tHe CaLLinG

i was talking to my best friend in elementary one day and we were exchanging stories about what happened to us for the last several months that we have not communicated. i mentioned to her that i recently resigned from work and is taking some time to rest. she on the other hand, is very busy with work since she is working in a corporate world.

when we ran out of things to say about ourselves, we decided to talk about other people's lives - our classmates in elementary in particular. she told me that one of our classmates who was our salutatorian entered the convent. at first, i was surprised but then i told myself that it is something possible anyway.

i told her that i admired her for doing such a brave decision. let me give you a little of her background so you would better understand why this is such a big deal for me. she used to work in a big company in Manila for 5 years and was doing well in her career. when we had a reunion last year, she told us that her job is finally rewarding but she does not really enjoy what she does. actually, she is a licensed engineer and works in a company which specializes in creating programs/soft wares. at that time, i envied her since i can see that she had already accomplished a lot at a young age.

suddenly, i got interested in her "calling" and made some searches on her profile. i luckily found two blog sites writing about her calling and discernment. i was inspired on what i read and found out that since high school, she has been fascinated about nuns and the religious vocation. when she was in high school, she was a delegate to the World Youth Day and attended a lot of Youth Congresses. she was really meant to be in that vocation i guess.

sometime last year, she suddenly felt that there is still something missing in her life. given a good career, intelligence and good heart still make her empty. she even came to a point that she just drags herself to work and being motivated only because of the financial reward.

as i was reflecting on what happened to her and to the decision she made, i told myself that giving yourself into the religious vocation is really a life changing event. it does not just happen overnight. you really have to gauge yourself if you are ready for it and willing to leave everything behind. but once decided, there is no turning back. you have to fully give in to GOD's will.

this has been an eye opener to me today. i have reflected and seen that my faith is nothing compared to hers. she gave up everything for the LORD. as for me? what have i given HIM? is attending mass every Sunday enough to do HIS will? what else should i do to prove HIM that i want to follow this will?

i hope this will let all of us reflect and do more good to others. people sacrifice to do GOD's will and as for us who are just ordinary people, we can also do a lot. we can start to ourselves.
i always believe that doing something for others will go along way. it does not matter how big it is, what matters most is what good it did to others.