“PEOPLE making lists... taking time to be kind to one and all... time of year when good friends are near... wish you could give more than just presents from a store...”
That’s from the popular song “Give Love on Christmas Day” by The Jackson 5. The song fills the airwaves every year around Christmastime. However, this song is beaten by “Jingle Bells” by James Lord Pierpont and “Kasadya ning Taknaa” by Vicente D. Rubi when it comes to repetition during Christmas.
Let me correct myself: Starting as early as September, adult groups and children from the neighborhood and beyond visit households to sing carols for a fee. Another correction, the carolers sing anywhere: cars, sari-sari stores, lean-to eateries, public transportation and even while you are waiting for a ride home.
This happens every year as soon as the so-called “ber” months come—the Filipino concept referring to months that end in “ber” that signal the start of the Yuletide Season.
Oh carol. It seems to me “oh what fun it is to ride” is only fun for the carolers. What fun is there in being awakened at 11 p.m. by out-of-tune singers who mangle “Kasadya: Kasadya ning taknaan” (it should be taknaa or hour; a taknaan is a wall clock)? It brings out the Scrooge hiding under our skin.
Searching for company in misery, my friend Rosse G. asked me whether I get annoyed by carolers who sing during off hours or insist on getting something or ask for more money.
Oh carol. I’m only human and I must admit that I do get annoyed. Some carolers don’t get the message even when you tell them to “come back on Dec. 12 for a perfect ‘12 Days of Christmas’ treats.” They instead say, “Bisag P5 lang (P5 would be fine).”
A friend of mine said she and her husband were sound asleep when non-angelic voices woke them up at 2 a.m. “We were so pissed off we pretended we were not awakened by their cat’s meow voices. But then our five-year-old son told us in a loud voice, ‘Mommy, Daddy, let’s give them something,’ and so were were forced to give the carolers some money,” said Dina, my friend.
Oh carol. When tropical depression Samuel sent heavy rains on the night of Nov. 20, a group of kids made their rounds along the street where I live. I heard them from far off singing “kasadya ning taknaan” and they were getting nearer. I checked the wall clock. It was 9:31 p.m. I wondered why they were still on the street so late. Where were their parents? Why were they allowed to be out so late?
Oh carol. Has caroling become a business? Maybe we can redirect the minds of carolers. Or maybe schools can lay down some caroling rules, like caroling only between 3 and 6 p.m. and not insisting on getting something.
“Wish you could give more than just presents from a store” is a great thought. Nationalism, self-esteem, religious values and respect are some of the everlasting things we can give this Christmas to everyone.