Reflection Paper About Christmas

The way Filipinos celebrate Christmas is different from how other countries would celebrate it. Being a Catholic country, Christmas is considered as the most important holiday for us Filipinos. We always put much effort in following traditions like Noche Buena, Caroling, and Simbang Gabi. Although most Filipinos see it positively, I believe that Christmas in the Philippines has molded us Filipinos to be materialistic. At a young age, I was raised as a child who’s exposed to the idea of excessive Christmas splurging and a child who always looked for gifts. Christmas as a child for me always meant getting new toys and treats, waking up on a Christmas morning welcomed by a Christmas tree with a pile of presents. I can still remember Christmas when I was seven years old. It was the time when I got my first Christmas themed story book that made me believe that I shouldn’t be naughty so that Santa wouldn’t forget

I realized this on Christmas in the year 2011 when my relatives abroad sent Balikbayan boxes containing gifts every Christmas. Each box contained gifts for each and every member of the family. It’s like our relatives abroad have the responsibility to send gifts because it’s their only way to make their family members feel their love. Likewise, ever since I was in the fifth grade, I was used to the Monito Monita tradition where I got great trinkets from my secret Santa. There’s this sense of excitement you get when you anticipate your gift from your secret Santa, especially because most gifts are unique and out of this world. As much as I love receiving presents, I also love giving them. In fact, every Christmas I make it a point to give all of my friends gifts to let them feel that they are special to me. Over the years it seems like the value of gift giving became more important than other aspects of Christmas to Filipinos. Some even say that it’s not Christmas without