SUPRISE!: The TKC Christmas Party
(Note: the missing ‘R’ in the title is intentional; all grammar errors (if ever) in this post aren’t)
Wednesday, December 12. Two days after the Outbound, I was to meet Thy Kingdom Camia again, this time for our Christmas Party. It was supposed to be an overnight outing either in Subic or Laguna, but apparently the plans didn’t push through. Organizing the party was a bit of a mess for me, since a lot has already expressed that they will not go, or at least seek permission from their parents first and they weren’t optimistic. Besides, I had to attend to field trip matters first. Good thing I remembered a conversation between Kit’s mom and myself regarding a Christmas party, and she was very willing to coordinate with Aveline’s dad (Camia’s PTA president). I asked Kit and Aveline to talk to their parents, and Juan and I also “summoned” Mia to prepare her place as well.
A day after the field trip, Mrs. Medina sent me a text message that the party’s already arranged, and it was to be held in the clubhouse near Mia’s home in Rizal. Camia had to meet in Pisay at 2 PM. Having someone else to organize was such a relief, as I was becoming impatient already since there were group messages that I sent to TKC that were ignored in general, and only one person replied in one simply to correct the date I specified in the text message. And the day before the TKC Party, I was with Jasmin 09, so I didn’t have to text people while watching a movie or whatever. After the Rehipons, I called Mrs. Medina as soon as I got home and asked what else should be done. She said all I had to do was show up. Wow. Plus, since she contacted the parents of TKC, more students were sure of coming. Suddenly, I felt again that this was a party indeed, since, as they say, the more, the many-er. I slept comfortably that night.
The morning of the party, TKC again did not answer my text messages, save for Josh and Mia, who resides near the Village East clubhouse. Oh well, Mrs. Medina guaranteed a good number of attendees already, so I should not worry much. I went to SM North EDSA first to buy some gifts and a party shirt before going to Pisay. While I was lining up at the gift wrapping section, Mia informed me that the first batch of people who met up in Pisay were in the clubhouse already. I found it odd at first (that people went ahead without my knowledge), but then, there might not be enough space in the vehicle, so a second trip might be needed. I was to ride with Arvin, JP, Niccolo, JJ, and Miguel.
A little past 2 PM, I arrived in Pisay, and Arvin was there, while I saw Miguel and JP coming too. I told them to text me if our sundo (Kit and mom) arrives already, since I had to get some stuff in the Math Unit. At the fourth floor, It seemed that it was a normal school day: Ma’am Joyce, Sir Petri, Ma’am Dinah, and Sir Sherwin were there, finishing their late lunch and fixing their tables. So I stayed their and chatted for a while. Then the three students came up, this time with JJ, who’s fresh from an injury that caused his absence in the outbound. I checked out his stitches on his inner lower lip. JP was busy making him laugh, since it hurts for him to do so. All of us then went for the front lobby to wait for Niccolo.
It turned out that Niccolo will be very late; Mrs. Medina and Mrs. Pangilinan were already thinking of different plans to transport us to the clubhouse without Niccolo. Since Kit’s car was caught in EDSA traffic, Mia’s van went to Pisay instead for us. At around 3:30 PM, at last, Niccolo came all the way from Cavite, so he has his own transpo. Since he had a PSP (probably the most popular gift for male teens this season), JJ and JP went with him, while Arvin and Miguel were with me in Mia’s van. Mia asked to be texted when we are near the clubhouse already. Arvin and Miguel were talking but I couldn’t hear what they were discussing, so I whiled away time with my iPod Shuffle. I just checked on the two nice guys once in a while.
I texted Mia that we already made a right turn in Robinson’s East, meaning we were about 15 minutes away. I texted again when we entered Village East already. When the vehicle’s only a few meters away from the clubhouse, I noticed that the first floor was decorated, and the tables were finely set. “Oh, there’s another party in the area,” I said to myself. Mia, Aveline, and another girl welcomed us in the place, and Mia told me: “sir, sa taas tayo,” sort of confirming that there was indeed a different gathering in the same place. And Kit’s mom also said something to that effect. Upstairs, I never looked for the food or the arrangement, but for Camia, who were clustered together in one corner of the floor. They were holding a large colorful banner, and they shouted “Happy Birthday!” I was half-expecting this part since they know my birthday occurs in the Christmas season; and I was genuinely smiling. At the back of the party banner were messages written in different colors. They motioned that we should go down. So maybe the TKC Christmas Party will now commence, briefly interrupted by the cheerful birthday greet.
I was wrong. The whole event was to be my birthday surprise. When we went down seconds earlier, the question as to where will our party be set never entered my mind, probably because I was too glad with the banner. The area with the delightful setting turned out to be our venue. They had a kiddie birthday cake, and beside it was a framed caricature of mine (as Superman), created by Portia, overnight without sleeping. I was in the process of getting flabbergasted already: TKC prepared something big for me. And it didn’t stop there: a clown appeared, asked me to sit on a monobloc chair, and he led the crowd of students and parents in singing the birthday song. By this time, I was already very overwhelmed. I covered my face for a time: part of me wasn’t sure if I indeed deserve the celebration. The scene was surreal. Mr. Clown then asked me for a message for the class, and it was hard for me to speak. I knew I had to say something funny, if I don’t want a sobfest.
There were 24 TKC students in attendance: Justin, Arvin, Job, JP, Jethro, Dan, David, Niccolo, Josh, Kit, Conrad, JJ, Marckie, Juan, Aldrich, Miguel, Emil, Jon, Portia, Zarra, Mia, Elysse, Justine, and Aveline. Which might be coincidental, since I will be turning 24 by the twenty-second of the month. Before we had our dinner, the clown invited five boys and five girls to participate in a game. The girl and boy groups were to run in front, let a garter run through their body, return to the line, and this goes on until each person has done the deed twice. Since the girls were partly conscious, the boys won. There was also a “bring me” game.
Before eating, Juan mentioned something like “akala nyo sir, hindi namin inaasikaso yung party a.” True. So that made the surprise work. Save for the unanswered text messages and an early group going to Mia’s place, there was no hint of a surprise. Besides, I should never expect one, for disappointment will just get the better of me. The food was abundant and fine, but I couldn’t processing its taste; rather, I was trying to remember the details of the area, and I was hopping from one table to another too. Oh haha there was sorbetes with kuyang sorbetero at the side.
The clown continued with his act. I thought he was relatively humorless at times, especially when Camia boys say something bluntly. Oh, at the beginning of the surprise, he said something like “diba, pangarap mong maging clown?” to which I was surprised. I have an imaginary long list of things that I want to try at least for a day, and being a clown is one of them, but I do not remember telling that to anyone.
Mr. Clown then introduced Mr. Magician. The tricks he performed were already seen before, but there’s something about doing magic acts that sustains my attention and awe. He asked me several times to blow his hand, and many things, notably the white bird, appeared. He seemed to be more personable, and he asked me to “drink” milk too. In his most whoa-provoking act, he asked JP (who had magic tricks – more of cheats – of his own) to stand to be decorated by materials emanating from his oddly empty paper bag. There was also a pabitin of goods, and I was asked to shatter a palayok of chocolates and coin (I needed a second try haha). The boys collected the coins so they would have money for their computer shop game.
Juan then asked everyone to watch a PowerPoint presentation from a laptop (there was no projector; nobody minded actually), prepared by Jon. Since he forgot to add sound effects, Jon narrated the whole slide show with live sounds, which almost made the group roll on the floor laughing all the while. Jon is a natural irreverent entertainer, way back in our MTP 1 days, but he has to showcase more of it to TKC. Fortunately, the narration was enough compensation. The slide show was heartwarming at the least, with enough mushy material that I am at home with.
Probably the highlight of the event, at least in my perspective, was when everybody present stated their birthday greeting. Understandably, some of them were a bit shy, since it has to be done with a microphone. A lot too were unprepared, and some perhaps couldn’t say it in words. Still, the statements were moving. There were funny quips, like Portia’s “sana gumaling kang magturo” and Dan’s “I hope you wouldn’t die.” Emil wished that I be his junior year Math coach and teacher yet again, but that might not be possible inasmuch as it was touching. Remarkable, and at the same time hilarious, were the metaphors of Job (eggshell) and Niccolo (trash can).
It’s just natural that I give out my message in return. Still overwhelmed, my message lacked coherence, and it became a bit lengthy when I tried to give imaginary gifts to everyone present. When I finished, they had party poppers ready, and Job positioned his directly at me. Good thing it hit me only on my left arm, and the red mark lingered. Apparently, Job wasn’t aware that its pressure could hurt. There were raffle prizes, and Juan and Justine asked me to pick out the names. I eventually picked mine. Haha. Jethro won the grand prize.
The last part involved Magic Sing. David, Niccolo, and the other boys trooped to the computer shop to play, while some others had their emo moments in a corner. The remaining boys and Justine surprised me with their vast knowledge of songs that can be categorized as jologs. Job was too hyper.
All good things have to end. I had a lot of stuff to bring home, and the boys and I contorted ourselves in Mia’s van, which will take us to Pisay. The girls – Mia, Zarra, Portia, and Aveline – rode the car. Elysse, Mackie, and Dan left earlier, while Josh, Aldrich, Kit, Justine, Niccolo and Jethro had their own means. The boys were teasing the emo guys in the van. Soon, we were in Pisay.
I waited until everybody was fetched. Justin always amazes me with his disappearing acts: nobody notices if he left already. Finally, I rode a cab with David (dropped off in Welcome Rotonda) and Emil (perennial commuting buddy, dropped off in Blumentritt Ext. cor. España). When I reached home, I just had to text people to check if they’re home already, but more to thank them for their presence and for pulling off a surprise. It was the first time that a surprise was meant for me, and the elation was simply spontaneous. True, I brought a lot of things when I returned, but the pleasant memories were just more abundant.
Wednesday, December 12. Two days after the Outbound, I was to meet Thy Kingdom Camia again, this time for our Christmas Party. It was supposed to be an overnight outing either in Subic or Laguna, but apparently the plans didn’t push through. Organizing the party was a bit of a mess for me, since a lot has already expressed that they will not go, or at least seek permission from their parents first and they weren’t optimistic. Besides, I had to attend to field trip matters first. Good thing I remembered a conversation between Kit’s mom and myself regarding a Christmas party, and she was very willing to coordinate with Aveline’s dad (Camia’s PTA president). I asked Kit and Aveline to talk to their parents, and Juan and I also “summoned” Mia to prepare her place as well.
A day after the field trip, Mrs. Medina sent me a text message that the party’s already arranged, and it was to be held in the clubhouse near Mia’s home in Rizal. Camia had to meet in Pisay at 2 PM. Having someone else to organize was such a relief, as I was becoming impatient already since there were group messages that I sent to TKC that were ignored in general, and only one person replied in one simply to correct the date I specified in the text message. And the day before the TKC Party, I was with Jasmin 09, so I didn’t have to text people while watching a movie or whatever. After the Rehipons, I called Mrs. Medina as soon as I got home and asked what else should be done. She said all I had to do was show up. Wow. Plus, since she contacted the parents of TKC, more students were sure of coming. Suddenly, I felt again that this was a party indeed, since, as they say, the more, the many-er. I slept comfortably that night.
The morning of the party, TKC again did not answer my text messages, save for Josh and Mia, who resides near the Village East clubhouse. Oh well, Mrs. Medina guaranteed a good number of attendees already, so I should not worry much. I went to SM North EDSA first to buy some gifts and a party shirt before going to Pisay. While I was lining up at the gift wrapping section, Mia informed me that the first batch of people who met up in Pisay were in the clubhouse already. I found it odd at first (that people went ahead without my knowledge), but then, there might not be enough space in the vehicle, so a second trip might be needed. I was to ride with Arvin, JP, Niccolo, JJ, and Miguel.
A little past 2 PM, I arrived in Pisay, and Arvin was there, while I saw Miguel and JP coming too. I told them to text me if our sundo (Kit and mom) arrives already, since I had to get some stuff in the Math Unit. At the fourth floor, It seemed that it was a normal school day: Ma’am Joyce, Sir Petri, Ma’am Dinah, and Sir Sherwin were there, finishing their late lunch and fixing their tables. So I stayed their and chatted for a while. Then the three students came up, this time with JJ, who’s fresh from an injury that caused his absence in the outbound. I checked out his stitches on his inner lower lip. JP was busy making him laugh, since it hurts for him to do so. All of us then went for the front lobby to wait for Niccolo.
It turned out that Niccolo will be very late; Mrs. Medina and Mrs. Pangilinan were already thinking of different plans to transport us to the clubhouse without Niccolo. Since Kit’s car was caught in EDSA traffic, Mia’s van went to Pisay instead for us. At around 3:30 PM, at last, Niccolo came all the way from Cavite, so he has his own transpo. Since he had a PSP (probably the most popular gift for male teens this season), JJ and JP went with him, while Arvin and Miguel were with me in Mia’s van. Mia asked to be texted when we are near the clubhouse already. Arvin and Miguel were talking but I couldn’t hear what they were discussing, so I whiled away time with my iPod Shuffle. I just checked on the two nice guys once in a while.
I texted Mia that we already made a right turn in Robinson’s East, meaning we were about 15 minutes away. I texted again when we entered Village East already. When the vehicle’s only a few meters away from the clubhouse, I noticed that the first floor was decorated, and the tables were finely set. “Oh, there’s another party in the area,” I said to myself. Mia, Aveline, and another girl welcomed us in the place, and Mia told me: “sir, sa taas tayo,” sort of confirming that there was indeed a different gathering in the same place. And Kit’s mom also said something to that effect. Upstairs, I never looked for the food or the arrangement, but for Camia, who were clustered together in one corner of the floor. They were holding a large colorful banner, and they shouted “Happy Birthday!” I was half-expecting this part since they know my birthday occurs in the Christmas season; and I was genuinely smiling. At the back of the party banner were messages written in different colors. They motioned that we should go down. So maybe the TKC Christmas Party will now commence, briefly interrupted by the cheerful birthday greet.
I was wrong. The whole event was to be my birthday surprise. When we went down seconds earlier, the question as to where will our party be set never entered my mind, probably because I was too glad with the banner. The area with the delightful setting turned out to be our venue. They had a kiddie birthday cake, and beside it was a framed caricature of mine (as Superman), created by Portia, overnight without sleeping. I was in the process of getting flabbergasted already: TKC prepared something big for me. And it didn’t stop there: a clown appeared, asked me to sit on a monobloc chair, and he led the crowd of students and parents in singing the birthday song. By this time, I was already very overwhelmed. I covered my face for a time: part of me wasn’t sure if I indeed deserve the celebration. The scene was surreal. Mr. Clown then asked me for a message for the class, and it was hard for me to speak. I knew I had to say something funny, if I don’t want a sobfest.
There were 24 TKC students in attendance: Justin, Arvin, Job, JP, Jethro, Dan, David, Niccolo, Josh, Kit, Conrad, JJ, Marckie, Juan, Aldrich, Miguel, Emil, Jon, Portia, Zarra, Mia, Elysse, Justine, and Aveline. Which might be coincidental, since I will be turning 24 by the twenty-second of the month. Before we had our dinner, the clown invited five boys and five girls to participate in a game. The girl and boy groups were to run in front, let a garter run through their body, return to the line, and this goes on until each person has done the deed twice. Since the girls were partly conscious, the boys won. There was also a “bring me” game.
Before eating, Juan mentioned something like “akala nyo sir, hindi namin inaasikaso yung party a.” True. So that made the surprise work. Save for the unanswered text messages and an early group going to Mia’s place, there was no hint of a surprise. Besides, I should never expect one, for disappointment will just get the better of me. The food was abundant and fine, but I couldn’t processing its taste; rather, I was trying to remember the details of the area, and I was hopping from one table to another too. Oh haha there was sorbetes with kuyang sorbetero at the side.
The clown continued with his act. I thought he was relatively humorless at times, especially when Camia boys say something bluntly. Oh, at the beginning of the surprise, he said something like “diba, pangarap mong maging clown?” to which I was surprised. I have an imaginary long list of things that I want to try at least for a day, and being a clown is one of them, but I do not remember telling that to anyone.
Mr. Clown then introduced Mr. Magician. The tricks he performed were already seen before, but there’s something about doing magic acts that sustains my attention and awe. He asked me several times to blow his hand, and many things, notably the white bird, appeared. He seemed to be more personable, and he asked me to “drink” milk too. In his most whoa-provoking act, he asked JP (who had magic tricks – more of cheats – of his own) to stand to be decorated by materials emanating from his oddly empty paper bag. There was also a pabitin of goods, and I was asked to shatter a palayok of chocolates and coin (I needed a second try haha). The boys collected the coins so they would have money for their computer shop game.
Juan then asked everyone to watch a PowerPoint presentation from a laptop (there was no projector; nobody minded actually), prepared by Jon. Since he forgot to add sound effects, Jon narrated the whole slide show with live sounds, which almost made the group roll on the floor laughing all the while. Jon is a natural irreverent entertainer, way back in our MTP 1 days, but he has to showcase more of it to TKC. Fortunately, the narration was enough compensation. The slide show was heartwarming at the least, with enough mushy material that I am at home with.
Probably the highlight of the event, at least in my perspective, was when everybody present stated their birthday greeting. Understandably, some of them were a bit shy, since it has to be done with a microphone. A lot too were unprepared, and some perhaps couldn’t say it in words. Still, the statements were moving. There were funny quips, like Portia’s “sana gumaling kang magturo” and Dan’s “I hope you wouldn’t die.” Emil wished that I be his junior year Math coach and teacher yet again, but that might not be possible inasmuch as it was touching. Remarkable, and at the same time hilarious, were the metaphors of Job (eggshell) and Niccolo (trash can).
It’s just natural that I give out my message in return. Still overwhelmed, my message lacked coherence, and it became a bit lengthy when I tried to give imaginary gifts to everyone present. When I finished, they had party poppers ready, and Job positioned his directly at me. Good thing it hit me only on my left arm, and the red mark lingered. Apparently, Job wasn’t aware that its pressure could hurt. There were raffle prizes, and Juan and Justine asked me to pick out the names. I eventually picked mine. Haha. Jethro won the grand prize.
The last part involved Magic Sing. David, Niccolo, and the other boys trooped to the computer shop to play, while some others had their emo moments in a corner. The remaining boys and Justine surprised me with their vast knowledge of songs that can be categorized as jologs. Job was too hyper.
All good things have to end. I had a lot of stuff to bring home, and the boys and I contorted ourselves in Mia’s van, which will take us to Pisay. The girls – Mia, Zarra, Portia, and Aveline – rode the car. Elysse, Mackie, and Dan left earlier, while Josh, Aldrich, Kit, Justine, Niccolo and Jethro had their own means. The boys were teasing the emo guys in the van. Soon, we were in Pisay.
I waited until everybody was fetched. Justin always amazes me with his disappearing acts: nobody notices if he left already. Finally, I rode a cab with David (dropped off in Welcome Rotonda) and Emil (perennial commuting buddy, dropped off in Blumentritt Ext. cor. España). When I reached home, I just had to text people to check if they’re home already, but more to thank them for their presence and for pulling off a surprise. It was the first time that a surprise was meant for me, and the elation was simply spontaneous. True, I brought a lot of things when I returned, but the pleasant memories were just more abundant.
Labels: Camia Christmas Party
posted by mardan at 11:39 AM
1 comments
