Looking back how young and vigorous they were before,and seeing them now, with wrinkles on their faces, the back pains and even having arthritis, gave you the strong desire to do something that would paint a smile on their faces. Being together, and sharing memories together are the priceless gifts one can give to their love ones. It is of course, with God's providence and grace that my parent's visit made possible.And the combination of efforts from all of us. All the siblings did the share to process everything until it became a reality. Filipino citizens are required a visa to enter Germany and The Republic of Ireland, so their efforts started of course from applying visa to the embassies of the countries mentioned above. Germany-- so they can visit me and my family and Ireland-- to visit my sister and her family.
It was a fulfilling and reflective moments for me, for I was given the chance to take care of them, do some cooking, cleaning, and some other mundane stuffs that one could have done, if you live in the same place. One instance was I was able to color mama's hair, had their nails trimmed, and prepared a nice warm bath for them to enjoy. It was indeed a lovely time together. To be away from your home is both a challenge and opportunity. There are always trade off for the choices we made. And a visit like this was definitely rewarding.
Here are some photos we had:
this was taken at Nymphenburg Castle in Munich
at the BMW Museum
Allianz Arena
Brandenburg Gate in Berlin
Munich Center
Freising
These are significant events in our lives, and I think every minute spent with someone we deeply care are always moments to remember. It reminds me of the saying that "It's not the sugar that makes the coffee/tea sweet, it's the STIRRING". We may all have what we need to be sweet and happy, yet if we forget to stir it, then it will be nothing.