Planned Retirement

Planned Retirement

In a financial sense, retirement means the ability to stop working
and not worry about anything. It is the stage when we can just sit
back, enjoy and depend on our hard end assets to pay for our needs
whether or not it is a real need or only wants.

How do we plan for our future? How do we plan for that day when
suddenly all our needs are simply all settled nicely and all we have
to do is to enjoy our remaining days with our loved ones and have
quality time.

How about now? What do you do to enjoy that life ahead? How do you
see yourself some years from now? What plans have you initiated to
concretize that plan?

Some tips:

Invest on assets that does not reduce its value through time.
Investing on inflation free assets like valuable land, apartments and
investments that are protected from the falling stock share prices
like government issued bonds, T-bills and corporate bonds. In the
Philippine setting, the value of land may not be devaluing fast
unlike in the US right now because of the mortgage crisis that they
are having.

Invest on assets that pays itself like buildings that earns rental
income. A friend of mine decided to invest his money by building a
small apartment instead of a plain house for his family. By doing
so, he is assured to earn a living even when he is not working.

Invest on highly valuable insurance. Protect oneself from life's
various risks. There are insurance products that provides security
and earns a possible income in terms of investments. It is always
better to have a plan a, b and c so that things will work well no
matter what. Be honest with what you can afford. Think prospective
and practical, a lapsed policy is hard to accept especially if you
have already invested a considerable amount. Try also to consider
the inn's and out's of the insurance product. Double check if the
policy is really what the agent is telling you it to be. Don't be
fooled by sweet promises. Do your own research. You don't want to be
surprised after paying for 10 or even 20 years that you still have to
pay for some years more because what was explained to you then is not
really the whole information about the product that you are buying,

Investing on mutual funds. First, make sure of the company that you
are investing. The stock market is not yet stable, so you may buy
those that are linked with secure investments like treasury bills,
government bonds and corporate bonds. Its rate of return may be
moderate but definitely higher than what you can get if your money is
just deposited in a bank and time-deposit. Let the power of
compounding interest work for you. This is possible because you will
be leaving your money long term. Of course you can withdraw the
money depending on the contract usually after 1 year and subject to
deduction of certain applicable fees.

Plan for your estate and other clean up expenses. Buying now while
still alive will guarantee of cheaper expenses in terms of burial lot
and other expenses related to ones death. Your insurance can also be
helpful in settling these expenses. Sometime we fail to plan for
this dreaded event because of the seeming hard reality of facing the
reality of death. In the end it is always wise to plan ahead and be
practical especially for the welfare of those whom will be leaving
behind.

Planning for those with limited budget. You can set aside some of
your money to be used as an emergency fund. Plan ahead by having
Philhealth and SSS. Contributions to these institutions are helpful
investments that should also form part of your financial plan. You
can also avail of term insurance or those that are plainly for one's
protection and expires after one year. This is the cheapest type of
insurance.

If you have enough budget, you can also avail of a medical card so
that succeeding visits for your medical and dental need will be cared
for. If you can't, it is still a wise investment to undergo routine
check-ups as a preventive measure. Prevention is always better than
cure.

Maintain a healthy lifestyle. Have a healthy diet, exercise
regularly. If you can't afford to go to the gym because of cost or
lack of time, use the stairs instead of the elevator. Park your car
far from your office so you can walk. Do some sit-ups, jog or join a
marathon event. Swim this summer and when able. Go hiking and other
events that are fun-filled and activity driven. It is also important
to know the basics of proper lifting. Use your legs instead of your
back when doing it. Doing the wrong thing again and again may
contribute to the rapid weakening of our backs. Consult a doctor or
a physical therapist to teach you more about this. Maintain a good
posture and make it a habit.

Plan your travel or day so that you may find time to do the things
that you want to do. You also conserve resources, like money and
time.

Eat food rich in fiber and fruits. You can consult your dietitian for
the best set of food for you to eat. Also ask for the best exercise
from your doctor, especially if you have a history of being injured
or other medical pre-existing condition. And most importantly,
everything should be done in moderation. What is important is a
disciplined lifestyle. Also do not smoke and drink too much.

Develop and foster quality relationship with your family, loved ones,
friends and even those who need your help and presence as well.

Protect and foster your spiritual life by having a regular prayer
time, reading the bible, going to church, your action groups and
prayer meeting and most importantly, action.

Protect the environment. Planning for ones future also includes
taking care of our future environment and our future children as
well. Learn to recycle. Turn of your lights or other electrical
equipment when not in use. Walk or use your bike. Use mass
transits, carpooling and wise use of water. When eating, get only
what you can finish. Repair the leaking faucets. Plant more trees
and pray that others too will also be doing their share to preserve
and protect the environment.

Please pass.. if you are helped by this document.

Yel
Alnp-alabang

If you need more information on investments or other information.
E-mail me: sr679@yahoo.com,

text me or give me a call
My new cell number: 0916-2390-800

home

"Another summer day
Has come and gone away
In Paris and Rome
But I wanna go home

May be surrounded by
A million people I
Still feel all alone
Just wanna go home
Oh I miss you, you know

And I've been keeping all the letters that I wrote to you
Each one a line or two
"I'm fine baby, how are you?"
Well, I would send them but I know that it’s just not enough
My words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that

Another aeroplane
Another sunny place
I'm lucky I know
But I wanna go home
I got to go home

Let me go home
I'm just too far from where you are
I wanna come home

And I feel just like I'm living someone else's life
It's like I just stepped outside
When everything was going right
And I know just why you could not
Come along with me
This was not your dream
But you always believed in me"


The song above is sung by Michael Buble entitled "Home". And as I was listening this song from the jeepney I rode from Calamba to San Pedro last Holy Tuesday in time for our Holy Week break, I was strucked by the song.

Yes, another summer day has come indeed and I really missed home, my home in San Pedro. For all these months I rented and stayed in a dormintory here in Calamba near Letran campus. My life became truly different.

But more than just missing my home and my family, another thing I missed was my community in Lingkod Alabang.

I went to a point that I became a "wandering servant" a wandering lingkod. Though I had served San Pablo at attending Los Banos a few times, still, there was a yearning to go back to where my relationship with the Lord grew, honed, and pruned, and that is in Lingkod Alabang.

Yet during these "exiled" times that my Christian life was formed in another way. Inspite that I do not regularly attend to the prayer meetings of Lingkod either in San Pablo or Los Banos, I was trying my best to be faithful to the Lord through my work in Letran Calamba.

I really missed our community and I pray that soon I'll be home again. My contract with Letran Calamba will be due this March 30 and with the new work prospect in another school which is near my home in San Pedro, there is an assurance that I could serve regularly Lingkod Alabang.

Please pray for me as I prepare myself for my new work and in a new workplace ahead of me starting this summer, near my home, near our home in Lingkod Alabang, until we reach our true and heavenly home with the Father and Christ.AMEN+

God bless

- Dan

Go to the Deep

Last Sunday, I together with the other brothers from GMMAQC attended a retreat at the Franciscan retreat house in Tagaytay. Tito Eddie conducted the retreat. The theme of the retreat is to go into the deep. How can I go the deep when my hands and legs are weak? Maybe I can’t even go the shallow if that’s the case.

There are three important points that I learned in that retreat and these are:

Weakness

- Identify your personal weakness. Each of us have a personal definition of what weakness is all about. It is an internal struggle that affects our ability to decide and act. It maybe an outcome of our past, present environment and personal choice. Peter the rock, also had a breaking experience. Its like turning rock into tiny granules of sand. Weakening and destroying the strong rock that he is which may also happen to us.

Openness

- The process of knowing and eventually conquering our weaknesses will not be possible without the realization that we are weak. It is acknowledging that such weakness/es exist.

Working with others and oneself

- It is happy to know that there are people whom you can share your weaknesses. Be honest and open no matter what this admission of your weaknesses will mean to them. Talking about your weaknesses is not an easy thing to do. Seek sincere people who are willing to listen and offer you advices to help you get over those weaknesses.
- Working with oneself. After knowing what to change comes the stage of decision, action and evaluation. This is not an easy thing to do without asking God to help you. Think long term, think of God and ask for the grace to conquer it. Ask also for the decision to remain strong and the grace to remove the stumbling block of weakness in your daily behavior. After the action stage comes evaluation which is a daily process of monitoring if there is a need to fine tune things. Sure sin may come again as our weaknesses reappear. Through monitoring and evaluation, we can be proactive and reactive when we fall back into our old ways. Repent and do something to prevent our weakness to resurface.

As we continue in our walk as real brothers and sisters in Christ, it will be helpful to remember the WOW strategy to conquer our personal weakness.

God bless and WOW your weaknesses away!!!

Yel

He is my Light

Early this morning at around 8:00 we were on our way to the Feast for a mass and a talk where the speaker was Bo Sanchez. I was in the car seated at the back seat. My sister was driving and seated at the shotgun was my mom. We were free of thinking any house chores and work related-activities. For me it was a perfect sunny Sunday morning. We prepared our hearts on our way by sharing our short personal prayers. While seated at the backseat of the car, I was thanking God for the blessings He has given our family. I thanked Him for providing us the car, the gas and even the fastened seatbelts that we were using. I thanked Him for so many things. I also thanked Him for making us able to finish all the things that we needed to do for the week by Saturday, and making Sunday a day dedicated for Him. That short moment remained in my mind right now as the day is ending. It was simple and short story of my life but I really felt His presence filled our hearts because I felt calmness in my heart. This night was really a good time to reflect. He has provided a lot of things in my life that I cannot count of. And so I reflected on the Gospel for today which was taken from the book of Saint John 9: 1-41. In the Gospel, it was written that He was able to heal a blind man and made him restore his sight. The focus of the Gospel was not about healing the blind man’s physical blindness, but rather it was about God explaining that He alone is the Light which brings more than physical sight. Many times we reject accepting the Light God has given us. We refuse to accept and do not believe of His blessings and His love. We tend to have an ungrateful heart that brings loneliness and sadness in our hearts. I really believe that when you accept God as the light you are able to see His blessings and have a peaceful heart. A heart free from worries.

Thank you, Lord, for filling our hearts today. Thank you for planning this day for our family to reflect and examine the words you have spoken to us. Thank you for continuously being the light to our family. Jesus Christ, You are my light and love.

yel's special day

last night Lapag celebrated Yel's birthday at Kick's house and also welcomed ang bagong Lapag na si JC. dagdag saya dagdag inspirasyon.

book article review

Last night the Lapag bros welcomed new member JC coming from Lingkod Greenhills. The activity last night was book/article/story review. Erik shared some highlights from the book "Leadership Secrets of Saint Paul" by Jeff Caliguire. From this book, St. Paul's qualities was clearly shown on the stories of his mission in bringing many people to christianity. He was a very good example of a faithful and radical follower of Christ.

JC shared the story entitled "The Gift", it talks about the story of the father giving his son a Bible instead of a car that his son was asking from him. The son became disappointed and so he left his father. Later in the story the father died and the son checked the Bible that his father gave and noticed that there was a key inside his Bible and knew that it was there since the time his father gave it to him on his graduation day. The story shows the value of God's desire to bless in small and big things. JC also shared his reflections on the book of Philippians in the Bible which also featured St. Paul's virtues.

Dom shared the book "Jesus Freaks" by the DC Talk an alternative band who radically expressed their call to remind us the works of Christ in the life of the martyrs. The book featured a lot about St. Paul who ultimately gave his life for Christ. Kicks through text shared the book "The Pilgrimage" by the famous author Paulo Coehlo. He personally like the author because of his vivid imagination which makes it surreal and out of this world yet, never far-fetched. One more thing is, the author also shows depth in the religious side - he is Brazilian and also a Catholic. It is a worthwhile and also an inspiring read with a bit of suspense, drama and trivial facts.

fyi

The BSP Investor Relations Office, in cooperation with the Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc., invites you to the 2008 PHILIPPINE ECONOMIC BRIEFING: "The Philippines: Defying Gravity, Rising Steadily" on Friday, 15 February 2008, 10:00 AM at the Rizal Ballroom of the Makati Shangri-la Hotel.
This economic briefing will be highlighted by the Keynote Address of Her Excellency, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and presentations by her economic managers.
Interested participants are required to register by accomplishing the attached registration form and submitting via email or fax to:
INVESTOR RELATIONS OFFICEFax: 303-1565Email: info-iro@bsp.gov.phTelephone: 303-1581/523-7792Contact persons: Gigi Araneta, Shenyll Dizon and John Alonzo
Best regards,THE MARKET EDUCATION DEPARTMENTTHE PHILIPPINE STOCK EXCHANGE, INC.T: +(632) - 688-7537 to 38 F: +(632) - 634-6695 E: marketeducation@pse.com.ph W: www.pse.com.ph