feel so confident. ;) If my mom hasn't said those words, my weight could have been the same.
  I could still hear her voice echoing in my mind. "elepante! pante! te! te! te!" Hahaha!

• CELEBRATING ONE'S IMPERFECTIONS
  No one's perfect. Who is? Raise your hand and I'll slap you in the face. Just kidding. lol. For the past years of my life I was living with too much insecurities. I blame God for not making me as beautiful as other people are. It was devastating to know that I was not good looking enough, that I was not smart enough, that I was not talented enough, that even if I give my best, it was not enough. And it was more burdensome to have people tell that in your face.
  It was this year that I grew tired of thinking what other people have to say. I looked inside of me and found that there's more to me than these flaws. And when I started to appreciate the good things in me, that was the time that I started to love myself more. It was then that I began loving my dark skin, my round lips, my big nose, and all the pimples. It's not that I want more pimples, like, "sana mapuno na ng tagyawat muka ko." Di naman ganon! Hehe. Maybe what I was trying to say is that I am now happier with the way I am. And not any blemishes nor a single pimple can take the fact that I am loving myself more and every square inch of my imperfections. :)

• OUT OF THE CLOSET
  Remember on the second paragraph when I said I've been through ups and downs, and in betweens, literally? It was this year that I chose not to be on the right side nor on the left but to be in between. Still not getting the hint? It was this year that I decided to proclaim the world I am homosexual. So in case you didn't know that yet, now is the time to be shocked. Haha. I knew since my dad's spermcell met my mom's eggcell that the rainbow blood of gayness is running through my veins. Growing up, I was distracted by how the society treats gay people, so I decided to hide my true sexuality. I had an inner battle with myself then. I didn't wanna be teased for being gay. I didn't want to pay money just to feel the love of a man. I wanted to live a normal a life, marry a girl and have my own family. Full of pretentions, but no complications. That's what I thought before. But the urge to be true to myself is greater than the fear of rejections and criticisms. That was the time I stopped fighting and just let my true personality shines through.It was hard for me, of course, to let other people know about it. I still was afraid of rejections. But the excitement of living the life I've always wanted is so intense that I forgot about all the consencuences. I am gay. And I am so happy that my friends accepted me for that. My family, on the other hand, doesn't know about it yet. But I bet they already have an idea they're just not ready for it. My mom still gets mad whenever I shout "ay puke!" She insists men are not supposed to have those kinds of expressions. lol. :)

• NEW FACESI decided to go back to school last June of this year. I enrolled myself in Bulacan State University with the course of Entrepreneurship. It was definitely one of the best of 2009. I met different people and gained new friends. Friendships that I know will last for a lifetime. My entrep2A family, my mgt2C family, my pe-mates, my co-irregular, my jiggles, my strawberry, and of course, my sparkles.I also met new professors, to whom, with their accopmplisments, has imparted new learnings to us while establishing a good relationship with us. It is my honor to meet all these people.

• OLD FACES
  Year 2009 marks the second year since we graduated from high school. We might have gone separate ways and had our own priorities, but the love and bond inside Humility Family goes stronger than ever. And with every strict schedules, we always manage to have time with our second family. Every gathering we had all through out the year was absolutely unforgettable. But there are some that truly rocked the world of Humility. -May's 18th Birthday Party @ the Umbrella. Who can forget about that? It was a blast. Everyone was partying like never before. All the dancing and drinking, it was, like, we were from a whole different planet. The highlight of this event? People getting drunk and wasted. And guess what? That includes me. ;) It was my second time to get wasted actually. But my first in front of my friends. It was a strange feeling being drunk. It was, like, you have your own world and you're free to do and be anything. But after I became sober, I felt like I was the most stupid person ever. All the memories flashed back. I was aware I did things I shouldn't have done but I have no idea why I did it on the first place. I was so thankful that my friends were all forgiving. I realized that it's fine to look stupid sometimes, what matters most is that we learn from our mistake and at the end of the day, it's our principles we still hold on to. Tsug! tsug! tsug!:D
  -Humi's Christmas Gathering. Oh, memories. No bizarre venue, just a simple room. No disco type sounds, just my phone playing Two Heads are Better than One. No tasty foods, just a bunch of turon and a pack of Marty's. No wines, just The Bar and GSM. Nothing too special, just us having the time of our lives together. Yet it was one of the happiest days for all of us. 'Nuff said.

• A NEW FOUND FRIEND
  He told me I'm his spiritual adviser. So I guess that makes him my spiritual student. Hehe. It was this year when we became close. We were friends before but we did not talk often as we do now. All this time I thought he was the one learning from me. But it turned out, I was learning from him as well. His strength in facing obstacles and his unique way of seeing things are so inspiring that you can easily be encourage to be the best that you can be. A lot of people have no idea that behind his laid back character lies a verytalented, smart and responsible man. He's definitely not just another pretty face. Because there's more to him than that.
  Did I mention he was the one who encouraged me to start my own blog?

• THE SECRET REVEALED
  
  It was this year that the greatest secret is revealed to me. The Secret is the Law of Attraction. This was the best thing that has ever happened to me this year. When I read the book and watched the film about The Secret, my life has changed. It transformed into a better one, something that I never expect. I became a better person. And am happier than ever. My relationship with my family became better. My relationship with my friends grew stronger. I always ace up my exams in school. And above all, I started to love myself more. Basically, everything goes my way. All because of the Secret. ;)

These are just some of the best things that has happened this 2009. I would love to tell more but I guess the time is not enough. A few moments from now, we have to bid goodbye to a year that brought wonders to our lives. But its end is just a beggining of another year that would surely change our lives. Farewell 2009! Welcome 2010!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! :)