December break

December was truly an experience. It was the first for me. I returned home in late November for my much-needed break after the nerve-wracking earthquake experience in Bohol and the succeeding blackout affecting the province after Yolanda. It was not an easy time for Boholanos. So you can imagine my desire to go home. Ah rest, I craved for it.

By December, I was beginning to enjoy the homecoming when I got sick. I confined in the hospital before Christmas. My friendly doctor made sure I discharged on December 22, days before Christmas day. Instead of getting well, I felt sicker. Talk about peri-menopausal discomforts and the harsh effects of antibiotics on my system.

Well, I just let December 24 passed. No frills, no fuzz. By afternoon of December 25, I went back to the hospital. This time I was treated for gastritis. My first time to experience two confinements in less than a week. It was also my first-time ever to undergo endoscopy. There’s always a first time for everything huh! Well, endoscopy was not a pleasant experience I tell you, but I survived haha. Best part is my stomach is clear. Thank God.

When I left the hospital by evening of December 27, I was looking forward to a wonderful New Year celebration with my young adults. I used to call them teens but they have turned into young adults now with their own unique mind sets.

True, we had a more fun New Year’s Eve devouring a giant pizza. The pizza lasted until mid-morning. It was huge, I tell you.

January 1 was pleasurable. Hezekiah turned twenty and his high school friends came over to the house for an afternoon of guess what? You would never guess! Two giant pizzas. The fun lasted until late into the night. It was so good to be with young people. You imbibe their zeal, energy, and passion for life.

Well, thank God December ended with January 1st. And it was fun!

Soul of the city

Friday evening, my teenager and I were invited to a birthday party of a foreign exchange student at a family-owned resort in Lagao, this city. The birthday girl Aurore (yes, she is French) is the foster daughter of Vice Mayor Shirlyn Banas-Nograles and hubby.

It was my second party with Vice Mayor Shirlyn. The first party I attended where I met her for the first time was at couple Glenn and Mary Jane Aroso’s birthday party in honour of their eldest son Brian in August, this year.

Last Friday, Vice Mayor Shirlyn and I talked about all and sundry including the recent Tuna Festival which is celebrated yearly for a couple of years now to commemorate the charter anniversary of the city.

She went to school at UP-Visayas in Iloilo for her college education and while she was there, she imbibed the culture of the province. I grew up in Bohol where the classic Boholano culture and heritage is very strong and intertwined into our psyche. Using the culture lens, we observed one thing in common: Both these Visayan Islands with grand and popular festivals to boot are deeply rooted in culture and history. You see, every city, every province has a soul. This soul is defined in the city’s or province’s history, heritage and culture. Anyone who originates from any city or province must know her history, her heritage, her uniqueness. It’s simply called the “soul of the city”.

While at it, we talked about how the Generals especially the younger ones – the children and teenagers who will eventually become grownups – can fully embrace the significance of the Tuna Festival. We were not talking about parades and street dances, nor the buntings and colourful banners; we meant how we can translate the festivity into a sustainable foundation-laying program that people can understand, appreciate, imbibe and embrace and eventually embed into their consciousness as a growing heritage. It is the young people’s birthright. Like peace education, the program never ends. It never stops. It cuts across cultures, religions, genders, ages and politics. It doesn’t start and end with the festival per se. It is cultural and historical, thus it is continuous and digs deep into the roots of the city.

It is a daunting task considering that Gen. Santos City is a melting pot of many cultures. How to start a distinct culture extracted from this myriad of cultures for the benefit of the young generation is the greatest challenge for festival thinkers and culture experts in the city. It should go beyond commerce and trade. It must be rooted in the culture and heritage that we are trying to bequeath on our children and the future generation – their birthright.

Festivals are a celebration of a place’s culture, tradition and heritage. When we celebrate it, everyone, young and old alike must have an idea why we are celebrating. The celebration must be rooted in the soul of the city.

Food for thought:

A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people. – Mohandas Gandhi

A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots. – Marcus Garvey 


http://iloilocity.gov.ph/iloiloct2011wip/