Rise and Shine

To someone who has attended all (except when I was in school abroad) our annual clan reunions to end and begin the year—the 81st just concluded—I’d describe each one as, “Same, same.” 

Same energy, same enthusiasm, same fun, same respect for our forebears—who started it all—and  same reverence for our common faith.  Only tiny details (theme, IDs, competition) change to cater to varying birth and age limitations.  

Those days when my battery was fast-charging, I’d be part of the planning process. Now low-bat,  I  have barely enough energy to bring old albums and files to the venue and let the young ones take over. 

As a tradition, the Chit (my mom) sub-clan (SC) would arrive in custom uniform t-shirts, which we change to a different one the next day and the next. In advertising, and in our sub-clan, we fiercely call that branding. Today, branding is unheard of. 

But not to the non-seniors in our SC. They are always concept-driven, hyped up to win the SC presentation contest. I guess competitiveness is in the genes. 

The concept: Rising Up (based on the reunion theme). What we do when we rise up every morning. Everyone in the SC was ordered to make a video of his rising up activities. 

The execution: (10 minutes) 

Part 1: Live intro. 

Night. zzzzzz

Morning. Rise and shine!  

Part 2: Video (with music and voice over) 

VO: “Routine. Typical. Every day. Waking up. Exercising. Cooking. Walking the dog. Doing regular things. Living one day on to the next one. And the next one. We often think that God only works when something extraordinary happens. But He's there, even in the everyday. 

VO: “Now on its 81st year, the Vergara Clan annual reunion might already seem ordinary or routine. Something we do every single year. But the fact that we are still here, together, shows that God is continuously working in our family. He is a constant presence in our everyday."  

VO: "God is with us in our rising up. In fact, He is whom we rise up for."

VO: “The Lord is here, with us, with His abounding grace and love. His mercies are new every morning. As we celebrate 81 years of being together, we look forward to the 82nd. And the next. And the next. We PASS IT ON."

That foreshadows the coming 82nd reunion theme, which our SC will host. 

The curtain call:  

The winner: 

Isaiah 60:1. "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you."