c L a h c L a h: A Very Different Christmas

Ever since I was a kid, my family makes sure that we are all complete during the Christmas Eve. Well, not until some members of our family went overseas for work. Good thing there is technology that put us all together in the period of the event. It's like, with phone calls and/or Skype, we're still complete.

Our celebration for this year was just like how it used to be. Except that, the person who never forgets to play Christmas songs and who always says “Wow!” whenever we hand him his presents, is now gone. My grandfather’s death in September makes Christmas this year quite very different. This is the first time we all gathered for the Noche Buena without him. Nakakamiss.

Loss. We all experience losing something so important; it may be a valuable material thing, your favourite pet, or your career. But losing someone you love is a different issue. You have to endure the pain it caused you every single day. And what really hurts the most is the realization that, in your life, what used to be an occupied space is now already empty .. .. ..

But as we all say, Christmas is for children and a celebration for the coming of our Lord. So with that, Happy happy birthday Jesus Christ! Tuloy ang kasiyahan!


Kids are already excited to open their gifts!

Lola was not able to join in this picture because she wasn't really feeling well.

Missing lolo, most probably. :(

We had the classic food favorites for a handa -- fried chicken, ham, fruit cake, black forest cake and ice cream. We also had my mom’s version of Waldorf salad. And I cooked spaghetti and the cheese crusted dory fish.