Today's Christmas I woke-up late but it's great compared to when I was young I'll wake-up early and then experience the misery
Me and my siblings when we were just boys and with no care in the world would wake-up at dawn before the cock crows at Christmas day and then get showered-up with chilled-water we manually fetch from the artesian well which we also use for drinking water at that time but now, even poor people buys filtered water although it is cheap because there are too many competition.
Anyway, Christmas day was the time of excitement especially for children particularly here in my country because we are expecting many good things aside from having special food prepared a day or days before December 25th, getting new clothes to wear, and then depending on the family and relatives of the children if like for example a kid has lots of relatives and godparents, he or she will rake much cash or a gift or the combination of the two.
AT Christmas day you will see lots of children going on their way by groups on foot or using public transport vehicles or even transported by their parents using the family vehicle to go to their respective godparents primarily to pay respects and then get their cash gifts and then to their relatives pay respects by taking the hand of the elder and then putting it on the forehead as a traditional ways of showing respect if they know that they will also receive or get something from them as well.
Why would it not be fun to receive a certain amount of cash or gift, see your friends do the same, enjoy foods, enjoy the company of your friends and neighbors, getting to meet your relatives, having new clothes to wear, and basically have the best time of the year? That is why almost every citizen of my country had the great time and wants to make it everyday if they really want because the memories given by Christmas time and day went so nostalgic to the majority of my fellow citizens, unique to our culture and tradition.
It was the reason why when the first day of September steps-in, you will already hear Christmas songs on the radio because people especially the children, can't wait for the December 25 to come. As for the workers and employees, they get their bonuses as directed by the law which was done in the time of the former president Marcos. They get their 13th month pay and depending on the company they are working from, the can also get a mid-year bonus while some employees can only receive a thirteenth month pay.
Anyway, as for my case with only one godmother and then flew away to the states when I was young, I can't get as much cash gift compared to my friends when I was just a kid. My eldest brother can collect a relative larger amount maybe because he goes in first and receive a relative's budget for our group while there will be nothing left for me and my other brother which also have only one godmother/parent that he can collect from while his other godfather already didn't cared about his existence nor if he was present, didn't gave him a single cent which actually made him resentful.
But regardless that we get less cash gift or not, it is still fun and we are just glad that we get something from the much awaited time of the year where the next to it was the crazier part of the year which is the New Year celebration when in my childhood was more fun anyone can ever witness because there are so many firecrackers to purchase and there are no laws to prohibit you from using it too which is why the new year celebration in those years is a mix of fun and tragedy as many kids and adults lose their finger, hands, life, or whatever, plus damages to properties due to the use of many variety of firecrackers. It is also the reason why Christmas time was fun in my childhood as we can already afford to buy firecrackers which we can buy from neighborhood stores and we are fire to light it up for of course, another form of fun and excitement although I feel miserable with less cash to go home with.
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It's the first time I jear about a difference made between children within one family. With us all receive the same, no mattee the godfather or mother.
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We will first go to pay respects to my mother, then she will give us equal amounts of cash gift which was the usual thing to get for convenience. Before that we were bought new clothes to wear.
The difference on collecting cash gifts and gifts if you ever receive one happens depending on how many godfather and godmother you have aside from many relatives you can pay respects with in order to collect things from them.
That is why I would envy one of my friends come Christmas time, he had a lot of relatives here in our Barrio because he can collect much money while I myself can only get a little amount until my godmother went to the states.
It was still fun regardless but I can always feel the frustration everytime every year when I was still young after the Christmas day is done. Miss @wakeupkitty
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I have no godfathers or godmothers, no one in my family has. To us it's a Catholic thing. If we want someone to take care of our child when we pass aways we have to make a last will and pay a few hundreds of euros. Still, you can never be sure what happens after you die. The state easily takes children away and puts the in foster care where many are abused or they disappear (child trafficking?).
I made my eldest child the guardian of my youngest and my friend did the same. It's the only way to keep the family complete although a 12 year old can choose where to live.
If it comes to the finances I pointed another child. Mainly because she won't spend it easily.
The only habit we had during my childhood is showing the school report to the grandparents and receive a bit of money for that. It was a time we were happy with 10 cents or 25 l, while today children are not even happy with 100 euros.
Well, the elderly died and I guess, I took there place since two generations died during the same two years. There's no one left to gift or I would like to gift except for my children as friend.
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Yes Miss @wakeupkitty, the godparent thing is just a Catholic church invention, godparents really has no legal obligation about their godchildren but the immediate family or relatives of children who happens to lose their parents from one reason or another.
Family ties here in my country is strong and if it happens that a child for example lost both of its parents and temporarily cannot be taken by its relatives, the state from the Barrio council level up to the local government "municipality or city" government will try to locate its nearest of kin to inform them to take care of the orphaned child.
If there will be totally no relatives to take care of the child, it is taken to government institution for orphans. Sometimes such orphans doesn't like to be in those institutions so they would try to escape and live on the streets but it is a rare occurrence because most of the time a family or relative will take care of the orphans.
The child is not automatically sent to some foster parent/home which is common in western countries, and like you said, the child most of the time gets abused if not trafficked. I can't put my head into that fact where orphaned children are given to strangers which had no blood relations to an orphan.
Anyway, it is a tradition here in my country during Christmas time for the kids to go to their godparents, pay respect, and receive their gifts. However, this tradition seems to be not being popular to "modern" kids as most would just stay at home and watch TV, use their smartphones, and stay at home.
Maybe because they think that going to the place of their godparents are not worth it anymore because most likely the cash gift they will receive from them are lesser than their day allowance coming from their parents when they go to school these days unlike in my time where getting a paper money in higher denomination and then gifts if you are lucky are regarded as so big of deal that we thicken our faces and build inner strength just so we can get near people whom we never talk to just to receive something...or nothing at all and will just ask, who are our parents, or say, your father is richer than my husband and things like that.
My uncle (my father's cousin) even told me and my siblings even said to us after asking who is my father was, said that my father was only his employee. I think that statement flew of from my bother's ears but I remembered it clearly. A year after, I didn't bother going to their house anymore.
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