Scrooge & white elephants

We recently watched "A Christmas Carol" at the Proscenium Theater courtesy of Vienn Tonglico-Guzman of Rockwell.

- CITO BELTRAN

I was told it was a kiddie musical about Christmas but we went anyway.That decision led to discovering The Proscenium at Rockwell, which was a pleasant experience in terms of the right way to build, operate and manage a mixed-use residential/commercial establishment. It was a first for us in terms of ample parking, proper signages, curated dining outlets and a great theater as well.

I was not too keen about watching a musical for kids, but to our surprise, the play was actually more mature in content and timely in its narrative concerning peoples' materialism, community and the value of gratitude.

Yes, we have all heard the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge and have walked away thinking the lesson was all about greed. But the story is really about failed relationships, failed marriage, broken families and opportunities lost to selfishness.

The story shows us the difference every person could make in other people's meager lives while hardly making a dent in our pockets, but replacing our "hearts of stone with a heart of flesh."

For people my age, it was a reminder that death comes sooner than later, and that regret is a bitch and powerful karma that we all have to account for. Confronted with our sins and mortality, we quickly sober up to our mistakes and poor judgement.

Many Filipinos try or do their best not to be an Ebenezer Scrooge. We are known for our generosity at the cost of self-denial, most especially during Christmas.