Atty. Farah G. Decano

 

MY brother forwarded to me a video about the origins of the famous song, “Pasko Na, Sinta Ko.”  It was allegedly based on the story of Alfredo Gutierrez whose first love, Melba, left him for the United States just before Christmas.

According to the narration, Alfredo was then a student at the UP College of Music when he met Melba.  They were both members of the UP Concert Chorus and had shared the same passion for music.  They travelled all over the Philippines as choir members and love blossomed between them.  When she migrated to the States to take higher studies upon the wishes of her parents, the young Alfredo was more than devastated.  Professor Aurelio Estanislao witnessed his student’s inconsolable agony and drew inspiration from Alfredo’s pain.  He wrote the lyrics of a song that talked about a person aching for his beloved during the yuletide season.  Professor Francisco Dandan arranged and composed the music.

The song became part of the mainstream when Gary Valenciano popularized it in 1986.  It easily became a classic played every Christmas season.  Pasko Na, Sinta Ko’s lyrics were written in simple and general terms which enabled many heartbroken Filipinos to relate to the story.

While the real love story behind Pasko Na, Sinta Ko abruptly ended and never resumed, the song, however, does not only inspire acceptance of a tragic fate.  It challenges the listener to avoid it.

The following stanza should jolt the pride, complacency, the sense of entitlement and feeling of helplessness out of lovers on the verge of a permanent break-up:

 

“Sayang, Sinta, ang sinumpaan

At pagtitinginang tunay

Nais mo bang kalimutang ganap

Ang ating suyuan at galak?”

 

Above lyrics force the audience to evaluate the importance of their relationship and the value of their significant other.  Are they really prepared to let go and suffer the many Christmases feeling melancholic and forlorn?  Are they really ready to endure what may be a bottomless hollow in their hearts?  This song is definitely not only for those whose relationships are beyond salvage.  It challenges listeners to avert what perhaps may be lifetime of regret and misery.

I learned of a recent story about two people who are so much in love with each other but broke up due to failed expectations, unresolved issues and unhealed past hurts.  During their separation, they stumbled on the video of Pasko Na, Sinta Ko which narrated how the song came to be.  Suddenly, a surge of realizations enveloped their persons and they miraculously saw each other’s worth.

One of them said, “I’d rather have you, and your seeming inadequacies, in my life, than have a life without you.”  This person realized that her significant other’s shortcomings were illusory and that the deficiency was actually hers.  She finally recognized that the other was the best thing that ever happened to her.  She acknowledged to herself that she was insensitive, reckless and stupid. That night, she wrote the most heartfelt apology quoting most parts of this song.

Their short separation made them realized what they were giving up if they let go.  Love wins and true love indeed conquers.

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