Rita Avila plans a ‘Noche Buena with Jesus’

Rita Avila (right) with husband FM Reyes

Q: How do you plan to celebrate the Christmas season amid the pandemic?

A: We (Rita and husband TV director FM Reyes) usually hear Mass and then sing a happy birthday song to Jesus (before we eat our “noche buena”). We would reserve a seat especially for Him in our dinner table. Our Baby Jesus statue is always placed on top of our dining table. But with the pandemic, we [just] might hear Mass online. And oh, of course, we’ll visit our angel son (Ellia Jesu, who died after undergoing heart surgery only less than a month after being born) on Christmas Day. —Marinel Cruz INQ