Happy Birthday to You! (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Birthday greetings are another form of prayer – they inject love and good wishes. Early morning today, the first text message I received was from my wife and children said, “Sweetheart, happy birthday. We love you. We miss you – anong handa mo?”

When I checked my email box and Facebook some birthday greetings from my virtual friends attracted my eyes such as:

• Hello ppruel: Best wishes on your birthday and throughout the coming year from your friends at The Royal Forums. May this birthday be the beginning of a year filled with happy memories, wonderful moments and shining dreams. Happy Birthday!
• Hello pruelpo: We at Kompas Forum would like to wish you a happy birthday today!
• Wishing you from the core of my heart “HAPPY BIRTH DAY”. God bless you along with all family members. Aslam FB friend.
• I won’t be around at the weekend – so here’s a birthday wish for Sunday – HAPPY BIRTHDAY – Love Sheila XX FB friend.
• Have a Blessed Happy Birthday my friend. Jack Wellman FB friend.
• Dude, God blesses you with another fruitful year.. Donald Pagulong FB friend.
• Happy Birthday wish you all the best Sulaiman AbdulRahman FB friend.
• Happy 75th birthday kabz..lol Jimmy Cortez FB friend.
• Happy Happy Birthday Mr. Paul…Pakuha n ng sadiki…hehehe Pergis FB friend.
• Happy Birthday Sir! Bling Triond FB friend.
• Happy Happy Birthday to you Collin Fong Jr. FB friend.
• Happy bday,may u hav more bday 2 come,,god bles u always, Gina FB friend.

As of this writing already I received birthday greetings of almost 100 so far at Facebook alone and still counting from my virtual friends – for their good wishes and prayers. They are my friends, my gifts and my treasures!

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My favorite Saying: “Dream big and don’t stop without giving it a chance to come true.” I am a father of 3 for 25 years, OFW for 17 years, a Blogger, sometimes a Poet, Self-motivated and Professional by experience. You can call me Paul or Pruel. I am friendly animal but can kick you off when it is needed. LOL. I have no specific areas where my writing will focus on. I write any subject that interests me under the merciless sun.

Here is the tribute as published in the funeral programme used for the burial.

A Tribute To My Dear Husband

Choice, it is only God who knows why He decided to take you by this time when we are not just husband and wife; we are like siblings and for some years now we spend most of our times together. We do not leave ourselves’ site (presence) no matter the reason. We have grown to be great companions. We have grown to cherish ourselves in spite of our differences. We have seen our differences grow thin and we are so used to each other

During this year’s Lenten season, precisely from 9th of March, 2011, both of us commenced PRAYER FOR A HAPPY DEATH from the booklet INFANT OF PRAGFUE DEVOTIONS: Brief history; Novena and prepared for group and private use.

As a result of this and in line with our faith, I believe and I am strongly convinced that our God answers prayers. He created you to come back to Him. And we devoutly prayed for happy death and I am sure He answered our prayers. I am convinced He has received you. May your soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace, Amen. Good bye till we meet again in heaven. – Cecilia Chinyere Ozougwu.

This couple lived for 45 years. Adolphus was born 1934 while the wife Cecilia was born in 1936. They both lived 77 years and 75 years respectively. They wedded in 1966. Their marriage was blessed with four sons and a daughter who was the last born of the family. They both had a glorious career. Adolphus worked with Nigeria Railway Corporation while the wife was a teacher. From the wife’s tribute, they lived a wonderful life that knitted them together. Adolphus died on 4th Nov 2011 while Cecilia died on 9th December 2011. Indeed there was a bond between them which should exist between husband and wife, no wonder Cecilia Ozougwu could not live days without the husband. They should have been envy of people of Nsude. I urge the people of Nsude and all who knew this couple to imbibe the great qualities that this couple lived on. They were something to emulate.

May their gentle soul rest in peace.                 

My grandmother was a bless woman with lots of children, 8 sons and 4 daughters and they themselves are pretty productive which resulted in more than a hundred people attending to her wake, not even counting the well wishers, distance relatives and a friends.

My grandmother is a simple woman with a simple wish, that our family remain together even after her death, however it is an tall order since she is the reason why we get together. Mostly during her birthday and Chinese New Year. Now that she is gone, many would suspect the kinship would be hard to maintain. Indeed it would be hard, but my grandmother request to have a 7 day wake might just be what is need to rekindle the relationship we had as a children. Many of us recount fond memories of our childhood and suddenly we were close again. I suspect it is something my grandmother might had planned all along. Perhaps her last wish could be fulfill by our generation, I am not sure how long but at least we would try. All my cousin, were hopefully we can get to gather more often so children would forge a kinship that we once had during our time as a child.

Knowing our grandmother wishes, we secretly prayed to her for strength when we were sending her off, walking about one kilometer on foot, with the band playing and people from the neighbourhood looking on. It was a grand affair, bring her body all the way to cremation. Tears flowed freely, emotions was high. But in many of our hearts we know that she wanted. In our hearts we silently guarded the light from dying. Farewell Grandmother, we would not forget your wishes and we would make it come true.

I was at my aunt’s place preparing myself to join my engineering course starting in less than a fortnight from then and this is what I happened to watch – The World Trade center were under attack!
As I was watching the reports of the first airplane crashing into block 1, the most disturbing part happened to be of watching another airplane crashing into the adjacent parallel block (2) right in front of my eyes. America was being targeted, I didn’t know why then and I still don’t seem to understand even today, 10 years later.

For whatever reasons the Al-Qaeda (who claimed responsibility for this brutal massacre) undertook this operation, my heart and mind goes out to those hundreds of innocent lives that were lost that day as well as those who stand to be affected as I write now.

10 years have passed by so quick ever since that fateful day, but not a single year has gone by without us hoping for a better world in the make. I take this opportunity to offer my condolences and prayers to ever single life that’s now made into history and to their friends and families as well, who lost their loved ones. May peace be with America, and the rest of the world! Amen!

The prayers commemorated the commencement of a three-day festivity after the Ramadan. On the streets before prayers, there was human and vehicular traffic. Some people also gathered on main streets to pray.

Sounds of chanting Muslims prayer could be heard simultaneously from various mosques across emirates. Other observations were men dressed in traditional attires and greeting each other as they entered the mosque.

The streets of Abu Dhabi a lit with glowing lights blue, white etc. It seems so glamorous and exciting as kids were a bit more liberalised as they could received gifts from family and friends and show them off.

Malls and other centres in the town provided massive entertainment to people who were seen dancing, eating and shopping at the last minute hour.

Cinemas showed new movies which people queued to watch while scores of others gathered as various locations to watch performances either dance or music on the streets.

Easy border crossing has been made possible, allowing thousands to cross over through the Ghuwaifat border.        

She closed her eyes,

and thought, it just couldn’t be,

then came the cries,

and her body was swaying like a ship at sea,

in God, she now believes,

nothing was moving,

there was only the wind,

and the soft rustling of the leaves,

forgiveness,

but she will have to pray first,

to release her from a sinful thirst,

her prayers would be answered soon,

as she fell to her knees to pray,

and a great cloud had released the moon,

in her words there was so much to say,

at times irrational, rational,

with passion, impassioned,

gentle, terrifying,

vivid, clarifying,

then she fell backwards

as she tried to sit,

her prayers were exhausting

and there was no escape from it.

On March 11 2011 Japan was hit hard by an major Earthquake, Tsunami, and a series of aftershocks and thus the world is thrown into another feeding frenzy of fear and descents into COTMAD, Cause of The Moment Affective Disorder. Guess what people? Right now the people of Japan and those living there do not need us to get all crazy. They do not need our pity. They do need our compassion. Part of that compassion needs to be a generating of positive energy that can only be achieved by continuing on with our lives and enjoying all the good things that come our way. For example, if it is a nice day outside enjoy it guilt free and without reference to this tragedy.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Neptis_sappho_in_Sendai,_Japan-2.JPG

I am not suggesting by any means that we need to ignore what is going on in Japan. I, for one, can not as my son is stationed there at Yokosuka-shi where he is in The United States Navy. When I first heard about this earthquake I was concerned (really scared) and went to Facebook to see if my son was okay. I guess Facebook is of some good after all. He was okay and had posted a few things on there about the earthquakes. Where he is stationed was not affected as much by the Tsunami and his duties remain the same as before the tragedy.

Is he going off to help out with the clean up and find survivors? No he is not as the Navy has him doing something else very important. He is simply continuing in his job and living as before this happened as best as he can. If he was not then he would not being doing the job in the same manner as before this happened which is what he needs to be doing now. His job needs to be done even if a major tragedy happens. He is not one of the people who is rushing off to help the victims out as that has been assigned to others. He is simply doing his job as if nothing happened with acceptance that something did happen.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Neptis_sappho_in_Sendai,_Japan-1.jpg

Like my son we should all just keep on doing what we would normally do in life and part of that is just being happy when good things happen. By all means send Good Thoughts, Positive Energy, Prayers, and Material Support to those in need in Japan, but do not get so caught up in it all that you fail to do what needs to be done the most, which is to just keep on Living, Loving, and Laughing. Yes I know that sounds so trite and “Life Laugh Love” is plastered over millions of gift shop products world wide. In spite of that, tsunamis, and earthquakes Living, Laughing, and Loving still needs to be done. It needs to be done perhaps now more than ever.

Related Links

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Image via Wikipedia

God stood on the mountain top,

as he would hear the mortals call,

the moonlight begins to flicker

and the snow begins to fall,

the spirits would moan,

the angels would roam,

as the mortals cry together,

but God always cries alone,

the fog was light,

and the air was thin,

the snowflakes melt,

as it touches God’s skin,

he would fear,

that the mortals would be forever

savages and primitive there,

he would fight off great pains

as his children continued

tirelessly living through hurricanes,

fever, floods, and plagues,

and then war had its impact,

but God’s dream remained intact,

by a tenacious, collective will,

for now his dreams stood still,

he would embrace,

the prayers, the cries, the children,

and the mortal race,

the humans were problematic,

but never a disgrace.

Could it be that the world will come to a final conclusion December 12,2012? It sure looks that way, the entire world seems to be going crazy these days. Natural disasters seem to be the in thing, with the latest in New Zealand with their lastest Earth Quake. Australia was also hit hard this year with terrible flooding, that no one who lives there had seen in over 65 years. All throughout the world things are happening, such as the people revolting in Egypt and it’s spreading to other Countries as well. Mud slides in California, Forest Fires, not only in Egypt this past summer, but also in Canada and California as well.

Maybe Nostradamus isn’t going to be proven wrong, and why would anyone think his predictions out of this world, he did forecast the First and Second World Wars, long before his time. It was some kind of miracle that a Black man was elected President of the Untied States, maybe too it was a sign of things to come. Who would have thought that this would happen in our life times? If ever there was a Country that seemed to hate Blacks, the United States certainly portrayed that it did. Obama being elected was nothing short of a miracle. Was it a sign of something bigger coming our way, who knows, but as of this moment, I’m starting to look around me, seeing all the carnage thought the world has me wondering what’s going to be next.

This isn’t an Orson Wells joke on the Radio, the things, the people and the Countries involved in what’s happening throughout the world today are real, and should be taken seriously. If one were to think it over, our world really is in a terrible mess. High inflation almost as bad as the Great Depression is happening right now in the United States, with Employment rates in the double-digit figures. There isn’t one Country in the free world that isn’t suffering from this latest depression, and there aren’t any signs that things are going to get better anytime soon. If anything things are looking worse.

Not that I wish this article to be doom and gloom, but it surely looks that way throughout the world. If you are a praying person, a few prayers might go along way, as the entire world needs prayers these days.

Ó Paul Faulkenham February 27,2011

The first I knew that something was amiss was when we bought a kitten after about two years there. I sat playing with her on the stairs when I heard a child’s voice come out of nowhere, ” Wow, a kitten! ” I was alone in the house apart from the two cats and dogs so I was surprised to say the least. I shrugged it off as imagination. I told the family and we all had a good laugh about it.

Things were fairly quiet after that but I did gradually start to feel uneasy about going into our bathroom. It was freshly decorated in pale colours and had a new suite. It did feel as though there was already somebody in there and so it was most uncomfortable having a bath or a shower. Later on my eldest son said that he felt uneasy in there too. At the same time the phone would often ring just once for no apparent reason and the number was (according to the automated voice on 1471) not recorded.  Lights began to flicker on and off and although we had an electrician round to check the wiring he could not find anything wrong.

Time went on and on occasion I could hear laughter or conversation just for a couple of seconds when there was nobody but me at home. I kept putting it down to my imagination, being far too busy to think about such things. I had an open mind about ghosts and hauntings but if they did exist they happened to someone else in old, scary houses and castles. We were a very ordinary family so why should it happen here in our house especially as it had only ever been inhabited by happy families such as ourselves?

Then, when we decided that we had had enough of London life and wanted to sell up and move to the country things started to escalate. We put our freshly decorated in neutral colours and decluttered house on the market. There were many viewings, much interest and a drop in price but in two years not a single offer was made. One estate agent mentioned that a potential buyer had told him the house looked nice but there was a very strange, negative atmosphere in some of the rooms. We tried to laugh it off but the thing was, we agreed with them! Then things started to disappear and appear in strange places. We all get forgetful from time to time but how could a camera for example that I had put in the drawer where it had always lived suddenly vanish? We all searched for it high and low and the drawer was checked thoroughly three times just incase I had missed it, all the papers taken out. We all accused each other of having moved the camera and things got a bit fraught as we were late to a birthday party. Then, just before leaving I despondantly checked the drawer one last time as it was “impossible” for it to have walked away by itself. Everybody else had waited downstairs as we were about to leave the house. I opened the drawer and there, at the very top was the camera in its usual place. Now, I mention this as the same scenario was repeated with numerous household objects many times. It became quite the joke, ” we must have a ghost!” Only with the voices and flickering lights it wasn’t that funny.

At night in the kitchen we felt watched. Maybe it was paranoia by this time but there was a menacing air about the place as though if you looked out of the window into the night, something horrible from your worst nightmares would look back at you. Yet the ghost had a kind side it seemed. Our old dog had severe arthritis and had to be helped upstairs. Then he would settle by our bed for the night on his blue blanket. I left him there one night to join the family for some tv but had forgotten his bowl of water. On bringing it upstairs a minute later there lay our dog with the blue blanket on top of him. It was laid neatly on top as if to keep him warm and there is no way he could have done this himself. I went downstairs and quizzed the family about the practical joke but they all looked blank.

Whenever people would come round and we would joke about our supposed ghost aka my ditsy memory and keen imagination. When we did this the tv would switch itself off and on as if to confirm the story! Another funny coincidence.

Then one day a seemingly trivial incident chaned everything. It was a simple thing, I had treated myself to three magazines which I looked forward to reading as soon as time allowed. They disappeared from their place in the living room and I started to hunt for them;how familiar this was all becoming. The phone rang and it was the estate agent with a viewing, he had the people with him and wanted to come round in fifteen minutes. I abandoned the search and together with my husband cleared the kitchen surfaces so as to present a neat house ( which we had almost given up hope of ever selling ). We put the dog on the lead and out we went, or almost as I had forgotten my key. I dashed to the kitchen to grab the keys and check everything looked in order but stopped cold. There, in the middle of an otherwise empty table lay my three missing magazines. I could not pretend anymore and phoned a spiritualist church that evening.

Bob, Laura and Jane were three very ordinary looking people who had run of the mill day jobs. In their spare time they performed house clearances or exorcisms. They sat down in the living room with cups of tea and told us not to worry as nothing dramatic would take place. They “tuned in” and one would address the spirits while the other two would be used as channels for the reply. This was done for our sake apparently so that we would know what was going on. The atmosphere became electrified and the temperature cooled a bit. There were apparently several spirits in our home, some nice and quite a few nasty. The little girl’s voice I had heard when the kitten came several years before was trapped here and scared of the nasty spirits who had one powerful ring leader. There was also an elderly couple who were equally trapped and frightened of the more powerful ones. While we were being told this Bob asked me to put my hand out to the right. I did, still thinking that this wasn’t really real and met an area of icy cold air. I was shocked but Bob told me that they knew their time was up and one of them was trying to make me cry as a parting shot. Oddly enough I had been feeling tearful before this.

The evening ended without drama as Bob, Laura and Jane finished their tea and told us casually that things would be better now and that oh yes, our house would be sold in two months time. We had to ask why on earth we had been plagued by these spirits and were told that somebody had opened a spiritual vortex in the bathroom wall. Sheepishly, our eldest son later admitted that he had prayed for spirits to come into our home when he was a teenager as he thought it would be cool to live in a haunted house! He did this for several nights and I guess he got his wish.

The atmosphere was totally different in the house after the excorcism, the light airy feeling had returned. The house was indeed sold in two months and we moved out soon after.

Please believe me that I did not want to accept the evidence of my own eyes and ears, I really did not believe what was going on around us. We did try to ignore it in the hope that it would go away but it only got worse until we had to take action or God only knows where it would have lead. The spirits were feeding off our fear and growing stronger and their motive was to have some fun with us. I find that quite chilling as their fun had a distinctly menacing quality. They did not want us to move out as we were apparently such fun targets, not believing what was going on despite all the evidence to the contrary.

I used to be a sceptic and sometimes I wish that I still was. Believe me it would have been much easier.