[ From my family to yours, merry Christmas Precious Reader! ]
THE PICTURES SAY IT ALL. Ang pinakahugot or emotional na pics para sa mga OFW at mga lumalakbay na Pinoy twing kapaskuhan (Christmastime), bukod sa mga mag-anak (families) na tumitipon-tipon sa Noche Buena at mga reunion na ten-years-in-the-making, ay ang nag-iisang (solitary) OFW sa gitna ng mga nagdidiwang, nag-iisa at may hawak na celpon, nagpupumilit na makisama sa cell site coverage at ingay ng selebrasyon.
Di sya marinig ng kausap nya, at wala syang kasalo sa Christmas. hanggang tingin na lang sya sa mga pamilyang nagcecelebrate at sa mga magandang tanawing nagpapalungkot lang lalo.
After all, Christmas is a time of celebration. It’s the one time of the year when people are allowed to stop work, be happy for happiness’ sake, get drunk (without driving) and go to sleep without a care in the world.
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But for the Filipino (as well as many other races of course) no celebration is complete without some sort of family, which can be in the form of colleagues, friends and relatives. Since everyone else has gone to their family, the OFW is left with other OFWs, or worse, alone.
[ This year has been made worse by the pandemic, which has left families separated and isolated indefinitely. Parents and kids have not seen each other for months, siblings do not know what’s going on with each other, and grandparents and seniors are cruelly isolated in nursing homes. ]
The reason why Christmas celebrations are so family-oriented especially to the OFW is simple: Christmas is all about family, and family is one of the main reasons, if not the main reason why the OFW became an OFW.
Now, memories magnify emotions. The first communion, the first kiss, the stink and smell of the fish market, all bring back specific memories that bring back the strongest emotion associated with that memory. And what could be more memorable and memory inducing than your best Christmases ever?
Bringing those two previous thoughts / paragraphs together. Families are very very important to the OFW, and Christmas reminds the OFW of his family. In a very big way. If the OFW is with his family for the holidays, well and good.
But as is usually the case, Christmas season finds the OFW apart from his family, and what should be a very happy time of the year becomes a not so happy time.
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But these sad memories in themselves also serve a different purpose. They form a group of memories that build character and make the struggle all the more worthwhile, something to look back on when the OFW is finally reunited with his / her family, this time for good.
For whatever reason, Christmas is always treasured by the OFW.
thanks for reading, be safe this Christmas and mabuhay!
