Fiesta
It’s that time of the year.
No I’m not talking about Christmas but our colorful local celebration called Fiesta.
Fiesta is Spanish for feast. Being a Spanish colony for 333 years, Philippines imbibed some of its colorful customs which we practice up to now.
Every November 21 of the year, our city celebrates the Feast Day in Honor of the Virgin of the Rule. It is interesting to note that despite its pagan connotations, the fiesta is actually in veneration of the Mama Mary.
Like any typical Filipino fiesta (and this is really typical here), our city is filled with pilgrims from all places and all walks of life. Even relatives from as far as the North America, Europe, Australia, etc. would come home just to partake in the celebration!
Roasted pig or the lechon would be the centerpiece at the buffet table. Hundreds of guests ranging from acquaintances to close family friends to total strangers would flock to our house. It is akin to the Americans’ Thanksgiving Day only to much grander, more elaborate scale.
I attended the nine-day novena from Nov. 12 to Nov. 20. A novena consists of daily prayers and holy mass. During the novena, we made our petitions. Petitions are the prayers that you hope to be granted.
Petitions may not be granted all the time. But, it is baby steps towards spiritual renewal and transformation. If you become a renewed person, then all your petitions will come true.
How do I know this? Because by then, you will only want what God wants for you. You become so attuned to Him that you only crave to do His will. And that’s how prayers do its seeming magic!
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