I Heart December

December is only a week away and I can't wait. If there's one thing I look forward to year in year out, it's the month of December. Why? Well, let me count the ways:

1. December has the shortest working days in a year. That alone is something to be happy about. :)

2. To employees like me, December is a happy month because it is synonymous to Christmas bonus and additional incentives. Therefore, it is the time of the month when we can splurge!

3. December happens to be the birth month of several of my closest friends. Is it a coincidence that they were all born in December? Cristina, my travel buddy; Maricar, my love guru; Mariegen, my appointed shrink; and Dan, my pleasant surprise.

4. It is only during this month that I receive greeting cards via air mail. I repeat, air mail, folks! Yes, the traditional snail mail that we all thought was obsolete. I love technology but this is one of those that I don't want to be "endangered" by modern tech. When I receive a card, it makes me feel so special because the person who sent it took his time out to go to a bookstore, scour through the multiple stacks of greeting cards, read the message inside, pick out the one that would capture what he wanted to say, write a short note to make it more personal, seal it and drop it at a post office with the hope that it will reach the receiver just in time for the holidays. Amazing!

5. December is the only time I receive gifts from people. Enough said! :)

6. It is only during this month that we are allowed to eat and devour to our heart's, and even to our stomach's content. Dieting is a sin!

7. Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I think the most wonderful memories of my life happened during the Christmas season. My childhood was filled with memories of tiptoeing at night when everyone was fast asleep to check on my Santa paperbag hanging on a nail placed strategically in our wooden staircase. To my horror, the bag was always empty. However, in the morning, it was filled with all the goodies that I wished for. I often wondered how I could have missed another Santa sighting. Just don't ask how I eventually discovered Santa. :)

8. December reminds me of the value of family. That no matter how many parties you go to, you will still long for the company of the people who matter most to you. I always look forward to coming home and sharing a good laugh with the people who will undoubtedly stand by me when everybody else has turned away.

9. It is the perfect time to look back at the year that was -- the blessings, the triumphs, the joys, the pains, the frustrations and disappointments. However, the good should always outweigh the bad. Life is beautiful!

10. December to me is an oxymoron in itself. It is the end but it is also the beginning -- the end to a year that was either a hit or a miss but a beginning to a better year and possibly, a better life.

Merry Christmas, everyone!!