Our Holy Week 2016

I've been spending Holy Week with the Ibanez's for quite some time now and I haven't spent the Holy Week like how they spend it. I don't really remember when I was younger - when I was 7-9 years of age on how we spent the Holy Week back then. But when I moved in Manila - to my biological father's place, we would go to Tarlac and spend the Holy Week there. I've seen men carrying a cross as their penitensya or penance. And some men do this . Kindly click it if you want to see it, and just a reminder, it's graphic, hence I didn't want to put it on here. :)

When I first saw that, I was shocked! I mean, why would they hurt themselves! But, I think we just need to respect their beliefs and/or traditions as that is how they've been doing it since Idk when. And what we do in Tarlac during the Holy Week was just swim, eat, watch TV, and nothing more. We didn't really do what other Catholics do during the Holy Week because my biological father's of a different religion. And that is why I haven't done any of what the Catholics do; like Visita Iglesia , and Pabasa. 


 Anyway, with my husband's family; we usually do Pabasa every year. And I'm really happy I've read (sorry I don't know what the correct term should be) some since I lived with them. At first, I was kind of shy and would just read it to myself, meaning I'm just the only one hearing it, but as years passed, I think all of us were able to hear my voice already. Haha!

And this year, it was my very first time to do Visita Iglesia. I was really excited for it because I haven't done it, and I would be able to go to 7 different Churches in one day! We only got to go to the Churches within Makati, but still it was a great experience!

What we did was we'd pray 2 stations in every Church we'd visit. Here are the Churches we visited:

*Oops I wasn't able to take a photo of the first church we visited! It's St. Michael the Archangel Parish Church in BGC. Sorry!

Nuestra Senora de Gracia Parish

Praying at the first 3rd and 4th stations. It was my first time in this Church!
I wasn't able to go inside, but it looks so good even from the outside!

D I D  Y O U  K N O W ?

Some say that if it's your first time in a Church, and you pray for something, it would happen. ;)

National Shrine of the Sacred Heart
the stations were outside, and there was an activity in each station

St. Andrew the Apostle Church

St. John Bosco Parish 

Greenbelt Chapel / Sto. Nino de Paz Catholic Community

St. Joseph the Worker Parish

with the Baby Girls

Heehee <3

I got this from the National Shrine of the Sacred Heart Church. Which was really timely! :)
(there were activities in every station in Sacred Heart, I really like it!)

And the next day (Friday), the husband always join the prusisyon (procession) every year, and so Maco and I joined as well. It was the first for Maco! So we decided to bring her bicycle with us so she'd be able to ride it while we're at it. Apparently though, Maco fell asleep even we finish the prusisyon.

The prusisyon started around 5pm. Maco , myself, and Joshua's cousin joined when it passed by near our place

Before

Macoki in the middle of the flower arrangement

After

And that's how our Holy Week went this 2016. No swim, no beach, no out-of-town trip, but it was really good. I've got to somehow reflect on things. But I honestly think it was still kulang. Heehee. I think I need more time to reflect, to somehow clear my mind, because I've got a LOT in my mind these days. I think it's piling up, I need to clear some of it! Haha

 How about you? How was your Holy Week? :)