#christmasrush

I just want to share my experience from this past Christmas Eve. I went to Landers, a large grocery store in my city, to pick up a few final items for our Noche Buena (midnight feast). I left the store around 7 PM, expecting to be home by 8 PM for a light dinner with my family.

About ten minutes into my ride, I felt an imbalance in my Himalayan 450. The motorcycle is already a bit of a challenge to balance, especially with a heavy load, so I initially thought the weight in my top box and two pannier boxes was the cause. A fellow rider on the road beeped at me to flag me down, alerting me that my back tire was flat.

I pulled over to the side of the road to check, and sure enough, the tire was completely flat. I pulled out my portable wireless tire inflator, but putting air in it was taking much longer than expected. Feeling around the tire with my hands, I found the source of the leak: air was rushing out around a nail that had pinched my tire.

Here's the biggest challenge in my country, especially in the city: Christmas Eve is a major holiday, and during this time, most motorcycle repair shops close early. While a few towing companies still operate, they often charge double their original rates.

Another option was to leave my motorcycle parked in a safe spot, like a gas station with security guards. However, I wasn't comfortable with that risk. Furthermore, booking a Grab (our version of Uber) or taxi would also cost a premium, as these service operators often take advantage of holiday surges—a common, albeit unregulated, practice in our city. While laws exist to prohibit such abuses, the hassle of navigating the legal process felt as excruciating as being stranded on the road.

Reluctant to deal with those options, I decided on a way forward that was risky, slow, but at least kept me moving. I risked destroying my inner tube by driving the motorcycle at a mere 20 kilometers per hour to the next gas station. My plan was simple: use their air pump, drive until the tire flattened again, and repeat the process.

I did this for four gas stations before I finally found an open "vulcanizing shop," a makeshift tire service stand. I had passed more than ten closed shops by then, as both the business owners and their mechanics were celebrating Christmas Eve with their families.

Fortunately, I found one shop still open to provide service. The whole repair process took them about an hour. My journey from where I first stopped to the final gas station and then to that sole open vulcanizing shop had taken a total of two hours.

I finally left the shop at 10 PM and got home by 11:00 PM, just in time for Noche Buena. When I arrived home, I was exhausted.

However, a cold beer helped wash away my irritation and the feeling of a ruined evening.

While resting, I had a realization. During my journey, as challenging and difficult as it was, images from the road flashed through my mind:

Workers and commuters struggling to get home, with buses, jeepneys, and cabs all full.

Homeless people in traffic, knocking on vehicle doors asking for money or food.

A road accident, involving people who would now be celebrating Christmas Eve in a hospital or police station.

Yes, my situation was difficult at the time, but so many others face far worse hardships every day. I felt a deep sympathy for them and offered a prayer from my corner. I gave thanks for my own blessings: the capacity to navigate a difficult situation and get through it, to be comfortable at home eating and dining with loved ones, and to have the funds to pay for services to help me out of a bind.

These reflections brought my mood back to the true holiday spirit, with prayers for all the people I saw on that road, hoping they, too, could get through life's challenges.

May God bless and guide us all with wisdom and strength.

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