My World in Heidefinition.: Last Christmas

Luke 2:8-14

⁸And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. ¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. ¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Sigh. I can't believe how time really flies so fast. It seems like yesterday and the 365 days felt like it didn't happen. Today is Christmas Eve and one or probably the best time of the year. It's the year where everyone cooks something special for their noche buena or the Christmas Eve dinner, everyone got some new clothes, new shoes, new things for themselves, and everyone is practicing the spirit of gift-giving. I don't usually expect to receive gifts during the holidays but some friends and relatives don't fail to give me gifts or extend their blessings. I'm contented with what I have right now and I'm very thankful that God gave us so much blessings not just this year but to all my 21 years in life. Life never promised a smooth perfect path but I'm really thankful that God gave me problems that I can bravely bear and made me a stronger person. But I know I still had so much to learn. Today, in this Christmas Eve, I'm thanking the God for all the blessings he gave as well as keeping us in good health. This is the time to give and spread love, extend and share our blessings, and spend good time with our families and friends. I am fully aware that my Christmas will never be the same. It will be the second Christmas without our mother and the first time without my canine bestfriend, Dingo. But life must go on and I'm looking forward for a better future and I'm very hopeful for this coming new year.

This Christmas is gonna be different from last year. Last year, we were joined by my aunt and uncle from America and my niece and her mother. It was a fun Christmas despite some of us getting a bit emotional since it was the first Christmas without my mother. We had a lot of gifts for each other since we were given more money by my aunts and uncle as well as my father so we can buy our own gifts. We had a sumptuous dinner and an enjoyable bonding of dancing, joking and fooling around. It was the first time we had an exchange gift. It was a very happy Christmas Eve despite the painful loss of my mother. I believed that my mother even joined us in that celebration. I believed those mists on the pictures was my mother. We had countless photos of us on that spot but that was the first time we ever saw a mist on our photos. It was nice to feel that she was with us that time. As I've written, this Christmas will be different. My aunts and uncle weren't here, my niece will be spending Christmas in Bukidnon, and we don't have an exchange gift this time. Nevertheless, Christmas is about spreading love to your families, friends and even to those strangers that are in need. It's about sharing good times whether in a sumptuous dinner or a simple one. It's about celebrating the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. It's about thanking God for all the blessings we received and will be receiving. All I hope is that this Christmas, despite our family not complete anymore, it will be a Christmas worth remembering and celebrating and that we shouldn't forget what the real meaning of Christmas is: LOVE.