Officially… Mrs. Dupaya

“A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our truest selves step out and we can be completely and honestly who we are; we can be loved for who we are and not for who we’re pretending to be. Each unveils the best part of the other. No matter what else goes wrong around us, with that one person we’re safe in our own paradise. Our soulmate is someone who shares our deepest longings, our sense of direction. When we’re two balloons, and together our direction is up, chances are we’ve found the right person. Our soulmate is the one who makes life come to life. ” — Richard Bach

May and TJ saying their vows.

Just last Friday, January 27, 2017, I had the honor of witnessing my dear friend, Mary May’s most special day in Tuguegarao City. It was my first travel for this year and the first destination wedding that I’ve attended. May and TJ really were made for each other, and it's when you see a love like this that I think of the opening quote from Richard Bach. Umm, I'm not crying, that's just the fake eyelashes irritating my eyes hahahaha!

Looking back to May 2016, on Mary May’s birthday in Indonesia, at sunrise. TJ proposed to Mary May. It was the most perfect moment for her. I was literally brought to tears when May told us girls. It was because I couldn’t imagine my dear friend be with someone other than TJ. Knowing the struggles that they’ve been through as well. Long distance relationships have a very slim chance to succeed. But here they are, starting to plan their wedding and build dreams together as a union. Oh my God, I felt so giddy like a love-sick puppy dog!

On her wedding day, I know I am probably slightly biased... but Mary May is genuinely one of the most beautiful brides I have ever seen. It was such a magical moment watching her walk down the aisle in her father’s arms, all of us seeing her in her dress for the first time before we were whisked off to the venue. THERE WERE TEARS! I tried my best not to cry because I wasn’t sure if my mascara is waterproof lol! Seeing Mary May's parents get misty-eyed really tugged on my heart strings too. There's something so special about the father of the bride in particular, seeing his daughter in her wedding dress for the first time which you just can't put into words.

Selfie with Mrs.Dupaya, the Most Beautiful Bride!

Squad Goals with The Newlyweds.

Congratulations Mary May and TJ! You’re love story is such an inspiration. Love you both!

People of my Year 2016

It is the time of the year where everyone is off to a good start. Every New Year means fresh beginnings and new opportunities. It is always exciting when a new year comes coz it’s a fresh start to work on our goals. We all know the feeling, everyone starts making resolutions and in just a few weeks or months we all end up forgetting them. As for me, it has been my annual routine that instead of listing down my resolutions, I put up an annual theme. I’ve started this routine in 2014 and it worked so far! I started it with #redemption2014, #fearless2015 and #extra2016. If you follow me on Instagram, you would already know that my theme for this year is #rise2017 (the reason behind this is also stated on ig, so might as well follow me there, my handle is @balongging) ;)

Anyway, aside from my annual theme on my social handles, I also see to it that I pay tribute to the people who stood out and made my last year (which is 2016) a memorable one. But this year, I decided to make it a bit different. It is usually a list of 10, but for this year, I’m just keeping it simple.

The Breakfast Club

Growing up, my Mom would always tell me “don’t skip breakfast, it is the most important meal of the day.” Since then, I’ve always start my day with a full meal at our pantry. And as the days went by, I’ve already formed a group with these people who happen to love eating breakfast as much as I do (it is their most important meal as well hahahaha). My day wouldn’t be complete without eating my breakfast with them.

The Breakfast Club in our "you can't sit with us" mode.

At our Christmas party 2016

The Supermoon Friends

The moon is a familiar sight in our sky, brightening dark nights and reminding us of space exploration, past and present. But the Supermoon last November 14 was especially “super” because it’s the closest full moon to Earth since 1948. My apologies for the TMI hahaha! We won’t see another supermoon like this until 2034, I am just so blessed to witness it this 2016. What made the Supermoon “super” special is that I got to witness it with these people in the most beautiful island in the world! Hence the name “Supermoon Friends” which comprises Mami Tina, JB, Mei-Mei, Nicky, Odette, Quim and Me (the most beautiful one lol). I already know we’re bound to travel a lot of places coz with them, I know I had already found the Barbs in my Trisha. ;) #DieBeautiful

The Supermoon Friends version of Tai-Chi LOL

San Juanico Bridge

The Tapdasan Family

Of course! How could I skip this part? My family has been in the hall of fame!

As a family, 2016 is also very memorable to us. To name a few of our happy thoughts:

• My Mom, well she knows how to upload photos on FB (in bulk) now. Also, she already has an Instagram account now, follow her @sergvtops hahaha!
• My Manang is now a full-pledged School Principal not to mention topping the principal’s exam, top 1 in Region 9! I couldn’t be more proud.
• I am the happiest Tita. I’ve already been a “Tita” at 4 years old. Even before Tita’s of Manila (or wherever) even existed. My nephews and nieces were complete last Christmas!

Oh well, I’ll let the photos show how happy we were spending Christmas and New Year!

Wacky poses the Tapdasan way!

Post Christmas Dinner at our Manoy Bobong's abode.

Our New Year's eve feast.

I hope you guys have an awesome 2017! I look forward to sharing more memories with you guys this year.

September Song

It’s been a while since I posted anything on my social media accounts. I’ve been in a rot lately. I’ve been through a lot too. I’ve been struggling with depression and anxiety. It was in the latter part of September when an unfortunate event happened (it was beyond my control), and from there, everything went down like a domino. Amidst the misfortune, I woke up one day and I felt very alone (except for the fact that I have my family and friends and they’re so supportive). I started hating who I was. I hated my arms, I hated my cheeks, I hated my face, and I hated everything. Yes, weeks ago, I was that person. I wasn’t very nice to myself.

Until one day, I was listening to some songs and I came across this song by JP Cooper which is titled – September Song. Ironically it’s a love song about remembering how he spent his summer when he was 15 (summer happens to be around August to September in non-tropical countries). But it was through this song I was able to come to my senses. And then it flashed back to how I started my September this year, I was quite happy. There’s a line in the song which says, “Our love is as strong as a lion”. Then it struck me. I talked to myself, “hey Lil, how come we have drifted apart?” I used to strongly love me, but why did I let me down? I was sad, I struggled. There was no easy way out, and it’s hard to get away from it. But then it’s a process. People were telling me “things are gonna get better”, but I just felt like people were just saying it because they didn’t know what else to say to a person who’s very sad. Coz what else can you say? It sounded so cliché, and you don't really feel that it's gonna get better. BUT IT DOES! The thing with going through anything is to just “go through it”. Then one day I woke up, and I wasn’t so sad anymore. I didn’t hate me anymore.

So why am I saying this? What’s the whole point of even blogging this? What have I learned from all of these? There are a lot of questions popping out. But yeah, I guess being creative is a perfect way of channeling out all devastation that you’re feeling. As for me, Snapchat and Twitter has been my outlet and it helped me a lot! Writing, it’s my passion. And in everything that I’ve been through, writing essentially played a big role for me to move on. I’ve also come to realize that, I am not the only one in this world who is this sad. And things are not always what they appear to be. There was a time in my life that I was more depressed and nobody knew about it, no one in my life really knew how depressed I was. You just never really know the war and struggles in someone’s mind no matter what they may appear like on the outside. The key to overcome all these is to just have faith. Have faith in what’s gonna happen, have faith in your family and friends, have faith in yourself and most importantly, have faith in God. No matter what your beliefs are, there is one divine being who is always by your side. I believe we’re all here for something, we’re all put in this earth for a purpose. Nothing in our lives is for no reason.

Now I don’t know how to end this hahaha! Oh well, I should park it here and just end it with this:

“Focus on getting better, I’m going through something bad right now, but I can push through it. I CAN DO THIS!” 

I CAN DO THIS!

Birthday in Baguio

Every new chapter in your life requires a new version of yourself. Welcoming another year of adventure, challenges, happiness, success and what-nots.
Say hi to my modelesque niece, Bea. Yes, she deserves all the exposure hahahaha!
I still suck at stabilizing though. Any suggestions on how could I improve? 😁
—FAQ:
*What camera do you use?
Gopro Hero 4 Silver
*What do you use to edit your videos?
Gopro Studio
MUSIC:
Begin Again by Purity Ring

A Nature Adventure on Independence Day (Masungi Georeserve)

Happy Independence Day!

The Philippines has been free from bondage for 118 years (on June 12, 1898 to be exact).

Being one with nature. It's now apparent to me what the colonizers (is there even a word? Lol) have seen in our country. There is definitely a lot to love! One is that, the Philippines is blessed with a very rich biodiversity.

It is a breath of fresh air to be away from the city and see such spectacle. A spectacle so pure and totally unadulterated that you won't be able to keep in the deluge of your emotions.

Hope you enjoy this melange of videos taken on a holiday!

P.S. Apologies for Mei's annoying laugh at the end of the video hahahaha!

A Daring Feat in Cebu

At the end of every adventure, I make it a point to have a memorable keepsake for us to share when we get old... Enjoy!

Coron, Palawan 2016 (Our Date with Paradise)

This video montage pretty sums up all our escapades in Coron, Palawan; which made us all emotional when we got back to Manila days after. Vacation hangover at its finest! Showcasing my dear friend Nicky's superb video editing skills (apologies on my annoying laugh at the end of the video though hehehehe!). Enjoy!



Video credits: Nicklaus Denosta