Inayan and Gawis ay Biag

I just came from a road trip with my son. I needed some photos of various Cordillera cultural icons for a project and I thought that this would be a good opportunity to let my son, and eventually and hopefully soon every single one of my children, in whose veins run the same blood as the people who call this awe-inspiring mountain range home, to experience the same sense of belonging that I did from the very first time my mother brought me here as a child, to the time I would come here every time I needed some time away from the dog-eat-dog world that was, and is, Manila as a young man, to the time I decided this is the place I want to spend my life in.

Banaue, Ifuago, ca. 2014

As a child I fell in love with Baguio specially when it rains. I loved the warmth of the homes of my mother's friends, and the warmth of their friendship. I was awed by the serenity of Sagada, the majesty of the Ifugao landscape, the scent of the mountains, I could go on and on. I wasn't surprised at all when one day, after a trip alone across the Cordilleras that ended with a stay at some friends' home in Baguio, I decided to give up our place in Manila and make this beautiful city my home. 

We arrived in Kiangan at sunrise, and after going around the town, all the while reminding my son that this was where his grandmother spent her early years as a child, we proceeded to Banaue. It felt good that some friends I met there more than a decade ago, particularly the owners of a restaurant that would eventually be my regular stop whenever I was there, remembered me. Like old friends, we were welcomed warmly. We left our bags at the restaurant before proceeding to Batad.

What used to be a 2 to 3-hour trek is now a mere hour's walk and if the project of building a road from the main road proceeds as scheduled, by early next year motor vehicles would now be able to go all the way to Batad. And while the thought that even the physically-challenged, persons with disabilities, or the elderly will be able to experience the beauty of the place was welcome, I also wondered how the influx of tourists would affect the culture and landscape of Batad.
We have seen this in Banaue, where there are now less farmers, carvers, weavers and way more store-owners, innkeepers and restaurateurs.

My son, Leon, taking it all in (Demang, Sagada)

We proceeded to Sagada from there and while having coffee at a roadside cafe, we noticed how every 15 minutes or so a huge truck would pass carrying heavy construction equipment - more roads are being paved.

I needed a photo of a Patpatayan and an authentic dap-ay, which had us abusing our van over rocky roads to get to Demang, Sagada where we met Biag, the current village chief. He was named after Biag, an ancestor who is said to be the first settler in Sagada. Biag is a staunch advocate of the preservation of indigenous culture. "This is one of the curses of modern education - the younger generation now know very little about native wisdom." His house, built in the mid-80's, was the last one built through the Ug-ogbo, or reciprocal labor system. "I did not spend a single centavo on labor when I built this house," Biag shared, "people in the community all contributed, that's how it was before. And later on, when the time comes that they need my help either in building a house or working their farm, I will be there for them. But now? Everybody wants money." 

With Biag of Demang, Sagada

He's especially saddened that the concept of "Inayan," which may be translated simply as taboo or "must never be done," which Biag considers as among the most important life lessons that a person must learn, is now lost on the youth. For example, it is Inayan when someone diverts the flow of water to his own farm and deprives others of irrigation. It is Inayan to cause so much damage to nature for one's own selfish interest.

While listening to Biag talk, I was reminded of the more than 700 trees that were cut on Mt. Cabuyao to pave the way to a resort owned by the family of our very own congressman. That is, as I understood from Biag, definitely Inayan. It makes me wonder how Congressman Nicasio Aliping, now the representative of the people of Baguio, an Igorot who traces his roots to where Biag himself comes from, can do something like that.

If there's one life lesson that I wish my son will never forget from this road trip, it is the thought that Gawis ay Biag, or the beautiful life, can only be achieved if one lives it in harmony not only with the community but more importantly with the environment.

Baguio is weeping

A gloom has been hanging over Baguio these past days. The clouds that blanket these mountains after a rainfall used to remind me of a mother gently wrapping a child in a blanket for a warm, good night’s sleep. Now, the grey that envelopes what was once thought to be the most beautiful hill station in Asia helps paint a portrait of a tired, abused mother. Baguio is weeping.

Because the very people who are supposed to protect her are perpetrators of that abuse. They take and take from her, and almost never think of giving back. Our mothers always reminded us as children: “put things back where you found them.” It’s as if their own mothers never taught them that. Or perhaps they never listened.

“Never take what’s not yours.” I’ve always admired the Igorot concept of land stewardship. Nobody owns the land, we are mere stewards. They do cut down trees whenever necessary, and before they do they pray to the spirits that dwell in those trees. And they give back whenever they take (take a tree, plant more trees), and they never take more than what nature can provide. They know they have to keep in mind the welfare, too, of the future generation – their children, and their children’s children.

There are those who look down on the Igorots’ concept of spirituality, it’s pagan, uncivilized, but to me the thought that a spirit lives in every single living thing around us makes so much more sense than the belief that we humans have dominion over everything around us. The difference in those two sets of beliefs has a lot to do with the destruction of our natural environment, and, in the process, our very own.

To cause so many ill-effects on so many people for the benefit of one, or one family, is wrong. It doesn’t matter that you’re holding a piece of paper that says you own that piece of land, your freedom ends where the freedom of another begins, your rights end where another person’s, or in this case, other people’s rights begin.

And those rights include the right to a healthful, safe environment – indeed, the right to be alive, to live at all. They cannot do that when the water in their wells have dried up because trees that provide hold water have been killed. They are not safe when trees that protect them from landslides and flooding and other natural calamities have been killed.

And who killed them, those trees?

Baguio’s very own congressman figuring in the massacre of hundreds of trees on Mt. Kabuyao says a lot about us. Most of us voted for him, chose him to represent us. He is us. With the way Baguio is today, it would seem like that the choice we made was apt. What he did to Mt. Kabuyao seems to represent what most of us do to the rest of the city – trees are being killed everywhere, garbage is dumped all over, every inch of natural space is being cemented over.

Baguio, our mother, can only take so much abuse. And we have been abusing her for so long now, more so in the last two decades. It’s time we stop, and start thinking of ways to help her recover from all that abuse. And once we have that in our minds, and hearts, we act on them, beginning with choosing leaders who would truly represent our dream of helping our mother get back on her feet. We do that for ourselves today, and tomorrow’s children who would want to play, too, as most of us did not so long ago, in un-fenced and un-gated parks, rest under the shade of majestic pine trees, drink water from unpolluted rivers and springs.

Baguio is weeping, her children have betrayed her. Let’s acknowledge that betrayal, and start making amends.

For now, for this, Bravo, Aquino!

Ever heard, in the history of this republic, of a former president and senators being detained on plunder charges?

We can set that aside, and instead focus on, say, the non-inclusion of perceived allies of the administration in the filing of cases against those implicated in the infamous pork-barrel scam, or perhaps the rising numbers of high-profile killings. We could even go back to the mishandling of the rescue and relief efforts in the wake of Yolanda, or even as far back as the botched rescue efforts in that Luneta hostage-taking incident. For now, I’d rather keep my eyes on Ramon Revilla, Jr.’s photos while being taken into custody, booked and put behind bars.

I am also awaiting the imminent arrest, or surrender if they are to be believed, of Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada.

I don’t know for sure whether they’re guilty or not, that’s for the courts to decide. But the evidences so far presented, at least those made available to the public, definitely shows that people’s money was stolen from the government, and there are people in various branches of the government who benefited from the crime. The paper trail led to the doors of the good offices of these three gentlemen, and now they, on the one hand, will have the chance to prove their innocence, or on the other hand, the government can now prove, beyond reasonable doubt, these men’s guilt.

Whichever way the case go, our nation just took great steps towards true democracy – we can now show not only all Filipinos but the rest of the world that what we have is indeed a government of, for and by the people.

Kawawa naman, said one netizen in a comment to a news item showing Revilla being photographed in police custody. Kawawa naman? Maybe, but how about our less fortunate countrymen who die in ill-equipped, under-staffed hospitals that the alleged stolen millions could have easily prevented? How about Filipino children who are forced to forego education and grow up poorer than their parents ever were because the government doesn’t have the money to make education accessible to every single Filipino? How about those families living in the streets, under bridges, dangerously along the banks of polluted rivers because our government cannot afford to provide homes to its citizens?

We can’t expect a 180-degree turn in just a couple of years, we are where we are right now because of hundreds of years of slavery in the hands of our colonial masters and decades of abuse in the hands of our own chosen leaders. The country’s been in a rut for a long time now, and a step, no matter how small, in the right direction is enough reason to be optimistic, to be hopeful.

For now, and for this, I say, Bravo, Aquino!

And now, how about putting monetary value on all those trees illegally cut up in Mt. Sto. Tomas and on the damages that the cutting resulted into – that case may just be worse than plunder.

Of Hypocrites and Brecht

“Where are the people who spearheaded the protest against SM City Baguio?” Someone asked in his status update on Facebook. “Hypocrites,” one commented.

This is in reference to the hundreds of pine trees that were felled on Mt. Sto. Tomas, in a property allegedly connected to the recently-elected congressman of Baguio, Nic Aliping, and the rally that was held a few days ago. The gathering did not have the numbers that the first protest rally against SM City Baguio’s expansion plan had. Hence, perhaps, the seething remark.

Sure, some of them were there during some of the protest actions then. But they were not there when we had to hold vigils for nights on end watching the trees on Luneta Hill, or during that confrontation between dozens of SM’s security personnel and workers, backed by the local police, when we learned that they’ve began removing trees from the area despite the issuance of Temporary Environmental Protection Order from the court, or that week a group of youthful environmental advocates stood on Session Road from sun up to sun down to gather signatures supporting the cause, or during the marathon hearings that drained the group not only physically, mentally but also financially having to dig into personal funds to be able to photocopy legal documents or have lunch at all.

And not all rallies against SM City Baguio had the numbers, I remember one particular night when we held one right across the expansion site where there were only less than a dozen of us carrying a streamer that said “all we are saying, give trees a chance.”

Sure, those protest actions were all over the news at the time, mostly from the point of view of SM City Baguio. But admittedly, that was not the doing of the protesters, it was SM’s immense public relations machinery that actually kept the issue in the news with their incessant justifications.

But I just hope they realize that it took way more than rallies to forward the cause then, and it would take more than rallies to forward this cause now.

During times when, from the thousands who marched down Session Road to the hundreds who joined tree-planting activities and concerts advocating the cause, we were left with just a handful of people, we didn’t whine about who’s not there, we instead linked arms and got strength and courage from who’s there at all.

We condemn this latest attack on the city’s natural environment, even more so now than during SM’s attempt to remove 182 trees from Luneta Hill for a parking building, since now it’s coming directly from City Hall. Trees on Mt. Sto. Tomas that provide much needed water to the residents of Baguio are being cut to make way for a resort, allegedly owned by the brother of the very person that’s supposed to represent the people of Baguio (and indeed their welfare) on the one hand, and on the other, the Mayor’s proposal to dig up Melvin Jones Grounds, which currently serves the residents as a park, an aquifer that stores and absorbs excess water run-off that provides us with both water and protection from floods, for a parking facility.

And if all we’re prepared to do is join one rally then whine on Facebook, then this is a lost cause. So instead of asking for the whereabouts of the people who spearheaded the protest against SM, why not spearhead this one?



Take it from Brecht, in this scene from his play, The Life of Galileo:

Andrea: Unhappy is the land that breeds no hero.
Galileo: No, Andrea: Unhappy is the land that needs a hero.

Destination: Urban Decay

This time it’s not just some corporate entity with no history with the city that’s doing the damage – our very own congressman has been implicated in the issue, the very same person who’s supposed to represent this city’s sentiments, its people’s well-being, its voice in congress. Various media outlets have reported that a complaint has been filed against him.

This is where the city is headed: urban decay.

I am involved in a project right now – writing about the various cultural icons of the Cordilleras, of the Igorots, and one of the things I learned in this project is that the Igorots have a very close relationship and live their lives in harmony with the environment. That’s not even accurate – it is their belief that they are one with the environment. That every plant, every tree, every hill and mountain, has a soul just like us. And that’s why I don’t understand how our Mayor and Congressman, both Igorots, both true natives of this land, can do or propose to do or allow that much harm to the environment.

We’ve allowed these people too much power, in a country where our constitution supposedly guarantees that true power resides in the people and not in Mauricio Domogan, Mayor, Congressman, and now Mayor again, and Nic Aliping, once a Councilor and now Congressman of the City of Baguio, once the official Summer Capital of the Philippines, once considered to be the most beautiful hill station in Asia.

Hundreds of trees have been cut for a road allegedly to service a resort being constructed in Mt. Sto. Tomas. Not much different but definitely worse than the 182 trees that SM wanted out of the way. This came, pardon me for saying this over and over again in this column, at the heels of the Mayor’s determined stance to desecrate the Melvin Jones grounds for a parking facility. What’s the big deal?

We warned then, at the height of the protest against SM, that if the biggest commercial center in the city gets its way, what would stop others from doing the same? What is exactly is that? Sacrifice the environment for money. That’s what the SM expansion plan was really all about above everything else, that’s what the Mt. Sto. Tomas tree massacre is all about and that’s what the proposed parking facility at the Melvin Jones grounds is all about.

Here’s one scenario: SM gets to remove the only remaining forest cover in the city’s Central Business District and we get to park more cars in the area, the Mt. Sto. Tomas issue is swept under the rug and customers of the alleged resort in Mt. Sto. Tomas gets to conveniently drive to there, and the Mayor gets to realize his dream and digs up the Melvin Jones grounds and builds a humongous parking facility therein allowing even more cars to conveniently get right inside the city center.

At what cost? A severely worsened air quality in the Central Business District, the possibility of flooding around the Burnham Park area due to a severely reduced water run-off absorption capacity, and while there have been reports of the effect already being felt by the residents surrounding the Mt. Sto. Tomas project such as severely reduced water supply, we have yet to feel the full effect of that much disturbance to the area’s eco-system.

I honestly don’t know what else we could do to protect the environment, heritage, indeed the dignity of our home – Baguio. One thing is sure though – we cannot just sit back and allow its decay to happen right before eyes and do nothing. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: we inherited a beautiful city, one built in harmony with and in fact because of its natural environment. What kind of Baguio are we passing on to our children?

The rape of Baguio City

Hundreds of trees felled somewhere up Mt. Sto. Tomas, for the construction of a road, the news report alleged. Baguio representative Nic Aliping's name has been dragged into the controversy. I heard that a rally is scheduled on June 3 to protest this latest attack on Baguio's natural environment.

This is really disturbing. The struggle to protect the city's natural environment is being done on two fronts now, and the alleged antagonists are the very people who were voted into office to supposedly serve the people, the community. They are supposed protect and work for the welfare of this beautiful city.

On one front, there's the Mayor, people refer to him as the 'Father of the City,"who's determined to dig up the fortunately still almost pristine Melvin Jones Football Grounds, and turn it into a huge parking facility. He graciously showed us artist's renditions of his vision and they weren't a pretty site. Out of all the possible sites for a parking facility, which, admittedly, the city badly needs, why there? History books tell us that Daniel Burnham chose to turn the biggest piece of level land in the proposed site for the American hill station at the turn of the 20th century into a public park. The Melvin Jones Grounds make up much of that biggest piece of level land. Not only is the Melvin Jones Grounds part of Burnham Park, it IS, in fact, Burnham Park.

We must do what we can to stop the rape of our city's heritage. The proposed parking facility at the Melvin Jones Football Grounds must be stopped.

The other front is up in Mt. Sto. Tomas. Hundreds of pine trees? That's a lot. In a city known as the City of Pines, the death of one pine tree is one death too many.

If they get away on these two fronts, we lose not only a beautiful open space, nor just a couple of hundreds of pine trees, we lose relevant pieces of the city's heritage, and soul.

I will continue to lend my voice to the movement opposing the continued rape of our beloved mother, Baguio.

Wow Cubao

Konting bilis, may pulis! Makikiraan po. Sorry po. Nauntog yung mama sa knapsack ko.

Mainit sa labas ng bus, nakakalusaw ng laman, ng lakas.

Sa isang madilim na bahagi ng iskinita, may matandang naghahapunan sa loob ng ari-arian niya. Kunyaring pag-aari. Talong metro-kwadradong binakuran ng mga karton ng sigarilyo. Nirerespeto naman ng mga kapit-bahay niya ang hiram niyang puwang sa mundo. May agwat na ilang pulgada ang katabing kartong bakod. Tulog na yung kapit-bahay niyang mag-asawa, pero yung anak nila naglalaro pa ng mga plastik na basong nakolekta sa mga basurahan sa paligid. Love ko 'to.

Kape, mainit na kape. Yosi, boss? Sabi ng babaeng naka-belt bag at shorts. Thank you, meron pa. Napilitan akong kunin ang knapsack mula sa bakanteng silya sa tabi ko't ilagay sa pagitan ng mga tuhod ko. Pakiramdam ko maraming masama ang tingin dito. Pakiramdam ko, hindi ka pwedeng malingat ng sandali sa lugar na 'to. Pakiramdam ko rin, hindi tamang pag-isipan ng masama ang mga tao sa paligid ko, pero pakiramdam ko...

Alas-9 ng gabi, umaalingasaw na ang mga bangketa dito, nagtatapon ng mga pinagkainan, pinagsawaan, pinaglawayan at mga napanis ang mga restawran sa mga kanal. Parang sa Baguio din, sa harap ng gusaling pag-aari ng simbahan, amoy panis. Boom.

Heaven's Touch nga ba yung pangalan ng masahehan na nadaanan? Happy ending? Lakad pa...

Boknoy, balut na binalot sa arinang kulay-dalanghita. May penoy din. Paano kaya nagagawa nung babaeng nagtitindang magmukhang preska pa rin sa init ng panahon habang katapat ang kawaling puno ng kumukulong mantika?

May Smart load kayo? Sabay sagot yung isang tindera ng padabog - wala! Mabigat siguro ang nilolob niya. Sa sumunod na tindahan, parehong tanong, halos parehong sagot. Padabog din. Wala, Globe lang! Ok.

Unli-rice at isang hita ng inihaw na manok ang hapunan ko ngayon. Sa katabing mesa, may mag-asawang nag-aaway yata, kasama yung anak nilang may apat o limang taong gulang siguro. Hindi maiwasang marinig ang kanilang pinag-aawayan. Walang kwenta. Bakit kasi hindi pa natin sinakyan yung unang jeep na dumaan? Walang sounds, sabi nung lalake. Bakit pa kasi kayo sumama kung mamadaliin niyo lang pala ko? Sana umuwi na lang kayo ng diretso! E gago ka pala e, sabi mo sandali lang tayo dun, e mukhang sarap na sarap kang umiinom. E hinihintay ko lang namang sabihin mong umalis na tayo. Hellooooo?!?!? Sinabi ko sa'yong mauuna na kami, feeling gentleman ka naman, sabi mo hindi ko kayang buhatin yung bag ko ng may dala-dalang bata! E bakit, kaya mo nga ba? Tangnang to! Papa 'di ba dati nag-swimming ako sa dagat? Parang walang kamuwang-muwang yung bata sa nangyayari. Pero pakiramadam ko alam niya, at gusto lang niyang ibahin ang usapan. Ang laki naman nito! Sabi nung babae. E sabi ko sa'yo yung number 1 lang order-in mo e. Baka hindi ko maubos 'to! Kunyari ka pa, ubusin mo 'yan! Mama o, kalamansi! Subo muna anak, sabi nung tatay sa boses na napakalambing. Ayoko na, alis na ko, 'di ko na kayang marinig pa 'to. .

Sa overpass, mahimbing na natutulog yung isa pang may ari-arian. Karton din ang tulugan. Sa ilang segundo mula nang masilayan ko siya, mapalapit sa kanya, madaanan siya, at minsan pang muling paglingon, nabuo ko yung araw niyang nagsimula ng mga alas-6 kanina. Nagtawag ng pasaherong papuntang Cogeo at umaasang maaambunan ng ilang piso ng tsuper. Naka bente siguro hanggang dumami na silang taga-tawag ng pasahero. Ibang delihensiya naman. Pero wala na siyang maisip. Natulala ng matagal, 'di alam kung ano'ng gagawin. Kumakalam ang sikmura. Buti na lang na-tiempong nakatingin doon nang may aleng nagtapon ng karton ng pagkain na mukhang may laman pa. Takbo, bago maunahan. Kalahating all-beef-patty-special-sauce-lettuce-cheese-pickles-onions-on-a-sesame-seed-bun-hamburger. Ayos. Gusto man niyang lisanin at lumayo sa mundong ito, ito lang ang mundo niya at 'di gaanong malayo ang nararating ng naglalakad lamang. Pero naglakad pa rin buong araw, malayo-layo rin ang narating, pero masyadong malapit pa rin. Tama na, oras na para maglakad pabalik. Ilang oras din ang lumipas. Ilang oras din ang napalampas na ang isip ay hindi nakatuon sa ngayon, sa dito, sa ako, sa bakit, sa kailan, sa overpass dumiretso, buo pa rin ang benteng kinita kanina. Lugaw pwede na. Kapag ganitong walang pupuntahan, walang inaasahan, walang minamahal at nagmamahal, ang buhay, paghihintay lang ng kamatayang kinakatakutan at inaasam-asam rin. Sa pagtulog ngayong gabi, ilang oras din ang lilipas ng 'di nararamdaman. Mas napapalapit ng mabilis sa katapusan. Dito sa overpass, matutulog akong hinehele ng pundasyon ng tulay na kulang sa tibay dahil kinuripot ng gobyerno ang bayad sa kontratista dahil nag-debut yung anak ni Napoles at kailangan ng bagong sapatos. Dito sa overpass, makakatulog ako sa uyayi ng dagundong ng tren sa ibabaw ko at sa galit na busina ng mga bus sa ilalim. Wala akong kinatatakutan, walang gagalaw sa akin dito dahil para sa mga estrangherong dumaraan, wala ako dito, hindi ako umiiral, hindi ako totoo. Wala ring mawawala sa'kin, wala rin maaaring nakawin sa'kin. Wang-wang ng bumbero, papalapit ng papalapit, tatapat ng saglit at papalayo ng papalayo. May sunog. Makakahimbing na sana nang ayan na naman ang isa pang wang-wang.

Malaki yung sunog.

Walang mawawala sa'kin.

Buntong hininga. Balik sa simula.

Wow, Cubao.

When it rains, it’s four

Summer skipped Baguio this year – from the cold spell from January to mid-March, we went straight to “when it rains, it’s four.” That’s so Baguio though – bright, blue skies in the mornings and then rains in the afternoon just before sunset. But not in March and April.

It cannot be denied, climate change is upon us and if we don’t do something about it now...

I’ve started to till the lawn a few weeks ago, but progress has been very slow. After about half an hour of digging every couple of days or so, I’ve only managed to clear out an area of roughly 10 square meters. We had a concert a couple of weeks ago and things got really busy the last couple of weeks before that. But it’s summer, no rush, I thought. At the pace I was going, I would have been done with tilling, preparing the lawn for re-sodding, in time for the late May showers to keep them hydrated.

But nature had other things in mind – the rains came early this year, and the grass is making a comeback in the area I’ve previously cleared out. And the rest of the lawn that I have yet to touch has grass growing halfway up my knees already. The rosemary patch that I used to weed out every couple of days or so is now almost overrun by weeds – that’s just after a few days of continuous afternoon rain. It’s not easy to keep up with nature when she goes into hyper-mode.

Walking around town the other day, my daughter and I got caught in a torrential rain – with gusty winds that made if feel like a typhoon was upon us. Session Road got covered in a couple of inches of rain rushing down like an angry Bued River. Told her that I think I’d be better off without my leather sandals. She thought I was joking and cringed when I took them off and made a run, with her and I cuddled under a small umbrella, barefoot to cross the road. As soon as she stepped on the rain-blanketed road, her foot served as a dam and water came rushing into her almost knee-high boots. Just wanted to give you an idea of how much water was pouring down Baguio that afternoon. In summer.

So is concreting the Melvin Jones Grounds wise? Does cutting down 182 trees for a concrete parking building make sense? How about hundreds more for a condominium? Most of the natural calamities that have been claiming lives and properties in our country recently mostly involve excessive rains… are we to make matters worse by further diminishing her capacity to protect us from such?

Just think about it.

Of predators, scavengers and cancer

They circle right above, keeping an eye out for the deeply injured, or the dying, even. They see someone struggling to stay alive, they swoop down, taking advantage of the helplessness of their prey.

They don’t care if another predator or scavenger has beaten them to the prey, they will wait for scraps for they know there would always be scraps, and every morsel they can have for themselves is worth the indignity of stooping so low.

Some of them have wings, some have law degrees. All through law school they were taught about the laws of the land, the rights of their fellowmen, about justice, that they eventually swore to uphold. They know their responsibility to society, but they see that as power instead, and they abuse that power. Yes, your helplessness is their source of power. Your misery is their opportunity.

They come in all shapes and sizes – some sport badges that are supposed to be symbols of their duty to serve the people, some have stethoscopes around their necks and pins on their clean, white coats that are supposed to represent their vow to do no harm, and we all know about those who prefer to attach the word honourable to their names.

They are the lowest of all life forms in my book – those who take advantage of other people’s misfortunes to feed their greed.

Nobody could have painted a better picture of all that is wrong with our country as Jose Rizal - it is indeed a cancer. A cancer that the host body, the country, should already start recognizing as the enemy, and begin mustering the will, the power to expel and when we do, do all it can to prevent from ever coming back again.

Ang sakit ng kalingkingan, ramdam ng buong katawan. I learned that line from a play long ago. We should start realizing this as a people, as a nation. The cancer may not have spread to every part of this body yet, but we must not wait for it to reach us directly before we react and do something about it.

Malinis at walang bahid-dungis ang kailangang maging buhay na alay upang ang handog ay maging karapat-dapat. This was how playwright Malou Jacob transcribed Jose Rizal’s words, spoken through Padre Florentino in El Filibusterismo. And that’s the first step – living our own lives righteously, and with dignity, and justly. Only then can we begin to rid our nation of these lowlifes that feed the cancer that is slowly eating us all up.

Commitment - or what I did and would for love

The past week we’ve been meeting almost every single day – warm-up exercises, vocalization, music rehearsals. In the coming week we will be working on blocking and choreography, then acting. It’s been great to be back doing what I love doing the most – telling stories on stage.

With that, let me write about my first love.

We’re currently working on a musical revue that will feature excerpts from various musicals and as soon as I got confirmation from our co-producers that all systems were a go, I already whom I wanted for certain roles and whom I wanted to take care of other production concerns so I was glad, excited, encouraged, totally fired up when all of them said yes to my invitation to collaborate with me on this one.

My choices weren’t only based on their individual talent, but also, and in this particular case more importantly, their professionalism. We didn’t have the luxury of time, so every rehearsal was very, very important. Sure, some of them would miss some of the rehearsals, but I knew that those who would will also work doubly hard to make up for rehearsals missed. Can’t blame them for theater, as it is here and elsewhere in the country, is not a financially rewarding career.

And so we try to make it as easy for everyone as possible, the least we can do knowing that each and every one of them has committed to this production, and in this world, the commitment of the people involved can make or break a show. And that commitment goes beyond simply agreeing to be part of this. For the performers, it means committing to telling their story on stage with all their heart and soul – spending hours outside the rehearsals understanding and internalizing each stanza, each sub-text, and becoming one with the role they’re playing. For the production staff, it means committing to making it as easy as possible for the cast to do their job, and for the cast to do the same.

But most of all, they will commit to making this collaborative effort an unforgettably pleasant experience. Egos would be set aside, it’s all about one thing: the story, and the best way that story could be told – with utmost sincerity.

First love never dies. Cliché but true. Theater’s mine. And I am so happy to be reunited with her after quite a long absence. Because, see, with all the technological advances in the world of art – high-resolution, full HD cameras, sound and lighting systems that we only dreamed of not too long ago, etc., the magic that happens inside that darkened hall when the house lights go out and the performers go out there, onstage, that energy that travels back and forth between the stage and the audience, that irreplaceable interaction between human beings… no technology can ever substitute for that wonderful experience.

And that’s why I have committed myself to this art form from the day I fell in love with it.

Ang mga tunay na bayani ng bayan ko

Sila yung nililigawan ng mga pulitiko kapag may eleksyon, dahil sa kanila nanggagaling ang mas nakararaming boto. Sila yung pinapangakuan ng trabaho, pabahay, pagbabago… na madalas ay nakakalimutan kapag napanalunan na ang halalan. Madalas bilugin ang kanilang mga ulo, papaasahin ng mga pulitikong gaganda ang buhay nila kapag sila’y binoto.

Sila rin yung pibagbabantaan ng sakit o kamatayan kapag nagtangka silang ipahayag ang kanilang tunay na niloloob.

Kasama sila sa dalawampu’t limang milyong kababayan natin na nabubuhay sa mas mababa pa sa singkwenta pesos araw-araw, na sapat limang para sa isang kilong bigas at ilang pirasong galunggong o tuyo.

Sila yung pumupuno ng jeep, dala-dala ang bayong para mamalengke, o si bunso upang ihatid sa eskwela (nakakandong ang bata, para tipid sa pamasahe), o papasok sa trabahong kung saan hindi sapat ang tinatanggap upang buhaying ang kanilang pamilya ng marangal at maginhawa.

Sa Baguio, sila yung hinahabol ng mga tauhan ng pamahalaan kapag hapon, sa Session Road, sa overpass, sa Mansion House, itinatakbo ang mga kung ano-anong paninda para hindi makumpiska dahil bawal hanapbuhay na napili nila – ang maglako ng prutas, gulay o kahit ano’ng may halagang pwedeng ibenta para makapghain ng katiting na hapunan sa mesa. Karamihan kasi sa kanila’y hindi nakatanggap ng sapat edukasyon, kaya limitado rin ang alam nilang gawin upang mabuhay. Sa ilalim ng Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas, ang edukasyon ay karapatan ng bawat Pilipino.

Sila rin yung binubusinahan ng Pajero sa tawiran, na para bang wala silang karapatang abalahin ang nagmamay-ari ng sasakyan dahil kailangan ilang tumawid ng lansangan para makarating sa paroroonan. Daanan nila yung binawasan para palakihin ang kalyeng dadaanan ng mga sasakyan.

Sila yung pumupuno ng kahabaan ng Session Road kapag may parada at mga anak nila yung mga nagsasayaw sa ilalim ng init ng araw para makapagbigay aliw sa mga turista at karagdagang kita para sa mga kapitalistang nagmamay-ari ng mga hotel, restawran, inuman at iba pa – karamihan sa mga lugar na ito bawal ang naka-tsinelas.

Gusto nilang magpagawa ng paradahan ng mga sasakyan sa isang pasyalan dito sa Baguio – ang Melvin Jones Football Grounds, para mas maginhawaan ang mga mayayamang nagmamay-ari ng sasakyan. Tuwing umaga sa oras ng pagpasok sa eskwela, ang mga estudyanteng may kahirapan ay kailangang maglakad ng mas malayo dahil bawal ang mga jeep sa kahabaan ng Gen. Luna habang ang mga hinahatid ng mga pribadong kotse ay naihahatid ng kanilang mga tsuper hanggang sa pintuan mismo ng paaralan. Marami sa kanila ang nanganganib na matibag ang mga tahanan, dahil wala silang titulo para sa lupang kinatitirikan ng kanilang bahay at sa mata ng pamahalaan, iskwater.

Ngunit sila ang nagpalaya sa ating bayan nang sila'y mag-alsa laban sa mga mananakop. Sila rin ang pumuno ng bawat pulgada sa EDSA upang patalsikin ang diktaturya sa ating bayan. Sila yung gumawa ng bahay mo, nagmamaneho ng sasakyan mo, nag-aalaga ng mga anak mo, naglalaba ng mga damit at naglilinis ng bahay mo, nagtatanim ng kinakain mo, nagpapalitada ng daanan mo... sila ng mga tunay na bayani ng bayang ito.

At habang patuloy ang pandarambong ng mga magnanakaw sa gobyerno, patuloy rin silang maghihirap. Marami silang gusting ipahayag sa mga may kapangyarihan, ngunit dahil nga wala silang kapangyarihan, madalas hindi sila pinakikinggan. Ang inilalathala ng mga pahayaga’t istasyon ng radyo’t telebisyon e yung mga naka-barong, mataas ang posisyon sa gobyerno’t lipunan, yung mga may titulo ang pangalan.

Ngunit kahit hindi nila sadyang ihayag ang kanilang sinasaloob, ang kanilang mga pangarap, mithiin, mga hinaing, hindi naman talagang kailangan – huwag tayong magbingi-bingihan dahil umaalingawngaw ang kanilang taghoy sa bawat sulok ng lipunan.