Category: Positivity

GOD IS JUST A PRAYER AWAY

by Roger, posted in Positivity

A. CIRCUMSTANCES

Sleep paralysis. A sleep disorder that lets you dream of something dreadful and your body won’t respond the way you want it to. Alyssa has suffered sleep paralysis for God knows how many years. As she grows older, those terrifying dreams become more vivid than before. 

B. STORY RESOLUTION

A face as white as paper and full of blood, staring at her. The face was smiling from ear to ear while staring at Alyssa. She tried to move her body but as what she expected, she couldn’t move! Her heartbeat is increasing and her fear is growing as the smiling face comes closer and closer, until it is centimeters away from her.

She abruptly opened her eyes. Alyssa sat up from her bed and clenched her chest. One day she would die from a heart attack! She looked at the clock. It was 3 am. She sighed and calmed herself and she browsed her phone. She needed to badly calm down. Her heartbeat was erratic. The horrifying face left a terrifying impression on her. 

She didn’t sleep anymore and kept on staring at the screen. Alyssa fought the sleepiness because she was afraid that the sleep paralysis would come back. Alyssa wasn’t a religious person but her family was. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe, but rather, she’s too lazy to improve her relationship with God. 

Alyssa’s family is Catholic. Most of the time, they pray without Alyssa. 

The sun finally rose, Alyssa stood up from her bed and got readied for school. As she was walking towards school, she suddenly remembered the horrid face of the woman in her dreams. She began to shiver and she quickly blanked out her mind. 

At class time, Alyssa’s chin was held by her right hand while she was looking outside the window. Then she saw a woman covered in blood, walking towards the classroom. Horrified, she quickly gathered her things and ran towards home. 

“Honey, why the rush?” Her mother asked her. She looked at her mother then at the window. The bloodied woman was getting closer!

“Mom! There’s a bloodied woman following me! I’m scared!” Alyssa said as tears came streaming down her face. 

Her mother embraced her. “Oh dear. Pray to God and the woman will disappear. You just need devotion to God.”

As if hearing a miracle, Alyssa quickly prayed.

Then there was a knock heard from their front door. Alyssa looked at the window and saw the woman. 

“Mom don’t open the door, it’s her!” 

“It’s okay sweetie. Let’s just pray.” 

Both mother and daughter continued to pray until the knocking was gone. 

“See honey? All we need is God.”

C. REALIZATION

When you are afraid of some things, all you need is to pray for God and He will lead the way. 

Views: 88

LIFE IS WINNING ONESELF OF NEGATIVITY

by Roger, posted in Positivity

A. CIRCUMSTANCES

Ara, a girl who has been shunned away by her parents and relatives lives in depression. Being compared to others constantly. She feels sick and she lacks interest in the things she is supposed to love. Due to her irrational thinking, she decides to try suicide to end her miserable life.

B. STORY  RESOLUTION

“Why won’t you be like Sia? She’s talented, brilliant, good at academics, an athlete and a musician. You should learn more. Not sulking around like that!” Ara’s mother scolded her. Ara lowered her head. She didn’t have the appetite to eat now. Not right after she was compared to her cousin again. 

“Thank you for the meal.” She blandly said and stood up, carrying her dishes with her. Ara put the dishes in the sink.

“Where are you going young lady? You haven’t finished your meal yet!” Her father angrily shouted at her. 

She acted as if she’s deaf and did not mind her father. All she could think is her life being so miserable to the point she wants to be dead. 

As Ara lied on her  bed, tears started streaming down her cheeks. Why do they need to compare her to her cousin? She let down the tears. She felt useless. She felt that she wasn’t enough. Her very existence isn’t enough. Maybe that’s why they shunned her away. 

Ara cried herself to sleep. When morning came, she readied herself for school. She left the house with low spirits and headed for school. On the way, she saw many other students talking with each other. She smiled bitterly. Her emotionless eyes stared at the students. 

Ara saw her cousin, Sia walking with her friends, smiling happily and teasing with the others. Right then and there, she decided. She would end her life. Maybe then, her parents would be proud of her. 

Class started and Ara wasn’t into the lesson. All she could think are ways of how to kill herself for once. She wanted a painless death, not like the pain she feels everyday. 

Once the class ended, Ara stood up immediately. Even though the teacher was still in the classroom, she ran out the classroom and went to the school building’s rooftop. She would jump. It’s the most effective way to her death. Since the building was five floors high. 

She climbed the railings. Wind swept her hair away from her face. She stood atop the railings and inhaled deeply. She wanted the pain to go away. 

“Look! Someone’s gonna jump from building A!”

“Oh my God! Somebody stop her!”

Shouts started to echo in her ears but she didn’t listen to them. 

One student reported the situation to the teachers. The teachers immediately went to the rooftop and consoled Ara to stop. She looked at the teachers with tear-stricken eyes. 

“The pain would stop if I die.” Ara said in a low voice but enough to let the teachers hear it.

“No, it wouldn’t go away! You’re just hurting yourself!” One of the teachers said.

“How would you know?” Ara asked.

The teacher was silent. 

Once Sia heard what the situation is, she immediately went to the rooftop. She saw Ara with her face full of tears.  

“Ara come down, please.” Sia pleaded.

“Why would I? It’s not like you would be affected if I die.” Ara said in an emotionless voice. 

“Why?” Sia asked, confused.

“Haha, you have everything! Every single thing that my parents want! I only want them to be proud of me being me! But who knows what happened after they saw your progress! They actually shunned me away! Always scolding me for not being enough! Do you know I feel useless everyday?! That my very existence is a joke?! Do you know how painful it is to live a life full of doubt?! To live in the shadow of another person?! No, you don’t because you are the star that everybody looks up to!” Ara’s emotionless face broke. Her face was distorted.

“Ara… I don’t have everything.” Sia sighed.

“Those things… I don’t own them. But please Ara. Stop this farce. You are you and I am me. Accept yourself. Don’t let others ruin your life. You are enough. I love your craftiness when. It comes to situations where I needed help. Remember when I almost got raped? You helped me then and beat up those hooligans. I’ve idolized you then. I never look down on you. I worked hard on being an honor student so that you could be proud of me. You know I don’t have parents. I only trust you, Ara. And I love you. As a sister.”

Ara stared wide eyed at Sia. The teachers took advantage of the situation and carefully guided Ara down. When they finally reached concrete ground, Ara fell on her knees while crying. Sia also cried.

The next day, both of them walked together hand in hand towards school. Although Ara was still in an awkward position, she still felt a little bit happy. Finally, someone to lean on when she’s sad.

C. LESSON TO LEARN

Remember to always be away from negative thoughts. You are you, do not be jealous of what you don’t have. Everybody has their own sad sides. Instead, live a life where you are contented of who and what you are. 

Views: 97

UNDERSTANDING FEAR

by Roger, posted in Positivity
  1. CIRCUMSTANCES

Happy is always afraid of crowded places, or situations where she could be potentially embarrassed or panicked. Having been a shut in NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) her teenage days, she has developed agoraphobia. Due to that, she couldn’t bear to go outside her house but she had to as she has office work. All she does is play games and watch anime during her free time and is not socially active. Her grandmother is worried about Happy’s situation. 

  1. STORY RESOLUTION

Happy was buying groceries. She was in line for the counter when she noticed a brand new lip balm beside her cart. She looked at the lip balm for a minute and then decided to buy it for personal purposes. She happily put it in her cart.

The person in front of her was finally done, it was her turn. She took out all the things in her cart and the cashier started to scan all the items. The bill was 44.7 dollars. Happy took out her coin purse. She handed the money to the cashier. 

“Maam, you need five more dollars.” The cashier said gently. Blood rushed towards Happy’s face. She was embarrassed. She looked inside her coin purse but there was only a single cent in her coin purse. 

“uhm, take out the ketchup please.” The cashier smiled and took out the ketchup. 

“You still need three more dollars ma’am.” The cashier said again. Happy’s mind was in shambles. She was so embarrassed! She looked around and saw that the person next to her was looking at her intently. 

“Excuse me, miss, hurry up. We don’t have all the time in the world.” The next person said rudely. Happy felt like crying. Oh God, what should she do? She was in a panic that she staggered a bit. 

“Come on miss.” The other customers started complaining also. 

Happy closed her eyes to prevent the tears that are about to fall from her eyes. Then she had an idea. She looked at the monitor and saw what was the most expensive item in her cart. It was lip balm! 

“M-miss cashier, take off the lip balm please.” The cashier nodded and smiled. 

“That would be 25.7 dollars maam.” She quickly paid the bill and ran out. 

“Humph, buying groceries yet have no money.” she heard. Happy lowered her head in shame. This was why she hated society. 

When she arrived at her house, she immediately ran off to her room. Happy’s room was completely dark. Only the night lamp was on. Happy quickly turned on the TV and watched anime. She immediately calmed down. Her previously palpitating heart was now calm. As expected, only anime was her comfort.

The next day, Happy got up from being seated and stretched her limbs. She binge watched an anime series the whole night and didn’t get even a wink of sleep. 

She took a bath and put on her work clothes. She rushed towards her workplace. To be honest, she didn’t like her work. Encoding might seem to be an easy job at first, but there were too many files to be encoded for her. The stress of being pressured by her higher ups are piling up in her brain. 

“Why are you late?”

“Encode this. I want it this afternoon.”

“Make. a powerpoint for the presentation of your group. Tomorrow is the deadline.”

“Give the report to me at nine A.M.”

Blah blah blah…

Happy panicked. 

“Where’s the report I asked last week?”

“Did you submit the manuscript today?”

‘Please… Let me rest for a bit…’ she thought. The workmates who nagged her kept on nagging. It’s her phobia again. This damned phobia always gets the best of her. 

“Could you guys at least give her time? Or else I wouldn’t hesitate to report your negligence to the higher ups.” Chase, her office mate said to the others. Happy looked up at Chase. Her head blanked out for a minute.

“What could you report?” one of the office mates asked, snickering at Chase. 

Chase pointed at one woman who had a red lipstick, “seducing the department manager for more bonuses,” Then Chase pointed at one man, “negligence of work.” 

Both were startled. 

With a ‘humph’, both walked out. The others got a glare from Chase, then they also retreated. 

Happy lowered her head in shame. “Thank you.”

Chase smiled. “It’s okay to have fears, but don’t let them ruin your life.” Chase patted her shoulder and walked away.

She stared at Chase’s back for a while. His words sank in her heart. She clenched her fists. She must conquer this fear !

The following days, she worked diligently. Not missing a single file. Always on time for work. Confident towards her presentation. The buzzing feeling of her phobia gradually went off. Because as soon as she felt her fear rising up again, all she needed was to remember Chase’s words of encouragement.

  1. LESSON TO LEARN

All of us have fears. Some fears are not useful, but some are. By conquering your fear, you’ll achieve a more blissful life. As for Happy, conquering her greatest fear is the best goal to achieve. Not only did she have a good life, but she also had achieved a comfortable life wherein one can do whatever she/he wants.

Views: 118

WHEN THE WORLD TURNS BACK ON YOU

by Roger, posted in Positivity

A. CIRCUMSTANCES

Tom, a bully always picks on the weak. He never listens to his parents. His parents decided to transfer him to a school where he couldn’t go rampant. But will his aggressive nature calm down at a new school?

B. STORY RESOLUTION

Tom smirks as he enters his new school. New environment, new weak students, new bullies. He couldn’t wait for another victim.  As he strode towards his classroom, he spotted a girl wearing glasses looking down on her books. Tom smirks. He found his new victim to bully. 

As soon as class started, Tom looked at his surroundings. There were all kinds of students. A jock, the cheerleader, the nerd girl he saw earlier, the popular group of students, the silent group and the naughty ones. Tom was puzzled. Why didn’t anybody pick at the nerd girl? In his old school, everybody would pick the nerds until they cry. Then he decided. He would make a change at this school! He would bully the weak here and be the king at this school!

Some students approached Tom and made friends with him. Tom felt that they were his match so he didn’t bully them. He made new friends immediately. 

“Hey, why don’t you guys bully that girl?” Tom asked his new friends and pointed at the nerd girl. His new friends looked at one another. 

They were about to answer Tom’s question when the teacher arrived at the classroom. The teacher let Tom introduce himself and then let him sit down at the vacant chair. 

Although out of the class, Tom was eyeing the nerd girl. She was scribbling something in her notebook and occasionally smiling to herself. Being a thirteen year old bully, this behavior triggered the bullying ideas of Tom. 

The class ended, it was time for lunch. Tom went out with his new friends towards the cafeteria. They were laughing and enjoying their lunch when Tom saw the nerd girl entering the cafeteria on her own while hugging a notebook. Tom grinned. 

He looked at his newly found friends and said, “look at what I’m gonna do guys. It’ll be fun.”  His new friends were puzzled but nevertheless, stayed silent and watched his actions. 

The nerd girl sat on a corner. She didn’t order anything from the counter and just directly sat on the table. She once again scribbled something on her notebook. Nobody was paying attention to her. 

Tom sneakily went behind her back. Then suddenly, he grabbed the notebook from the girl and raised his hand so that the girl couldn’t get her notebook. 

The girl shouted in surprise. All the students in the cafeteria looked at the two. Tom smirked.

“Haha! I have your notebook. Whatcha gonna do?” He said teasingly.

“Give! Give!” The girl desperately reached out her hands to get her notebook but Tom was a head taller than her. 

Tom opened the notebook and saw unreadable texts in it. He laughed loudly. 

“What, you can’t write? How old are you? My God, are you stupid?” Tom said laughingly. Whispers started to circulate in the entire cafeteria. 

The nerd girl started to cry. 

“Awe, the stupid started to cry. What a crybaby.” Tom teased and took out his tongue. 

Tom’s friends stood up. “Stop it, Tom!”

Tom looked at his friends, “why? Isn’t it fun to see another cry? And look, she’s so stupid all she could do is cry and scribble.” And Tom smirked. 

The girl’s cry started to get louder and louder. 

“Stop bullying her!” Someone from the other groups said. 

With a ‘heh’, Tom said, “what are you gonna do if I don’t stop?” 

“How cold are you? A mere transferee started bullying a girl on his first day!” A senior student said.

The cries of the nerd girl was heard by the teachers, so the teachers immediately went in the cafeteria. They saw the scenario by themselves. And one of the teachers who came was Tom’s homeroom teacher. 

“What happened to Danielle?” A teacher asked. Another teacher calmed Danielle. 

A student immediately reported to the teacher about what happened. 

“Who’s Tom?” 

Tom raised his hand. He felt that he didn’t need to be felt threatened. So he wasn’t nervous. 

The teacher was serious. “Come with me to the office. Miss Garcia, please call Danielle’s parents.” 

Tom looked at his friends with a smirk but his newly found friends were frowning at him. They turned around and continued eating. Tom was surprised by their behavior. Didn’t they enjoy what happened? 

Once the teacher and Tom were in the office, Tom was immediately scolded by the teacher. But Tom had a poker face. 

 

“So what if I bullied her? It’s not like I can traumatize her. Psh.” 

The teacher was about to say something when a man and a woman entered the office. They were both wearing business clothes. They looked noble. 

“Mr and Mrs Lee please sit down.” the teacher calmly said.

“I thought this wouldn’t happen to my daughter again, Mr Stephan.” the man said. Tom’s heart was beating fast. This was the nerd girl’s parents? 

The teacher bowed slightly as if apologizing. “I am so sorry Mr. lee. It’s a new student that bullied Danielle. I am about to explain her situation to him right now.” 

“Go and explain. I will sue this boy for bullying my daughter. Just let his parents talk with my lawyer.” With a ‘whoosh’, Mrs Lee turned around and left. Only Mr. Lee was in the office.

“We will wait for his public apology.” then Mr. Lee also left, following his wife. 

The teacher looked at Tom. 

“Boy, you probably don’t know but Danielle has Autism and Dyslexia. Her parents carefully placed her here in this school as to protect her from being bullied. She can’t read. She also has a traumatic past about being bullied. And you just triggered her trauma.” the teacher sighed. Tom felt guilty. “Go and tell your parents about the public apology or else your family will be dragged down by you. Mr. and Mrs. Lee is one of the leading businessmen in the industry and probably they won’t let you off.” 

Tom went home trying to escape what he had done in the school. How should he explain this to his parents? He decided he wouldn’t say anything to his parents.

The next day, all Tom could see are the glares from his schoolmates. They haven’t forgotten what he had done yesterday. 

When class was going on, Tom’s parents called the school. Apparently, a warrant of arrest came in stating that Tom should be invited into the precinct. Tom’s parents were fired by their employers and they were sent to the streets. Now Tom really regretted what he had done. 

 

REALIZATION

Life oftentimes is unfair. It might not always be in our favor. Worst,  could drag anyone down into the helpless ground unnoticed. After all, life recompense like the saying that goes “What you give to the world is what you receive from the world.” 

 

Views: 89

WHEN SOMEONE NEARLY BROKE HER HEART

by Roger, posted in Positivity

A. CIRCUMSTANCES

Berated, laughed at, bullied and thrown away by the people around her. Bertha who had a huge birthmark on her face faced humiliation all her life. Her parents didn’t took notice of her everyday life. So, she lived like a clown. At school, she is always  alone because no one would make friends with her.

B. STORY  RESOLUTION

“Look, its Bertha the half. Haha.”

“I bet she still  with Andrew.”

“Like, eww. Does she still think Andrew likes her?”

“Of course not! Everyone knows Andrew just used her for school projects.”

Bertha lowered her head. Yes, she knew that Andrew, her boyfriend, is just using her. But what can she do? Only Andrew took notice of her even if it’s just using her. 

Bertha walked towards the school’s soccer field, where Andrew was practising soccer for a tournament in the upcoming month. She saw Andrew. She smiled lightly and was about to walk up to him when the cheerleader approached Andrew and planted a kiss on his lips. Bertha froze on the spot. Why? She thought. Why did she needed to be so ugly? Just why?! Tears started to stream down her face. She turned around, walking briskly towards the school gate. She wanted to go home. 

Wiping the snot and tears away from her face, she bumped into a person. Bertha fell on the ground but she did not looked up. Tears were still spilling from her eyes. 

“I am so sorry, miss! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Let me check.” The person was genuinely concerned about Bertha. But all she could hear is the disdain brewing inside her head. 

“Please… Just leave me alone…” Her voice was like an angel descended from heaven. And at that moment, the person felt like he needed to help this helpless girl. 

He offered his hand towards Bertha. She was surprised, and she unconsciously looked up. The person was smiling to her. 

“Come on now. Get up, it’s dirty on the floor. A person as pretty as you shouldn’t be crouching like that.” The person said. Bertha was dumbfounded. She? Pretty? Did she heard it correctly? 

“I’m sorry. You must be mistaken. Im ugly. I do not deserve to be praised.” She said in a low voice. 

The person was still smiling. “No matter how big your birthmark is, or how ugly you feel you are, remember, there is always a person who could appreciate your beauty. No matter the race, or how many freckles you have in your face, or how fat you are, somebody will appreciate you.”

As if in a daze, Bertha unconsciously teared up. But she held her tears up. Yes! She shouldn’t be insecure! She’s a beauty. A one of a kind at that. 

The very next day, Bertha didn’t hung her head low. Now, she walked full of confidence. Those who looked down on her, showed a surprised face but still berated her. But that person’s words filled Bertha’s heart. She would be insecure, yes that wouldn’t go away but by remembering that someone has finally acknowledged her, her confidence would shot up. 

And as for that boyfriend of hers, he didn’t deserve her. A man using a girl is as good as a trash.

REALIZATION OF THE STORY

As Bertha thought back at those miserable days where she was in her miserable state, she realized was not how it seemed. Her life must go on. She should enjoy her life, and think positively. Remove all the negative thoughts and do not think about how others think about you. 

Views: 81