Coffee Moments with Sam

I am home...   After 7 years of living in the Middle East, my family and I are back home for good.  Saying "goodbye" to the people who have been a part of our lives during these times was never easy but I believe that the friendship we have shared is beyond time and distance.   Image Source: CFC Middle East Official FB Fanpage On the otherhand, coming home also meant saying "hello" to the people we left behind - our family, friends, co-workers and all the things we missed and looked forward to experiencing once again.   It's going to be a new journey...  a new chapter...  and new "coffee moments" to look forward to.    

"I’m participating in the Keeping Christ in Christmas Blog Carnival, hosted by Raising (&Teaching) Little Saints , Truly Rich Mom and Arma Dei: Equipping Catholic Families. We'll be sharing different ways, tips, stories and real-life experiences that will help us focus on Jesus as the Reason for the Christmas season. Please scroll down to the end of the post to see the list of carnival entries.” Sally’s letter to Santa Claus: “Dear Santa Claus how have you been?   Did you have a nice summer?   How is your wife?   I have been extra good this year so I have a long list of presents I want.   Please note the size and color of each item and send as many as possible.   If it seems too complicated, make it easy on yourself: just send money.   How about tens and twenties?” -   From “A Charlie Brown Christmas” TV special 1965 The real essence of Christmas has become too commercialized and extravagant through the years.   Material g...

Image Source: MomCenter Philippines Home is not just a place where the seed of love is planted.  It is where love should be nourished. It is where love should be free to grow, and bear fruit which can fill up the hearts of everyone who lives in it.      It's not easy to build a home fit to harvest pure, unconditional love.    Blessed Pope John Paul II once said that, "to maintain a joyful family requires much from both the parents and the children.   Each member of the family has to become, in a special way, the servant of the others".  Our homes are often a reflection of the state of our hearts.  And for love to grow, it entails humility and sacrifice to nurture pure, unconditional love within our hearts.    So how can we best fill our homes with love? Begin by establishing a healthy SOIL of relationship, bond and friend...