Paypay, Daanbantayan, Cebu
Every year we celebrate the Teachers' Christmas Party. Every time we do the latter, we go to the beach to have more fun and more space to leisure and play parlor games.
Yesterday was a blast of excitement and happiness. We went to Paypay, Daanbantayan, Cebu to celebrate the party. The place by my colleague's aunt currently living in America. There is no entrance fee. We were happy because we were able to save money.
😂
🏖️THE VIEW UPON ARRIVAL
We arrived at the place at an estimated time of 10:30. It was almost lunch, and we were not able to cook lumpia. We planned to have it at dawn on the day of the party, but one of our colleagues suggested cooking it nearly before lunch.
I was ecstatic when I saw the hammock. I can feel the relaxation that this beach has given to people. You can breathe fresh air while swinging and listening to music using your smartphone. However, our purpose there is to enjoy each other's company.
🧆LUNCH TIME
A few minutes before our lunch, our lumpia is finally ready. Then, our school head asked us to come near the table to prepare lunch. Finally, after the prayer, we partake in the sumptuous food. We also had a videoke set brought by another colleague. Of course, the aspirant singers of our school had their best songs.😂
🎁THE 44 GIFT-GIVING
Before we had our party, we agreed to prepare gifts for everybody. We are 45 in total, including ourselves. So we should have received 44 presents only, excluding ourselves. We will give each of our colleagues a present of any amount. It was an overwhelming feeling that I gave gifts to colleagues and likewise received from them.
🎀🎁MANITO MANITA
After the 44 gifts of gift-giving, we then proceed to manito/manita. Our school head gave her gift first to her manito while singing the song. After her, by another colleague, until it is all done. We were smiling while receiving the gifts we listed on the wish list. Thanks to our manito/manita.
PARLOR GAMES
A lot of games has prepared by the assigned teachers. The participants were enthusiastic in involved the different games. All of us laughed out loud, just like forgetting all the stress caused by a lot of work for the whole year. Yes, we dedicate our lives to our job, but it has caused us a lot of stress. We even spend overtime to catch up with the deadline of immediate reports and all. I think we deserve all of this once a year.
The first game was Mario Went to Town. All participants were boys. They have to wear two pieces of outfit, sunglasses, shoes, a hat and bring an umbrella. Afterwhich, doing a runway ramp back to their group. The first group to finish is the winner.
The second game was SACK RACE. There were two groups. Each group is composed of 7 members. The winner will be a group to finish first jumping from the baseline to the end line then back to the group. We still had two more games. Sad to say, I did not capture it because I was one of the contestants. hahaha.
🏆AWARDING OF WINNERS
The most awaited part of the contest is the awarding of winners. Our school head was the sponsor of the awards. She gave cash plus food. All of the winners received the latter.
THE GIFTS MY HUSBAND AND I RECEIVED
It's not about the gifts. It's about the people who gave their hearts upon offering these things. They rendered their efforts by buying and customizing each.
THE PARTY AFTERMATH...
It's extraordinarily fantastic seeing people laughing like children who have received chocolates and other sweets from Santa. These two teachers had gone through a lot this year. Luckily, I had taken a shot. I sent it to our group chat. They laughed so hard when they saw it.
We also strike a pose to having a collection of great memories worth reminiscing. It was a breathtaking day, a refreshment for the hard days we experienced.
WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
No matter what storms you've been through, always remember to stand up for your life. We should not lose hope. Not all days are worse. Most of the days are good. We have to find positivity if in case, in the middle of a crisis. Yes, we have to. Life is always a matter of survival. We should try to manifest happiness instead of dwelling on sadness. In the end, it is within ourselves that always brings us the life we want to have and to be.