IT’S 2:40 a.m. Saturday and I’m wide awake. I have been up since half past eleven but I can’t seem to go back to sleep. Most of the time, surfing the net does that trick but somehow it isn’t working for me now.

Christmas is almost here guys and I know you are neck deep in preparations! Who doesn’t get excited by the yuletide season, anyway?

Certainly, you noticed the horrible traffic and did you know that it is doubly difficult to book a cab these days? Ugh. My friends have been going to Simbang Gabi, as a lot of you probably do too. My friends do it every year, that is, complete the nine days of early morning mass. I just look at their posted pictures on their social media walls.

Christmas is a big deal in our country and we really do take it seriously. There is something about the season that just makes people kinder and more understanding towards others. Maybe it IS the kind of spirit that Christmas really brings when the first of the ‘ber months comes, and increases its intensity as December 25th approaches. It’s something built into this holiday, I think.

Kindness, sharing and forgiveness are the building blocks of this season.

Needless to say, it is also the time for reunions and reminiscing. People get emotional and nostalgic easily! Must be in the cold air, although lately, it’s more of a warm summer wind!

As I was trying to get back to sleep and failing miserably, it just occurred to me that Christmas is a time for connections. Being what it is, it’s the perfect time to reach out to people in our lives, old and new. It would be the most opportune occasion to connect with people we have always wanted to get to know, don’t you think?

More importantly, reconnecting with people we have “lost” would be more meaningful during this time too. Wouldn’t it be great to welcome the birth of Jesus with a happy heart? It would be such bliss to welcome the New Year with a light heart? It’s like someone offered to carry your excess (emotional) baggage for you and suddenly you feel light as a feather! So please if you have been contemplating about reestablishing your ties with someone, do it. Do not hesitate. This is the perfect time for it!

We all have our different ways of observing the holidays and well, that’s okay. The important thing is that we respect each other’s practices and preferences and never lose sight of the real meaning of Christmas in our lives, whatever it may be. That being said, we should be all set to celebrate! Have a Merry Christmas Everyone! Good tidings and all the best for the coming year, too! :)