The Christmas season is in full swing. The lighting of Christmas trees has started in various city centers. Parol and lanterns are strung up along avenues. Christmas festivals and marketplaces have been set up, enticing Filipinos to go out and shop. Most welcoming of all is that most Christmas sights are free or at little cost. From a usual lack of public leisure spaces, we are suddenly faced with an abundance of lights and decors, with every city boasting its own attraction.
“Make sure to pass by the munisipyo,” reminded my sister-in-law during a hometown visit in Rizal. Sure enough, we were awed by the brightly lit arches and yuletide ornaments. From nondescript government buildings relevant only for business transactions, these buildings now feel like genuine communal spaces, with families spending quality time together after a hard day’s work, groups of teenagers laughing and hanging out, workers sampling holiday food from street stalls.
It makes sense to me that Filipinos celebrate Christmas for as long as they can, from September to January. The more chaotic and challenging our daily life becomes, the more we need Christmas. Filipinos are known to celebrate even in the hardest of times. During disasters, our sense of humor and fun get us through—just look at children going for a swim in floodwaters, a practice now discouraged by the Department of Health due to the risk of leptospirosis and other diseases. When our politics venture into the absurd, we use our uncanny ability to make a meme out of life (a sign of Filipinos’ creativity, despite what the Programme for International Student Assessment says). If there’s even a bit of fun in something, you bet Filipinos can find it.
When Christmastime comes, our environment finally matches what we need. Fun and leisure are finally accessible. Parks become places to stay and play. Even as commercial establishments lead the charge in Yuletide décor to entice shoppers, public spaces are holding their own and allowing citizens to find respite. Outside the Christmas season, leisure is only for those who can spare both the time and money to indulge themselves. Case in point: our neighborhood public park is usually gated and closed, reserved for paid events. During Christmas, everyone is gifted access to fun.
It is easy to get jaded about the holidays. It is tempting to dismiss the festivities as simply a strategy to sell more goods. It wouldn’t be off the mark to notice the rampant commercialism and consumerism surrounding the season. If you’re from Metro Manila, we associate Christmastime with increased traffic and see the holidays as another source of stress.
But while the hassles certainly exist, we must not let them blind us to the precious opportunity this season brings.
I was certainly one of those individuals who had lost touch with the magic of Christmas. It took having a child for me to regain that sense of wonder. For my child, everything deserves a “wow.” Birds flying overhead—wow! Airplanes zooming past—wow! The holiday lights on the Meralco building—wow! A giant, somewhat scary Santa Claus dancing to Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “APT” song—wow!
While some of my son’s experiences did require some planning, I am always surprised at how simple things can bring him so much joy. Even as he receives toys, it’s the packaging he enjoys more. Why buy toys when he gets fascinated by door stops and drawer handles? Why build a playroom when all he needs is a grassy field where even falling is fun and worthy of giggles? In our desire to consume for enjoyment, we forget that enjoyment comes in all price points.
My clients tend to overthink their experiences. They doubt their own senses. Sometimes, having much experience and knowledge—especially unpleasant ones—can make us too scared to be in the present moment. We’d rather retreat in our own heads, even if our worries and anxieties are no less scary. To simply experience something without judgment or expectation can be harder to do as we get older.
My students are even worse when it comes to overthinking. Burden, responsibility, and pressure are front and center in their academic life. The joy of learning something new and the satisfaction of mastering a skill, those seem harder for them to savor.
Perhaps it’s about time we learn from our Christmas mode and gift ourselves with a sense of wonder and magic for the rest of the year. When we see things as they are with a sense of playfulness and appreciation, everyday things can look magical. Even difficulties can feel meaningful when we recognize the wisdom they bring us. When we experience the joy of communal spaces and of neighborhoods being, well, neighborly, we’d feel like preserving it and making it happen for ourselves and our children. You’d be surprised at how a sense of wonder can change worlds.
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aatuazon@up.edu.ph