My Little Christmas Tree

Christmas makes you feel nostalgic... and you really cannot do anything about it.

A simple parol reminds me of my dad who is really good in making and/or repairing them. we usually bring them to school as our contribution for our classroom's christmas decors, and my dad's parol made from bamboo and covered by fluffy rolls of white japanese papers and red cellophane stands out, despite its small size, from an array of multi-colored lanterns. and after the school's christmas party, we bring them home to be the star/s in our window/s.

I do not have a parol in my little house but i do plan to make some in the future, just like my dad.

Our family christmas tree in Quezon is usually up by first week of December, and digging boxes of christmas decors never fails to excite the kids in us that Santa Claus is really coming to town. We usually look for decors we call our own, for instance, each one in the family has its own star to put in the tree, mine is this sparkling blue star, and it should be me and only me who can put that star in our tree, and same with everyone else. Now that i am away and not present during this christmas tree event, i let my nephews do the honor for me (they now also have their own star!).

Come Christmas time when I'll be home, looking at that star that I call my own will bring back memories.

Now, that I am on my own, the thrill of putting that tree, decorating it and seeing it all aglow at night is such a fascinating feeling, it can really cheer me up and made me look forward for Christmas and be with them.

And before we go on emo mode, here's how my little christmas tree looks like, with decors all made by myself.

HAVE A VERY MERRY, MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! KANPAI!!!

and remember the reason why there is Christmas...

all about my mother

I was tagged by Belle (a few weeks back) to post some 10 facts about my mother. i better be good on this or else, i can be considered a failure hehehe.

My mom was a beauty queen. during her prime, she's a sight to behold, a "resident" reyna elena during santacruzan, a muse for every organization she's in, and a real beauty inside and out.

She's an Ilocana but doesn't know how to speak ilocano. blame my lolo for that as she and her siblings grew up in manila.

She can sew anything. curtains? tablecloths? shirts? dresses? stuff toys? what else? she can do all those. her old singer sewing machine that was given to her by my lolo is her treasure, and she told us that some time in 1969 when there was a big fire in our town, it was the first thing that she saved and up to now still wondering how she accomplished that, given its weight against her petite figure.

Oh, she has a collection of curtains with matching tablecloths and chair/sofa covers for every window, every door, every corner, every table and every chair in the house. and she made all of them! if she wants yellow, then the house will be covered in yellow, green? then green be it! orange? name it, we have it, and there will always be flower in the design. she doesn't believe in motiffs/theme, you know hehehe. and the hard part? i am the one who's always assigned to remove and/or change them! it was hard work as our old house was big and with huge windows na pwedeng magkasya ang trak! my mom will always scold me for being lazy when it comes to doing this errand hehehe.

She's our doctor. Whoever said that a mother's touch can cure everything knows what he's talking about. In our case, my mom does not only cure, she can also lift our spirit and boost our morale.

Mommy is a proud lola. Before, it was us, her four children, as the center of her being proud but times have changed and my two nephews are now the toast of the town. Minsan, binibiro namin sya na di na nya kami pinapansin and then she will tell us (with eyebrows raised and arms on her hips) "magsitigil nga kayo, anlalaki nyo na ano!" and then she'll start her litany about her apos (ang galing sa math ng dalawang yan, etc) hehehe.

She's the best teacher. Although she didn't finished college and not a teacher, she taught us how to pray the rosary and the basics in reading. I will always cherish my early memory of learning abakada and counting 1-2-3, and how she and my dad instill in our mind the value of education and finishing our studies is the ultimate gift they'll ever want. I am always teary eyed each time i remember how she cried and hugged me after i received my diploma, she didn't say anything but her tears are more than enough to tell me how happy and proud she was. and when she saw me i am also crying, she told me "o, bakit ka umiiyak, para kang tanga." napatawa tuloy ako, si mommy talaga hehehe.

She loves Daisy Siyete. you know the afternoon drama series after Eat Bulaga and which stars the Sex bomb dancers? oh, nothing and no one can prevent her from watching that, even if she's on a meeting, she'll look for a tv and spare at least 30 minutes for the show. and in case she did not see the day's episode, she'll ask around what happened.

She keeps everything. i think i got my being a basurero from my mom, keeping papers, souvenirs (complete with dates ito ha) and recycling things (if she'll saw a styro cup, she'll keep it, pwede raw lagyan ng halaman, or some plastic bowls na usually itinatapon, again she'll keep them, pwede raw lagyan ng gulaman, etc). eventhough we have a lot of stuffs in the house she's so good in organizing things that you won't see them laying around, unlike me hehehe.

My mom is love personified. i can never think of my mom without thinking of unconditional love. no one can top what she had given, what she had sacrificed for the family. i think the universe is not big enough to show how huge her heart is, that even if the last drop of water is for her, she'll give it to us if we need it.

Me, my brother and my sisters are so lucky to have my mom and my dad as our parents that even if we are not financially-gifted, they raised us and fed us with good values and respect for others. they always tell us to be humble and just do our best and everything else will follow.

I wanted to be like them.

Now, i am tagging Watson, Intsik, and Tina (ayan, well-represented ang Luzon, Visayas at Mindanao hehehe).