There's nothing very big about Christmas around here though somehow the air in December always feels different—or at least for me it does. Other than a giant Christmas tree as well as loads of wintery decorations in some random cafes and packed malls, the rest is still the same as snow has never once greeted a tropical country like mine. Call it a delusion then, or you can even go as far as to label it a fata morgana, but I feel like walking through a slightly different dimension every time the calendar on my desk shows that we're only one month away from a brand new year.
It is, however, a little unfortunate that we don't exactly indulge in some special Christmassy habits. While Christmas songs have started to play even before December arrives, my family never actually has something customary to do in terms of marking this special occasion though we plan to start with something small like a seasonal movie of some sort this very year. As crazy as it may sound, even a quarrel this month would be surreal. I sometimes daydream about a warm December where we would reminisce about the fight we had gotten ourselves into and how we had made up over a cup of hot chocolate, all took place a couple Christmases ago, but the story would still be passed down like a folklore.
I won't dwell on that too much though. Since my mom decided not to put up our little artificial white tree we used to always display on Christmas this year, I finally came to realize that I should depend on its true meaning instead of a symbol. It's fulfilling to look back and absorb the real miracles that have happened along the way. Despite a tough year 2020 has been to all of us, it's still important to make things to be grateful for the center of our attention.
I'm nothing without God so first of all I'm eternally grateful for His love and providence. Been experiencing a lot of new things this year, without Him the downs would not do me a good turn. He shows me that miracles are real and witnessing them firsthand is something I will forever be thankful for.
I'm also grateful for my first work experience, including the times I accidentally did something wrong so that I could learn to be more careful and avoid making the same mistakes in the future. I'm thankful for a loving family I can always turn to after those long working hours, for our health, and also for the fact that I've become even closer to them since my breakup earlier this year (I was devastated at first, but after a while, I found my so-called olf self again and now I couldn't be more grateful for the heartbreak—it turned out to be one of the best things that happened to me in 2020). I'm thankful for the experiences it has taught me, just like I am for all the books and movies I've encountered this year thus far.
2020 might be remembered as one of the worst years in human history on account of the unexpected global pandemic, but I personally would also recall it as a year with so many lessons learned. Let whatever happen in 2020 stays in 2020. This Christmas, let us cherish the little things that bring good memories and relentless smiles. Since most of us believe that miracles are real, let's also hope for the world to get better this December.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention this: I'm also thankful that my town has been flooded with mangoes these past two months—honestly never expected that Christmas and mangoes would be this good of a combination.
