Originally written in January 2016. That’s two years ago. Yet the feelings still hold true and strong until this very day and probably for all eternity because I am a mom and I am forever blessed and proud to be one.

Today as I cuddle my 10-month old baby girl in my arms, watching her sleep, I am reminded of how blessed I am for a million reasons. For one, I am a mom. This title may mean thousands of behind the scenes heartaches & backaches, sleepless nights, undone nails & messy hairs, stained shirts, cancelled dates, juggling of tasks to get everything done and the never-ending worry of simply being a mom thinking if you are doing things right and best for your child. But the rewards of what is seen On Screen is truly worth every bit of the BTS circus. The toothless smiles, the chuckles, the soft kisses and even the not so soft ones when the entire face goes with the lips and lands straight to your nose bringing you to tears. I am getting sentimental as I write this with a sleeping baby on my chest, feeling her heartbeat and smelling her breath as she sleeps with her mouth open. The very life of this little one is bringing so much life into my own life. And today I am very much inspired more than ever before because of the love and strength I see in one mom who lost her child yesterday when heaven decided to take back a cherub. An angel as sweet, as lovely, as happy as my own little one. And I have been deeply moved, as any mom who holds her child with so much love would feel. The kind of love only a mother would ever understand. To you my dear friend, I am sending my love and prayers along with my gratitude, because though you may not know it or intended it, you have moved me, inspired me and reminded me to count this biggest blessing of being a mom — the ups & downs, the joys & pains, the laughters & cries, the messiness & tidiness — the beauty of motherhood in its entirety, loving your child unconditionally as the Creator intended for us to do. I am a mom, indeed I am blessed and proud to be one… On screen and behind the scenes❤️

A memory of photos taken a year ago has popped up in my feed today and in the caption it says:

Fun.Family.Pizza!

Spend time with those you love. One of these days you will either say “I wish I had.” or “I’m glad I did.” ….Time spent with family is worth every second and every penny.

And today, I shared that memory and wrote, “I’m glad I did.” Because I truly am. One of the dearest persons featured in those photos is already halfway around the world today, happily starting a new life with his own family there. And I’m glad that in those borrowed years that he was with us, we had those moments where we did nothing but create many wonderful memories of fun, of family, of love. And if given the chance to re-live those times over again, I will not have it any other way.

On the contrary, at about the same time, somebody also gave me an unsolicited advice which was “to not let the kids out frequently. To limit bringing them out, especially the little one.” I would like to think that the advice was given with the best of intentions. However, my belief in living in the moment and making the most of the “now” seem prevalent in my current state of mind and heart.

We often worry too much of tomorrow that we missed out on today. Surely, thinking of the future and being prepared for it, is the path of the wise. But living on today and making each moment count would make the path a joyful one to journey on.

The photos in that post are but a few of the many precious moments captured by the camera. And there are even more of the candid ones, the “in the moment” and “spur of the moment” kind of shots that I wished the camera had captured but did not for the reason of “oh we got busy making memories we forgot to take a selfie!” 😊 Nevertheless, nothing was missed out as the memories created in those “missed” moments are forever etched in the heart.

I believe that each day is a blessing. Today is rightly called “the present” because it is a gift to be lived, to be celebrated, to be valued. And with that, I would adamantly continue to live by the idea that time and resources spent on and with family and the people who matter the most is worth saying “I’m glad I did.”