Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Theirstory
Last weekend, I walked with the farmers from Sumilao. We arrived in Cabuyao, Laguna to meet the farmers who are already resting after a good morning's worth of walking. They were staying the plaza beside the church. The plaza had areas that are shaded - this was where we stayed.
It's really hard for me to describe the experience. We stayed with the farmers for three days and two nights. We walked with them from Cabuyao to San Pedro. We chanted with them. We ate with them, sans utensils. We befriended some of them. We slept with them on cold, hard floors of the covered court of San Pedro and plaza of Cabuyao. Aya taught them how to speak some Japanese words and phrases. We got to know the people who have been bereft of their land. We got to know the people whom we have been supporting for some time now.
It was an incredible experience and I cannot truly narrate the things that happened during the weekend. The experience rivals that of my immersion in Manabayucan. But I found this experience more intimate and closer to my heart.
It's a sad reality that these farmers, these friends of mine, had to endure all those that they've gone through. For many, their life stories are marked with bitter experiences of having no land to till, while some are scarred by bitter words from neighbors who ostracize them.
My experience reminded me that modernization does not benefit everyone. There are still those whose lives are tied to their lands. We here in the metropolis forget those people. We tend to forget that not everyone is living a comfortable life like us.
In that weekend, I was reminded of the people often forgotten. I was reminded of their story. But what struck me the most is that their story is also part of my history. That history is created by theirstoy and mystory.
I hope and pray that they do get their 144 hectares of land. I also pray for those who are continually seeking for justice. I pray for those who are marginalized for the sake of progress. I pray most especially for us - the people who choose the modern convenience that suffocates and oppresses.
This was when we joined them
Notice of coverage! 144
Pangandaman! Manindigan!
Returning from the weekend with the farmers, I was met with a tragic news. Joey Carlos (I-AB Eco-H), an Intact student of mine, died yesterday morning. He and his high school friends were going to Manila from Baguio when the car lost control and turn over several times. The others are injured while some are undergoing operations.
Please pray for his soul. He will be missed.
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