Yuletide with Baby Jesus

We took a deep breath, packed all our hopes, dreams, and idealism in a strong knapsack of needs threw it over our shoulder, and got off across over our Barangay Covered Court to begin actualizing a so called change.

I hate Christmas holiday! It’s not because I can’t afford to compete season with its holiday rush hours purchasing gifts for love ones or for your “manito” and “manita’’. Or perhaps, hate building castles in the air about my mother to be with us just a wink of an eye, fresh from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia working for almost 7 years to celebrate the Christmas Eve. But maybe, just maybe because I can’t deal the fact that our family has never been in a complete state during this time of special gathering- to be complete like Mary, Peter, and Baby Jesus in nativity scene. Therefore, my Christmas has become a lonesome day of the year for the 7 consecutive years now.

Not until one day, it was the 1st day of December, my cousin Lemon who has been so busy lately, completing his nursing cases in his last year in nursing, approached me to plan for a diminutive program in coordination with our Sacred Heart of Jesus Youth Organization in Brgy.Buhangin, Malita, Davao del Sur. I can’t explain what made us to initiate small Christmas activity during this season like what we had last year where we organized a game show format activity that highlighted the children to participate and win “ONE HUNDRED PESO BILL’’ as our highest prize, besides from the sweet cheap candies and chocolates that we bought in our mini-convenience store in neighboring “barrio’”. I guess, the reward of witnessing innocent children wearing their beaming smiles during this season would be the primary reason why a nursing student like my cousin Lemon and an under board in Nursing Licensure Examination like me would opt to conduct activities like this. Secondly, ever since I was born in our place the issue between the separation of the church and the Barangay Council with regards to the activities to be handled by the parties was prominently occurring. Say for example, the Barangay Council must only be responsible to conduct activities that will entertain and maybe beneficial for the folks in our “barrio’’ during the “The Araw ng Barangay”, or the famous founding anniversary of the Barangay. So in the other way around, during fiesta ng Barangay, our day would just end up eating some of the small delicacies served by the people in the place without having any activity that will somehow remind us that this day will be special. The mere reason behind is simple; the ‘’GKK’’ or the Gagmay Katulikong Simbahan(a church’s organization) can’t officiate any events because luck of funds. Thus, to make a change in the eyes of people, we the youth organized a program that does not ordinarily happen in a year during December days, the so called ‘’ 1st Buhangin Sacred Heart of Jesus Youth Convention”.

Our efforts to actualize change in the ‘barrio’’ for the lapses and lack of support from the Council and for those people who were supposed to be responsible for the activity in our Barangay has never been like eating a piece of cake. Instead, we were like modernized beggars in the streets begging for help, handling a “typewritten” solicitation papers to raise funds in the said altruism to bring entertainment and cause for our ”kabaryo”. Because the activity will not only showcase the talents and potentials of the youth thru dance presentations but also we conducted a small raffle draw with a half-sack of rice as our first prize and 2 kilos of rice for consolation prizes. These were of course inspired by our teachers like Sir Rodrigo Melay, way back in our high school days. Our journey towards getting financial resources was never been like a roller coaster, instead it was like an ECG (electrocardiogram) tracing that because of complications of its state a expert medical doctor can’t define the trace, so as last resort, he would just immediate pronounce the word,”TIME OF DEATH 6:00PM OF DECEMBER 23” without having a resuscitative effort that can rarely be seen in a government hospitals. Yet, even for the adversity I found out myself getting into the desperate action of meeting my registered nurse friends like Ivy from Tulunan, Cotabato as she invited me for a free lunch at KFC at SM Davao at grabbed the chance of elaborating solicitation intention. I was a bit shy when she uttered, ”HAY, NAKU JOSEPH AKO PA SAYO PUNTA KA DUN SA FOODCOURT TAS TUMABI KA SA MGA KUMAKAIN AT YON NA HANDLE THEM YOUR SOLICITATION PAPER”. She said it half baked insult maybe, but I didn’t mind her statement. Instead, I put a wry smile in my face and managed to compose myself and my super ego. As I received a 100 peso bill from her, I managed to fast-paced into the sweetshop section of the said store and reminded my girlfriend Rona, who happened to be an SM employee, to collect the solicitation papers I gave to her work mates a week ago because I badly needed it. So later on, I got off from Davao City and still made my ways and means to provide financial support from any other kind-hearted individuals besides from the text brigades I had to solicit any support from my friends, teachers, and even enemies. I was so desperate to gather financial assistance even getting on inserting my program with my friends during our island escapade in the Island Garden City of Samal, where I almost lost my opportunity to celebrate this year’s Christmas eve, because our “pump boat’’ where we were in almost capsized in the floor of the Davao Gulf as we headed back into Sasa Warf to return home due to untoward weather changes. Then, as I set my foot in the wharf I barely shouted;” Thanks God I am alive!”

It was a day prior to the event scheduled last December 23 when I received the highest solicited amount from a single person worth 400 peso bill. I was so glad to receive such amount plus her friend who happened to be a teacher also donated her 100 peso bill which amounted my money into 750 pesos. I contacted my cousin and the youth president in church based organization, Remar to add up the total amount of monetary collections. I felt a sense of guilt because I persuaded to be part of the program without getting into the point of thinking the consequences and even the hardship during the preparations of the program. I was so hopeless and even getting into the last resort of blaming the Barangay officials in our barrio of not allowing their pockets to open for any financial help, where I eventually expected during their monthly session because our youth president has been invited to be part of the meeting. But guess what? What one thing I received? Disappointment!!! Then, I managed to speak up as youth towards my co-participants in the event during our routine rehearsal that ended us daily 2:00am to fell asleep that;”Procrastination in any cases, involving any people has never been a positive option applied in our daily living which had happened to me, where I failed to prepare my papers for the board exams in Nursing last November 2008; ended up logging behind by my friends who are now Registered Nurses.” Yet for undefined motive in politics, for some; procrastinations has been the best excuse in renovating bridges, roads, and buildings just to be voted in during the elections that causes us commuters 2 hours delays or even more in our trip. Instead of doing the project early in a year, during election campaign has been the best time to do it. How sad to think about it, that still we are on the same political ways and with undying traditional politicians-TRAPO in short for some!

A day after, I was so surprised to meet the first streaks of the light breaking the horizon with the great rising sun in authority to bathe the vicinity during the day of our scheduled event, which I usually don’t appreciate because of waking up so early in the morning and felling out my bed early 2 am for a dance practice, almost everyday. I got off across, the”bomba”, or the deep well for us Cebuano, where we used to bath. I woke up at 7am because of an early appointment in the bank. Then rested for a while to ease the back pain and entire body aches I received from the sleepless nights I had; and for sure no nursing remedy can’t relieve it; except for a shot of morphine, perhaps. I was so exhausted; almost I fell in the towering buildings’ entrance due to fatigue and hunger because of deprivation of sleep and food consumption. Plus the draining scorching heat of the sun. I was in the midst of the street when I realized how hard for few persons who have been so kind to officiate and conduct programs like what we had. It was a bout a battle between letting yourself going with the flow of nowhere from some missed managing of the Barangay Officials of not actively organizing activities where all you can do sometimes is to become numb and dumb if you don’t want to be criticized by those inconsiderate people,even if your intention is good and selfless. Or still go for worth-doing activities even if critiques are getting crazy in you, throwing illogical kind of reasoning.

The activity only lasted for 4 hours of joy and merry making by the youngster’s showcasing of talents. We giggled…We chuckled for some happy moments during the events that can be compared to life. I saw the young faces festively performing their dance steps in front of the audience. I was then fulfilled…I saw mothers thrilled faces as I drew out the tickets from the improvised”roleta” during our raffle draw. I have heard cheers from the youth with the breathtaking stunts of the hip hop participants. I have received plenty heart warming statements from our judges which where candidates of their doctorate degrees in their own fields. I saw audience yelling from astonishment because of our simple dance interpretation number of a BISAYAN song entitled,’’GUAMANG GIATAY”. I almost saw all kinds of faces! The event was great! Then, one thing I pondered from the experience was; no matter how prepared or perfect an organized activity was, there are still antagonists in the show that will throw biased feedbacks. Charlatans are anywhere ready to put mud in your names. Yet we stood firm from our idealism to make a change in our own way from the traditional lax and inactive participation of the people in our Barangay.

My experience this year’s Christmas celebration would be compared to the essence one’s life and its journey. Life is like a stage where everyone has its own role to play. Everybody has tasks to portray their own role as actress and actor in the community. It is us who will substantiate our characters to fulfill the call for playing the game of existence. We will weep into ocean of tears. We will merely feel the pounding of our hearts so speedy as though it was going to leap from our chest when exhilarating moments suddenly drew closer to our encounter with time. Yet as we bumped into the circumstance, this is not akin to the traditional set up of a movie making, wherein there are scripts to direct for perfect initiation of ones role. No more directors that would perfect artist facial expressions, actions, and a whole lot more about her/his character. No more cuts! No more chance to scribble formatted lines from a draft. For it is definitely a chance of do or die pattern for change.

It has been all about the spirit of altruism and change. So, for sure next year my Christmas break will not be the same with the monotonous, unproductive holidays I had. It could wear out my energy and physique. But it would be more exciting, tasking, and life-changing Christmas holiday in its own simple way.