An old cliché goes, “less is more”. With the little who came to the party, the night was no less than the best night within the premises of Cebu. Albeit such claim is a bit bias, I refuse to consider others to be a bar above what we had. I can confidently claim that the PsycNight was a success; and a fun one at that. Cheers to everyone who came, who saw, and who conquered!

Weeks of hellish and grueling preparations; from the trivial to the significant, almost all was covered thoroughly. From inefficacious invitations of fellow Psychology majors, where almost all showed no interest, to foraging the jungle of Psychology talent to fill in the intermission numbers, the weeks before showed no sympathy. From the contemplation of the cheapest, yet commensurate prizes, to the actual procurement within the congested agoras of Lapu-Lapu, the weeks before were laden with intervals of malignant sanity (sometimes you wish you were insane).

December 18, and the day has come. The ever-awaited day has spawned niggling sensations. The morning was set for officers and volunteers to set-up the venue for the actual event. Few came, but less is more. With time gaining pace, the unfinished venue was becoming a pressure cooker. But less is more. With calm minds, we managed to procure what we lacked, and leaped on the deep ravine of fate. We charged towards the unknown, and we geared for a night of fun; fun that only Psychology students know how.

The night, and unbeknownst to all, the nuances of the night were of last minute. Time gained pace, and caught up on us, but we managed to outrun it on the last second. The photowall tarpaulin was printed on the actual day, and it served its purpose and more. It was the star on top of the Christmas tree.

We were set to start at 6:00pm, and being Filipinos as we are, we never actually started on that time. 7:00pm came, and less than 20 were on the venue. Fear crippled us, and we prepared for the worse. Beside ourselves, we hoped for more. And more came. As groups came by the minute, we got relieved, pulled back ourselves and prepared the one thing we aimed to do: share the fun!

7:30pm. The exact time we started. From 6:00pm, up to 7:30pm, we anticipated for a long night. With less than 60 students who came, we got disappointed. But fun does not come in numbers, nor does it sprout when hundreds of feet trembles the wooden floor. Fun comes from those who are willing to share a piece of themselves with everyone else. And what appropriate time for everyone to share a little or a chunk of themselves to others than the season of joy, love, and sharing?

3rd year Psychology students comprised the larger chunk of the statistics, 4th years next (although it’s a bit disappointing on how few came), 2nd year, and 1st year, with only one. It’s quite a sad story, but things don’t always happen the way you wanted it to be. Personally, it was a shock for me when I only saw two 1st years, and the one happened to go home due to an emergency. But the show must go on, and go on it did.

The emcees, Joanne Abejo and Kris Alarin, 3rd year Psychology students, infused a young life into the night that started old. They were a sight to see, a frolic to hear, and a show to behold. No amount of generosity uttered is ever enough for PsycSoc to show its gratitude. With unnerving impromptus and unexpected twists, the two showed everyone on the event how talented the Psychology students are.

The night kicked-off with Jorge Matig-a heading the invocations. It was assigned to him minutes before the incipience. He was followed by our beloved teacher and adviser, Sir Fish with his lucid recall of past experiences; he opened the night with an inspiring thought: fun is essential. School should not suck the life out of you, and you should not let it. And the presence of another teacher, Ms. Velasco, was an energizer. We never expected teachers to come, though we welcome the possibility, and having two of them immersing with us, was a breath of fresh air.

Knoll and company presented their piece first. It loosened the cork, and relaxed the stiffened muscles of tensioned students. Robz and company, could compete with the Jabbawockeez. Pronie and Rebecca, are always a show to anticipate; they never fail to resuscitate the frazzled. Patryz, with her gutsy performance, awed and hastened the circulation of seated audience. And not to forget, Rex and Tom, who relaxed the atmosphere with an acoustic serenade. Mau, together with Pronie, sang an impromptu, but still elicited applauses and praises. Psychology in USC is a jungle of talents.

Mini-game injected intervals of active fun. And with prizes to behold, it was not only entertaining but gratifying. And then the highlight of the night, the Psychobabble happened. It was a first, and hopefully not the last. It was not only informative, but also fun. Rousing the competitive spirits of everyone, those who came formed groups and competed against each other. In the end, the School of Fish, and appropriately at that since Sir Fish was a member of the group, won the contest. Nonetheless, everybody deserves applauses and a salute from the officers.

The night ended as quickly as it came. Weeks of life-sucking preparations ended with a blast of Psychology fun. With the little who came, the amount of laughter and smiles will never be topped with anything else. I do not wish ill to those who did not come, they might have other more important things to tend to, but they surely missed a night poured by the gods with incomparable delight.

Less is more. Less is more. Fun really does not come in sheer numbers, but in sheer willingness to share a piece of ourselves to those who are willing enough to accept it. Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year ahead.