“LENT: A Time to Renew”

                    In the Christian church, Lent is a month of penitential preparation for Easter. It begins on Ash Wednesday, six and a half weeks before Easter, and includes a 40-day fast in remembrance of Jesus Christ's fasting in the wilderness prior to his public ministry. Various churches have varied programs for prayers, devotions, and other religious acts to recall the life of Jesus Christ during Lent, which is also known as Kwaresma. Lent is supposed to be a season of repentance. That isn't a sense of guilt, but rather an understanding of how sin separates us from God and how much it cost him to reconcile us. This is frequently regarded as a time of preparation and a chance to grow closer to God. This means it's a period of personal meditation for people as they prepare their hearts and minds for Good Friday and Easter.

For Christian communities all across the world, the Lenten season has already begun. Lent is a significant religious observance in the Christian world because it commemorates the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God's Son, our Saviour, and Redeemer. It's a good moment to think about what it means to be a Christ-follower. It's also an occasion to repent for our sins and misgivings, as well as to increase the intensity of our prayer, fasting, almsgiving, religious practice, and invite people into our faith community as brothers and sisters. Furthermore, Lent is a time to deepen and strengthen our faith, which unites us and allows us to accomplish everything because of our love and devotion to Jesus. Prayer, fasting and giving, or charity, are the three main things individuals focus on during Lent. 

During Lent, we focus our prayers on our need for God's forgiveness. It's also about confessing one's sins and accepting God's forgiveness and love. During Lent, fasting, or giving up something, is a widespread tradition. The notion is that giving up a daily habit, such as eating dessert or looking through Facebook, might serve as a reminder of Jesus' sacrifice. Responding to God's kindness, generosity, and love by giving money or doing something good for others is one way to express gratitude. Some people, for example, volunteer their time or donate money. 

 

                    It's crucial to keep in mind that doing these things will never earn or merit Jesus' sacrifice or a relationship with God. People will never be good enough for a flawless God because they are flawed. Only Jesus has the ability to save us from our own sins. Because I've seen the results of prayer, I believe in its power. Spending time praying, fasting, and giving throughout Lent can help to make Jesus' sacrifice on Good Friday and resurrection on Easter even more significant. Lent is an opportunity to empathize more with people who are true without luxuries or even basic requirements. Lent can aid in the development of a more disciplined, intimate, and real prayer life as well as a stronger feeling of one's need for God minute by minute. 

References:

"Lent" Retrived March 3, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lent

"Walking together through Lent: Resources for group study" Retrived March 3, 2022. 

https://pres-outlook.org/2017/02/walking-together-lent-resources-group-study/

 "Lenten Rites in Pampanga, Philippines" Retrived March 3, 2022. 

https://www.insightguides.com/inspire-me/blog/visual/lenten-rites-in-pampanga-philippines

"Lent" Retrived March 3, 2022. https://nolacatholic.org/lent

"30 Things to Give Up for Lent This Year" Retrived March 3, 2022.  

https://parade.com/1165347/kelseypelzer/things-to-give-up-for-lent/

 

 

 

“Kannawidan Festival: Pride of the Ilocano Culture”

 

               Ilocos Sur is a picturesque province in Luzon's northern section. It is a culturally diverse province with a long history of Spanish and Filipino ancestors. One of the most well-known festivities in Ilocos Sur is the Kannawidan Ylocos Festival. The villagers organized a celebration called "Kannadiwan Festival" to showcase and share their cultural riches with the rest of the globe. It commemorates the rich culture and traditions of Ilocos Sur, as well as its independence from Ilocos Norte. The name "kanawidan" comes from the Ilocano word "tawid," which means "legacy" or "inheritance." This celebration is significant because it is the Ilocanos' way of offering thanks to the Almighty for the city's rich heritage, which includes deep family relationships among the Ilocanos, as well as for the abundant bounties. The townsfolk's profound faith is exemplified by this event.

               Ilocos Sur's rich heritage, tradition, culture, arts, crafts, and delicacies are showcased throughout the festival. This event is very important to the Ilocano people since it helps to preserve their rich culture and customs while also promoting the province's agricultural products. Aside from the usual beauty contest, the festival featured a wide range of activities that showcased the participants' talents and skills. Aside from the activities, there are also cultural competitions, such as dance and song competitions. Some of them include band, and rondalla. Empanadas, pinakbet, longganisa, igado, and other delicacies are also available. Furthermore, there is a concert where a variety of artists, singers, dancers, and vloggers are invited to join in the fun.

               All Ilocanos who are committed to ensuring the conversion, preservation, and promotion of the Iloco cultural, artistic, historical, and intellectual heritage believe that the Kannawidan Festival is rich in culture and has a sense of identity. The lives of Ilocano people are greatly influenced by economic, social, and cultural factors. Because we have something for tourists to admire our rich culture, we, the Ilocanos, should all be proud of it. Furthermore, let us all work together to preserve these cultures for future generations, since this will be our Ilocano identity.

References:

All pictures are from facebook. Retrieved February 17, 2022. 

Things One Learned

 

                    This second quarter is indeed hard, but learning and discovering new things makes my efforts, tears, and sacrifices pay off. At first, I wasn't really aware of our lessons because they were all about HTML, which I have no interest in. I learned a lot about HTML. Whereas HTML allows me to customize my website or build my theme from scratch. It also allows me to create and organize the elements of my website, like images, text, tables, or forms. In addition, HTML helped me understand how to make things more accessible. This makes it easier for me to learn other coding languages, as I dislike codes and thought learning HTML would be difficult. HTML, I discovered new things that prove that learning HTML is fun and enjoyable since it’s improved my skills in programming and I've gained a lot of lessons and skills from our lessons.

                    I didn’t have any problems because the lessons are interesting and easy. However, I struggled in the first week because when I encode our activity in my notepad then I ‘save as’ it, it does not work. It says that it is an error so I got frustrated. I repeated trying and encoding it until my activity works. Overall in this quarter, the problems I encountered are there are some lessons and activities that I don’t understand well which is why I need to ask questions to my classmates. Second, the instructions are not that clear and wasting my time on social media. Which leads me to procrastination. I address these challenges which I made a planner every day on which subject I need to accomplish each day. I manage my time wisely, avoid being lazy, and be more productive. 

                    Moving on, I will continue developing my skills. I will use this experience in HTML in the future. I will try my best to be more productive each day, to try my best to maintain my determination, and to learn despite the challenges and the new way of learning. I will try to improve in the next quarter since I am not that satisfied with what I did in this quarter.

References: 

"Second Quarter Pictures, Images, and Stock Photos" Retrieved January 19, 2022.

https://www.istockphoto.com/photos/second-quarter

"How I got a web developer job after 3 months of learning HTML, CSS and JavaScript" Retrieved January 19, 2022. 

https://www.technotification.com/2018/09/web-development-job-learning-html-css-javascript.html 

"The Best Ways to Learn HTML"

https://www.udacity.com/blog/2020/06/the-best-ways-to-learn-html.html 

Vigan City Fiesta

                    Festivals are life celebrations. Festivals in the Philippines allow people to showcase their rich culture while also honouring the history and patron saints. They're colourful, enormous, and full of pomp and circumstance. It's no surprise that each province has its own unique Filipino fiesta, of which they are quite proud. Aside from that, the festivals that are held in every town are an integral part of Filipino culture. Since we are still fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, festivals and celebrations are cancelled because it is important that we are all safe. 

 

                    The Vigan Town Fiesta is held in the Ilocos region of the Philippines, in the far north of the country. The festival attracts a large number of tourists who come to view the show's presentations, but this year is different due to the epidemic. Vigan Town Fiesta features arts and crafts exhibits, carnivals, street dancing performances, and other live events that honor Vigan's cityhood character. Every year on January 25, the Vigan City Fiesta is celebrated in honor of St. Paul the Apostle, the city's patron saint. Locals and tourists gathered in previous years when there was no COVID to enjoy and watch street dancing, carnivals, food fairs, and arts and crafts, adding to the appeal of this UNESCO World Heritage City. The Vigan City Festival was not as cheerful as it had been in previous years due to the virus, but commemorating it in the midst of the pandemic only served to emphasize how vital and unique our culture is to us. Festivals are difficult to celebrate in the midst of a pandemic because it is difficult to modify and mark occasions.

                    Culture is what distinguishes us from other races and characterizes our people. Fiesta is an occasion for us to express our love and appreciation for our arts, culture, and cuisine in a variety of ways. We may not be able to celebrate Vigan City Fiesta in the same way that we used to, but giving it value makes us recognize that we are all in this together.

References:

"World Costume Festival" Retrieved January 19, 2022.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Costume_Festival

" Ilocos Sur: The Heart of Ilocandia" Retrieved January 19, 2022.

https://medium.com/@dyulanne/beauty-at-its-finest-5172a504300

"Binatbatan Festival" Retrieved January 19, 2022.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/blrapadas/5841713238 

Artes Ita Paskua

 

                    The Christmas season is a joyous occasion. It's all about giving back and helping others. People remember Jesus Christ and his life lessons during the month of December. It's simply a reminder of why we should stay faithful to our humanity's core. Through celebration, we are encouraged to share, donate to the less fortunate, spend time with loved ones, and have a positive view of life in general. Despite all of the difficulties faced by the pandemic, the Bigueño’s still celebrate Christmas. Authorities and workers in Vigan assisted one another in putting up this year's colorful Christmas tree in front of Vigan City Hall and the Christmas Village at Vigan Conservation Complex. The city is buzzing with Christmas spirit, and the city's massive, sparkling Christmas tree brings hope and optimism to every Bigueño and Ilocano, especially during this pandemic.

   Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Bigueño’s and Ilocanos are extremely intelligent and wise people, since they manage to celebrate Christmas in a variety of ways. Bigueño’s held other events, including the Christmas Installation Contest, in which participants decorated their local barangay halls and covered courts with Nativity Scenes, Christmas Trees, and other colorful and dazzling Christmas-related decorations produced from recyclable materials. Aside from the barangay Christmas tree competition, the city government's various departments and divisions continued to bring the Christmas season and happy vibes into their separate offices by putting up recycled Christmas trees.

              Children from Bigueño’s are competing in a Christmas card-making contest. At this year's event, children were praised for their creativity and practice in writing in the Ilocano language. Artists from the city actively joined in the Christmas Street Painting to display their ingenuity and passion for the arts, and they painted their own interpretations of the Christmas epidemic. In addition to the contests, a lantern or parol competition, a poster-creating contest, and an essay contest are also included. Due to the pandemic, this year's competition was very different from previous years, where the City Government of Vigan, through the City Events, Promotions, and Protocol Office, in collaboration with the TVigan Channel, and under the supervision of the City Covid-19 Task Force, took all necessary precautions while celebrating "Artes Ita Paskua".

                     The significance of giving and sharing with friends and family is emphasized over the Christmas season. We know that the birth of Jesus is the beginning of wonderful things in the world because of Christmas. It is, in general, a time to reflect on nature and the cause of our existence. Despite being a Christian event, Christmas is a festival that people of many religions and faiths around the world celebrate. It is the core of this celebration that brings so many people together.

Reference:

The pictures are from "Vigan City PH" Facebook page of Vigan City. 

Retrieved January 15, 2022.

A Fresh Start

          The New Year is not only a time to celebrate; it is also a chance to start fresh. At the same time, keep in mind that the changes we seek should be positive and respectful. When it gets close to midnight, the entire family will be outside, bursting crackers, congratulating each other, and celebrating and embracing the New Year. People spend the entire day relaxing and celebrating the New Year in high spirits. Getting together with friends and family makes it much more thrilling and enjoyable. Everyone hopes and desires that the coming year would bring them peace, harmony, happiness, and fortune, not only for themselves but for all of humanity.

              This New Year's Eve was the happiest of my life. This year's celebration was far more enjoyable than last year's because I was able to spend it with my entire family. We have a quiet yet cheerful and blessed New Year's celebration. On January 1st, we typically hear, "New year, new me." Which we can prepare our minds to accept nice things that are difficult to receive and leave out terrible things that are tough to leave out. I am a student, and time is the most valuable commodity to me. If I don't kill time now, it will kill me later. So, this year, I intend to work on my mental health because I have lost myself in the years since the pandemic began. I'll discover something new, cut down on unproductive time, appreciate every moment of life, and make an effort to interact more with my family and friends. This time, I'm determined to keep my goals and get myself corrected in order to be a better person, both for myself, my family, and society.

               The day symbolizes a new beginning and always teaches us to move forward. The significance of this celebration is to reflect on what we did in the previous year, whether successful or failed, to learn from the past, and to go forward with new hope. Setting New Year goals is vital because it is nothing more than a technique to better and enhance oneself. You won't be able to achieve your goals, avoid all negative moves from your past, and embark on a new road with firm faith and resolve until you make a solid and good resolution. Time is the most powerful weapon in your arsenal; if you utilize it well, it will transform you into gold.

 

Christmas Time!

 “Jesus, the Son of God, came to Earth for all people.”

             How many times have you wished as a child that Santa Claus would visit you tonight and bring you gifts? Christmas is a time of joy, peace, and celebration. It is the season set aside to commemorate Jesus Christ's birth. Christmas is simply a reminder of why we should stay true to humanity's core values. That is, despite the COVID-19 epidemic, we still treasure Christmas in our homes and are taught to share, contribute to the less fortunate, spend time with loved ones, and have a positive attitude towards life in general through festivity. It's the holiday season! It's that time of year again, and we're all looking forward to it.

               Due to the ongoing pandemic, Christmas in 2021 will be very different from any other year. So many people have already died as a result of this fatal sickness, and the number does not appear to be decreasing any time soon. This year, we won't be able to experience the normal Christmas joy and mirth that we've come to expect. COVID, however, should not detract from our Christmas festivities. We will continue to celebrate Christmas, but only with our immediate families, in order to maintain our health and safety. Despite not being able to be together in person, there are ways to celebrate and enjoy the holidays. Shopping for Christmas gifts online, watching movies with our family, and video chatting with friends and relatives are just a few of the things we may do. Even though this holiday season will be different and unpleasant for many, we may take solace in knowing that the sacrifices we make now will protect us, our loved ones, and our communities. Let us promote more hope, peace, joy, and love this holiday season!

 

               Christmas is, without a doubt, the most wonderful time of the year for both children and adults. Despite the fact that this year has been challenging for all of us, we remain hopeful. That, among all of the fear and despair caused by the pandemic, God is with us, has always been with us, and always will be with us. Jesus is the world's light! May the infant Jesus always have a place in our hearts; may our lives reflect Christ's presence; and may our homes exude God's peace. We will all get through this crisis together because we have a lot of faith, hope, and love.

References:

35 Christmas Photo Ideas: Keep the Memories Forever. Retrieved December 9, 2021. https://www.diys.com/christmas-photo-ideas/

History and Myths. Retrieved December 9, 2021. https://www.orissapost.com/history-myths/

Merry Christmas 2020: Wishes, Messages, Quotes, Pictures, Status, and Greetings Cards. Retrieved December 9, 2021. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/events/merry-christmas-2020-wishes-messages-quotes-pictures-and-greeting-cards/articleshow/79924457.cms