Christmas

This will be my 26th christmas here in the US and I still feel like I'd rather be spending christmas in PI. Its just so different I guess and its kind of sad holiday for me even though my family is here with me its just haven't been the same since 2001 when my cousin passed away. Of course missing celebrating it with the other relatives I grew up with. It's just so different even though weather over there is not like the weather here where its cold or snowing. Right now the temps over there is in the 80s yet it looks like its more feeling like christmas over there than here. Decorations are everywhere, there's midnight mass every night starting Dec. 16 till christmas day; not to mention its also my dad's birthday where my whole relatives celebrates cause that's when the midnight mass or simbang gabi starts. I know every night around 11pm, my parents will wake us up to go to church and eating christmas foods right after the mass. Everyone who attends the midnight mass especially the kids likes to go because there's always this event that happens during the mass. That's where a star moves from the alter to the back of the church and we call it the star is walking. There is this wire up near the ceiling going across from the altar all the way to the back of the church. This star will move across the church making its way to the back of the church, that's what the kids really love to see during the midnight mass. When the mass is over, there will be vendors outside the church selling foods. There are traditional foods that they sell during the midnight mass.

On christmas day, the kids will go around the neighborhood and their relative's houses singing christmas carol. We would get money or foods or some kind of presents from them. Then we would go to grandparents or aunts and uncles house to celebrate christmas. I used to go to more than two houses in one day. My most memorable one is when i go to my grandparents house and all my first cousins will be there, grandparents will have a christmas tree outside and our presents (all presents) will are in the envelope hanging on the christmas tree. The grandparents will then call us one by one to get our presents. There is one catch though, they will not give us our presents until we dance. Yep, in order for us to get the envelopes, we have to dance (basically use what we inherited from my grandmother - humor, rhythm, dancing). So, one by one we would dance for a few seconds and then they would hand us our presents. Ahhh memories.