INVOCATIONS

They were healers and leaders.

Perhaps it was through their intercession that Cigna debunked the myth of the "pre-existing" rider by guaranteeing to cover an expensive radioactive tracing procedure.

We are grateful and we continue to plead for the babaylans' intervention --- for Our Ina ng Biglang Awa to always quickly step in for us, for La Pilarica to support our aspirations, and for the La Naval to unleash her spirit guides to protect us.

And with the throng gathered at Plaza Miranda, we stormed the celestial kingdom of Jesus Nazareno with our eternal gratitude for a healing along with our prayers for long life and good health.

Eat, pray, love.

We ate --- nibbled on Goodah's fried pork ribs before the scan, high protein with low carb and sugar, picked on Max's fried chicken afterwards, a revenge lunch of sorts, before indulging on Rue Bourbon's all-meat pizza and what it touted as a Big Ass Caramel Beer (whoever thought of it should be hanged!), and a barrage of Manmaru Izakaya's sashimi with two servings of sake (we will be back!).

We prayed --- at the Binondo Church and a supplication of  braised beef tendon and black chicken soup, at Sta. Cruz Chruch and a petition for Lord Stow's egg tart, at the Quiapo Church after an invocation of an Excelente ham sandwich and Dada's palabok at the Quinta Market, and at the Sto. Domingo Church where the bus dropped us and the Grab picked us.

All that in the name of love. 

Work.

Cigna was pre-meditated, a battle plan tucked between rote Monday meetings while chasing ASEAN 2025 and "The Lao Big Event" in Luang Prabang in between huddles on safe programming and a partnership platform while catching up with tegional and global conversations on just energy transition and a concept note review.

There were matters arising, a potential donor meeting, an annual planning, hotel bookings, a requested ASEAN briefing, and an exchange that finally got me moving (from OGB to ONL).

Interspersed is a dentist pulling a tooth from the money changer who paid the cobbler with US dollars for mending the legal assistant's sneakers after notarizing the Almaguer Papers to authorize a bank deposit after the morning street sweeps so the Solid North bus will cease promoting a party list of poisoned brown grasses.

Ride a bike, drink a beer.

I did disposed the trash, took out breakfast, got a haircut, restocked our prescriptions, and went to the market.

I did drink too but a sparkling non-alcoholic wine first before giving in to our regular Red Horse sessions with bopis, tokwa't baboy, and inihaw na baboy on the side.