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We celebrate the gift of life when our natal day comes. When you are in your 50's, every birthday is indeed a very priceless tteasure. Sick, I woke up early and thanked God for everything. I did not take a bath as I felt very cold inside due to flu and just refreshed myself quickly. My birthday was a blessed day as my request for an urgent appointment in our Philippine consulate office, was granted on time. I was advised that my matter would be attended between 8 AM to 9 AM. I was happy that including falling in line, everything was finished in less than an hour, very swiftly and smoothly, yes. All the staff I dealt with were warm and polite. My friend and I had a brunch at a nearby cafeteria. We had mushroom and chicken soup, clubhouse sandwich, chicken broast meal, fries and juices. As always I chose carrot and ginger juice. While eating, a dear friend in Abu Dhabi called to greet me.  He was the first preacher in a religious organization that helped me strengthen my fa

When we say one is lucky, he is fortunate, successful, rich or whatever positive description brought about by chance, not by action. One preacher advised us not to use the word 'luck' as it cannot be found in the bible. We were advised to say "God bless", not "Good luck'. So instead of 'luck' , we must say 'blessing' . So it was a blessing when I won in Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office lottery, 4th prize, in 1991. It was Lenten season, and I was in the church with my son.  There was an old woman who approached us to sell tickets, and I told my son to choose the number. It was not big amount but somehow after many years of buying tickets, that winning made me then believe in luck. No big effort, just choose the ticket, and boom if it is your time to bloom! Gambling is not allowed in some countries or areas. If people will be addicted to games of chance, then they will exert less efforts and time to achieve their goals. Wikipedia

And so we are moving to another flat with few days notice of the landlady as she would give it up for some personal reasons. We'd transfer to her another unit. The thought of it gave me a relief because it would be cheaper there although farther from my favorite spot in the soul of the city. The airconditioning system would perhaps be better and there would be no bed bugs and cockroaches. The best thing in relocation is it gives you a wake-up call about the things that you hold and what you must let go. I have many stuffs that I have kept for more than a decade. To name few, books, papers, old clothes, kitchen items, office supplies, printers, gifts, containers that I could not dispose of for sentimental value as they were from important people in my life, etc. I had to seek the help of my friends and pay the movers AED300 to move things from a place ten minutes away to another. Well, yes, "No man is an island. No man stands alone. We need one another." This is