*376. A PAGEANT OF BELENS IN GUAGUA

BELENISSIMO! The characters of Bethlehem come to life in this school production which were staple presentations in many Pampanga schools come Christmas time. Dated 1953.

 Christmas in old Guagua, like in all Catholic towns of Pampanga, is centered on the celebration of the birth of Jesus, in a decrepit stable in Bethlehem. The scene is etched in our minds this way: Jesus lying on a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes, His parents, Mary and Joseph standing watch. Around them, the Savior’s first well-wishers: shepherds and their flock, townsfolk, and the three Magis from the East. Above, an Angel hovers mid-air, proclaiming to one and all, “Gloria In Excelsis Deo!”(Glory to God in the Highest). This enduring image of the Nativity has remained with us since time immemorial, perpetuated in art and religious iconography.

Every Christmas, as late as the 1950s, the scene is replicated in many homes in Guagua, where a “belen”—a depiction of the Nativity using miniature figurines—is set up on a table, instead of the usual Christmas tree. More wealthy homes displayed marble, porcelain, wax or celluloid figurines figurines of the Baby Jesus, and all His attendant companions, housed in a constructed wooden stable, complete with real hay and grass. Modest homes were contented with cardboard replicas of these characters.

 Children would often gather around the “Belen” to gaze with wondering eyes on the scene before them. The owner of the house or a family elder would then recount the beautiful story of the Savior’s birth. Today, of course, Christmas stories would include the tales of Santa Claus, Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman! On Christmas Eve, the silent story told by the “Belen” is becomes a moving, living pageant.

An hour before midnight, a re-enactment of the Nativity story begins with the procession of the images of Birhen Maria and San Jose around the town. The procession stops at certain houses in the neighborhood, and a man, representing San Jose, starts to beg the house owner for refuge for his infanticipating wife. His pleadings are expressed in the form of a song. The house owner, enacting the role of a Galilean innkeeper, dismisses them. His refusal for accommodation is also rendered as a song.

 In the next few hours, the two images, followed by their entourage, continue to move from one house to another, where the actor’s implorings are met with the same cold treatment. They finally arrive at the Church, where a stable is found waiting for them. Here, the images are installed—the Virgin and his spouse finally find rest and a roof over their heads. Their arrival signals the beginning of a beautiful Misa Pastoral, or midnight mass, presided by the cura.

 The message of the Belen story, retold every year in Christmas pageants such as this Layunan tradition has never changed—it is one of birth and renewal, of redemption and resolution, of re-dedication to the cause of peace and goodwill. Heartfelt greetings of the Season, and sincere wishes that good health and fortune betide you and your families, throughout the coming years!!

*375. CHRISTMAS IN TOYLAND

GIVE TOYS ON CHRISTMAS DAY. A child beams with joy amidst his collection of foreign and Philippine-made toys perfect for the holidays.

“What can I give you this Christmas?.. 

With prices up so very high--

A smile of joy and gladness,

To chase off any sadness

A gift we cannot sell or buy--

That's what I can give you this Chirstmas!"

 In this season of giving, that question, perhaps, is the one that demands a a most well-thought of answer. After all, the chunk of the well-earned Christmas bonus will most likely be appropriated to buying happiness for dear ones. For the wife, an imported vanity case containing all those important feminine paraphernalia—perfume, powder, lipstick—will be greatly appreciated. But then again, she might opt for a new living room set! For parents, a large, state-of-the-art flat TV is perfect, although medicine supplements make another ideal alternative . For a grown-up son or daughter, maybe a ticket to a Bruno Mars concert or some fashionable gifts: rubber shoes, handbags, a new watch.

 There is no guesswork, however, when it comes to choosing presents for children. Then, as now, the choice of a gift narrows down to just one---toys! A Kapampangan child and his toys are as inseparable as pen and paper, and, growing up in the 20s through the 50s, a wide assortment of toys were available to him, at prices parents could very well afford.

 Surveying Japanese bazaars and department stores in 1929, one would most likely find cheap, but attractive Philippine-made toys that were crafted “to make children understand our own Philippines better”, as one local businessman argued. The most popular were papier maché doll figures for both boys and girls. Many depict rural scenes, such as a charming dalagang bukid in a native costume astride a carabao, a squatting man roasting a lechon, and a country boy riding a horse, bearing baskets of fruits. For those with more money to spare, foreign-made toys could also be found in leading Manila stores—from motorized tin cars, airplanes and trucks, dolls made in the likeness of Hollywood stars to crying and talking doll figures that could also close and open their eyes.

 In old Guagua, however, boys and girls received Christmas toys not from fancy shops but handcrafted for the occasion by loving fathers, uncles and brothers. This folk art was still thriving in the early 1950s. A 1953 magazine account describes the toys thus: “These are the animal pull toys that were fashioned from bamboo and wire. The skeleton frame was then covered with thin, white “papel de japon”. They were mounted on 4-wheeled wooden platforms, and were so constructed that at every turn of the wheels, parts of their bodies moved and simulated an action peculiar to the animal they represented”.

 The animals chosen were often culled from the figures present at the birth of Jesus—lambs, cows, doves—as well as domesticated ones like dogs, cats, carabaos. Ingeniously made, the chickens flapped their wings, the cats played with their balls of thread, and dogs crouched and leaped as they were pulled on the town streets.

 At night, these toys were lighted inside with candles, giving them a warm glow as they were pulled by troops of children, joined by their Mass-going parents, towards the church. “It seemed”, waxed one Guagua resident recalling the scene, “as if all mankind and all the creatures of the earth were going again to the manger to worship at the feet of the Prince of Peace”.

 Time and again, it is said that “Christmas is for children”. For it is them that are dearest in the thoughts of parents, who, although kindhearted every time of the year, are doubly generous during this season. Once again, in many homes, toys—whether it be an expensive robot with a laser sword or a homemade rag doll---will shine in good proportion to the simple pleasures of little children.

*358. ALDO ATLUNG ARI

WE THREE KINGS OF ORIENT ARE. Young boys play the roles of the gift-bearing Three Kings (or more accurately, the 3 Magi or the Wise Men) in a Christmas school play. Ca. 1920s.

As Filipinos, we pride ourselves in having the longest Christmas season in the world—a period that begins with the 1st day of Simbang Gabi on December 15, and ending officially the liturgical holidays on the Feast of the Three Kings, January 6. It is also known as the Feast of the Epiphany, marking the appearance of Jesus to the Gentiles as represented by the three royals—who wereactually not Kings, but Magis or Wise Men.

 As a school kid in the 60s, I always looked forward to my over-extended vacation for it meant not just weeks of do-nothing days, but it also gave me more chances to receive gifts!! As every ninong and ninang knows, the Aldo ning Atlung Ari gives them the last opportunity to dispense gifts and Aguinaldo to their ina-anaks. The long holiday gives them no excuse to be remiss in their gift-giving duties, lest they are branded as “kuriput” or “makunat”.

 Indeed, it was not just Santa Claus who was looked at as the official purveyor of gifts; the Three Kings too, were regarded in Spain as bearers of generous treats and gifts. After all, the three made the long travel to Bethlehem to present the newborn Jesus with gold, myrrh and frankincense, thus, starting a tradition of gift-giving.

 This tradition is still alive and well in Madrid, where the arrival of Melchor, Gaspar and Balthazar from the East was eagerly awaited by children. Melchor was depicted as a hoary man with a long grey beard while Gaspar was known as the ‘white one’ with his closely-cropped blonde beard. Balthazar, the lord of treasure, was known for his swarthy complexion.

 On the eve of their feast day, the 3 Kings take to the streets of Madrid, accompanied by a cavalcade of soldiers in a parade full of Oriental fantasy, pomp and splendor. The evening procession begins at Retiro and circles the residential areas where kids have placed their shoes on the window sill, in hopes of having them filled with presents the next day. This tradition has caught on in some provinces in the country, particularly in Nueva Ecija where the Three Kings are the acknowledged patrons of Gapan. Children also leave their shoes out so that they will be filled with money or candy. In America, the shoe has been replaced with stockings. 

Club Español, an organization of civic-minded Spanish-descent members and Hispanophiles, has also helped perpetuate this custom in the Philippines by holding its own “Dia De Los Reyes”, capped with a festive parade of the 3 Kings distributing presents to indigent children.

 The Feast of the 3 Kings has been moved to the first Sunday of January, which caused the instant shortening of the Philippine Christmas break. The present generation barely knows the significance of ”Aldo Atlung Ari”, and elsewhere in the country, it has become a hybrid celebration, known also as “Pasko ng Matatanda”, a day to pay respect to senior citizens.

In Pampanga, the Kuraldal—the famous dancing fiesta of Sasmuan in honor of its patroness, Sta. Lucia-- coincides with the Sunday feast of the 3 Kings, hence the event has been termed as “Kuraldal Atlung Ari”. Also on this day, childless couples in Sasmuan went to church to ask for the gift of fertility so they could have offsprings. For oldtimers though, the spirit of this feast lives on as they still wish one another with the now-incongruous greeting-- “Happy 3 Kings!”—consistent with the observation that holidays are "more fun in the Philippines!". 

*357. MAKING A JOYFUL NOISE!

BOOM-TARAT! Children make noise during the holiday season with a "kanyun kwayan", a cannon made from a sturdy bamboo post, fueled with calcum carbide and lit with kerosene to welcome the season with a bang. Photo from 1934.

Pasku na! For Christian Kapampangans, no other holiday has more meaning and merriment than the Christmas season. We usher it in with the traditional trappings of the holidays—lavish decorations with our colorful “parols”as outdoor centerpieces, noche buena fare consisting of the best in Kapampangan cuisine, generous aguinaldos and regalos in envelopes and wrapped boxes.

But the loudest welcome perhaps, comes from the sounds of Christmas that we produce—from the soaring voices of street carollers, the strains of commercial holiday songs blaring from the radio, to the burst of bamboo cannons and “turutut” (paper horns) that punctuate our New Year.

As soon as the “-ber”months come in, mood-setting music filled the air through familiar Christmas carols. As we didn’t have local carols, we took to singing traditional and popular carols from the West—O Holy Night, Jingle Bells, Silent Night, Santa Claus is Coming To Town, It Came Upon A Midnight Clear. There were a few Pilipino carols available, but we sang them with gusto anyway—led by “Ang Pasko Ay Sumapit”, a carol composed by Levi Celerio, based on the lyrics written in 1933 by poet Vicente Rubi.

Today, of course, we have a whole range of Kapampangan carols to choose from, courtesy of Mr. Marco Nepomuceno of Historic Camalig Restaurant, who, in 2005, produced the first-ever Kapampangan Christmas CD album, “A Camalig Christmas”, featuring both Kapampangan originals as well as local adaptations of all-time favorite carols, as performed by Jimming Bini and the Starlicks. “Joy to the World” became “Alang Kapupusang Ligaya”, while “Pasku Na” borrows the tune of “Jingle Bells”. Even “Angels We Have Heard on High”, of French origin, has been Kapampanganized into “Dios A Pekamatas”.

 For its part, Holy Angel University sponsored a competition of original carol competition in 2005, and the entries were compiled in a CD album entitled “The Kapampangan Christmas Album”. Performed by the HAU Chorale and Elementary Choir, the album features selections like “Pasku na, Magsadya Ta Na”, “Parul”, “Ing Panalangin Ku Ngening Pasku, “King Paskung Daratang”, and “Pascua N’Indispu”. 

Slowly, but surely, these new carols with traditional feel are finding their way into the repertoire of carolling groups. Carollers on the streets, armed with tansan (soda tin caps) tambourines and tin cans, systematically moved from house to house, in the hopes of making a few pesos in exchange for a Christmas carol or two.

Neighborhood competition among carollers was intense; talented carollers were rewarded with a peso or more, while bad ones were completely ignored. Carollers met with such reception would have the last retort, however, by chiding the residents with “Tenk you, Tenk you, ang babarat ninyo, tenk you!” (Thank you, for being so stingy).

Competing alongside carolling groups are the Drum & Bugle Corps from different barangays. In my place alone, Mabalacat, we have been regaled since the 60s by such musical bands as the San Francisco, Poblacion and San Joaquin Drum & Bugle Corps, with their lively, marching band re-arrangements of familiar Christmas songs.

The sounds of the holidays permeate the atmosphere till the days leading to the New Year, when joyful noise takes over –generated by “kalburo”-fed kanyun kwayan (bamboo cannons), turutut , matraca ( wooden noisemakers) and booming firecrackers of the most noisome variety—watusi, kwitis, perminanti, trayanggulu, Judas Belt, Sawa, SuperLolo, Lolo Thunder, Macarena, Marimar, and of late, My Husband’s Lover, Yolanda and Napoles.

For most Kapampangans, Christmas is not only the merriest, but also the noisiest and loudest—to give vent to our overflowing feelings of mirth and joy at the coming of the King of Kings--singing, shouting, yes, even screaming in our trademark over-the-top way—“munta ka Bunduk Arayat, at gulisak mu I Hesus, mibait ne”. (Go to the top of Mount Arayat, and scream out that Jesus is born!)


Masayang Pasku at Mainge a Bayung Banwa!!

*273. THE WAY WE MEET 'N GREET

FELICIDADES! A postcard illustrated by artist Jorge Pineda, greets the recipient with the standard greeting of warm felicitations for a happy holiday season. Ca. 1912.

A keen observer would find it amusing that the standard “Komusta ka?” (“How are you?”, derived from the Spanish ‘Como esta’?), has been supplemented today by a variety of Americanisms (“Wazzup?” “Hi, hello!”) as well as greetings that skip formality altogether, almost prying in tone as in “Nang balita?”—what’s new with you.

Time was when our everyday greetings were expressed with respect, always punctuated by “po or pu”, a polite word which we hear often, but now speak less. “Dispu”, derived from “Dios pu”, bestows upon the person being greeted, a kind of divine respect. Hence, when one says “Benging dispu’, it means more than just “Good evening’ (“Mayap a bengi”) , but with it comes a wish for an evening blessed with God’s grace.

Traditional Kapampangan greetings always elevate the stature of the person being addressed, as in the greeting "Siklaud ku pu" (Let me kneel before you), used for our elders. This practice of humbling one’s self in the presence of another is also observed in written sentiments. A person will give his photo to another accompanied by a dedication that almost smacks of self-deprecation: “Maluca queng yampang ing matsura kung letratu keka’ (“I humbly give my ugly picture to you).

When a friend on foot is spotted walking around a neighborhood, he is invited to leave the road and refresh himself with a drink inside the house--“salangi ka pa". “Salangi” also means “to light up with a match”-- which can very well describe an honored presence "lighting up" the house?. A person taking leave should bade his kind host goodbye with “Ume na kami/ Malaus na kami”. He can only go when permission is granted. In some towns like Arayat, folks use “Magsilbi ke pa pu”—literally, “we are ready to serve”.

The all-purpose greeting “Luid ka/ Maluid ka!” is our equivalent of “Mabuhay” and is used to wish someone welcome, congratulations, good health and a prosperous life. There are specific greetings for special occasions like birthdays, however: “Masayang aldo ning kekang kebaitan!” or a simple “Masayang kebaitan keka!” are our translations of “Happy Birthday!”, but the usage of that English greeting—with the localized pronunciation “Hapi Bertdey!”, is much more pervasive nowadays.

During the Spanish colonial times, the generic greeting “Felicidades!” (Felicitations!) was widely used for such occasions as Christmas, New Year and Graduation. The greeting appeared widely on business cards of Kapampangan professionals like doctors, dentists and lawyers. Tagalogs greeted their own with “Magandang Pasko at Manigong Bagong Taon” or the more current “Masayang Pasko at Masaganang Bagong Taon”. Our counterpart is “Masayang Pasku at Masaplalang Bayung Banwa”.

When a brief phrase or two was not enough to express his sentiments, a Kapampangan would often resort to poetry, florid and profound, gushing with praise and well-wishes, as in this dedication written by an admirer to a lady friend in Sta. Rita:

Caniting malucang postal
Queca cu ngeni papabal
Carin cu naman yayampang
Ini nang tula cung dacal

Queting fiesta mung dinatang
Pagnasan cu itinang
Fiesta mu ngening dinatang
Pasayan na ngan ding sablang
Magum qng quecang camalan.

Magluid sana ing bie mu
Queting mabilug a yatu
Layun sanang nabangnan mu
Yng tulang panenayan mu

In this humble letter
To you I make known
And also to you I offer
My overflowing joy

On this your feast day (birthday) that has come
It is my wish that your feast day

Will delight all those who will come

To praise your highness.

May you live long
In this whole world
And may you find the happiness
That you have been waiting for.

Kapampangans, they say, are brash, loud and ‘mayabang’—but our traditional forms of greetings and salutations disprove all that—they are polite, respectful, sincere. I don’t hear much of “dispu” nowadays, but “opu and pu” are still there—still used by kids when addressing their elders, although in “jejemonized” form when spelled in text messages. Which is a good thing, as our regard for other people seems to diminish with the advent of new media. We are quick to post insults on facebook, lambast someone on our blogs and make careless remarks in forums. Let’s bring back the era of a polite society, so we can bring humanity back to man. Ne po?

*223. PAMPANGA'S PARUL: Spectacular Stars of the Season

TWINKLE, TWINKLE CHRISTMAS STAR. A Kapampangan lass from Barrio Talang in Candaba, Pampanga spruces up their family's humble home with a homemade star lantern crafted from papel de japon, cellophane and bamboo sticks, December 1961.

Pampanga’s star shines the brightest during the holiday season, in both literal and figurative sense, as it brings out its dazzling, colorful paruls (lanterns) to light up the nights leading to Christmas. While the lantern tradition is not unique to the Philippines—Oriental countries like Japan and China are likewise famous for their lighted paper lanterns with their characteristic tassels—it can rightfully claim to be the home of the most spectacular Christmas lanterns in the world, courtesy of Pampanga.

The parols in Pampanga, like all lanterns in the Islands, started with simple, boxy paper lanterns with wooden frameworks held on bamboo poles and borne to light early religious processions, as in the lubenas of the Virgen de La Naval in Bacolor. ‘Parol” was localized from the Spanish ‘farol’ (lantern), which, in turn was derived from “Pharos”, a Grecian island along the Nile renowned for its lighthouse that came to be part of the world’s seven wonders. The lanterns soon acquired the shape of a star and even a tail, to represent the Star of Bethlehem that shone over Christ’s birthplace in Bethlehem.

For many years, the basic construction of the parol remained unchanged—bamboo sticks form the framework for the three-dimensional five pointed star, which is then covered with papel de japon of suitable color. The bamboo frames are lined with strips of foil paper to define the star and one or two tails of are added, also made from paper strips. The star can also be accentuated with foil cut-outs and circumscribed with a papered bamboo hoop. Several variations were spun-off from this basic parul, including lanterns with multiple points and, of late, paruls fashioned from translucent capiz shells, fiberglass, colored vinyl and handmade paper.

SAN FERNANDO PARUL FROM 1964, shows a star-shaped center with santan flower designs in between, circumscribed by 5-petal flowers.

But it took the people of San Fernando to re-invent the ‘parul’ , transforming them into the giant, spectacularly-lit lanterns that we know today. The advent of electricity in the 1930s solved the lighting problems of lanterns, and so artisans focused their attention in enhancing the design and size of the common ‘parul’.

The Davids from barangay Sta. Lucia, are a family of lantern-makers who were crafting ‘paruls’ as early as the 1930s. The patriarch, the late Rodolfo David, is credited with inventing the rotor, which revolutionized the design and lighting mechanisms of paruls, allowing for countless lighting possibilities and color combinations.

To maximize such attractive kaleidoscopic effects, lanterns grew in size, with the first battery-powered giant lanterns devised by David’s son-in-law, Severino, in the early 1940s. By 1958, David had perfected a new lantern design, papered with papel de japon, and now distinctively known as ‘parul sampernandu’. The flat, circular lanterns are designed with individual compartments housing a lightbulbs that light and ‘dance’ using the ingenious rotor technology devised not ny engineers, but by local craftsmen. Rotors are fashioned from barrels, which are rotated manually by a person to light the lanterns—the same principle employed by small music boxes that has rotors with embossed parts that sound off when they come in contact with the steel tines.

CLASSIC PARUL DESIGN, shows a kaleidoscope of colored patterns--curlicues, spirals, arches and mosaic patterns. Ca. 1964.

In the case of sampernandu lanterns, the electricity is activated with hairpins when they come in contact with the metal rotor. Strategically-placed masking tape on the rotor, on the other hand, cuts off the flow of electricity. This stop-and-go flow of electricity dictates the lighting pattern of the thousands of lightbulbs (some as much as 4,000 bulbs) , achieving the dancing illusion that becomes more apparent when the lighting is synched with live band music.

Today, the paruls of Pampanga, led by the sampernandu of the capital city, continue to shine brightly with the annual Ligligan Parul (Giant Lantern Festival and Contest) that has helped popularized and revitalized interest in this once-vanishing art. Leading lantern makers like Erning David Quiwa, Eric Quiwa, Roland Quiambao and Arnel Flores are at the forefront of this mision to keep the parul tradition alive.

The Kapampangan paruls have also awed audience worldwide—from Hollywood U.S.A. (where a float decorated with sampernandu lanterns won first prize in a folk festival), Thailand, Taiwan, to Austria and Spain. Always a community affair, the making of Christmas lanterns also helps to keep the flame of bayanihan spirit burning, encouraging generosity, charity, goodwill and peaceful co-existence, which are, in fact, the same messages that Christmas brings.

MASAYANG PASKU AT MASAPLALANG BAYUNG BANWA KEKO NGAN!