Most of us don’t want to think about growing old.  And as we suffer illness or grow older we think more about death. 

During our 4^th year in the farm, I turned 60 besides my dear wife Mary Ann.  In the following years, we live our life to enjoy God’s creation – fresh air, stunning sunrise and sunset, scenic cone of Mt. Banahaw, beautiful plants and flowers, fruit bearing trees, tweeting multi-coloured birds and fresh water fish in mini-ponds; with hope that our plans to operate a leisure botanical garden cum an early childhood preschool will be a reality.

At 60, I felt a renewed spiritual vitality besides being obsessed with physical fitness.  In my daily farm drills, I become familiar with the passing of ambulance on emergency speeding southbound to a hospital.  Whenever I hear the ambulance siren in a distant I habitually paused from my activity, and offered a prayer: “Dear God, please bless the sick person(s) in the ambulance with Your healing Hands for quick treatment and healthy recovery; for another opportunity to live longer, healthier, joyfully, in peace & love with his/her family; and make him/her much closer to Your Heart, amen.”  The ambulance pass by once a day or twice/thrice daily; or twice/thrice weekly.  If at times there was none, I thank God cheerfully.

I believe in God, the Father Almighty and I’m confident that death is an open door to everlasting life with Jesus Christ. 

While my wife and I focus well to hit our remaining targets in the farm some trials almost change our perspective in life.

Several hard hitting typhoons that passed the farmstead with strong, rushing and overflowing rainforest water riddled our mini-ponds making the fish to escape.  It made our potential earnings for the projects faded away.

In August 2012, I underwent biopsy for probable prostate cancer; thank God, the result was Benign Prostate Hyperplasia (BPH).

In July 2014, our farmstead was among several farms directly hit by typhoon Glenda.  My wife, our grandson and I missed the falling trusses of roofs in the 2^nd floor bedroom. Thanks to our dear God, His wisdom and guidance alerted me to take safety actions swiftly.

While some incidents are wearisome, how we deal with it will make us either bitter or better. My wife and I look for God’s purpose always.  Psalm 33:10-11  “The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought; he maketh the devices of the people of none effect.  The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.”

Only God knows our expiration date; we are all going to die in His best time.  Psalm 139:16  In Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me. 

Dear all, let’s just give love to everyone and make the most of what time we still have left, until God call us Home.  And let’s not forget the saying: “in every difficulty, there’s an opportunity; age doesn’t matter.”  Cheers.