Of Apples, Stress and Traditions
Heto na naman ‘yong masayang panahon!!!! Ubas at Mansanas na kahon-kahon. Hmm. Teka. Mahal ang ubas ngayon. Saka mansanas. Saka sino naman ang kakain sa bahay ng napakaraming ubas at mansanas kung bibili ako ng kahon kahon. Sayang. Masisira lang. Come to think of it – wala akong planong bumili ng mansanas. Ubas siguro. Pero siguro mga 1 kilo lang. Para lang may prutas sa hapag kainan. Pero maganda rin tingnan ang red apples. Yun pulang pula na parang itsura pa lang ay so delicious na. Ok. Fine. Bibili din ako ng mansanas. Pero hindi kahon-kahon.
Balik tayo sa panahon na to. Birthday na ni Jesus! Happy Birthday Jesus. Sa lahat ng birthday celebration – ito talaga ang hinihintay ko. Grand celebration lagi e. Saka kung hindi pinanganak si Jesus – wala na. We will be swimming in filth called sin. Kaya talaga naman dapat ipagdiwang ang Pasko. Best day ever ika nga. I am a big fan of Christmas. Who wouldn’t be. People with their lists. Buying special gifts and all that – gusto ko sanang sabihin crap.. pero hindi — kaya niceties na lang. See – even I am trying to be real nice. Aba – ayaw ko naman yatang masama sa naughty list. Walang gift from Santa. Kaya nga pag malapit na ang Pasko – quiet lang ako. If one can’t say anything nice — shut up. Kaya ngiti lang ng ngiti. Para nasa nice list.
Truth be told – Christmas is getting stressful by the year. Siguro ganun talaga pag medyo nagmamature na. As years pass – dumadagdag din kasi ang mga things to do for Christmas. Dati ang problema lang ay ang maging mabait para ibigay ang ninanais na laruan . Gone where those days. Ngayon – first on the list is buying those special gifts. (Teka – hindi pala – its working to have money to buy those special gifts!) Finding the perfect gift takes time and planning. It’s no joke. Di naman nagtatapos sa pagbili ng gifts. Nandiyan ang pagbabalot ng gift. Okay. It’s no secret na paborito ko itong part na to. Pero still – time and effort needed. Then there’s the distribution of gift. Kailangan na maging ala-DHL. Scheduling on when to give to who is a logistical challenge. Kailangan alam mo kung sino ang mag-out of town, sino ang uwi ng Pinas at sino ang maiiwan. Then there’s the Noche Buena. Ano ang ihahanda? Kailan mag-grocery? Do you need to order anything in advance? May kailangan bang i-pick-up during the day itself. Since I am also the designated cook sa bahay – need to schedule din kung ano ang lulutuin kailan. It’s non-stop time management. Daming dapat gawin. Di pa diyan kasama ang actual Noche Buena and the cleaning up after. Stressful right?
Well.. yes.. pero looking at the bigger picture (my ex-boss would have been so proud – I am looking at the bigger picture now) it is so worth it. Unang-una – birthday ni Jesus e. Magreklamo ka pa ba? Kaliit na bagay. Sige nga – palit nga kayo ng role –ikaw nga maghirap at magpapako sa krus? Ano? Second — the tasks leading to the actual Noche Buena are tasks which I do enjoy doing. Buying gifts gives such a good feeling. Wrapping gifts gives me serenity. Para lang ako nag-spa. Giving gifts gives me an opportunity to say thank you to family, friend and colleagues for another good year. Sama-sama pa rin kahit na maraming problema at pagsubok along the way. Planning for the Noche Buena gives me the opportunity to grocery shop which I love doing. Seeing a grocery cart full of items is a childhood dream come true. Pangarap ko kasi dati na mag-grocery tapos puno ang cart. Feeling mayaman kasi hahaha. Cooking – isa rin sa paborito kong gawin. Its pure magic – all ingredients when joined together produces the perfect dish. And all this will culminate into one big party – Having your family and friends with you – celebrating the birth of the Lord. Pure happiness di ba?
Stressful? YES! Pero ito ang stress na okay lang. I wouldn’t have it another way. It wouldn’t be Christmas kung hindi natin mararanasan ang lahat ng yan. Pero at the end of the day — after all the merry making., sana lang wag natin malimutan kung bakit talaga may Pasko. At kung sino talaga ang star nito. Happy Birthday Bro! Ikaw ang star ng Pasko! 
P.S.
I asked a friend kung pupunta siya sa bahay for Noche Buena. Oo naman daw. Tradisyon na raw yun. Napaisip naman ako sa remark na yun. Happy to learn na nagiging tradition na pala ang pagbisita sa amin pag Pasko. A little sad dahil sa realization na may bagong tradisyon na nga. Can’t help but miss my family — but at the same time be happy that I’ll be with my friends. Maligayang Pasko ulit!
