Why not a different kind of Christmas?
December 17, 2006 | 12:00am
It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air. – W.T. Ellis
Aren’t we forgetting the true meaning of Christmas? – Bart Simpson
Nanjing City, China – After disastrously canceling (all right, postponing) the two summit meetings of ASEAN and East Asia scheduled in Cebu, hopefully the wise guys in government will not dare think of canceling the Christmas holidays with or without a typhoon (whether "super" or only a blooper), with or without terrorist threats, with or without the shameless jackasses in Congress quarrelling over con-ass!
Also, I hope the impish and wily female Santa in Malacañang Palace won’t be overly generous with our taxpayers’ money towards our legislators, since many of them had not been good the whole year! President GMA, if you really want our republic to enjoy a happy prosperous new year of Ho! Ho! Ho! (and not Owe! Owe! Owe!), then instead of supporting hare-brained ideas like con-ass, you need to kick ass!
Do you have a budget deficit in your family or are the government’s rosy economic growth statistics not yet trickling down to your pockets? Are you too stressed out during this holiday season? Why not modify our centuries-old annual tradition of scurrying to find parking space in a mall or rushing to last-minute shopping along with the peak season crowds? Why not celebrate a different kind of Christmas this year?
Here are some of my proposals for a hopefully different kind of Christmas:
•Travel to non-traditional destinations. Instead of the rich, the struggling to remain rich, the pretending to be rich, and the many inexplicably rich political elite going on their annual pilgrimage to their psychological homeland of the USA, why not save money and time by going to our provinces and isles?
In my case, insurance tycoon Robert Coyiuto Jr. and his brother Audi/Porsche importer Mike Coyiuto invited me to join their two-day business trip to landlocked Anhui province in eastern China to tour a major factory. However, I’ve decided to extend my trip on my own for two more weeks to explore the thriving businesses and ancient culture in hinterland provinces of this vast civilization outside the more popular tourist destinations of Shanghai, Xian, Beijing or Xiamen. I plan to celebrate a quiet Christmas, perhaps like the Italian explorer Marco Polo or other Christian travelers once did centuries ago, in the heartland of this non-Christian society.
I’m not a religious person, but I promise not to miss Christmas eve prayers this year by finding a church somewhere in eastern China. Perhaps I could learn to better appreciate the true meaning of this season by marking it here in a society where the few who are Christians do not take it for granted as another festivity, because most people here are Buddhists and Taoists while the government is still officially atheist.
For others, I suggest alternative non-Christian societies to tour during Christmas time such as the former Soviet republics in Central Asia, Muslim-majority but once Orthodox Christian Turkey, socialist/Buddhist Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar or even Genghis Khan’s Mongolia way up north.
•Do something selfless this Christmas. I don’t usually believe too much in socialistic dole-outs that could encourage mendicancy among the poor of the world. I also believe that the business of private business people is to do good, efficient, honest and tax-paying business, and that poverty alleviation is the business of government. However, there are certain individuals or groups in this largely materialistic and selfish world of ours whose basic goodness really confounds me.
Recently, my fifth half-brother, lumber entrepreneur Jaime C. Lee. invited me to the monthly vegetarian dinner of his friends from Charity First Foundation. CFF is a group of idealistic but media-shy Filipino Chinese business people that supports numerous innovative developmental charities, "not traditional dole-outs of money or gifts," since 2002.
Instead of scholarship grants for students in top private universities studying degrees like management or law, CFF has already helped graduate 150 college scholars mostly from the Philippine Normal University and other state universities, most of them studying to become teachers.
Instead of just giving away tuition money to scholars, CFF also provides living allowances and transportation money plus the more important monthly four-hour "skills motivational seminar" to impart positive values and social responsibility to others. They spend P5 million a year just on college scholarships. Their other programs include non-traditional self-help livelihood programs in urban poor communities in Payatas in Quezon City and the massive squatter resettlement area of Bagong Silang in Kalookan. Those who wish to apply for college scholarships or are interested in joining CFF’s social mission can visit their website at www.charityfirst.ph or e-mail them at info@charityfirst.ph.
Instead of holding a party with food, music, gift exchanging and games this Christmas, CFF volunteer entrepreneurs are going to the towns hardest hit by typhoon "Reming" such as Ginubatan and Daraga to construct purified water stations for poor barrios. They noticed lots of rice and noodles have been donated, yet the barrios don’t have clean water.
CFF officers Bonifacio Co, Lucy Yu, Richard Chan Alviar, Henry Co Juan, Richard So and Konrad Chua said their foundation’s vision of activist, volunteer, developmental and innovative social action charities was inspired by the Filipino Chinese fire volunteer brigades nationwide launched 30 years ago, with idealistic Filipino Chinese entrepreneurs forming and personally manning fire-fighting and disaster relief brigades to help all fire and disaster victims. They said CFF is "helping people help themselves."
•Spend more time with loved ones rather than too much partying, spending and shopping. During this hectic Christmas holidays, why not pause for a moment and reassess what are the more important things that matter the most in your life? Isn’t it better, less stressful and less costly to cut back on too much partying, excessive spending (watch your credit cards!) or crowding the malls? Why not spend more time with your loved ones, visit your long-lost relatives, aunts and uncles; invite your cousins or siblings over for dinner; or stay home to get to really know your parents, spouse or kids better?
•Sit down to plan your new year; reassess your life goals and priorities. You can also take time to rearrange all your things at home or in the office, even with the help of your family members. Clean up your house or office or your life, like the ancient Chinese traditionally do, before the advent of new year. Take away the clutter in your home and from your life; separate the meaningful from the meaningless.
•Unwind. Don’t overeat and binge, no matter how tempting all the food is. Read a book or two. Sleep. Don’t drink too much alcohol. Take up a new hobby or sport. Buy a new pet dog, beautify your garden or buy indoor plants for your windows or balcony. Go with your family to watch a movie.
•Relax. Why should the Christmas holidays stress you out? Don’t you feel homesick even if you’re at home during Christmas? You don’t have to travel far for a vacation; why not take a real vacation at home by spending more time with your loved ones for a different kind of Christmas?
Advance Merry Christmas to all! Comments, suggestions, jokes and criticisms are welcome at willsoonflourish@gmail.com or wilson_lee_flores@yahoo.com.
Aren’t we forgetting the true meaning of Christmas? – Bart Simpson
Nanjing City, China – After disastrously canceling (all right, postponing) the two summit meetings of ASEAN and East Asia scheduled in Cebu, hopefully the wise guys in government will not dare think of canceling the Christmas holidays with or without a typhoon (whether "super" or only a blooper), with or without terrorist threats, with or without the shameless jackasses in Congress quarrelling over con-ass!
Also, I hope the impish and wily female Santa in Malacañang Palace won’t be overly generous with our taxpayers’ money towards our legislators, since many of them had not been good the whole year! President GMA, if you really want our republic to enjoy a happy prosperous new year of Ho! Ho! Ho! (and not Owe! Owe! Owe!), then instead of supporting hare-brained ideas like con-ass, you need to kick ass!
Do you have a budget deficit in your family or are the government’s rosy economic growth statistics not yet trickling down to your pockets? Are you too stressed out during this holiday season? Why not modify our centuries-old annual tradition of scurrying to find parking space in a mall or rushing to last-minute shopping along with the peak season crowds? Why not celebrate a different kind of Christmas this year?
Here are some of my proposals for a hopefully different kind of Christmas:
•Travel to non-traditional destinations. Instead of the rich, the struggling to remain rich, the pretending to be rich, and the many inexplicably rich political elite going on their annual pilgrimage to their psychological homeland of the USA, why not save money and time by going to our provinces and isles?
In my case, insurance tycoon Robert Coyiuto Jr. and his brother Audi/Porsche importer Mike Coyiuto invited me to join their two-day business trip to landlocked Anhui province in eastern China to tour a major factory. However, I’ve decided to extend my trip on my own for two more weeks to explore the thriving businesses and ancient culture in hinterland provinces of this vast civilization outside the more popular tourist destinations of Shanghai, Xian, Beijing or Xiamen. I plan to celebrate a quiet Christmas, perhaps like the Italian explorer Marco Polo or other Christian travelers once did centuries ago, in the heartland of this non-Christian society.
I’m not a religious person, but I promise not to miss Christmas eve prayers this year by finding a church somewhere in eastern China. Perhaps I could learn to better appreciate the true meaning of this season by marking it here in a society where the few who are Christians do not take it for granted as another festivity, because most people here are Buddhists and Taoists while the government is still officially atheist.
For others, I suggest alternative non-Christian societies to tour during Christmas time such as the former Soviet republics in Central Asia, Muslim-majority but once Orthodox Christian Turkey, socialist/Buddhist Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar or even Genghis Khan’s Mongolia way up north.
•Do something selfless this Christmas. I don’t usually believe too much in socialistic dole-outs that could encourage mendicancy among the poor of the world. I also believe that the business of private business people is to do good, efficient, honest and tax-paying business, and that poverty alleviation is the business of government. However, there are certain individuals or groups in this largely materialistic and selfish world of ours whose basic goodness really confounds me.
Recently, my fifth half-brother, lumber entrepreneur Jaime C. Lee. invited me to the monthly vegetarian dinner of his friends from Charity First Foundation. CFF is a group of idealistic but media-shy Filipino Chinese business people that supports numerous innovative developmental charities, "not traditional dole-outs of money or gifts," since 2002.
Instead of scholarship grants for students in top private universities studying degrees like management or law, CFF has already helped graduate 150 college scholars mostly from the Philippine Normal University and other state universities, most of them studying to become teachers.
Instead of just giving away tuition money to scholars, CFF also provides living allowances and transportation money plus the more important monthly four-hour "skills motivational seminar" to impart positive values and social responsibility to others. They spend P5 million a year just on college scholarships. Their other programs include non-traditional self-help livelihood programs in urban poor communities in Payatas in Quezon City and the massive squatter resettlement area of Bagong Silang in Kalookan. Those who wish to apply for college scholarships or are interested in joining CFF’s social mission can visit their website at www.charityfirst.ph or e-mail them at info@charityfirst.ph.
Instead of holding a party with food, music, gift exchanging and games this Christmas, CFF volunteer entrepreneurs are going to the towns hardest hit by typhoon "Reming" such as Ginubatan and Daraga to construct purified water stations for poor barrios. They noticed lots of rice and noodles have been donated, yet the barrios don’t have clean water.
CFF officers Bonifacio Co, Lucy Yu, Richard Chan Alviar, Henry Co Juan, Richard So and Konrad Chua said their foundation’s vision of activist, volunteer, developmental and innovative social action charities was inspired by the Filipino Chinese fire volunteer brigades nationwide launched 30 years ago, with idealistic Filipino Chinese entrepreneurs forming and personally manning fire-fighting and disaster relief brigades to help all fire and disaster victims. They said CFF is "helping people help themselves."
•Spend more time with loved ones rather than too much partying, spending and shopping. During this hectic Christmas holidays, why not pause for a moment and reassess what are the more important things that matter the most in your life? Isn’t it better, less stressful and less costly to cut back on too much partying, excessive spending (watch your credit cards!) or crowding the malls? Why not spend more time with your loved ones, visit your long-lost relatives, aunts and uncles; invite your cousins or siblings over for dinner; or stay home to get to really know your parents, spouse or kids better?
•Sit down to plan your new year; reassess your life goals and priorities. You can also take time to rearrange all your things at home or in the office, even with the help of your family members. Clean up your house or office or your life, like the ancient Chinese traditionally do, before the advent of new year. Take away the clutter in your home and from your life; separate the meaningful from the meaningless.
•Unwind. Don’t overeat and binge, no matter how tempting all the food is. Read a book or two. Sleep. Don’t drink too much alcohol. Take up a new hobby or sport. Buy a new pet dog, beautify your garden or buy indoor plants for your windows or balcony. Go with your family to watch a movie.
•Relax. Why should the Christmas holidays stress you out? Don’t you feel homesick even if you’re at home during Christmas? You don’t have to travel far for a vacation; why not take a real vacation at home by spending more time with your loved ones for a different kind of Christmas?
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