Christmas Away from Home

Where have I been? Hehe. Went home on the 15th and haven't blogged since. Well I was busy, kind of.

I was trying to make the most out of every second I had back home. Dad was telling me my days were longer coz I get up twice a day and proceed on doing whatever I have to do. Because it's simbang gabi already. I sleep by midnight, get up by four in the morning, go to church, have breakfast with them (my sister, dad, and Yana--yes, she wakes up soo early din, iiyak pag iniwan) and then drop my sister off at her school, go back home, sleep, and then do something else (like, meet up with friends, wrap gifts, shop, or report to the office) hehe. So my eight days seemed like sixteen waking days. :)

We tried to complete the simbang gabi with nine different churches but we weren't that successful coz we don't really know the mass schedules of other churches so some days we went back to the other churches. So where have we gone to?

Day 1 - San Jose de Navotas (my parish church)
Day 2 - University of Santo Tomas (supposedly at the chapel but they held the mass at the grandstand so..)

Day 3 - Nuestra Senora de Guia (Ermita)

Day 4 - Shrine of Jesus (near MOA)

Day 5 - my parish church again

Day 6 - Manila Cathedral

Day 7 - Immaculate Concepcion (Malabon)

Day 8 - Shrine of Jesus again (love love this church, wanna get married here!)

Day 9 - San Roque de Navotas

But the ninth day was anticipated mass so we heard the mass the night of the 8th day. Why? Coz I'm leaving right after the mass. This is a unique Christmas to me, it's my first away from home. For nineteen years I've been having Christmas Eve dinner with my family and now, I think we're going Krispy Kreme somewhere nearby or that coffee shop around the corner with my donggis. Well me and the entire family had had that dinner already (complete with giving of gifts!) a couple of nights back. But of course it'll never be the same. As I explained to my hube during our Clark-Incheon flight, "Christmas Eve is everything." At least for my family.

Do I have a Christmas wish? Of course. More Christmases to come, and hopefully be at home by then. Hmm. They say wishes come true if you complete the simbang gabi :)

To all of you out there who are feeling all bored at family reunions during Christmas, think again. There are people who'd kill for those things. I know I would. *wink

Merry Christmas.