Take Me To Church

Article 008.

Six hours of sleep. Re-energized. Rejuvenated. That’s all you need if you’re at this stage in your life, mid-life. Just a tad too early waking up at 4. Pick up ball is not until 7 so I’m playing some Insane Sudoku to bridge the time while preventing early stages of Alzheimer’s. I ended up snoozing. I set no alarm but luckily woke up at 6:15. Just can’t remember me not having a shirt on. I had my Hanes coming into bed last night. What happened? I mean, it was kinda chilly when I woke up. I was running out of time trying to figure it out so I just dropped the Sherlocking and got geared up. Grabbed my KD4s and backpack on my way to Stanton gym. 

There’s no beating a good sweat early in the morning. You feel light. Your lungs are so wide open, the oxygen seems insufficient. But somebody brought donuts, and with the weekly Starbucks coffee supply from Banjo, it kinda defeats the purpose of doing cardio. I had a coconut-sprinkled and about three-quarters of a small cup of dark roast. Now I feel bloated. There were two playoff games after our pick-up ball, which would decide who we play in the semis next week, so I gotta stay and scout. Midway through the second game, someone brought cheese rolls from Katella Deli. How can I resist if he opens the box of goodies in front of you? Oh my gosh they’re absolutely delish! I say it goes head-to-head with that of Porto’s (Cubans are all shaking their heads with that claim). I had to stand up after that piece as the carbo-loading just hit me. Man, I can’t believe I was sleepy… again.

We left the gym about 1030. I was already set to attend mass in the afternoon but there’s one at 1130 so why not catch that. Went home, did a quick shower and to Saint Irenaeus Church I drove. It was brisk inside my place so I wore a white tee under my light green pullover hoodie, jeans and white sneakers, not realizing it’s almost noon and the sun is glaring outside. I felt a little hot but good thing there’s AC inside the church. I was cozy. I am by no means considered a religious person, but I try to make it a point to give an hour of my life every week to our Almighty One. I grew up Catholic so I do practice my faith, maybe to your surprise. But don’t worry, I still have a lot of penance to do before I absolve myself from all my sins, Lord help me. In that hour, a few minutes before people start lining up to do Communion, is the moment where I am very intimate with my prayers. And today, I asked God something for myself, which I don’t usually do. I needed something from Him, like all the blessings He already and still giving is not enough. I asked for something intangible, something that I’ve actually asked before when I was on the verge of disaster. I’m not really in a deep hole right now but something tells me, there’s rough waters ahead. As I ruminate on what I was seeking, I asked for forgiveness to all I have wronged. There’s a lot on this list. God knows who. “Offer me the deathless death”, I say as I hear Hozier singing in the background [https://youtu.be/PVjiKRfKpPI?si=LPBv5U4tAxmtrRdD]. I recite in silence The Lord’s Prayer and my Hail Marys as I ended my solemn moment with our Creator. I fed my soul too.

I tidied up the pad a bit, ate Kare-Kare for late lunch and yep, you guessed it right, enjoyed another moment of somnolence. I woke up to the cheers of Rams fans on my TV as they were demolishing the Cardinals. I half-assed the chores earlier so it was time to finish up the job. I did and went to bed early. What’s up with me and sleep today? God already heard my prayer. Got me focused on the small task for the day, to prep me for the big ones that lie ahead. If only He can make me remember why I was shirtless last night, my mind would’ve been fed too.

St. Irenaeus Church