Si Kiko, ang kanyang “ut sint minores,” at ang aming intrams shirt

-x-

Si Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, o mas kilala sa tawag na St. Francis of Assisi, ay una kong nakilala nuong pinag-aral ako ng mga magulang ko sa isang Pransiskanong paaralan sa Mandaluyong.

Nuong una, siyempre, hindi ko pa lubusang naiintindihan kung bakit siya ang patron ng eskwelahan namin, ang alam ko lang, siya yung panot na rebultong nakikipagusap sa mga usa at aso, sa isang sulok ng aming school grounds. Madilim ang lugar na iyon, walang spotlight o kung ano mang klaseng ilaw na pangdekorasyon, may kaunting damo at napapaligiran ng railings na bakal. Ang suot niya’y brown na abito, yung tipikal sa mga pareng Pransiskano, bahagyang naka-ngiti ang rebulto, tila masayang kinakausap ang mga hayop na nakapaligid sa kanya. 

May itinuro pa ngang isang kanta sa amin na sumasalamin sa pagmamahal niya sa mga hayop, ang title, “brother sun, sister moon.” Sa kantang ito pinapaliwanag kung paano niya kausapin ang iba’t ibang elemento ng kalikasan. Nuong tumanda nalang ako at saka ko inungkat na baka may posibilidad na LSD user si Kiko, tulad ng pag ungkat ko sa tunay na katauhan ni Shaggy sa cartoons na Scooby-doo, na ayon sa kwento ay laging sabog sa marijuana kaya kinakausap yung alaga niyang aso. 

Ayon kasi sa kwento, may taglay daw na kapangyarihan si Kiko na kausapin ang iba’t ibang klase ng hayop at maging mga puno. Kaya niya daw diskusyunan ng Doctrina Christiana ang iba’t ibang elemento ng kalikasan. 

Hindi ko na inalam kung naiintindihan siya ng mga hayop, basta ang naisip ko, eh kung ngayon kaya, may makita kang taong kinakausap yung alaga niyang aso sa kalsada? O di kaya may nakita kang mamang kinakausap yung mga halaman sa island sa EDSA? Sasabihin mo din kayang may taglay siyang kapangyarihang makipag-usap sa mga halaman? O agarang ididismis ang ideya, at sasabihing, “ang lakas ng tama nun oh!”  

Ipinamigay ni Kiko lahat ng kanyang ari-arian at sumama sa isang pilgrimage, nagturo sa lansangan, namalimos kasama ng mga pulubi sa St. Peter’s Basilica, tiniis ang sakripisyo’t kahirapan para ipalaganp ang kanyang mga prinsipyo’t pinaniniwalaan. 

Naalala ko pa nuong nagkaroon ng debate tungkol sa quote na ilalagay sa aming intramurals shirt, ang orihinal kasing plano, ang kanyang hindi masyadong tanyag na quote ang ilalagay sa likod ng t-shirt, “Ut sint minores,” na ang ibig sabihin ay “Be the least of all.” 

Sabi ng ibang faculty members, di naman daw iyon makatarungan para sa aming mga mag-aaral, ‘pagkat baka hindi na makipagkumpitensiya dahil sa nasabing quote. Eh intramurals pa naman, siyempre, tagisan iyon ng lakas tapos walang makikipagkumpitensya? parang ang boring. Hindi normal, baka sa halip na kumpitensya, pababaan ng premyo ang mangyare. Kunyari nanalo yung isang seksyon, tatanggihan niya ito at sasabihing, "wag na, sige, sa inyo na ang premyo, tutal naman, be the least of all ang tema natin, kaya sige na, sa inyo na." Tapos sasgot yung natalong section na, "hindi, ok lang na talo kami, yan naman ang payo ni St. Francis, dapat tayong magpakumbaba at tanggapin ang pagkatalo." Ang sagwa, at saka parang ang drama. 

Dapat daw ay Bonakid, batang may laban. 

Siguro, dahil mas matatanda sila sa amin, alam na nilang hindi ganuon sa tunay na buhay, alam nilang dog eat dog system ang kahaharapin namin paglabas namin sa apat na sulok ng Pransiskanong paaralan na ito. Alam nila na ang pakikipagkumpitensya ay isang mahalagang salik para mabuhay, at kung misan, kailangan mong agwan ng tinapay ang kapatid mo, para lang mabuhay. Survial.  

Nuong nabuhay si Kiko, monarkiya at pyudalismo ang dominanteng pampulitikal at pang-ekonomyang istrukturang umiiral sa Italya at sa buong Europa, marahil ‘di niya natanaw na magpupumilit ang mga mangangalakal (merchants) nuong panahon niya na ibagsak ang sistemang monarkiya sa Europa, upang sila naman ang mag-hari.

Hindi napalitan ang quote sa intrams shirt namin, pero marami akong natutunan. 

Kamakailan lang ay nag-organisa kami ng isang soup kitchen para sa mga Lumad ng Mindanao; Bagobo, Talaingod, at Manobo. Nagmartsa sila mula Mindanao hanggang Maynila para pakiusapan ang gobyerno na palayasin ang mga militar na naka-kampo sa kanilang mga komunidad at eskwelahan. Kwento pa nila, sinunog ng mga militar ang 300 alternative schools na itinayo nila.

Ang mga Lumad tulad nila Datu Jorito Goaynon at Datu Sedro, ay ang mga pinaka “maliliit” na tao sa ating lipunan ngayon, dahil bukod pa sa atrasadong pamumuhay sa mga kabundukan, hindi rin naman talaga sila naaabot ng serbisyong panlipunan ng gobyerno, bagkus ay nakakaranas pa ng pagmamalupit mula sa mga militar. 

Sila, ang tinutukoy ni Kiko na “maliliit”, silang mga itinataboy sa lupang kinagisnan, sa ngalan ng tubo at pulitika. 

Kaya naisip ko, tama ang aking mga guro, tama lang na makipagkumpitensya, kasi tignan mo, kung maliit ka, bukod sa hindi ka tutulungan ng gobyerno, susunugin pa ang paaralan mo. 

Kaya dapat, hindi pakinggan si Kiko, si Kiko na isang mayamang Italyanong nagpasyang iwan ang marangyang buhay upang ipalaganap ang kanyang prinsipyo’t paniniwala. Si Kiko na ginalis dahil sa pakikisalamuha sa mga Pulubi sa Italya, si Kiko na kahit LSD user ay nagpakita ng tunay na pagmamahal sa kalikasan. Si Kiko, ay hindi dapat tularan.

Kaya sa mga guro ko nuong high-school, yung mga nakaka-aninag na hindi na lapat sa lupa ang mga turo ni Kiko, dahil tayo’y nasa panahon na ng Imperyalismo, kung saan pahigpit ng pahigpit ang kumpitensya sa pagitan ng mga magkakapatid, paabnormal ng abnormal ang relasyon sa produksyon, palala ng palala ang mga digmaan para sa hatian ng kita, at paigting ng paigting ang pagsasamantala, panahon na sigurong kalimutan ang mga aral ni Kiko, pero sana, magpaalam tayo sa kanya, at least sabihin natin sa kanya na ang solusyon ay kumpitensya, kailangang manalo, kailangang maging bida, kailangang mag "strive for the best," dahil ang pagiging “ut sint minores” ay laos na. 

Life in general

Rosa Luxemburg once said, "People who don't move doesn't notice their chains."

Albert Einstein once said, "Life is like a bicycle, to keep your balance, you have to keep moving."

I say, "In order to keep a life, you need to break away from your chains, and in order to break away from the chains, you need to revolt. Without revolt, life wouldn't be possible."

Sounds right, eh?

Natupad lahat ng hiling ngayong pasko. 

salamat.

salamat.

salamat.

my make-shit office

ISANG MALAKING KALOKOHAN!

The event was themed “ISANG MALAKING KALOKOHAN”, a pre-SONA gig to speculate the amount of bullshit Noynoy would tell in his fourth State Of The Nation Address.

I was pleased to be invited by Southern Tagalog Exposure (STx), a progressive multimedia collective and to be given the chance to present one of my works, SONA 2013, a video documentation of last years’ SONA NG BAYAN, then giving a quick talk to invite and provide some insight about the video.

The crowd was quite appreciative about what I said, inviting artists particularly musicians to inculcate the real social conditions of the people through their music, reminding them that as artists, our role is not merely to entertain but also to provoke the thoughts and invoke the vast majority of our vision.

I was also was delighted to meet Paul Magat of Kabaong ni Kamatayan (KnK), metalhead icon and one of the pioneers of Philippine metal. We exchanged ideas ranging from violence and how he transcribes it into music to how much anarchy does the people need to put a requiem to the so callled state-violence.

I later asked him, why is the band called Kabaong ni Kamatayan and if they really sing about death. His response was a little different from what I expected, 

“Yun nga yung irony dun eh, wala kaming kanta tungkol sa kamatayan. ‘Di ba Kabaong ni Kamatayan? Pinatay ko si Kamatayan! Kasi we thrive in this world knowing that we’re all gonna die, whether you like it or not. That’s why our music is all about transcendence and inner self."

We also tried to sell bunch of copies of agam-agam, a digital short film I made a year ago and I was surprised that the crowd took interest, maybe because of the DIY cover or maybe it’s just new for them to see a minimalist, very raw cover art. 

A couple of people approached  me asking firstly, what is it and what is it all about,I enthusiastically told them briefly of the plot of the film and I was happy that some of them bought it. It’s really a beautiful thing to see someone appreaciating your work and taking the effort to buy it. Gratitude is really the essence of art. 

The only bummer was, after the film-showing, there was a commotion between two bands, the new school SMB and the old school Republikats, it was something about the schedule of the bands, although the commotion nearly escalated to violence as I heard a couple of bottles being broken on the side , no one was physically hurt and everyone got home in one piece, I guess. 

pers selp portreyt 

Kiss, an Angono based airbrush artist sketched me in five minutes, making him a loser on our bet that he can do a portrait of me in three. Kiss, never learned his real name, passionately told me a lot of different things about his craft, but probably would tell you that he haven't said much. He was a competitor for the on the spot painting competition for an event which was called Batuk, the traditional way of Filipino tattooing.

ADIK SA SHABU O ADIK SA KAPANGYARIHAN?

Hindi ko sigurado kung sino sa dalawang taong gusto kong itampok sa sulating ito ang totoong adik, hindi ko alam kung sino talaga ang lango. Ang isa, sinasabi nilang hindi maaring gawaran ng titulo bilang pambansang alagad ng sinig dahil adik, yung isa naman, kahit napiling kandidato para gawaran ng Nobel Peace Prize eh tila ba mas masahol pa sa adik.

Dalawa lang sa pelikula ni Ate Guy ang napanood ko, yung isa hindi ko pa alam ang title, Siyempre ang una ay Himala at yung pangalawa eh yung mayrong linyang “My brother. Is not. A pig!, ang kapatid ko’y tao, hindi baboy ramo!” na hanggang ngayon ay ginagamit ng mga bakla sa tuwing sila’y magpapatawa.

Makapangyarihan at epektibo ang karakter ni Elsa sa pelikulang Himala, isang faith healer na hindi naniniwala sa sarili niyang gimik, na sa huli’y binaril at napatay ng isa sa kanyang mga miron. Magaling ang mga linya at pinong pino talaga ang acting ni Ate Guy sa pelikulang iyon. Linya at acting, dalawang magkaiba ngunit mahigpit na magkatambal na elemento ng pelikula, ang linya ay isinusulat kadalasan ng script writer at ang pangalawa siyempre ay bibigyang kulay ng isang aktor/aktres. Dito daw may debate sabi ng ilang nakausap ko tungkol sa isyu, aktor o aktres nga daw ba ang dapat bigyan ng acknowldegement sa creative output habang nagmula sa direktor o sa manunulat ang creative idea na iniinterpret lang ng mga aktor/aktres? 

Siguro.

Kung ako ang gumanap na Elsa eh malamang b-movie ang naging labas nun at hindi naging box office hit. Doon sigurado ako. Ang punto, mayroong kapangyarihan ang mga aktor/aktres na bigyang buhay ang isang karakter sa pamamagitan ng epektibong pag-arte, pero nga, sila nga ba ang sole proprietor ng isang malikhaing sining, na sa kaso ni Ate Guy, eh pelikula.

Naalala ko yung isang interview ni Rio Locsin, sabi niya, nuong panahon daw nila, hindi pupuwedeng suwayin ang direktor, ang direktor daw ang diyos sa set, kapag gusto kang umiyak ng direktor, iiyak ka, kapag gusto kang tumawa, tatawa ka, kung gusto ng direktor na sabay, problema mo na yun.

Oo nga’t mayroong kapangyarihan ang mga aktor/aktres na gawing imortal ang isang karakter sa pelikula pero hindi niya ari ang pangkalahatang likha, ang pag-arte ay isang elemento ngunit napakahalagang bahagi ng isang pelikula.

Wala tayong pagtatalo kung magaling na aktres si Ate Guy, di ka naman siguro tatawaging Superstar kung hindi ka magaling, biro mo, ka-level mo si Jesus, Jesus Christ Superstar, at para patunayang magaling talaga siya, naalala ko dati tinatanong ko sa nanay ko kung ano bang ranggo ng mga star star na yan, kasi ang dami eh, may meagastar, diamondstar at star for all seasons, tapos laging ang sagot ng nanay ko pinaka mataas daw ang superstar kasi super iyon, hindi naman siya Noranian kaya natuklasan kong sinasagot niya lang ako para matapos yung usapan namin at makatulog na siya. Isa pa, wala din sigurong Noranians kung hindi eksepsyunal ang akting ng isang tao, ayos lang sakin dati yung mga fans club kasi kahit showbiz yung artista, gumagawa pa din sila ng makabuluhang pelikula, hindi katulad ngayon na kahit basura yung akting at puro tungkol sa sawing puppy love/adult love ang pelikula mo eh may fans club ka para sa marketing purposes ng mga susunod mo pang mga basurang itatapon, este ilalabas.

Hindi ko alam ang pamantayan para maging isang pambansang alagad ng sining, iiwan ko na iyon kina Nick de Ocampo at Bienvenido Lumbera.

Ngayon, sa isyung nag-adik si Ate Guy, parang ambabaw, amplastic at wala sa konteksto ang argumentong ito, patron saint ba o santo ang hinahanap ng presidente natin? Kasi sa palagay ko, kung nag-adik man si Ate Guy, at least siya nirehab na at tapos na ang pagiging adik, eh yung presidente natin, madalas ko itong sinasabi sa mga kaibigan ko, ang mga pulitko minsan mas masahol pang kumilos kesa sa mga adik. Kasi yung mga adik, ibinebenta yung mga gamit sa loob ng bahay nila para makagamit, yung mga pulitiko, kinukuha yung mga hindi kanila, inaangkin na parang kanila at ginagamit na parang kanila, at least yung adik, ref o di kaya’y TV nila ang ibinebenta, eh yung mga pulitiko, hindi na kanila yung kinukuha, gusto pa matuwa ang tao sa ginagawa nila, at least yung ibang adik, di nagpapanggap na maamong tupa kapag gagamit, basta’t gusto niya lang na bilhin mo ang ibinebenta niya sa presyong adik, tapos tapos na, walang hidden agendas, eh yung mga pulitiko, tatatawagin ka pang boss para lang makuha ang gusto niya. Tapos yung adik, kung mamerwisyo man, pa isa isa, kung may mapatay man, isa o dalawa lang, eh yung presidente, kapag nagdesisyon na wag ipamahagi ang relief goods, o kaya’y wag pansinin ang dumaraming naghihirap sa Pilipinas, higit na mas malaki ang pinsala, kapag dinedemolish ang kabahayan ng mga tinatawag nilang iskwater pagkatapos ng eleksyon, ilan kaya ang pinapatay nila?

Kaya alam mo, totoo yun, mas masahol pa ang adik sa kapangyarihan kaysa mga adik sa shabu. 

What DAPak?

Kasunod ng pag po-proklama ng pinakamataas na korte sa kapuluan na ang DAP o yung pondong ipinamigay ng Malakanyang para makatulong sa proyekto ng mga senador na nagkakahalaga nang mula PHP40,000,000 hanggang PHP100,000,00,  sunod-sunod din ang mga sushestiyon,  aksyon at mga tangang palagay mula sa iba’t ibang saray ng lipunan.

Isang congressman mula sa Negros na alyado ng Malakanyang ang nagsabing pre-mature at walang basehan ang ang panukalang i-impeach si Pnoy. Bumuwelta pa at sinabing malaki ang naitulong ng pamimigay ng DAP sa ating ekonomiya, marami daw naipatayong imprastraktura sa ngalan nito, na sinasang ayunan naman ni Ted Failon.

Pero, iyon ba ang mabigat na tanong dito? Ang pinaguusapan ba dito ay kung nakatulong ang DAP sa ekonomiya? Hindi ba’t ang kinukuwestiyon ay ang legalidad ng DAP?

Para mo na rin kasing sinabing ayos lang magbenta ng cocaine at heroin sa kalye kung ito’y makapag aambag sa paglago ng ekonomiya. Galing ng thought process ni congressman, halatang matalino.

Sabi naman ng kaliwa, na matagal nang pumusisyon na unconstitutional ang DAP, grounds ito para i-impeach ang pangulo, kasama ng ilan pang basehang nabanggit na nila nuong mga nakaraang buwan;

1. EDCA – ang kausunduang anila’y unconstitutional.  Ito’y magpapanatili muli ng mga tropang kano sa Pilipinas.

 2. PDAF scam – dahil sa kakulangan ng aksyon ng Malakanyang sa pag-aabolish nito at pagpapanagot ng  mga sangkot.

3. Walang habas na pagtaas ng bilihin at ang pagkakapako ng suweldo ng ating mga obrero sa minimum wage.

4. Kriminal na kapabayaan ng gobyerno sa nangyari sa Eastern Visayas na dulot ng super typhoon Yolanda.  Pang lima na nga ang sinasabing unconstitutional na DAP.

Para sa kaliwa, malinaw ang mga basehan sa mga gagawin nilang aksyon, hindi mga gawa-gawa ang kaso ang ipinaparatang tulad ng laging ginagawa sa mga kasapian nila. Di rin tulad ng mga trapong walang sariling imik tungkol sa mga isyu, nagkakaisa ang kaliwa sa kanilang mga paniniwala, nariyan ang batayan, eto ang kinakailangang aksyon. Simple, walang ligoy at malinaw ang dapat kalagyan.

Ang hindi malinaw sa akin ay ang kronikong sakit ng ating lipunan. Taun-taon nalang mayroong panibagong isyu tungkol sa malawakang korapsyon sa gobyerno, taun-taon nalang, milyun-milyun o di kaya’y bilyun-bilyon ang ninananakaw sa atin ng mga sindikatong pulitiko. Erap, GMA,Jokjok Bolante, Hello Garci, Benjamin Abalos, FG Arroyo, nasaan na sila?

Ang problema kasi, ginagawa tayong bonus stage ng mga pulitiko, ang dali dali nating lusutan, magkakaroon lang ng bagong isyu, natatabunan na ang luma.

Wala akong pakialam sa pangalan at laung wala sa titulo, kapag magnanakaw, dapat ikulong. Hindi yung binibigyan pa ng priviledged speech na gagamitin lang naman bilang magic sing. Bong Revilla, naiintindihan ko na artista ka, pero, nung nagsenador ka, hindi mo ba naisip na.. Ah leche! Yun na nga, nasabi ko na nuon na mula sa panahon nila C.M. Recto, Lorenzo Tanada at Pepe Diokno, andito na tayo sa panahon nina Lapid, Revilla, at Estrada, na talaga namang ang mga action moves eh nakakabilib. Mula sa Rizal law ni C.M. Recto andito na tayo sa Alyas Pogi ni Bong Revilla.

Balik tayo sa ating mahal na presidente, sa Japan, nag-resign ang kanilang prime minister dahil nakapagbitiw siya ng mga mapangutyang komento tungkol sa kabaklaan, sa South Korea naman, nagbitiw din sa puwesto ang kanilang prime minister dahil 250 katao na ang namatay sa paglubog ng isang vessel na kung tutuusin, wala naman siyang direktang kinalaman, pero dahil sa nalulungkot daw yung mga pamilyang  naapektuhan dahil hindi na-rescue ang karamihan, magreresign nalang siya. 250! Anak ng tokwa! Sa Eastern Visayas, 6,000 mahigit ang namatay, hanggang ngayon wala pang bahay, anong ginawa ng ating mahal na presidente? Isang linggo bago niya nagawang dalawin ang mga lugar na naapektuhan, naunahan pa siya ng mga media na nanggaling pa sa kabilang dulo ng mundo para mamigay ng relief goods, at nung  nagkagulo na ang mga tao dahil walang makain, tinawag pang looters at goons. Anak ng tokwa talaga. Pero ganun talaga, nasa Pilipinas ka eh, chaka sabi din naman ng presidente natin, TAYO NA SA TUWID NA DAAN! Eto na yun tanga, eto na yung sinasabi nyang tuwid na daan, ano bang inaasahan mo?

Di ko naman sinasabing magaling ang gobyerno ng  South Korea at Japan dahil ganun ang ginawa ng presidente nila, pero bilang kapwa asyano nalang na nasa isang kontinente’t rehiyon,  sana man lang, may napulot ang ating mahal na presidente mula sa mga ginawa nila. Pero hindi yata natututo sa karanasan ang ating mahal na presidente dahil pati yung CARP ng kanyang yumaong ina eh ineextend niya, kahit dagsa ang mga magsasakang nagsasabing huwad ang CARP at CARPer.

Alam mo ba yung isinisigaw ng mga nagrarali sa kalye na BURUKRATA KAPITALISMO, IBAGSAK! Parang ang lalim, pero simple lang ang ibig sabihin nun, sabi nila, ang gobyerno daw ay ikinasal na ang pagiging gobyerno sa mga korporasyon, kaya’t pupwede nang gamitin ng mga pulitiko ang gobyerno bilang negosyo upang magpayaman. Sa madaling sabi, ang mga pulitiko ay namumuhunan sa kanilang puwesto para kumita, hindi para magserbisyo. Nga naman, eh parang gusto nilang ipagbili lahat ng state-owned services eh. Sa pagkaka alala ko, ang public service eh libre, tungkuling ibigay yun ng gobyerno, kaya nga sila binuo. Sa private entity, may bayad, at ang pangunahing dahilan ng pagkakatayo nito ay para kumita.

So, ano ngayon itong DAP? Anong gagawin natin ngayon na unconstitutional pala ito? Wala, tatanga, nganganga, ipagpapatuloy ang kani-kaniyang trabaho araw-araw dahil sabi nga nila, tanga, wala ka ng magagawa diyan! Bonus stage ka lang sa mga pulitiko na kayang kaya kang nakawan kahit kelan nila gusto, kaya wag ka ng tumingin, wag ka ng sumali, wala ka rin namang magagawa, hayaan mo nang hanggang sa iyong kamatayan eh pagnakawan ka, wag mo na din gamitin ang utak mo dahil dapat mo lang iyang gamitin sa pag-papayaman ng kumpanya mo. Pasalamat ka nga’t may trabaho ka, di mo naman kasi pinaghihirapan ang sweldo mo, ibinibigay siya ng kumpanya mo ng libre.

Kaya, men, kahit sobrang labo na ng lipunan mo, dapat relax ka pa rin, sabi nga nung isang advertisement sa London, “Keep calm and carry on”. Kalmante lang kahit alam mong mumu lang ang natatanggap mong sweldo sa kumpanyang pinagtatrabahuhan mo, kalmante lang kahit 90% ng trabaho eh sa iyo, pero .0001% lang ng kita ang napupunta sa iyo. Kalma lang, makakaraos ka din. Oh ayun tamo, magpapakasal na yung paborito mong artista, tamo, si Jinggoy takot sa ipis, ayan na, may bagong soap opera si Anne Curtis, oh ayun pa, eto pa, ayun na, ayun na nga. 

FOR ALL YOU FREE FOLKS OUT THERE

melon/apple/grapes/watermelon fruitshake

For all you free folks out there who keeps their rooms and their tables messy.

For all you free folks who passionately thinks about how to solve the problems of the world.

For all you free folks who always dare to execute their ideas even if their self-doubt is neck deep.

For all you free folks who let themselves be consumed by the stories they are told by the people they don’t know.

For all the free folks who creates not because of recognition and applause.

For all you free folks tho keeps their minds idle for a minute then fill it up with neurotic ideas the following minute.

For all you free folks who drenches their soul with calmness and inner peace whenever they see a creation of a friend or some one.

For all you free folks out there who changes their mind every fuckin time they want to.

For all you free folks out there who does nothing but stare at the big empty.

For all you free folks out there who continues to struggle and question the nature of authority and establishment.

For all you free folks out there who truly listens to what another soul is saying to them.

For all you free folks out there, eccentric but feet always on the ground, eclectic but one in thought.

For all you free folks out there who are mad with life.

For all you free folks out there who elaborates a point and then 

abruptly destroys the point with a big laugh.

For all the free folks out there who secretly laughs.

For all the free folks out there who despises borders.

For all you free folks out there who doesn't give a fuck with titles and self proclaimed knick-knocks and chuckadoo.

For all you free folks out there who feels the need to eradicate this dog eat dog system.

For all you free folks who doesn't read people but try to understand everyone the best they can

For all you free folks who owns a bike and use it every time they can.

For all you free folks out there who is passionate with describing and explaining things to a free folk.

For all you free folks out there who thinks of deep and complicated ideas but explains it simply.

For all you free folks out there who thinks toleration has its limits and violence is not really a violent word which can come in handy.

For all you free folks out there who could not focus with a routinary life.

For all you free folks out there who thinks money is extremely useful but should not be a problem.

For all you free folks who constantly thrives to surprise themselves with ideas.

For all you free folks out there who thinks they could survive the streets if that is what is required for their thinking process.

For all you free folks out there whose inspiration is the people and their never-ending struggle.

For all you free folks out there who walks whenever they want to develop an idea.

For all you free folks out there who meticulously scrutinizes anything of interest to them.

For all you free folks out there who thinks they are not free.

We Are All United, Individually.

"She asked me to stay and she told me to sit anywhere, 

So I looked around and I noticed there wasn't a chair."

Norwegian wood, Beatles 

HALU-HALONG SARAP

transport stike, rosario bridge, 2014

Ito ang halu-halong sarap na dinaranas ng mga pilipino araw-araw.

Halu-halong usok mula sa mga tambutso ng trak, jeep, taxi at private vehicles.

Nagtaas ang pasahe sa jeep, siyempre dahil nagtaas ang presyo ng langis. 

Sabi ng Bayan Muna dati, kinompute nila ang buong halaga ng langis sa Pilipiinas at napag alamang may sobrang bente pesos ang singil nito, sinabi nila ito sa kongreso, pero walang nangyare. 

Kung 45 pesos ang presyo ng langis ngayon at ibabawas ang bente pesos, magiging 23 pesos nalang ang presyo kada litro, malaking ginhawa sana iyon para sa mga mamamayan, lalo na sa mga commuters, siyempre sususnod na din magbabaan ang presyo ng kung anu-anong bilihin dahil karamihan naman ng goods ay nakatali din sa presyo ng langis. 

Hindi na rin magkukumahog ang ilang transport groups para makakuha ng dagdag singil sa presyo ng pamasahe, dahil sa totoo lang, isa itong halimbawa kung paano tayo pinaiikot at pinaglalaban-laban ng mga naghaharing uri, dahil sa pagtaas ng pasahe, kapwa manggagawa o nakabababang uri ang maapektuhan nito. 

Eh yung sa Bayan Muna, sa mga naghaharing uri nakatutok, gusto nilang bawasan ang presyo ng langis na siyang ugat ng problema, di tulad ng ibang transport groups, dagdagan ang singil sa pamasahe. Kung sanglibo na ang presyo ng langis kada litro, di mga 150 na ang pamasahe mula Rosario hanggang sa Medical City. Isipin mo yun, sa jeep, o wampipti wampipti lang, paki ayos lang po ang upo, upong wampipti lang.

Sabi naman ng iba, wala daw tayong kontrol sa pagtaas ng presyo ng langis dahil nakabatay ito sa pandaigdigang merkado, ito daw ang nagtatakda kung tataas o bababa ito. Weh? Siguro nga, pero ang tanong, saan ba tayo kumukuha ng langis, sino ba ang nagsusupply sa atin nito? Kung iba, bakit hindi tayo magdevelop ng sa atin? Dahil kinuha na nila yung sa atin at wala na tayong pang-ekonomiyang kakayanan para magdevelop ng sariling atin? Siguro nga.

Yung mga nagrarally, nananawagan silang isabansa ang mga pangunahing industriya ng ating bansa, o yung tinatawag na nationalization of vital industries kung saan ang estado ang hahawak ang magpapaunlad ng mga industriyang may kinalaman sa pambansang interes, siyempre isa na dito ang langis, na nawala sa kontrol ng estado nang ipatupad ni Marcos ang oil deregulation law, na hanggang ngayon ay sigaw pa din ng mga nakakuyom ang palad sa Mendiola, sabi nila, “Oil Deregulation Law, Ibasura!”, pero wag natin silang pakinggan dahil nag-iingay lang sila at wala naman talagang katuturan ang mga pinagsasasabi ng mga iyon.

Sa mga halu-halong proposisyon at suhestiyon mula sa iba’t ibang social strata, ano nga ba ang dapat nating gawin?

Tama lang sigurong ibenta nalang natin lahat, tutal yun naman ang plano ng gobyerno natin, sa programang PPP (Public-Private Partnership) ni Aquino, baka sa mga susunod na taon eh pati brip at panty natin eh privitazed na, kung gayon, di na kailangan ng gobyerno, free for all privatization na, civil disobedience na mag aanak ng civil war. Ayos. 

Sa ating modernong panahon kung saan naimbento na ang mga salitang career, bonds, investment at kung anu-anong salitang mahigpit na nakatali sa salapi at konsumerismo, mahirap sumuway sa mga utos ng nagpapalamon sa iyo. Kaya wag ka nalang maingay, maghintay sa manunubos at ipagdasal ang mga gumagawa ng masama.   

In Anarchy We Trust

This is Macon, grabbing my camera while saying, "ako naman, ako naman!". 

She wanted to try it and take a photograph of something.

When I said "anong gusto mong kunan?", she replied by pointing her lips adding the words, "ayun oh!".

She took my camera and pointed it to that something she wants to take a picture of.

Then suddenly she wanted to do something else. 

She wants to draw now.

I got some pen and some paper and told her to draw whatever she wants to draw. 

Minutes after she cannot think of anything to draw and ended up asking me, "anong idodrowing ko?".

I said "kahit anong gusto mo", her eyes lit and slightly shouted, "ah prutas!". 

Minutes after, she came to me and said "Eto table to, eto prutas.", and I said, "pano naman naging prutas yan?" (because the drawing was merely a scratch). 

She didn't answer and said, "dito, dito, piktuyaran mo ko kay Ate Melo!".

I took a picture of her then she said that she will go now and play. 

The mind of a child is wonderful, always spontaneous, anarchic i think would be the right word for it. 

No inhibitions, no bullshit. 

Words are pure. 

There is no lying with them. 

CARAMOAN

There is no one word which can describe Caramoan. You have to tell it by your own story , with its own respective intensity. Here is mine.

Caramoan is a group of islands in the Bicol region which is located in the southern part of the Philippines. This is where the infamous reality TV show Survivor was shot, but apart from its fame gained from the said reality show, Caramoan is really a paradise not only because of it’s magnificent islands but mostly because of it’s people, the Bicolanos.

Getting there.

We were hesitant to leave that day for it was a holiday thinking we might get stuck at the bus station because we didn’t have any reserved seats, but we went on anyway. We waited for ten minutes at the station and finally got a bus which was bound for Naga, a town where we have to go to reach Caramoan. It was a long, not so smooth nine-hour drive from Manila. Once we’ve reached the town of Naga, the bus conductor told us that we should continue on to Pili, the next  town after Naga if we were going to Caramoan, knowing nothing about the place, we said yes and continued on to Pili, once in Pili, we rode an ordinary bus which says Lagunoy on it’s placard, it was a short two-hour trip to the port but we were standing during the first hour and I was constantly asking the bus conductor “are we there yet?”.

We arrived at the port, the local told us that we need to get to a boat and travel for another two hours to reach Caramoan, I was really hungry that time but the locals advised us that there will be no other boat leaving that day for Caramoan, not  minding the upheaval of my stomach we catched the last boat and headed to Caramoan. We arrived at Guajilo port at around 2pm, rode a tricyle where we met Rene, who offered us to take us to town and said he knows a place for us to eat, we agreed and took us there.   

it was a simple poorly lit carinderia, they had four viands available if I remembered it correctly,  we sat there and ate. After the meal, I started talking to the owner of the poorly lit carinderia , He has this artist ambience in him, His head is big, had a goatee and his face I was sure was not a local to that place. I noticed the Survivor related works of art when we entered the placed and I started talking about it, surely, He said that he is an artist and those are his works, then he started telling stories about the production teams of Survivor Israel, USA, Australia and France. As much as I would like to continue the chitchat whith Erwin we still have to find a place to stay so I bid farewell to Erwin and told him I will come back tomorrow to continue our conversation.

We stayed in a simple room with two beds with A/C, good thing that it had no TV because I didn’t want to spend my vacation staring at the idiot box, the only bummer was there was no signal for Globe and we urgently need to contact some friends for a favor, fortunately, our tricycle driver Rene has an extra Smart simcard which he lend to us. Problem solved. We decided to just relax and explore the town for the first day and do activities the following day. Rene said that he has a boat and he can take us island hopping tomorrow, we agreed and said to meet him at 7am the following day.

Caramoan Sunset

We unpacked our things, relaxed for a while and decided to go out and see the sunset. We headed straight to the shores of Caramoan and saw the bangkas parked along the shore, there were a lot of them, colorful and vibrant. We enjoyed the sunset while walking along the shore talking about various ideas and what we should do with life, well that is one of the best things to do while the sun is setting in front of you. The sunset was not the immaculate, pristine, perfect kind of sunset, and really, that was not I was hoping for. The mundane always inspire me and I always feel that things should be told as they were, that is why I hate Shakespeare.

The sunset during our first day in Caramoan, the simple conversation at the shores of it makes up a perfect memory of of an unperfect sunset. 

Of first impressions and common spectacles

The houses were poorly lit, some are still using lamplights/candles to light up their houses, kids were playing around a bright establishment which we found out later on was a KTV bar. Around 70% of the houses we saw doesn’t have electricity and as I observe, I realize that when the night comes, they don’t have anything to do but stare and talk to each other or to the kids playing outside their houses. This is a common spectacle in the far flung rural areas of the Philippines. Most of the provinces doesn’t have electricity, technology seems to be elusive and nights are quiet, really really quiet. People are warm, even if you can’t see their faces on the roads, you know that they are smiling inside and telling you that you’re safe here.  We dined and went back to our place.

Unity in “Samsero”

 We got back to the beach the following day to meet Rene for our island hopping adventure when we saw a bunch of locals pulling something from the seas of Caramoan. I approached a local and asked what were they doing and He happily responded saying “Semsero”. It is a way of fishing done by the locals of Caramoan where they set the “lambat” out to the open sea and pull it to gather the fishes around it improving the number of the fishes drawn to it. They do it once every fifteen minutes taking breaks once in a while. The local said that the  fishes  which will be caught during the process will be divided equally to those who helped, He even told me that if wewould help them, they will give us a fair cut of the catch.  This is a prime example that the culture of “bayanihan” in the provinces of the Philippines is still practiced and the unity of the locals is still decisive and very much alive.

Island hopping

Rene arrived at around 7:30am which was perfect time for a day in the open sea.  We started loading our things on to the boat, Rene brought a crew of three which were all friendly in their own ways. We started chatting as soon as we boarded with me asking where to go first and what island they recommend we should go first.

First stop was Lahos Bato (Lampasan), an island in between two huge boulders which serves as the passageway of waves hence the name Lahos Bato.

We stayed there for a bit and took some time to appreciate the beauty of the island and when Iyna tried to climb the stones at the far end of the island, she was about to step onto stones to climb up when she screamed as loud as she can, “may ahas!” (“there’s a snake!”), we ran towards her and saw what she saw,  Rene said that it was s water snake and it’s not venomous. I took a picture of it and then left the creature and the island.

We stayed there for a bit and took some time to appreciate the beauty of the island and when Iyna tried to climb the stones at the far end of the island, she was about to step onto stones to climb up when she screamed as loud as she can, “may ahas!” (“there’s a snake!”), we ran towards her and saw what she saw,  Rene said that it was s water snake and it’s not venomous. I took a picture of it and then left the creature and the island.

Second stop was Matukad. The sand of the beach of this island was incomparable, more of like a Polvoron, a Filipino dessert, it was pure , fine and very white. We stayed there and took a quick swim, the water was a bit cold but the sun kept us warm us while swimming.

Rene challenged us for a quick climb and said our trip would not be complete if we wouln’t see the “lagoon”, where He says is the home for a giant hito, whichh they believe is a mystical creature that protects Caramoan from calamities. Rene  also added that it doesn’t always show itself, if we’re lucky, we’ll see it.  The climb was hard, the steps was slippery because of the early morning rains and it was really  steep . We took some pictures from the top, climbed down and bid farewell to Matukad, the polvoron beach of Caramoan.

view from the top of matukad

We were welcomed with a coconut  on our third stop, Sab-itang Laya (long beach). We diffused the burning sun with the warm, sweet fruit drink while walking along Caramoan’s longest beach. 

We traversed the other side of Sab-itang laya where we found large rock formations and anoher beach, stayed there, smoked a ciggarette and took another quick swim. 

When we came back, Rene and the rest of the crew have already cooked our lunch, the menu was smoked squid and other local fishes. It was mouth watering, we even forgot to wash our hands before eating. 

While we were eating, Elmer and Roger decided to do something else, and when they came back, they brought with them some weird sea creatures. 

I tried two kinds, the first one was comparable to tahong, but a lot saltier, maybe because it was caught straight from the sea when I ate it, but they said that the real flavor comes out once cooked. The other one is more pallatable, it was more like scallops, they marinaded it with calamansi and wallah! instant pulutan!

We had a little chat with some locals there and exchanged opinions about the sea creatures they brought and then moved on to our next stop.

While we were on our way to our next stop, we were advised that it would take some time to get there, so what would be the best thing to do while on a boat? It’s drinking time! Bicolanos love drinking and they have a favorite, kwatro kantos! With the instant pulutan on the side, we talked about Caramoan, PUP, the NPA’s and how they’ve helped the people of Caramoan and the yellow army who according to them raped and ravaged parts of their beautiful island.

The second to the last stop was Manlawi, meaning sand bar. The rare thing about Manlawi is that you can go as far as 20 meters from the shore and it’s still thigh deep, it was a vast swimming pool-playground. 

We took some time and enjoyed the the crystal clear waters of Manlawi, it was our second to the last stop and it was given that this beach was the perfect beach for swimming so we made sure that we’ve swam our heart’s out before we leave.  

Last stop was the 444 steps grotto, it was not the ideal finale but hey,  this is our first time in Caramoan, why not try everything the locals have to offer? 

We needed to walk for a few minutes to reach the steps of the grotto where we passed along some local houses and from there, you can see the the white monument standing tall from the mountain top. 

Rene told us that there was a supposed to be earthquake in that area but when a nun prayed to the virgin mary, it stopped, that is why they decided to build an enormous monument of mary on top of it, and according to them, since then, the area was calamity-proof.

We are not really into mystic stories and religious monuments, but we enjoyed the story of hope and the bird’s eye view that the grotto gave us, from there you could see the whole Caramoan in a quick spin.

Caramoan taught us something

While we were on the boat on our way to our start point, we were confronted by a mild volume of rain which suddenly brought strong winds and suddenly, all we knew was that we can’t see a thing from our boat, the pieces of islands which earlier we can still see was not visible anymore. Rene started shouting and we knew that He was panicking saying that we should dock into the nearest shore to be safe, but how could that be possible if we couldn’t see shit? So we tried to stay calm, I remember saying “inom pa tayo!” (let’s drink again!), I tied my camera bag to a safe place after taking Rene’s photo giving orders to Roger, shouting to secure the boat then picked the kwatro kantos up and started drinking again. The rain and the strong winds didn’t stop for twenty long minutes, then after, the islands that once were'nt visible surfaced.

It was smooth sailing after that, the cool breeze of Caramoan dried our stuff on our way to our start point.

We reached our start point safely at around 8:00 o’clock. It was so dark we couldn’t see anything but the light from 10-20 houses. Rene guided us to our place and said he would pick us up at 9:00am the following day.

We dined and slept like a baby.

Caramoan Church

We decided to take a walk before leaving Caramoan, we swam into brackish waters and then walked back home. Rene picked us up and said that ther is still a place we need to see, the Caramoan church, he brought us there, took some time to look at the centruy old church, took some pictures of it then left.

We arrived at the port at around 10:00am where we boarded a small ferry headed to Guajilo port. We bid farewell to Rene and told Him that we will go back the following year, we thanked him and headed our way. 

We travelled again by boat for two hours and when we reached Guajilo port, we decided not to end our trip there.

NAGA SIDETRIP TO BE CONTINUED

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