My Favourite Part About This Time of Year and How I Would Spend One Million Dollars

This week's questions are both pretty exciting so I answered them both. I tagged my six talented sisters to participate in this week's fun contest.🦋

Ladies of Hive Community Contest #55

For this week we want to know:
1️⃣ What is your favorite thing about this time of year?
Or
2️⃣ How would you spend one million dollars?

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What is your favorite thing about this time of year? _{The time I get to spend with my loved ones!}

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In the Philippines, as we all know, the Christmas season begins when we hit the ber months (thus the countdown for the holiday begins by September). Now that it is already November, as Christmas is fast approaching, the air gets colder as the love surrounds us gets warmer. My favorite thing about this time of year is the time I get to spend with my loved ones--my family and dear friends. As I am a people-person, spending time with humans close to my heart actually gives me an unexplainable sense of contentment and bliss. It is good to note that when it's almost Christmas in the Philippines, there are many occasions and celebrations that bind families together. It's what I love amongst Filipino families: the close-knit familial bond.

Speaking of bonding, yesterday, I was more than happy to spend time with my nieces in a mall's arcade. For the first time since March 2020, my nieces were finally able to enter the mall. Imagine their overwhelming and bursting happiness at that news!! As I became their "nanny" for an hour, I smiled at their bliss--ah, what genuine carefree happiness do kids have, it's a joy to be able to witness it and get inspired by it. I absorbed their exuberant selves and I felt like I am a kid again.

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During the Christmas season, we usually spend more time together with my family. There are times when we eat in malls or have our photos taken as well.

This was taken in December of 2018. We wore green and red: Christmas colors!

This was taken yesterday, as my sisters and I, along with my lovely nieces, were out for lunch, as a post-celebration of my ate Rica's birthday.

Yesterday, I was blessed to meet with my Hive friends a.k.a. my now extended family. We talked over coffee as we discussed plans for the HCBC Christmas Party. I love how Christmas brings people together!

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Coffee date with Gerel, Sasha and Klause

We went for some shopping after being filled with so much caffeine lol.

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Obligatory mirror selfies lol

This time of year, I also love the decorations in malls, showcasing the vibrant festivities we are all looking forward to with much excitement! Christmastime means joy. ✨

This is the "Christmas brings people together" personified in a photo. There was an activity in the mall yesterday and so many people flocked just to participate in the activities with their respective families, of course.

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How would you spend one million dollars?

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If I have one million dollars (roughly 50 Million Philippine pesos, more or less) with me, I would spend it in four ways, namely:

👉Buy House and Lot for my parents: Their dream house by the sea! (around 15 Million Pesos or 296,850 US dollars, in cost, as it is a provincial lot) My Mama and Papa have raised us in the busy city, but my Papa is a Probinsyano by the heart, hailing from the lovely province of Negros. Both of them have expressed that they want to grow really old in a house by the sea. If I have the money, in no doubt, I would definitely spend it on buying my parents' dream home! It would be an honor to see them happily growing old, chasing sunups and sundowns while listening to the call of the waves.

👉Invest 15 Million Pesos/296,850 US dollars for my dream coffee shop-and-bookstore business and invest in the stock market and cryptocurrency as well. Since 2014, I have always wanted to own a coffee shoppe because cafes have made such an impact in my life! Now my idea of my "own" cafe would be that of a cafe-slash-bookstore because I would love to spark the love of books to all people! I guess if I had the right resources of books as a child, I could've been "more" than who I am today, so I want young kids to develop the love of books because it will definitely change the course of their lives for the good!! As this endeavour has profit, I would save it for my dream house and the publishing cost of my book, as I would really want to become a book author in the future.

👉Give 15 million Pesos (296,850 US dollars) anonymously to charities for orphaned or street children or out-of-school youth, abused and trafficked women, outcasted elderly in nursing homes so that they can receive better care and assistance, and hopefully, it may give them hope amidst the dark places that they seem to be in. I have always told myself that whenever I am given a huge amount of money, I would give some to people who need it more than I do. Because I can make more money as I work, and these people in these facilities cannot make money and they solely depend on the system/government/NGOs for their daily needs. So I guess even a little money can go a long way in helping them survive and thrive.

👉Spend the rest of the 5 million Pesos (98,950 US dollars) for my family, especially my parents, as I spoil them with a few international plane travels and gloriously tasty food and beverages they haven't tried yet! I have always wanted to take my parents to see the world because they did not have that luxury during their time--they were too busy working to provide food on our table. If I had the luxury of money, I would definitely take them to see places! My father has not tried riding a plane EVER in his sixty-nine years and my mother has tried riding a place ONLY twice in her sixty-three years. As my parents, in all their might, tried so hard to give the world to me, to us, I want to give them the world as well, by travelling and seeing what the rest of the Earth looks like, I guess they would love that very much. It would mean a lot to me to see them happy in their old age, living a life free of financial stress, and enjoying everything--the heavenly food of all varieties, the sunrises, the sunsets, the plane rides, the beach trips, the tan lines, the memories we will be making.

My Papa and Mama😍

I cannot argue that the "beach is my happy place" for all of us in the family.💙

To move forward with giving as I have been given much so much I can give as well...

I would like to invite these women to join the contest, too! I am tagging my lovely sisters @swaycanete @eeventuree @gwenfinity @morenatravels @krystalogue and @sassycebuana to join this week's contest and have some fun answering the questions. 🤗😘

‘Til the next post, hivers! Remember that you are loved beyond borders and beyond time & space. Okay? Okay. 💛❤️

Ciao for now! 🤗🥰

This original article is written by Jong, the blogger behind writetowander.com. All photos are hers, too.

Jong CL

_{Hive-llo, everyone! Welcome to Jong's little buzz-y corner in Hive. Jong believes that every person she meets can teach her a thing or two (or three, or more) about life. She shares her love for life here-- the captivating beauty of life! To be more specific, but not necessarily in this order, she's interested in: wisdom, love, poetry, single life, books, travel, health&fitness, fashion, gratitude, unspoken hurts, heartbreaks and healing. Lastly, she loves Jesus.}

_{Do you like her content? Make sure to upvote, then! Drop some love by leaving a comment-- she really appreciates listening to your thoughts! 💛 Feel free to reblog if her post resonated with you. Kindly follow her to not miss a post! Happy hiving, loves! 💛}