Niños Inocentes and other kid stuff

Christmas is for children. It’s the time of year when kids write to Santa, proclaiming that they’ve been good and thus deserve that present they’ve wished for all year. They hang up stockings to be filled with treats each night starting with the misa de gallo all the way to the Christmas Day. On the Feast of the Magi, January 6 in years past but now the first Sunday of January by Vatican edict, kids leave shiny shoes on window sills in the hope that the Three Wise Men would drop by to wisely leave some gifts. And that’s on top of what they receive from parents, lolo and lola, tito and tita, ninong and ninang in exchange for hurried kisses on the mano.

Time was when Christmas for children in the big city meant a nightdrive to the C.O.D Department Store, Coca Cola plant, Manila City Hall andMalacañang to ogle the decor and displays. Now they’re everywhere.Gaily-lit and adorned homes are as much attractions as parks and malls.

And how those malls stick up adults for cash to splurge on children. Some years back, it was for the Tamagotchi pets. Then it was for scooters and Tamiya toy cars. Now the craze is the Bey Blade top and the Arena on which it spins.

Still, the Filipino child’s Christmas would not be complete without the traditional elements. The carolling is perhaps the most common. Not only do community choirs and string orchestras pay home visits, street children also carol motorists: "Sa may kotse ang aming bati, Meri Krismas maluwalhati." Urchins knock on every door to sing "Silen nayt, oli nayt ... oli impan so tender en mayl." Give only a coin and your risk being exposed to the whole world with "Tenkyu, tenkyu, ambabarat ninyo, tenkyu." All in the spirit of fun.

Ilocos has a unique carolling style called aginaldo blitz. Large groups of 50 or so would roam the barrio in a swift, sweeping movement, leaving no stone unturned or home untouched. When the night is over, they divide the loot of cash and goodies. Aginaldo has come to mean carol in Ilocano. Blitz brings to mind World War II sneak attacks and carpet-bombings. In Pangasinan, the same method is called aligando; in Iloilo, the daingon. For Tagalogs, aginaldo has come to mean crisp, new peso bills handed by the olds after the traditional mano po.

Carols originated as prayers for peace and goodwill among men. Some are of native spring, others crossed continents from Europe. Most of the imported ones came from the US. (Doesn’t "White Christmas" sound so out of place, much more "chestnuts roasting on an open fire"? Oh, well.)

Villacecos are Visayan carols that ask for treats. Bohol’s ige-ige is a formal type of carolling performed in school auditoriums or churchyards. The dayao is a Hiligaynon carol in praise of the Virgin Mary’s sacrifices. In Cavite, carollers dressed as shepherds are called pastores, whose repertoire consists of Spanish and folk tunes.

The musikong buho is the poor barrio’s austere counterpart of the poblacion choir orchestra. Usually these bands are equipped with a couple of banduria (Filipino guitar), bamboo sounders, a batya drum and, if lucky, one brass instrument.

Even ethnic tribes children use the carolling tradition to solicit gifts from their Christian brothers. Lumad in Central Mindanao would descend from hills to the town plaza to chant a sambual-ay. Before the performance, they plant a bush, their version of the Christmas tree, to which they tie any two-horned animal which they believe has the power to drive away evil spirits. Beside it, three boys with bandanas round their heads would sway to the chanting, while a lass rocks a baby doll to sleep. They represent the Three Wise Men, the Virgin Mary and the Child Jesus.

Igorot boys from Benguet, too, sticks and metal plats in hand, invade the streets of Baguio, Dagupan and San Fernando to entertain parks and shops with ethnic dances.

Today, Niños Inocentes or Holy Innocents’ Day, is the Filipino version of April Fools and Halloween rolled into one. Why? Nobody knows. But it’s somehow rooted in the Bible.

As the biblical story goes, the vain King Herod was informed by the Magi that a child was born somewhere near Bethlehem who would soon rule over the world. Frantic about his reign, Herod ordered his guards to kill all newborn baby boys. The Child Jesus was saved when an angel whispered to Joseph in a dream to flee to Egypt.

To mark the event, children in the barrios would roam the streets covered in blankets, wailing and moaning to mimic the innocents slain by Herod. They stop by houses and beg for prayers and, most importantly, treats or else suffer a trick. It’s like the pangangaluluwa in Tagalog areas on the night of All Souls’ Day. Those who refuse to give will notice later that their parol has been busted or that the rooster is missing or that the Christmas trash has been strewn all over the yard.

In Alcala, Cagayan, and in Pakil, Laguna, the laundry, benches and bicycles left outside unsuspecting homes find their way to the town plaza, victims of April Fools-style pranksters. In cities, this is the day older boys and girls hit their innocent siblings with loans never to be repaid. Inocente has come to mean ignorante for the hapless victims.

While Christmas is for children, the last day of the season is reserved for the olds too. Three Kings’ Day is also called Pasko ng Matatanda among the Tagalogs. On this day, it’s the turn of compadres and comadres to swap presents and catch up on each other. It’s the last chance, too, to forgive and to mend broken friendships.

As the many weeks of the Yuletide season draw to a close, barrios slowly recover from the tiring festivities. Visiting relatives pack up for the return trip to the city while the barrio folk shake off the hangover to resume the daily grind of work in the fields. Some do not bother to take down the parol, letting it hang all year round, a sad-happy reminder to last them all of twelve long months. When the children return, they might be adults.

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