Elle Takashi

16/01/2025

Condolences po sa mga loved ones ni Vonn. May the Lord give you strength during this trying time. 💔🕊️

𝐒𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐨 𝐌𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐕𝐨𝐧𝐧 𝐄𝐫𝐢𝐤𝐚 𝐑𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐨

Mayor Vilma Balle-Caluag, along with other city officials, expressed their deepest condolences to the family, friends, teachers, and classmates of Vonn Erika Raymundo, whose untimely passing has left the community in grief.

In an interview with Vonn Erika’s grandfather, Pericles Mallari, it was confirmed that her lifeless body was found in San Agustin, San Fernando, on the morning of January 16, 2025.

The 17-year-old student was reported missing on January 13, 2025. While the family has shared that no foul play was involved in her death, as confirmed by her autopsy, they are still awaiting the results of a toxicology report for further clarity.

The public is urged to join in praying for the eternal repose of Vonn Erika’s soul. 🕊️

📷CSFP- CIO

15/01/2025

Blog originally posted last year
Trigger warning: With talks about sui!c!de
Disclaimer: Posted with consent to confidentiality
---

An Unusual Break

"𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝑰 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌," was all I could muster while doing my nightly routine before tucking in bed yesterday. No, I don't just need it, I want it. For a reason I couldn't put my finger on, I've recently found myself no longer invested in a lot of things because I've grown exhausted. What's both funny and sad is the fact that I'm only in my mid-30's, but it seems like I'm getting a generous share of life's quota beating me down to a pulp. (Or maybe this is just an exaggeration and the hormones talking)

Sometimes, I just want a break from everything. Don't we all? But oftentimes, I don't even know what that 'break' really means.

Yesterday went well. I met with college friends and pretty much spent the day tired but happy. When I got home, I did the usual things for the kids and discussed some things with the hubby.

It was all usual. But when I got my alone time, that's when everything sank in.

I think I need a break from everything. A pause. Not a reset, but definitely not part of my ordinary. I could relate this to playing a video game, where there's a few certain stage that you get to play just to take a break from the storyline. It doesn't affect the story per se, but it does add a little relevance to it.

Anyway, I sent a gunshot prayer about it. That's how I usually raise my issues.
𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌? 𝑪𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆?

Silence. There was no answer. Not even a quick mental reference of what relevant Bible verses I know. On the bright side, silence has always been an answer for me because sometimes, it screams louder than any word put together.

I was about to tuck in bed when a familiar chat sound came from my phone. It was a chat message from a distant colleague. Normally, at 1am, I would ignore any chat unless it's from my husband or my closest friends. But this one, something told me I had to open the message and ask. The conversation went like this:

𝐶: 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑠ℎ, 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑘𝑒?
𝑀𝑒: 𝑊𝑜𝑖. 𝐴𝑛𝑢 𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑜𝑛
𝐶: 𝑆𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑦 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑦𝑜𝑢. 𝐼 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑛𝑎 𝑑𝑖𝑒.
𝑀: 𝐵𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑡? 𝐴𝑛𝑜 𝑛𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑦𝑎𝑟𝑖?
𝐶: 𝑃𝑎𝑛𝑜 𝑘𝑜 𝑘𝑎𝑦𝑎 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑑𝑦 𝑛𝑖 (𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦), 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝐼 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑖𝑡 𝑠𝑢*𝑐!𝑑𝑒?

I have to say, I jumped out of my bed and literally forgot all about my own baggage and called her. The conversation went for almost half an hour. I prayed for her and just listened. Quite frankly, as a Christian, I didn't pull out any Bible verse when I was talking to her. With myself feeling spent the whole day, I just listened. Until I got the chance to say some of the few things which I felt I needed to say,

"𝐴𝑙𝑎𝑚 𝑚𝑜, ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑙𝑦 ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖 𝑘𝑜 𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑚 𝑘𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑜 𝑠𝑎𝑠𝑎𝑏𝑖ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑤𝑎𝑠𝑦𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑜 𝑘𝑎𝑠𝑖 ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖 𝑘𝑜 𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑢𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑦𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑗𝑢𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒, 𝑑𝑜𝑛'𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑤, 𝑜𝑘𝑎𝑦? 𝐺𝑒𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦𝑎𝑘𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑜 𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑎 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 𝑚𝑜. 𝐼𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑑𝑖𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡, ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑢ℎ𝑎𝑦 𝑚𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑎, 𝑘𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑖 𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑖 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑢ℎ𝑎𝑦 𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑘 𝑚𝑜 𝑛𝑎 𝑑𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑡 𝑠𝑎𝑛𝑎 𝑎𝑦 𝑘𝑎𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑎 𝑘𝑎 𝑛𝑖𝑦𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑘𝑖. 𝐸𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑛𝑎 𝑚𝑎𝑖𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑝 𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑘𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑢ℎ𝑎𝑦 𝑚𝑜, 𝑦𝑎𝑘𝑎𝑝𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 𝑚𝑜 𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑝𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑜 𝑘𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑙𝑎 𝑘𝑎, 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑜 𝑛𝑎 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑔𝑏𝑖𝑏𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑦 𝑠𝑎 𝑘𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑎 𝑛𝑔 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑢𝑖𝑛𝑒 𝑛𝑎 𝑦𝑎𝑘𝑎𝑝 𝑛𝑎 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑘𝑎𝑤 𝑙𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑔𝑏𝑖𝑏𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑦? 𝐴𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑢ℎ𝑎𝑦 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛, ℎ𝑖𝑟𝑎𝑚 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑎 𝐷𝑖𝑦𝑜𝑠. 𝐻𝑎𝑦𝑎𝑎𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑆𝑖𝑦𝑎 𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑘𝑢𝑠𝑎𝑛𝑔 𝑘𝑢𝑚𝑢ℎ𝑎 𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑎 𝑖𝑦𝑜."

It was on point, not really encouraging, but what I said was all the concise truth I could gather. I didn't resort to toxic positivity. I resorted to the truth of the consequences of actions. I did pray for her before ending the conversation.

After the call, I realized one thing: that I am no different than my colleague. We were both feeling lost in our own unique situations--but are both silently crying for help nonetheless. We both wanted a break. We were both longing for that 'pause'.

I don't know, but I discovered that there is power in one beaten up individual encouraging another beaten up individual. Iba, kapag nagdadamayan. Kahit wala pang solusyon, parang meron na kasi may kasama ka.

I was tired, she was tired, and God gave us the strength we needed in completely different points of view. It is in weakness and humility that we find strength, hope, and faith. It's true. No man is an island. We all need each other. We can only go fast walking alone, but we can go far when we have shoulders to lean on. It is how God designed us to live--we don't exist to be excluded, to be singled out, to be alone. We exist to lift each other up and to sometimes feel helpless.

The next day, I checked up on her. While her situation remains the same, just like me, she survived another day. And no, I didn't save the day. For a Christian like me, whether I'm in my manic mondays or extreme situations, it's always God who saves the day.

When I prayed for that 'pause' last night, I now have a strong feeling that He answered it already.

Xo,
Elle Takashi
===
All praises belong to God

14/01/2025

Kasunod namin sa daan kagabi. Galing naman ni bantay, hindi man lang natinag sa ibabaw ng tricycle. 😁

13/01/2025

Bakit ang hilig nating i-kahon ang pagkatao ng isang tao base sa pagkakakilanlan sa kanya noon?

My first motivational post for 2025. 😌🩷

12/01/2025

Sikretu anya payat ku? Balang mangan ku, ating makidwa. 😑😅

11/01/2025

36th! Beyond thankful sa favor at love ng Panginoon sa akin. Thank you rin po sa pagmamahal at suporta. Salamat sa mga bumati! Saka na yung pa-lechon, ha? Pag nakapasok na ko sa showbiz.
😂😅

09/01/2025

Don't wait for someone to push, affirm, or validate you before doing something that you think is rightfully aligned with your vision.

Depend first on God, then to yourself. Learn how to get up and reach for that dream even when no one seems to believe you.

Pag-aralan mong tapikin ang balikat mo at huwag mo ng hintayin na may iba pang tatapik sa iyo. Because if you focus on a dependent mindset, there is a huge chance that you will not function unless someone tells you to do so.

Kaya mo, kahit walang magsabi sa'yo na kaya mo.

Your faith in God is already a huge thing--but you taking small steps towards what you pray for is another thing.

Xo,
Elle Takashi

06/01/2025

Posting this, kasi sobrang blessed ako sa isang follower ko na isang g**o, si Sir E.

Na-delay ang pagreceive niya ng copy ng Who is Jesus? at nang dumating na ito, hindi man lang siya nagsayang ng araw at agad niya itong shinare sa mga estudyante niya (matapos ang formal classes). Binasahan niya rin yung iba niyang former students, ang anak niya, at plano niya rin itong i-share sa ibang sections na tinuturuan niya pati sa mga estudyante ng kaniyang asawa. (Disclaimer: ito ay ginawa at gagawin niya outside of formal classes at sa mga estudyante lamang na willing din makinig)

Grabe! Isa na siyang g**o, pero napakasipag niya pa ring magshare ng Word of God sa mga kabataan dahil alam niyang bukod sa isa siyang teacher ay isa rin siyang worker ni Christ. Ginagamit niya ang impluwensya niya both sa academic and spiritual aspect.

Isang aklat, pero napakarami ng maaabot na mga bata basta mayroon tayong obedience at passion na tulad ng mayroon si Sir E.

May God bless your heart, Sir E! The Lord sees your heart and may He bless your pure heart!

Xo,
Elle Takashi

04/01/2025

𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻,

I'm utterly amazed how God created you in such a way no man could understand.

You are a beautiful warrior, have you realized that?

Within you are perfect ironies that prove you are set apart.

You are not physically strong, but with your gentle love, a tough heart is won.

Not armed with weapons, but your words could either make or break; piercing through or nurturing one's soul.

You don't need to speak to be understood, and you understand when no word needs to be uttered.

Your tears show weakness, but they also resonate strength.

Your eyes see wrapped up feelings, your ears hear unspoken words.

Your insecurities fuel you, but it's also you who fuel those insecurities.

You take too many battles and win them all at once, but every so often you lose against one--your unsung battle against yourself.

Woman, God made you this way.

Everything beautiful about you is a little facet of God's glory when He created you, while every flaw is evidence of His continuous work in you.

Don't strive to instantly change yourself. Let Jesus do His work. For His secret to changing you is His unchanging Self.

And even if you feel that there isn't enough love left for you today, always remember that Jesus loved you first--and He always will.

𝙒𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣, 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙧.
𝙃𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙯𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩?

02/01/2025

Kimut ka, atin lang sabyan.😅
Eka kimut, atin lang sabyan. 😅 Ninung maka-relate? Nang gawan ta? Api Nyu Nyir!😁

28/12/2024

This showed up in my memories today. Unang outreach namin na sinalihan ng asawa ko (na boyfriend ko pa lang noon). Pumunta kami sa Tondo para sa isang outreach program at para i-share na rin si Jesus sa mga bata. I think, 24 or 25 years old pa lamang ako dito noon? Payatot pa ing bili. 😅

27/12/2024

Bago ako matulog, i-post ko muna ito, hindi para ipakita na napaka-banal ko, kundi para i-remind yung mga kapwa ko Kristyano sa Great Commission.

Itong araw na ito, inilaan ko talaga para sa mga libro. Bukod sa ipina-ship namin ang karamihan via courier, yung mga malalapit, inihatid namin mismo ang book sa kani-kanilang mga bahay.

Nang mabibilang na lamang sa daliri ang mga librong hawak ko, (bandang dinner time) huminto kami sa isang resto para kumain.

Pagbaba ko, may lumapit na mag-iina. Nanlilimos. Nakita ko yung bata ang cute. Pero naawa ako kasi gabi na bakit nasa labas pa sila.

Anyway, hindi ko na ikukwento kung ano yung buong detalye ng encounter ko sa mag-iina, pero ang iku-kwento ko yung part na binasahan ko sila ng Who is Jesus.

Hindi ko na dapat sila babasahan, bibigyan ko na lng sana ng extra copy pero nung tanungin ko ang bata kung marunong siyang magbasa, hindi raw.

So, sabi ko, "Halika, basahan kita."

Binasahan ko kasi para pag-uwi niya, bagama't hindi siya marunong magbasa, matandaan niya yung boses ko na para na rin niyang nababasa ang book.

Habang nagbabasa ako, pati yung nanay nakikinig ng mataman. Andun kami sa kalsada. (Yung picture na yan, si hubby ang kumuha)

Ang ending, tumanggap silang mag-iina sa Panginoong Hesus through salvation prayer. Hindi ko ipinost ito to exploit the kid, kaya rin naman tinakpan ko yung mukha niya kasi he deserves the dignity every child has.

Pinost ko ito para magsilbing tapik sa balikat sa mga kapwa ko Christians about the Great Commission.

Please share the Gospel. Share the love of Christ.
Salvation is waiting to be proclaimed, not by the qualified, but by those who are willing to do it despite of their imperfections.

XO,
Elle Takashi

--
“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15 NASB).

27/12/2024

These books are long overdue na! Sorry sa mga followers ko na pinaghintay ko, ha. Nagkasakit po kasi ako lately and very recently lang naka-recover talaga. BUT, mabuti ang Lord, ito na nga, kanina ay pina-ship ko na ang mga books and para doon po sa mga nasa list, paki-antay po at ise-send ko mamaya ang waybill ng inyong parcel!😌

Paki-note lang po na wala po kayong babayaran dahil ang book po ay libre, at pati ang shipping cost ay covered na rin po. God bless po sa inyong lahat!

26/12/2024

Very recently, my husband and I met with a young married couple, and during our conversation, napunta yung usapan sa mga struggles nila in terms of dealing with certain people within their circle. (Back story: yung mag-asawa ay parehong professionals, college graduate)

Ang struggle nila is they find themselves jumping into small issues and arguments outside of their marriage just because they want to explain themselves. It usually ends with them being misunderstood. (I'm sure lahat tayo dito nakaka-relate.)

After opening up, of course we cannot invalidate kung ano yung nararamdaman nila, but this is the conclusion of what we told this young couple:

"Sometimes, there are some people, no matter their social standing, who will only look at you in black and white. Kung masama ka, masama ka. Kung mabuti ka, mabuti ka. Walang gray area. Sometimes, people will not give you the benefit of the doubt not because they don't want to but because they don't have the capacity to do so. And sometimes, their comprehension of things only reaches a certain level where yours aren't met. At minsan, hindi nila kasalanan yun.

It's probably how they were raised, the environment they are in, or the current situation they are in.

But you--you guys know better. Save your class and don't get into arguments, especially the petty ones. I know it is easier said than done. But pagdating sa mga ganyan, just walk away. It's not worth it."

Ayun lang naman. Ang punto namin dito, hindi pare-pareho ang level of understanding ng mga tao sa mga bagay-bagay. Bagama't madalas we want to prove ourselves, at the end of the day it doesn't really matter kasi the most important thing is we are aware of what battles to face and what are the ones we should walk away from, diba?

Coffee? 😌

XO,
Elle
===
II Timothy 2:23 NKJV
[23] But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.

24/12/2024

Today's reminder: 😌✨🩷

22/12/2024

Hello! 😌🩷✨

21/12/2024

𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒚?

On days when reality hits hard and gravity is a no-match against the silent wars pulling me down, I would close my eyes and ask my mother.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒌𝒆𝒑𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑴𝒂?

I was in my uni days when I noticed how my mother was so fond of wearing this cream Old Navy jacket during the evenings–even in the summer. On my weekend stays from the uni, my late-night cravings would sometimes prompt me to sneak into the kitchen to eat. More often than not, I would see her come out and ask, “𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑢𝑝 𝑘𝑎? 𝐴𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 (𝑝𝑎𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑎𝑛) 𝑘𝑒𝑡𝑎…”

With hair unkempt, tired-looking eyes, and arms embraced on the sleeves of her thick Old Navy jacket, she would go straight to the kitchen, reheat whatever food was salvaged, and join me in silence while I ate.

There were times that she would talk about random things, mostly the goings in the family, but she never pried me about my goings in the school. I would often notice, how she would occasionally rub her sleeves with self-embrace while sublimating her pent-up frustrations in-between soft laughs. It’s as if she finds comfort in that cozy jacket wrapped around her–as if it’s the only comfort she could get during those times.

When she died years later, I saw this Old Navy jacket hung, obviously unused for months. I kept it and I still use it today.

𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒆𝒂𝒔y, 𝑴𝒂? 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘.

But what I do know, is that whenever this jacket is wrapped around me, usually on bad days–no matter how warm the nights are in the summer–I will find a different kind of comfort…

…a comfort that tells me that I am the child of a strong woman refined by God.

And I, too, (by God’s grace) will make unbearable days easy.

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All praises and glory to God!

21/12/2024

I was not able to hand out one book sa isang follower today due to the conflict of schedule. Then he said give the book to a random stranger and I did. Nakita lang namin siya sa daan, naglalakad at kinausap namin.

Hello, Sir Leon!
You know what's amazing? It is that your book was given to an associate pastor of a Christian church! And she handles the kids ministry sa church nila!

Iba talaga kumilos ang Lord. All glory to Him!

Para po sa mga hindi pa nakakatanggap ng copies nila, paantay lang po sa pag ship, at humihingi ako ng paumanhin dahil sa delay. Nagkasakit po kasi ako sa past weeks. 🩷✨😌