Swift Summer, Now Here Then Suddenly Gone

By: Joe Mauricio

 

My dear friend, Fred Tsai who introduced me to siling labuyo pepper planting, told me recently that it seemed like I’ve had a good bumper crop of hot peppers and must really be a good summer, and I did couple with good summer months. Like most Chicagoans who endure brutal winters, we never want summer to end.

This time of year after the pepper plants bloomed and the tomato plants and bittermelon plants shriveled up, I feel the crisp chill in the air and wonder if someone messed with the calendar. What happened with the global warming? There must be some mistakes. Summer can’t be over. It just can’t The best season is just getting started.

Summer is so short and so precious, that it has what’s thought of in economics as “scarcity value.” The less there is of something, the more we appreciate it. The problem is that I don’t think of the season as scarce until it’s over.

Before snow melted, I plan out the plants I am planting. I give more thought to how I want our summer to turn and then I give to my new year’s resolutions.

Every summer has to compete with the ones that came before it. Then there’s the hook or the thing that should define each summer so that I can look back and think. That was the summer we toured Canada or the summer we attended the community picnics, a photo album waiting to happen.

Still, I cling to summer like I am gripping a windowsill as I fall out of a building, because overall, it was a good summer. It’s one season when it feels great to be outside. What a treat to walk out of the building into warm air.

Maybe it’s impossible to have a perfect summer because the season is just too short, and there are so many street festivals, road trips, outdoor plays and walks you can take. But there’s always next summer, and the summer after that.

WE ALLMAKE MISTAKES

I am not ashamed to admit that I make mistakes. We all do. When I make mistakes, I often feel upset with myself and question my judgment, as I try to reconcile why I did what I did.

Mistakes come in all shapes and sizes, and no respecter of persons. The simple Bible verse that we learned from high school, John 3:16 clearly tells us that we have forgiveness and peace in Christ when we ask to be forgiven. Remember that Christ has paid the ultimate price for our mistakes.

From the human perspective, mistakes happen. How we respond to the mistakes we made impacts the growth of our character. It is hard to admit to our mistakes. Most of us never set out to intentionally sin or hurt someone. The quality of our character, however, is measured by how we respond.

Growing up, we are called to pray daily that God will help us develop the character He desires to nurture in us. Isn’t it wonderful to know that we have a God who knows we are and love us for who we are, even when we make mistakes that make us feel inadequate to receive God’s love.

This is a VIA Times response to numerous calls and emails we received why we don’t publish Filipino businesses that the federal government is investigating or charging for fraud, felony, etc., Filipinos and human beings who are capable of wrongdoings. We will not publish their mistakes; we feel that we can serve our community better without negative news. We owe this stand and position to the community that we serve, respect, and value.

We will always honor the outstanding and successful Filipino businesmen/entrepreneurs, the personal achievers, excelling in their chosen professions at the respectable institution of the Chicago Filipino Asian American Hall of Fame’s most-awaited annual awards night. That’s our philosophy, mission and vision—to bring the best of our heritage and culture in America. Mabuhay ang Pilipina

 

My fleeting summer joys, pepper plants of various species, luscious tomatoes, cherries and giant, our miraculous kalamansi tree that gives us hundreds of fruits & serves as our Christmas tree, our medicinal ashitaba plants, and more, give us personal joys as we share them with friends who appreciate them. Till next summer!