Less Stress Pinoy Christmas

Last Tuesday, I woke up to the sounds of a Christmas medley. Disoriented from sleep, I thought I was dreaming. After some cautious stretching, elaborate yawning and exaggerated blinking...yep, it's still there. and getting louder, too. It was the barangay wake up call. Every day during the weekdays, at six in the morning, the barangay would play through the amplifier some music to wake everyone up. Yeah, I know. Some of our visitors would complain of the noise. But, what could I do? I am just a resident--a grateful one, at that since I needed an alarm to wake me up; otherwise I could spend the whole morning in bed. Anyway, back to the Christmas medley: after gathering all my wits, my groggy mind put everything in perspective, and realized it was the start of the "-ber" months. And in the Philippines, this would be the start of the Christmas season. Some parts of the Philippines actually begin in August. But where I come from, we have a really big festival to celebrate during this month, so September would be the start of Christmas.
I meet this occasion with mixed feelings. Joyful anticipation of the what is to come. Because, I don't know what it is about Christmas, but something great always happens. However, Christmas is undeniably one of the most expensive, if not the most expensive occasion of the year. Especially if you are a Ninang/Ninong of so many inaanak. And they remember. So you better be prepared.
I used to wait for the Christmas sale in stores. But they are usually scheduled near Christmas, so I would be among the throng to flock the stores during the peak season. And it was not good. Too much hustling. And, boy, was it a hassle. Very draining.
Over the years, though, I learned to develop a strategy for a less-stress Christmas.
1. Make a list of the things you need to do and to have for Christmas. Those Christmas songs I hear everyday since the beginning of September remind me to make my list. It would eliminate some risks of trying to grab some important things on the last minute, or of not having something I needed because I had forgotten it. I would have a list of things needed in the house for Christmas; list of my inaanak, friends and relatives to give gifts to; and, possibly a list of recipes and ingredients for noche buena.
2. Once I have the list, I could then proceed to the Christmas budget. This is a very important matter, which is often overlooked. No wonder, after Christmas, I used to feel drained--physically after all those parties I 'needed' to attend; and financially, after overspending for the holidays. But having a list would enable me to plan the Christmas celebration.
3. The house would need Christmas decorations. I would have an inventory of the decorations available from the previous Christmas. See what could still be reused, and recycled. Sometimes I might no longer need to buy more decorations. All I would need is creativity to make the house look festive.
4. As early as this month, I can also plan your noche buena. And then buy some of those that could be put aside for a long time.
5.The list of people to give gifts to would also enable me to take time to shop. If I had a longer time to plan for gifts, I could scour the shops for valuable, memorable but affordable gifts. Something I would not be able to do if I left gift shopping at the last minute.
6. Speaking of affordability, a list could also enable I to budget my expenses so that I won't have to worry about my financial situation after the Holidays. If I could just stick to my budget, then I would be okay.
No more dreading the Holidays. Just pure anticipation of the great things to come.