These were some random shots taken a year ago in my barrio in Catanduanes. I especially chose these pictures to post in my blog because it depicts rural life activities that I was accustomed to. Having lived outside the Philippines half my life, I surely miss everything from home. Indeed, the saying, "no place like home" is true!
Have you ever experienced eating food on a banana leaf? I don't know what it is about it, but the food tastes so much better on these leaves and it makes you devour food in great quantities. Nowadays, people are starting to use banana leaves as lining/covering on native plates made out of rattan in social gathering. . It is convenient and very economical. When you finish eating, all you need to do is throw away the leaves in the compost pit. Because it is perishable, it will decompose over time, and will make good fertilizer for our garden. You see, nothing is wasted in the whole process.
When I was little, I couldn't hold still in the house. Well, for one thing, we didn't have television or toys to keep me entertained and I didn't like being cooped up in the house all day long with nothing to do. I preferred to wander into places with my friends. Sometimes, we would stay in the tree house for hours and end up napping because the cool breeze from atop seemed to hypnotize us. Often, we were awaken by the holler of my father from the house, screaming obstreperously for my name mandating me to come home. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, afraid of the possible consequences that would befall me ; the dreaded whipping. I was supposed to be home helping my mother in the house. If I got lucky, depending on his mood, he spared me the lashing...usually whips on my poor bottom..hehehe.
Other times, we would go in the forest looking for firewood. Woods were so easy to find then. We usually got our limit in no time giving us more time for fun and little mischief. We had hilarious memories with Antutan tree close to where we searched for firewood. Antutan tree had a loathsome scent which resembled like a "tot." I think that is the reason why the tree was called Antutan because of its smell. It made us gag. Anyway, we would pick some leaves off the tree and would deliberately have someone sniffed on it without his/her knowledge. Oh boy, was she/he infuriated, and attempted to pay us back. I made sure I always watched my back just in case someone was pulling that same trick on me from behind. Hahahaha...silly memories!
Those pictures above show rural life scenes typical in my barrio. In the afternoon until dusk, people like to gather outside along the side of the road just to catch the latest news/gossips or to chew tobacco. Chewing tobacco was common among the elders including my father. I had done some errands for my father on many occasions looking for nganga ingredients such as buyo, apog, bunga, and some tobacco in the neighborhood. There was absolutely nothing from that concoction that appealed to me. Yikess! It was gross. Why were the elders so hooked on it was beyond me. I am so thankful I didn't become a nganga chewer.
One picture above shows myself sitting on the balcony railing with my feet up. It is my favorite position when I need a relaxing chat with friends and relatives. It looks funny and odd but I feel comfortable in this position. Try doing it yourself and let me know what you think.
The other two pictures are of my mom who just passed away not too long ago. In one picture, she is seen making the molido that I promised to bring a friend in the US. She was the only one in the family who knew how to make the molido. Unfortunately, she didn't pass it on to any of her kids.
The other picture is of the four of us; mom, me, and my two daughters, playing domino. Somehow, she managed to communicate with my daughters even in broken English. I am glad, she had a chance to bond with my children before she joined with the Creator.
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