8 Christmasses

That's how long it has been since I last celebrated the holidays back home. I remember I celebrated my last Christmas at home with my mother with a simple dinner while my sister and my father were in Bohol, and welcomed the new year with all four of us together at home. The following January, I moved abroad to work. While Christmas is important to us as a catholic family, we weren't really big with celebrations (in general, even birthdays). We're not good in preparing the Christmas table like most families. Not having a solid family tradition on Christmas, I think, helped me not to feel homesick and extra emotional during the holiday season. Although I still miss my family and friends terribly, there's no feeling of missing out or missing the old days. I'd say I've adjusted just fine with how the holidays are spent here. 
Here, I'll share some of the ways I spend my Christmas away from home. 

Celebrating with friends. Yes, with the family you've built away from home. Gathering with friends who also miss their own families back home, exchanging gifts, potluck of our homemade Christmas dishes and partying to beat the winter blues.
My nephew showing how it's done! Lucky to have some of my family members with me here.

 Celebrating at work. This isn't new to me as I used to do this at my previous job before I moved away . Bringing noche buena to work, decorating the workplace, playing christmas songs, and exchanging gifts and greetings to colleagues and customers; working merrily like Santa's elves!🎅
December, 2014

 Attending the mass. If I'm fortunate enough that my schedule permits it, I hear the mass to see the panunuluyan (nativity scene) being re-enacted, sing Christmas songs and be reminded of what Christmas should really be about during the homily. 
Celebrating with family. Yes, that's right, our family back home! Voice or video calling our family back home at 8 in the evening here and 12 midnight there  is how most of us celebrate Christmas. It's usually this in combination with any of the first two ways.🙂 

Christmas video by my sister last year to the tune of our neighbor's music

Some would feel that these ways cannot replace being home with family. That's fine and that's true. We all have different tolerance levels of sadness and homesickness and there's nothing wrong with feeling sad and lonely. What I do is just take advantage of the technology we have today, appreciate the country I am in of its openness and respect to my faith and traditions, and be grateful of the support system I have from my family and friends here and back home.

Happy Holidays!!🥂


Previous blog:
Taking a Sabbatical


Can't say I do this traditionally, but if you have the means and if there's always a good one playing, go watch a concert on New year's eve like what I did in 2017!


And a few reminders for our holiday diet:
How to squeeze in fitness

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