In my younger days there were lot of things I used to enjoy. The lockdowns imposed the last two years somehow curtailed our freedom of movement. But now santacruzan and fiestas should be back in vengeance, now that rules are relaxed.
When I was young I anticipated the coming of the month of May. It was my favorite month. For good reason. I used to accompany my mother who never failed to visit kins who were in celebration of their fiestas. Those were the years when you can only experience eat all you can, same like those buffets offered today. The tables were laden with a menu of homemade cooking. Sarap, que sabroso, niyaman. (Try Bariotik, a restaurant along the Gueco road leading to Angeles city hall which offers 42 viands, eat all you can, for more than two hundred pesos. Try to view on YouTube the vlog of Jimmy Saints where the restaurant was featured and you will an idea what’s in store).
Many things I remember about fiestas. But today fiestas are no longer what they used to be.The fiestas in my youth were colorful. Sorry for the millenials and GenZ generations, the events that I will tell will never comeback. I remember how me and my friends chased brass bands as they marched along the streets. My father will carry me on his shoulder to get a good view of the town’s parade. I can still remember those memorable scenes which are still deeply etched in my memory.
Fiestas are still being held today in many cities, towns and barangays all over the country but they somehow lost the appeal due to the realities of today where people prefer to go to malls, where they can have those affordable buffet, instead of looking for kins and friends' houses in celebration after attending the mass.
It is in this month of May when fiestas are still being held in many parts but are no longer grand. And as a tradition though, it refuses to die. There was a time when writers, described this month as the 'merry month of May'. It was because of the many festivals held in May. The fiestas, coronations of beauty queens, the serenatas of competing bands, the musical jamborees on makeshift stages, the amateur contests, and of course the santacruzan.
Here’s another review of the beginnings of our Christian faith and Catholic practices in the early years we copied mostly from Spain. The Spaniards were here for more than 300 years. Santacruzan is also called 'Flores de Mayo', meaning flowers in May. It is some kind of a religious and historical pageant featuring the Reyna Helena and his escort Constantino, and some sagalas in tow. The Reyna Helena is a personification of Helena of Constantinople who brought with her a crucifix and in search of the Holy Grail. The Reyna Helena almost always the most beautful pick among the local lasses. Or sometimes hermano mayoras and mayores import a movie starlet or a beauty queen to be the Helena.
Normally the parade was backed by brass band playing, and a choir singing 'dios te salve', the Spanish version of Hail Mary. It will be culminated by a ' pabitin' where a bamboo pole smeared with grease and with prize money waiting at the top for whoever can pick it.
In this month of May, if the local rourism offices of LGUS I googled on the internet who should be participating in the Flores De Mayo for reference and authenticity, and here is the list:
Matusalem, bearded with age. Reyna Banderada, queen with a banner. Three aetas, dark skinned indigenous people. Reyna Mora, represents Muslim Filipinos. Reyna ng Saba( Sheba), represents unnamed queen who visited King Solomon. Ruth and Noemi, ancestresses of King David. Reyna Judith, the biblical widow. Reyna Esther, the Jewish queen of Persia. Cleopatra, the famous last pharaoh of Egypt.
Samaritana, the woman at the well who conversed with Christ. Sta Veronica, the woman who wiped the face of Christ. Tres Marias, three Marys associated with the entombment of Christ. Reyna Fe, Esperanza and Caridad, representing faith, hope and charity. Reyna Sentenciada,her hands bound with rope stands for the early Christians. Reyna de las Flores, she carries a bouquet of flower. Reyna Helena, the last member in the procession,