This article was originally published in Manuel Ojeda Aureus’ book “A Circuitous Journey & other stories of faith, hope, & love.” We thank our dear friend and advisor for generously sharing the treasure trove of stories from his book which he published in 2020. Since the inception of Dateline Ibalon, he has contributed with us chapters from this book: How not to convert your Protestant wife, Ma’am Tels of Bombon, The Angelus Tradition, and Aklatan sa Kostal: The Joys of Reading. “Season of Love” also appeared in the writer’s column in Bicol Mail on December 27, 2018.
Early this morning I arrived late for Sunday service because I had to drive an old friend to La Guardia Airport. This is that time of year when airports are crowded with last minute passengers rushing home for the holidays. The early morning stress, aggravated by the ongoing airport construction, however, disappeared as soon as I realized, judging from my friend’s facial expression, that I did a good deed today.
Sunday service was almost starting when we arrived.
I kept dozing during the sermon, and my wife had to rib me often to keep me awake. Suddenly I heard the pastor mention the word “love.” That woke me up. Come to think of it, I haven’t really pondered on that word for a long time.
What better word to ponder on this Season of Love.
A very common word, but what is love, really? Into how many ways does it manifest in our lives?
Babysitting your grandchildren must be a form of love (or else grandparents would not describe it as an “apostolic” act). Giving up your seat to a pregnant lady or an elderly passenger is another form of love. Helping a blind person cross the street is another.
The sermon continues, and my mind wanders to a former Philosophy class professor in college, Vitaliano Gorospe, SJ. His definition of love still lingers in my mind. Apart from that famous song by the Four Aces “Love is a Many-Splendored Thing,” Fr. Gorospe taught us that true love is, like God’s Grace, unrequited. Love, he said is not I love you and I want you to do this or that. It should rather be I love you and I want you to be what you want to become.
It goes without saying that if one day your girlfriend whom you love so much tells you that she wants to enter the nunnery, true love behooves you to help her fulfill that vocation.
I also thought of the people who died out of love for country during the dark days of the war. Theirs was another manifestation of love.
I look around me and I could feel that in this Christmas season, love seems to be very much in the air. That Asian-looking couple who would often sit in the front pews appears to be more loving this time of year. Last month I noticed them sitting apart, not even looking at each other. This morning, they couldn’t stop throwing smiling glances at each other.
The shopping malls are full of couples buying presents. It must be the love emanating from this Christmas season. It’s that time of year.
Love makes our hearts jump a bit on many occasions, in many seasons throughout the year. It is truly for all seasons. After Christmas comes the New Year. Next, it’s Valentine’s day. Then it may be a family member’s birthday or anniversary. Then it is Easter. And spring, and of course, the Flores de Mayo in the Philippines.
And suddenly, before you know it, it will be September again, that votive month in my hometown Naga—that holy feast of our beloved Lady of Peñafrancia—with all the tender memories manifested in the fierce love for Her by the Bicol people.
For I was born in Naga and have never left it despite the physical distance. To me Naga is Monsignor Belleza treating us NPS boys to a free show at Bichara Theater. That is love. The ever-smiling Monsignor Belleza was the closest image of God’s love that I can recall. I never saw him frown or get angry. Naga is Mrs. Mataya, my NPS kindergarten teacher, teaching me how to read and write. That is love. Naga is Papa dancing with Mama at Hotel Lindez Grand Ballroom during that reunion of old World War II veterans: my father in his military khaki uniform on the dancefloor with Mama to the music of Bing Crosby singing “White Christmas.” That is love.
Love means lasting friendships. In old Naga I had made many friends that remain close to me up to this day. Many of them I have not seen in decades, but when I visited Naga and met some who I have not seen in more than half a century, it was like old times. These are friends that I could talk to freely with on comfortable things from school days to family matters, including deep confidential and personal things. That is another form of love, and I found it in deep friendships.
The service is done. I glance at my watch. We need to do some last minute Christmas shopping. For presents, my wife reminds me, and by the way, did I bring my Macy’s card? She forgot hers. Do I give it to her out of love? I kid myself. We are going to purchase more gifts for all the in-laws and the little kids in the family. Will I do all these for love? I still have to do some last minute cooking and I have to mop the floor for our Christmas guests. Is this all motivated by love? The answer to all of these is a resounding Yes.
We finish all our errands and chores for the day. It was a long but joyful day. Despite the rush and everything, I feel relaxed. Saint Paul was spot on. If you have love, you have everything. If you do everything out of love, everything will be all right.
Because I learned, across the years, that every step we make out of love is a step in the right direction.
The Four Aces were right: Love is “a many-splendored thing.”
The header features festive pictures of the 2024 Christmas Village, Gamboa’s Orchard located in Purok 1, San Jose, Malilipot, Albay. Photography by Here in Legazpi Albay FB page. For inquiries and reservations, kindly contact Gamboa’s Orchard at 09563367505/ 09562244204 or visit their Gamboa’s Orchard‘s FB page.
About the author
MANUEL OJEDA AUREUS is a native of Naga City, Camarines Sur, and a retired head of a New York City multinational customer service company. In the early 1990s he published the first Filipino–American Children’s magazine Bahaghari. In his retirement he published the books, There’s More to Eat than Cooking and A Circuitous Journey & Other Stories of Faith, Hope and Love, both available from Amazon. He currently lives in Queens, New York, with his wife Delia, and with their cat Kitkat.