Is it Christmas already?

I was in the mall today running errands, and as I waited my turn at the counter, I suddenly realized there was a Christmas song playing in the background. It is November already, but for some reason it does not feel like Christmas just yet. And the melody sounded more like a love song to me (don’t you think they sometimes do sound like love songs?).

The lady in front of me, several cans of body spray in one hand, reinforced the message even more as she asked the cashier to please pack the pretty cans in individual gift bags that had stars and other Christmasy illustrations all over them.

There I was behind her, packs of chips and a pantyhose clutched in my hand, with the sudden gnawing realization that I was way behind my Christmas timetable. Way behind. By this time last year I had already started delivering Christmas presents and had only maybe 25 percent left to wrap at leisure.

To date, I can only boast of wrapped gifts that will most probably account for only 10 percent of my Christmas list. And to think I have wrapped one. The rest my very able girls already neatly did (they are so good at it already and they seem to be enjoying the whole creative process, wrapper, ribbon and all!). Thank God for my househelp who moonlight as Christmas elves. Such blessings they are, they’ve been with us for years and are practically family already.

I don’t know why the spirit of Christmas came a bit too late this year, for me, at least. Usually, by August, my friends and I are all over Manila, uncovering new secret places with delicious finds, visiting cottage industries with beautiful handmade products. They make such lovely presents, especially because not everyone knows where to find them.

But now, aside from the sparkly parols that dot Gilmore street like jewels, the occasional Christmas carol blaring from the radio, the gift baskets you see lined up neatly in the supermarket, there are not many signs that Christmas is coming soon. It just seems quieter this year – I don’t know if that is good or bad. I’d like to think it is good. I refuse to have any bad thoughts attached to a season as beautiful as Christmas.

Yes, times may be hard now. On the upside, though, it is when things are not so easy that you learn to value all that you are blessed with. Topping my Things-To-Be-Grateful-For list is the gift of family and friends. I cannot imagine life without the wonderful blessing that is the circle of family and friends. Christmas can be anywhere and it will be beautiful and meaningful if you are with people you love who love you right back. It does not have to be a table laden with exotic treats from far-off places, it can be just as special yet even more fulfilling with a home-cooked meal enjoyed by folks brought together in gratefulness, laughter, and good cheer. The best Christmas wishes need not be quantified in dripping, exquisite jewelry from him to her, it can beautifully be an inexpensive yet thoughtful gift, one that bespeaks how well he knows her and the desires of her heart.

Let me share something with you. My husband has given me many beautiful presents for my birthday, Christmas, even for ordinary days when he just feels like it. The latter we call his "just-because-I-love-you" gifts. I appreciate each one, most especially the thought behind them. One gift stands out, though. It is the one constant on my desk table, this hardbound journal with an illustration of a man tenderly embracing a woman while kissing her on the cheek.

Inside the journal is the real gift. Richard had written, in long hand, the sweetest letter a man has ever given me. His words filled up 10 pages, but to this day they still fill my heart each time I read them.

I have much Christmas shopping to do still. I’d better get started. If I don’t finish everything before the 25th, at least I officially have till The Feast of the Three Kings. Rules, rules, rules... a timetable I have for years boxed myself in. This year, I think I will let a few things slide. I will still make it on time somehow, it’s just going to be a mad rush but I’ll get there.

I’m sure you have your own Christmas shopping to do. Remember to give thoughtful gifts. And give especially to the people who cannot give back to you. That is the better deal.

Meanwhile, I will start putting the tree up. By the time I’m done with that, I know it will really start to feel like Christmas already. It’s funny how much attachment I seem to have to symbols of security. Oh, well, especially through a child’s eyes, Christmas does start when you put up and trim that tree.