"The weary world rejoices": A recap of the Christmas of 2023

 The Filipino Christmas season officially comes to an end on the feast of the Epiphany. Today we are taking down the decorations and some of us are still trying to eat the rock-hard desserts left over from Christmas and New Year's. And on January 3, 2024, the school break ends and it's back to reality. Hopefully, those who've done the Misa de Gallo can still wake up early. And so, here I am writing the second part of the blog for my school's founding anniversary, which will be my Christmas experience.

(My sincerest apologies for taking too long to post this because of school I had little time to work on this but, I hope you enjoy)  

1. Time to Decorate!

The antique cardboard nativity from the 1980's 

We placed decorations around the residence to fill our house with the Christmas Spirit. Our decorations usually consist of antique pieces such as the 180cm Christmas tree, this tree is a replacement because we gave the old one to our former neighbor. Two pieces, in particular, hold many memories with my Titos, Titas, and Nanay,  two nativity sets, one cardboard, and one chalkware. 

Putting up the decorations was such a hassle. First of all, I accidentally dropped the garland down the stairs releasing a cloud of dust that made me sneeze a lot. A huge spider clinging to the stable made me jump. The top part of the tree didn't fasten properly so it was crooked, luckily I was able to fix it.

After all that work, it's finally time to turn on the lights. Seeing all of it ablaze with light was worth the effort, bringing back memories from when I was a small child. A little baby seeing the gentle twinkle of the decor from his crib, such a nostalgic setting for everyone.

And since we have cats, the decor was not spared from their sharp claws. The Christmas tree was like a glowing scratching post for them with built-in cat toys. The nativity set was their playground, plotting to knock over one of the kings and sitting on the manger was loads of fun for them. Luckily little to no figures were harmed. Because of this seasonal burst of activity, we decided that they needed to pay their debt to society, so we put them in their carriers every night.

 2. Misa de Aguinaldo

    The nativity at the Cathedral during Simbang Gabi

Misa de Aguinaldo otherwise known as Simbang Gabi ( not to be confused with Misa de Gallo ) takes place on the 15th of December and ends on the 23rd. Simbang Gabi is a beloved Filipino tradition, in the past farmers would go to church early in the morning before going to work. Traditionally, it's supposed to be held before dawn ( 4:00 AM-5:00 AM ) though thankfully we now have a second version held in the evening ( 6:00 PM-7:00 PM ) called Misa de Aguinaldo of Gift Mass.

For Simbang Gabi, tiredness or lack of sleep is no longer a problem but you now have to deal with your stomach. The smell of street foods from the vendors outside and the fact that I had not eaten my dinner yet made my stomach rumble like thunder. I also struggle with singing along to the "Pastorela" version of the hymns because it has a lot of prolonged syllables ranging from high to low notes. The Pastorela version of the hymns sounds like a Christmassy version of Tinikling because the sound of the instruments is very similar to the ones used in the folk dance and they also add sleigh bells to the instrumental.

Simbang gabi is of course a novena mass, in our archdiocese, the novena is held for "Nuestra Senora de Belen" a title dedicated to Our Lady commemorating the night Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The novena focuses on the anticipation of the birth of the savior and urges us to rejoice for the fulfillment of God's promise is nigh.

We have a copy of the novena to Nuestra Senora de Belen at our house. My grandmother prays it in front of the altar every morning at 6:00. And because of this we have a nativity placed at the altar which was bought back in 2019, we usually make a stable for the nativity and we add a backdrop and foliage to the scene. For the house this year we decided to make a cave-like stable out of paper. 

The nativity at the altar without the Infant Jesus

During our Noche Buena celebration, before we consume the prepared food, we gather in front of the altar and we place the baby Jesus in the nativity while we sing Joy to the World. After that, we stuff our mouths with all the delicious food.  

3. A visit to the Plaza

After Simbang Gabi, I decided to go to the Plaza and sample some of the street foods for myself. The Plaza was ablaze with light the decorations were so bright making the vicinity much brighter compared to other seasons. The tree towered over the site viewable from the church across the street

Lights twinkling about, the splendor of the decor accentuated by the faint and somewhat out of tune carols sung by small children gave the place a dreamlike aura. And yes I visited the area right after Simbang Gabi so once the smell of food reached my nostrils I couldn't help it, so I bought some food. Sadly though I did not bring enough money so I was only able to buy 2 kebabs of Kwek-kwek (breaded and fried quail egg).

There was a lot to see at the plaza, first of all, there were Christmas-themed booths around the stage so that you and your family could take photos, a giant nativity placed near the bridge, a stage in which various performances take place every night. Above a pavilion-like building, you can spot Saint Nick on a sleigh with his reindeer scattered throughout the plaza, and lastly the famous tunnel of lights with multi-colored fairy lights suspended upon a steel frame.

The area was so scenic and luckily I was able to remember to bring my phone and get some decent shots. And so I present to you my photos.

The view upon entering the plaza

The tree towering over the municipality

A close-up shot of the giant Christmas Tree covered in fairy light

The official seal of Palo projected on the ground  

The view of the plaza upon exiting

The renowned "Tunnel of Lights" located between the church and the plaza

     

4. Christmas at the Farm.

The day has finally arrived! After 115 days of waiting it was finally Christmas and we were hosting it at the farm. It was the first Christmas hosted in a rural area. Usually, Christmas was hosted at our house, but seeing that my grandmother, my mother, and quite frankly, me as well always get tired after the holiday celebration. So we decided that each family group within our blood would take turns every year, 1 for Christmas and another for New Year's. This year, it was the Daga-Bagnol family who hosted the celebration this year.

The nativity at the Church on Christmas Day

At 8:00 AM, we went to mass at Palo Cathedral. After mass, we went up to the church's altar to kiss the newborn Baby Jesus. Fun Fact, the Baby Jesus at the church is modeled after the one which is seen in the Church of the Nativity. After that, we came home to a horde of people waiting outside our home. In Palo, we have a tradition called "pamasko" in which people will go around town stopping by every house saying the words "Namamasko po" and the people who live in the house respond by giving them candy, or if you're lucky, you will be given cash. Since we're broke, we just gave them candy.

Before the event, we feared that it would rain heavily, but when we arrived at the farm, the weather was pleasant and the sun was shining. Christmas for that year was truly a special one because after 5 years, Tita Lalaine and Ate Jade were coming home from Davao, with the newest addition to the family, Baby Zijan. The event went smoothly, and the food was exquisite, especially since my mother made some desserts like cheesecake and mango float. This year, I didn't get much for Christmas, a hat and a few morsels of money were all that I got, though I am thankful for the gifts that I received.

The Christmas decoration arrangement in Kapitolyo 

During the night, we went to the Capital Building of Leyte or "Kapitolyo". It was pretty much similar to the plaza except it was bigger and wider. If you stand at the end of the fountain and look at the building, it looks like the Taj Mahal in India or Buckingham Palace in the UK. The area was dazzling with light, The tree was decorated with multi-colored "buri" fans, pieces of bamboo were arranged into triangles, and parols made with capiz shells adorned the tree. The path leading up to the building reminded me of The Mall in London. The place was scenic and it was truly a magical experience for all who visit.

The path leading up to the Capital Building

5. New Year's Day

Now that Christmas is over, it's time to say goodbye to 2023 and hello to 2024. And I can't think of a better way to send off 2023 and usher in the New Year than a good and hearty "Media Noche". For those who don't know, Media Noche is the Spanish word for midnight and we Filipinos have a tradition of hosting a feast that begins at midnight on December 31 until sunrise, hence the name "Media Noche".

Our simple buffet for New Year's Eve Dinner

In our family, we don't overdo Media Noche because our family only has 5 members so buying a lot of food will be a waste of money. For the buffet, we tend to keep it simple, with a few homemade desserts, food that we order from a local Kitchen, and leftovers from Christmas. At midnight, our neighbors usually light fireworks even though the government says not to. Since my father is a policeman, our methods of noise-making include blowing horns purchased from the market, honking the horn of our automobile, and banging pots and pans very aggressively. The fireworks were a little bit too much this year. Compared to other years, you could still breathe, however, this year had more smoke and it was very hard to see anything at all. With firecrackers setting off here and there, plus the municipality's own fireworks display, the smoke that was emitted was far worse than usual.

For our Media Noche, we don't stay up until sunrise because we have a bigger party in the morning. For this year's  New Year's Day party, the family of Tatay Mon hosted all of us at their residence. During the party, while the adults were having small talk over a glass of wine, I and my cousins were watching a movie in the sleeping quarters of the house. The movie was called "The Hole Truth" and it was fantastic. After that, there was a raffle, but before that, my Grand-uncle gave a short message about the family's achievements over the years stating that all those things have made our Lolo Gilluermo and Lola Baling Proud. He also urged us, the youth to make our predecessors proud.

2023 has brought us many challenges in our life. But at Christmastime, the whole world rejoices and almost forgets about all its trials and tribulations. Christmas serves as a reminder of God's never-ending love for us. Because of his infinite and unconditional love for the world he created long ago, he gave us his only begotten son, which is Christ the Lord. He sent him so that he may undo the consequences of the first sin which is death. The events to unfold this year are uncertain, but the assurance of  Christmas and the news of the fulfillment of God's promise to send us the Messiah gives us the certainty that whatever happens this year, may it be good or bad, God will never abandon us, He will always stay by our side through the years to come and until our very last breath.