New drinks, new horizons.

As I have been enjoying my new life of being a 21-year old, I have come to learn that with new drinks in my life comes a new lifestyle: the lifestyle of sitting down and chatting your night away over drinks.  There's nothing like gathering with some lovely people over drinks and enjoying each others' company.

Oh wait, I already do that with coffee.

 

Let me try this again.

There's nothing like getting cool drinks because you're allowed to.  But wait.

This is actually kinda cooler..

I don't know.  I don't quite understand it yet.  Now, I have yet to understand what it means to have a hangover or even be slightly close to doing something my ridiculous sober self wouldn't do, but I have a feeling that I won't find it in a stupor.

But there's something, definitely something different.  And it's nice. Really nice.  Pretty cool thing to be 21 actually.  I can feel young and old at the same time.  I have the youthful perks (good looks, charm, good looks, sass, cool friends) and the elder perks (a debit card, a license, a birthday before today's date in 1990, good lasting friends).  I have been alive long enough to read and come to the more definite conclusions about life and how it is so beautiful.  Most importantly, I can get that cool pink phone cover because it's my birthday.  Please don't take that last sentence seriously, I just finished watching three psych episodes in a row.

There's something different about being 21.  There's the drinks, there's the atmosphere, there's the tastiness, there's something.  Don't deny my claim, I have female intuition so I know what I'm talking about.

Maybe I'll find out later on tonight as I try to fall asleep. Or maybe I'll put my finger on it next time I go out for drinks, which if I follow the schedule I've been following, it'll be two nights from now.  Maybe I'll figure it out 5 minutes from now while I'm talking.

Nevertheless, I stick to my conclusion without hardcore facts.  Turning 21, despite my previous assumptions, is in fact really nice.


~Esa Cita

*

As I sit here at work recovering from a long weekend, I find comfort in the sudden pouring rain that decided to show up this morning.  It's such a cool sight and feeling, especially since it's been so humid all day/week long and my laptop was in my trunk baking for a few hours.  While I feel bad for the frantic people running around without umbrellas and screaming, I can't help but envy their summer shower.

Um, that's all I really got right now.

~Esa Cita

lil weekends that make your life

What a weekend!

Here is my status from Saturday: "today I spent 8 hours at an encuentro event for dialogue and reconciliation between American-Cubans from the Church here and Cubans from the Church in Cuba. Rare occurrence in this lifetime, so beautiful. I spoke in two languages, attended Mass using three, and we all spoke one main language...love. One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic. Legit, happening. God is so good!"

This morning, I drove into the city for the concluding dialogue meeting and Mass. I think it was my first Mass at St. Joseph's, and oh it's a gorgeous church.  Mass was beautiful, but that's a fact that's over two-thousand years old.  Mass in Spanish was so beautiful..there's something special in seeing the same True Sacrifice happening in a different language.  Same God, same Love. Ah, I love the Mass.


Speaking of the Mass, this week will be blessed with two talks on the Mass. So exciting.
Alright, time to take a nap that's long overdue.


~Esa Cita

Ladies just need to talk it out

Just another day in the life....

Me: "Hey Mami.  Did I ever tell you what time Las Tapas stops serving food?"
Mom: No, when?
Me: "Oh, I just was asking in case I told you at one point because I don't remember what time they do."
Mom: Oh. No you didn't tell me.  They stop serving food?
Me: Yeah, cuz I wanna get there before they close kitchen at 11pm. Oh....WAIT!!
Mom: Hahahahahaha


Some ladies just need to talk it out.  We'll figure out the answer to our questions that way.  In fact, we actually know the answer already, we just don't always see it. We do this for figuring out our dreams, figuring out ourselves, figuring out men,figuring out our situations, and figuring out what time Las Tapas closes.

~Esa Cita

When I can't sleep at night...Sorry OneRepublic

What a romance, to fall in love with what truly captures your heart. To want nothing but peaceful dedication to the life of striving for nothing but goodness.  This has gotta be the good life.  This has gotta be what we're here for.  We are here to exist in the best way possible.  We were made to one day reach perfection. 

It is no easy task to find the friends, teammates, and followers to run with.  It is no easy task, but beauty!  Oh beauty! How desirable it is to reach perfection in satisfaction.  How desirable it is to get it right one day.  How desirable it is to have that peace in running, knowing that your teammates are with you, supporting you each day, knowing that your teammates are with you, supporting you each day, and together you are all peacefully falling into the love that knows no bounds.

Oh heavens, I just love the communion of saints.

~Esa Cita

a few days...a few years

So what has Cita been up to the past few days?

Here a quick list:

• emailing a paragraph to the broski in Colorado every day
• watching Psych....every day
• working....and getting accustomed to it
• interning...and loving it
• reading a Jason Evert book and CYO
• drinking coffee with caramel and sugar every day
• waking up at 6am every day
• resting in the afternoons
• mentally preparing for the school year
• spiritually considering the future
• turning into a nice office-y-ish person

With bouncing around places for the past few days, I haven't taken much time to sit down and think.  But now that I sit down and think, I'm recognizing how blessed my life is.  I like where I am.
I like where I am, and I like where I'm going.  I wish I knew more of where I'm going, but I like it.  In fact I love it.  I'm in a good place.  I am blessed.  And now, for the rest of this post, the word "I" will no longer be used....such a self-centered word.

Three years in a stage is never three years of the same exact thing.  Three years is one big culmination of experiences and lessons.  One can never come out of three years with the exact same understandings, but one can definitely come out with more conviction of truth.  What a beautiful three years, thank you God.

~Esa Cita

Speak

"A new missionary age wil arise, a new springtime of the Church." -JPII


Amen, JPII. Amen.


~Esa Cita

On to the next part

My family is approaching a new chapter in life: a kid is moving out for school.

Although I've been going to college for 3 years and am about to be a Senior, I have never moved away from the family.  I took the road less traveled and have been commuting to school from home.  No, this post is not about that.  Not only does that topic need a whole other blog post on the craziness of that life, but it also requires a whole bunch of praying beforehand in order to avoid complaining list of the sacrifices and "woe-is-me" attitude.

But I digress.

My brother Ricky is moving out of the house to go to the Air Force Academy Prep School, which is the school where 250 peeps from this country go to in hopes of attending the Academy.  After 10 months of the prep school, many preppies get appointed to attend the Academy, technically making their "college experience" a five-year plan.  It's an opportunity of a lifetime, and a route that my broski has chosen to take.

After Tuesday morning, I won't see him until Thanksgiving break.  I definitely plan to take all that break off to have massive brofest activities (as we like to call them) to make up for the many bro-fests that will be missed.


Ricky, Rafiki, Kique, whatever you would like to be called, we all love you and are going to miss you terribly.  Here's a classy picture of all the kids together at the beach this summer:

We're a very serious family.

Here's Ricky and I with Javi, whose soul has been charged upon us to pray for in a special way.

The excellent godparents.

Not having Ricky at home will be quite weird, but come Labor Day he will have access to internet and a cell phone.  So, he will be bombarded with snail mail for the next month and a half.

Love you Kique.


~Esa Cita