Your mantra for the week: “God’s Mind can only be changed when I change myself.”

These are the moments you spend in prayer and meditation, not because you want to change God’s Mind, but you desire to change yourself for that is what prayer and meditation do. They change you for the better and that better must manifest.

You now acknowledge a Presence within and around you that is constantly guiding you. It is also the Universal Mind and you connect with this Mind through your thoughts, through your feelings.

Be aware that you are here to grow in love and understanding… that is what you were born for. You are here to understand that your body is a temple of the Living Spirit and that it is made of God substance, that every cell and atom of your body is God as the cell and atom. Imagine its power, its perfection.

Understand that it is the perfect vehicle for you in this lifetime. Love this body, nourish it, nurture it, respect it. In everything that you are experiencing, God is speaking to you about you. What is your life telling you now? What are you experiencing?

Whenever you are seeing things that bother you or bring you pain or discomfort, ask yourself, what is God saying to me about me? Simple. God is merely saying, watch what you are thinking, watch what you are feeling, noticing, and observing.

When you are unhappy about what you see, all you have to do is change your thoughts, pray and meditate, so that you may change yourself. When you are through, you will see that what you see has changed, that your world has been transformed.

Whenever you get hurt, God is speaking to you about you. What are you doing with your relationships? Are you responding? This is all about you, for everything around you must reflect back to you. You are here to grow in love and understanding.

Whenever a person touches your life that brings you joy, the Universe is saying to you, this is how wonderful you are… you are truly loving.

Discover your strength, discover your true capacity, discover your potential, and when you do, you move forth to bring your dreams to manifestation. Yes, grow in love, grow in understanding, these are what you have been born for.

In my June 7th column, I predicted that in the next major survey, Sen. Grace Poe will pull ahead of VP Jejomar Binay. This was proven by Pulse Asia on Thursday, June 18.

Then and now

Then: Baby Fores and Maridol Mabanta are back in town after a whole month in the South.

Now: They are still at it. Certain habits die hard like lingering images of love that never fade.

Then: Vicente Chuidian just paid P29,000 for a Lee Aguinaldo painting.

Now: According to Jaime Ponce de Leon, an oil painting by Lee can now cost you a few millions. Only proves that good art is still a fabulous investment.

Then: In the process of my social-climbing, I have observed that as far as having an eye for beautiful women is concerned, no family can outdo the Cojuangco gentlemen.

Five of the most beautiful women in the country are all Mesdames Cojuangco:

Tingting (Mrs. Peping) Cojuangco is the most popular and the most written about among the five. She and Marilou Lovina were recently featured in that famous French magazine, Votre Beaute.

Meldy (Mrs. Ramon) Cojuangco is, of course, very well-known for her fashion flair and elegance. She was one of the very first to make it to the Philippine Fashion Hall of Fame.

Gretchen (Mrs. Eduardo) Cojuangco is equally beautiful and elegant as Tingting and Meldy, but she has chosen to maintain a comparatively low profile. You rarely, if ever, see or hear about her in social gatherings.

The two “latest” additions (relatively speaking) to the list of the beautiful Mesdames Cojuangco are Sari and Viol Cojuangco.

Sari (Mrs. Pedro) Cojuangco is a younger sister of beautiful Mariles Romulo and Marilou Soriano.

Viol (Mrs. Henry) Cojuangco, not too long ago, was chosen one of the Five Prettiest Girls in Manila by the Bachelors’ Club of the Philippines.

Now: One can say that another beauty could become an additional gorgeous Mrs. Cojuangco except for the objections of a close family member.

Roads to Hermès

Last Wednesday, Hermès outdid itself in its latest event. It promoted its Silk Collection in its new online home, La Maison des Carres, with a cocktail party.

Guests sat, stood, chatted with champagne and were served appetizers like Gorgonzola, Cranberry Compote, Lobster Tartar Profiterole, Caviar on Tobiko Green, Peking Duck Wrapped in Mandarin Pancakes, and 36-Hour-Cooked Beef.

The two best-dressed women of the night were Ann Puno in an all-white ensemble and Consul Helen Ong in a striking combination of blue and white and green jewelry.

That evening, we met interesting people like Lynette Guzman who said, “In my younger years, I dreamt of being a flight stewardess and look at me, I just ended up being a passenger.”

How would you feel if you got rid of a valuable Russian icon after it was attacked by dry-wood termites and you find out later on it could have been saved by a reputable art restorer like Rey Santiago? Ask Carla Arguelles-Ramsey.

Also there were Tess Schoefer, former model and now interior designer; Leo Valdez, finally out of his reclusive period in the beaches of the South, hobnobbing in full throttle with friends and admirers; Mel Meer showing off how a Bergamo man dresses; Vicki Belo; Duday and Noel Tuason looking refreshed after their European sojourn; and the charming and most unassuming couple engineer Danilo and Gloria Chico. When I asked them what keeps them busy, they smiled shyly and whispered, “We just build roads and bridges.”

I love bridges that lead to Hermès.

Another guest observed, “Look at Mario Katigbak, he has not changed all these years. I guess that is what doing-what-you-love-to-do does for him.” That, I can attest to.