Such Love and Some Gifts to Share this Christmas

Paskwa sa Banwa. It's Christmas time in Balete. And every morning starting last Monday, people wake up early for the Dawn Mass at the parish church. It is a panaad, a personal devotion and a pledge to fulfill with the hope of getting something in return come Christmas Day when such sacrifice finds its culmination.

It has been ingrained in us. Gifts to receive on Christmas Day or during its long season. We expect to at least receive one from our one of our elusive godparents. This expectation is extended to our doing the Misa de Gallo and the Aguinaldo Mass. It is us and our loved ones that should receive Christmas presents.

We often forget that Christmas Day is the birthday of our Lord, or at least, the day we commemorate his "pitching his tent to dwell among us".

We often appropriate to ourselves the attention that is rightfully of the Lord laying on the manger. It is us that should receive comfort this Christmas while Jesus remains languishing in cold and dirt in some obscure pigsty in the periphery of our communities. Since when did we greet Him "Happy Birthday, my Lord?". Since when did we manage to bring him gifts on his birthday?

Despite that, he continues to love us. He love us notwithstanding our selfishness and flaws. Such love that does not end in his taking our human form and experiencing our poverty. His love absorbs our betrayals and unfaithfulness. His love endures every temptation. He loves us even to the point of dying on the cross and experiencing and conquering hell to bring us up back into the bosom of his merciful Father.

He showed us the example. Let us not forget it. He loves us. We must return such love to him through our neighbors. Christmas is the perfect occasion to start that off. We have the choice. Mine is the little way.

Over the years, and considering the limited resources available vis-a-vis the values I find in them. I have endeavored to sharing the spirit of Christmas through simple gifts to my circle of friends and loved ones:

• giving off saplings of fruit trees -- the kids receiving them might initially not be excited as receiving expensive and sophisticated toys but with the guidance of their parents, planting them in their backyard may give them the thrill with the prospect of watching it grow to bear fruit in the near future. Plus, you can tell them that by such small gesture, they are caring for the environment;
• giving off old classic books or buying some, if the funds are available -- such as this ten titles: Hope for the Flower by +Trina Paulus; The Little Prince by Antoine de St. Exupery; The Alchemist by +Paulo Coelho; A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens; Jonathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Bach; All I Really Need to Know I learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum; First You Have to Row a Little Boat by Richard Bode; Why I Am Afraid to Tell You Who I Am by Fr.  John Powell as well as its sequel, Why I Am Afraid to Love; and  Watership Down by Richard Adams. 
• inviting them to bird watching or hiking in the countryside -- as part of your advocacy for the environment while at the same time sharing them the spiritual benefits of communing with nature. For some practical guides to bird watching and hiking, you might find this site worth visiting: Birding Adventure Philippines. 

Steere's Pitta, Photo courtesy of Nicky Icarangal @ www.birdingphilippines.com 

Christmas is Still Merry even without a Party

Grupo Oeonungan is the political organization that has been ruling the Municipality of Balete since 1998. It has consistently won every political battle from its inception up to the present.  It is composed of all the incumbent municipal officials, all the punong barangays, SK Chairpersons and 98% of all elected barangay kagawads in the entire constituency of the municipality.

On Sunday, December 16, 2012, the group is supposed to having its Christmas party together with its supporters and allies. It had planned out all the details about the event as early as November in anticipation of a heavy turnout. In an emergency meeting, the Mayor informed the rest that the core group has suggested and agreed to forego with the party and instead donate its budget to the victims of Typhoon Pablo through the Sagip Kapamilya of the ABS-CBN Foundation, Inc.  

This notable gesture on the part of the group attracted the attention of the municipal employees who have been preparing for their customary Year-end Activity and Christmas Party scheduled on the 21st of December. A meeting was readily organized. Someone in the crowd commented that the joy brought about by a Christmas party will never be complete if it is not shared with those who are robbed of hope following the wreckage caused by Typhoon Pablo. It turned out that everyone was of the same sentiment: to let go of such party so as to be true to the Spirit of Christmas; to share and reach out to the least and to those who suffer.

So a consensus was reached: the contributions intended for the 2012 Christmas Party will now be donated to the victims of the super typhoon. This time, with the humor still intact, an employee suggested that the donation will be coursed through the GMA Kapuso Foundation. "Para Kapamilya na, Kapuso pa ro Balete", he added. "But how about being Kapatid?", a lady quipped from the crowd. The suggester replied, "Kon may calamidad eon man don." to which the crowd chorused  "Ayaw man!" 

While the meeting adjourned and the attendees scurried back to their place, the public address operator was humming to himself the tune, Obladi Oblada. Yes, Mar, you are right. Indeed, life goes on, no matter what. As for us in Balete, our Christmas will remain merry even without that party. There are still those nights of Paskwa sa Banwa to attend to where we have to reach out to the least amongst us here in our town. For it will be Pharisaical to show compassion to those in far-off place as the lens are focused on them while ignoring those poor brethren of us right here in our midst. They too have to experience the true essence of Christmas and such happens not in a party. 

Into the Woods

My life as a ghostwriter keep me grounded on my cubicle for more than eight hours a day for the entire weekdays. In that chamber, only my mind and the fingers do the hard work and yet unable to push out the stale water out of my tired body. Precisely that on weekend, I see to it that I am geared up for the orchard to commune with nature, to rest my weary mind and to stretch out my physique in the hope of regaining its youthfulness. Wishful thinking, that is. Even then, now that my body is perspiring, my creativity is awakened by the visions I was framing along my path into the woods:

 As I wandered into the woods, a song played in my mind, "Let thy love play upon my voice and rest on my silence." (R. Tagore)

The voice seems to say, "Be still and know that I am God." (Ps. 46:10)

Then, it seems that it is morning again in my life...

My eyes are opened and beheld the wonders He has made.

So I went on, following an old trail trodden by venerable men.

Only to find myself in some quagmire...

 I bathed on the free flowing water and wondered why the city dwellers keep on nagging men to save it but then belabored in selling it.

I wandered in the clearing to be treated by a scene of some fowl laying eggs in the thickets...

 On and on, I journeyed inner to find the ripening rambutan--a produce of my unremembered efforts years ago of planting fruit trees in this part of my wife's property.

There are those saplings competing for the sun...

 ...while the rice are privileged to enjoy it all day long.

 I wandered in the woods on weekends and contemplated on your beauty, ever ancient and yet so new.

The Enchanting Balete Paradigm

(Herewith is my talk delivered during the opening ceremonies of "ENCHANTING: Idto sa amon sa Balete Photo Exhibit at the Museo it Akean" on October 13, 2012 in Kalibo, Aklan. The photo exhibit lasts until October 29, 2012) 

I go out of my comfort zone today to answer the question, “Why EnchantingBalete”?

I am sorry to disappoint those who assume that it is a brand name. Enchanting Balete is not a brand name like Canon, Yashica or Nikon. We would like to give emphasis on this as we categorically parry off the observation of UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and Pacific, Mr. Richard Englehardt, of the realities of turning heritage sites into mere object of entertainment and commercialism. Neither we venture into falsifying authenticity for the sake of tourism, however you may call it today.

To us, Enchanting Balete is more like the photographer and his handy camera. It is a paradigm through which we see things. It is much like Mr. Roy Escalona and the rest of the Aklan Kamera Organization with their perceptive lens framing ordinary scenes to enable us to see the unseen beauty of daily life. (By the way, the September issue of the Reader’s Digest is still available for those who are interested.) Through it, we are able to appreciate the realities breaking through in our humble town the past decade and discriminate milestones out of the humdrum of community life.

Enchanting Balete is a party bias that allows us to rise from the typecast of a menacing place and inspire our people to approximate that better Balete than yesterdays. We are Enchanting Balete precisely because socio-cultural and economic developments in our town, however humble they maybe, form a prism-like projections converging side-by-side with environmental protection endeavors not just by the government but by a meeting of multi-sector groups. This convergence results to human wellbeing, both personal and communal.

In its totality, Enchanting Balete therefore is a paradigm for sustainable development for us to approximate our vision and mission as a municipality. Thus, we encapsulate such reality in our annual celebration for which SB Patrick will elucidate after this talk—which is to end now.

When an Elfin Lady Rides a Jeepney

You sat in front of me. But no words were uttered that are directed to each other. There were secret glances thrown, some tacit prayer murmured silently by fettered hearts that refuse respite.  I noticed your sad eyes and the pretty face you wore today. It is strange that such a beauty has such eyes that prefer the distant scene of empty spaces. Do they see the reddening sky as the sun kissed the horizon when others were seeing the juxtaposing neon lights along the stretch of Taft Avenue?

A Donovan cut was playing softly in some unseen stereo. The commuters looked bored and tired and understand not a word. You seem to flow with it rather than riding this slow-moving carriage. The traffic was heavy today, just as it has been in Tita Cory's time and yet you have soared into the wishes of Brother Sun and Sister Moon. Was this a lovely day?, your mind asked your heart. Was this day filled with meaning to justify your resolve of seeing tomorrow's rays?

Your brows curved and they betrayed a couple of lines on your forehead. You have aged much. That's not the way I remember you the first time we met! I remember those moment when you inquired me of my opinion concerning Sartre's La nausée. Where you trying to impressed me then when you came to my place just to ask my mind?  I'd seen you long ago. From a distance. But since the time you paid me a brief visit, you disturbed my quiet existence. You have always been an enigma, an elusive elf whose smile reminds me of the Monalisa and since then, you have enchanted this soul.

Isn't it strange then that we have not exchange words today when we are a seat apart from each other? Busy?

Perhaps.

We Are Enchanting Balete

      

        The Municipality of Balete has been in the national limelight for the past two years when it was chosen as one of the 15 municipalities from all over the country to have been conferred with the Seal of Good Housekeeping Awards by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG). The awards were won due to the fact that Balete espoused the values of good governance, transparency and accountability—values that the Seal of Good Housekeeping program are promoting for all government agencies to espouse.

Prior to that however, is that the LGU has been a consistent regional contender in the EXCELL Award, short for the Search for Excellence in Local Governance. In one occasion, a team of evaluators for such program came over to validate the local data. They arrived, all in black t-shirts. The leader was honest enough to explain the reason why. He intimated that since they were visiting the town of Balete on a Friday the 13^th at that, they decided to all wear black tees to ward off any evil that may befell on them.

Such negative connotation associated with the name of Balete is not unique of our town. Throughout the Philippines, Balete or Balite is always associated with White Lady, Kapre and other evil being conceived by the pregnant mind. Other than that, there was a dark time in the history of our town when we were feared upon by people from other municipalities for the many atrocities committed by some wayward Baleten-ons. We have overcome those days. We have moved forward and showed ourselves in the light. Yet the past hounds us. We thus endeavored to present a different and positive aura for others to perceive. 

We are Enchanting Balete. We focus on the many positive milestones and pro-active endeavors of our people. We exert efforts to converge the many good things that have come our way over the years. We find them in the economic endeavors of the community, in their social activities and in our common quest of protecting our fragile environment. We have created a venue to magnify them for sustainable development. Such is “Enchanting Balete.”

KATO ANAY SA BALETE: Estorya it Katilingban nga nagakinahang-ean it Pagbueong ku Dios

(A similar entry has been also published as a note in SaintRaphael the Archangel Parish Facebook Account) 

Nagapangutana ka, “Ham-an gid a nga si San Rafael Arkangel do patron it Balete?” “Ham-an gid a nga sa bug-os nga Dioceses it Kalibo o Provincia it Akean, ro Balete eat’a ro may patron nga Arkangel?”

Iya sa Amon (Sinipi halin sa Apdo ni San Rafael)

Mayad nga pangutana. Mabudlay ugaling sabton. Pero bisan pa, dapat gid man nga atong tinguhaan nga hangpon eamang nga maintiendihan ta rong aton nga gin-umpisahan. Sa rato, mabanta ta kun siin rong aton nga paadtunan.

Amat-amat eang. Aton rong higayon makaron. Ibhi kami sa rayang pagpanikangon sa Daean. Estoryahan naton rayang mga bagay-bagay. Basi pa man, sa aton nga pagbaeayluhan it ihibaeo ag experiensya, mahangpan ta ag malingling rong kamatuoran.

Umpisahan ta anay sa nahanabo kato. Mamasyar ay kita ku tiempo it mga Español iya sa aton. Partikular sa dag-on 1882 sa Balete. Kato nga tiempo, ro Balete hay isaea sa 33 ka “pueblos” ku provincia it Capiz. Ro parokya hay parte man ku Dioceses it Jaro. Do census it 1870 hay nagasugid nga may una nga 3,023 ka pumueoyo rong Balete, ngani nga ku 1804 nahimo eon ra nga “pueblo” o banwa (bisan pa nga ro policy kato hay dapat nga may una nga 5,000 nga populasyon rong sangka comunidad bag-o mangin banwa).

 Masubo rong sitwasyon ku 1882. Haeos sa kada pamaeay hay may nagapanangison. Ro awtoridad hay nagapaninguha nga mataw-an it solusyon rong problema. Sa listahan, may una eon nga sobra sa ciento quarenta (140) ka patay sa sueod eang it sangbuean nga nagtaliwan. Sa pagkamatuod, 144 gid tanan rong nagkaeamatay, suno sa report kung gobernadorcillo nga mabasa mo una sa manuscript nga Memoria dela Provincia de Capiz (Mayo de 18, 1882) sa National Archives of the Philippines.  Suno sa report, cholera outbreak rong kadahilanan ku andang pagkamatay.

Rong mga tumueo-o, sa pamuno ku andang cura parocco (tiempo eon da ni Don Padre Vicente Guanco) hay naghimo it novena para sa andang patron, Sr. San Rafael Arcangel. Dayon may ginhimo sanda nga procesyon. Pangamuyo nanda nga rong Ginuo hay magbueong kanda. Rāfāʾēl, buot hambaeon, ro Dios hay gabueong.  Pangamuyo nanda nga sanda ag rong andang pinalangga hay pagabuengon it Dios paagi kay San Rafael. Pangamuyo nanda nga rong andang pagpanaghoy sa kasubo hay mangin hugyaw sa kasadya.

Ag ro Dios hay nag-ulikid kanda. Si San Rafael hay nag-unong kanda. Pareho nga gin-ibhan na si Tobias sa anang pagpamanawon, gin-ibhan na man do kada Baleten-on sa anang pagpamanawon sa Daean it Kabuhi. Kato. Makaron. Kaibahan naton si San Rafael nga Arkangel, patron it manugbueong ag ku mga nagapang-eakaton, ku nga bulag ag ku mga nagapangasawa, patron it Baleten-on. 

A restless heart's supplication through St. Raphael

Nocturnal Visitors - III

      Gipos, my wife's distant cousin, paid us a visit the other day. The "brief" visit progressed into an excursion of various topics ranging from his application for an early retirement as bus driver of Vallacar Transit, Inc. (Ceres) to those nocturnal predators that raided our rabbits and chicken coop.  Gipos self-proclaimed to be one of the pioneers of Vallacar when Ceres Bus acquired a franchise for the Kalibo-Iloilo route more than a decade ago. Prior to that, he used to drive the R&K that once ruled the same route. When the former bought out the latter, Gipos together with a handful few was absorbed by the company.

    Now in his middle 50's and still single, Gipos shows signs of getting burnout and to his mother and siblings exhibits what Dr. Jed Diamond called Irritable Men Syndrome (IMS). He pays us occasional "brief" visit to unwind his frustrations, my wife and I being his shock-absorbers. At times, we would consume some bottles of beer, or brandy if available. Lately, a cup of coffee will do to hydrate the throat.

   On his latest visit, he talked about the ilô (palm civet) that prowl at nights in the area. It happened that there was a blue moon when he came over and the dogs were barking everywhere for some unseen passersby. Now that my wife raises eight dogs, the nocturnal predators are having a hard time sneaking into the chicken coop. But he argued that ilô and maraë (small leopard cat) are agile and arboreal predators that no dogs however many can catch up with them.

Common palm civet in chiku (Manilkara zapota) tree;
(Photo by kwokwai76) (courtesy of The Lazy Lizard's Tales Blogspot)

Yet, on several instances, these agile and sleek nocturnal mammals were ran over by passing vehicles when they attempted crossing the highway  in front of my property. Like rabbits, they seem to freeze when a strong light hit them. They realized too late that they were in a middle of a "man-thing" where those "light-beaming monster" rammed them into pieces.

Gipos is not sympathetic to the plight of those wild animals. To him, they are just pests to farmers' chicken coops and coconuts. He advised my wife to clear out our areas as they thrived on thick foliage such as bamboo thickets and tall trees infested by wild vines. He is oblivious of the fact that those animals help in balancing our ecology by spreading the seeds of trees on which they feed not to mention that they also control the population of rats and other small rodents that are equally harmful to fruit agriculturalists.

Kaibahang Butch in his morning talk over DYRU today admitted that he has not seen in his entire life an  ilô or a maraë , much more a singgaeong (bearcat). I for myself, despite my living in an area where many sightings of these animals are reported has only seen dead ones rammed over by passing vehicles. But I am clinging to that hope of encountering them alive and prowling one of these nights.

Wish me luck. And Gipos too.

The Day After the Feast of St. Augustine

Yesterday (August 28) was the feast of St. Augustine of Hippo. I celebrated it in silence and alone with you. I reminded you about it as if you need reminding. All these years, I remain as restless as a young man as he ran in pursuit for some truths to satisfy his curiosity of his carefree days. You are witness to such restlessness.

Time brought changes into all those that are. Here I sit a day after the feast day of my patron saint holding on to a past that is already gone trying to rally for its continued hold into the culture that is fast becoming obsolete. It remains present though in a mind fixated to those moments of wild abandon of bygone years. Here I endure and convince myself to accept the things of the present moment that are consequences of such puerile and reckless "indecisiveness."

Yet my heart is not at rest. There is stubbornness that wanted to rebel against the "consequenced-past" and the "regrettable present." It is hard to vision out my path into the "desired future" lest I become a Sisyphean troll or a condemned Promethean man.

I must teach myself to accept the things of the present...to live with it (without judging its value?).

Yes, these are the images I painted in my mind a day after I celebrated my patron saint's feast day alone with you. Those were the thoughts wandering about in the region of dissimilarity, set aside my conjectures about the laws of attraction and gravitational pull vis-a-vis the subtle influence of the dictum, "Amor meus, pondum meum." But such things are as I said, conjectures.

Somewhere Down the Road

A friend wondered out loud: "Why the frequent absences and the belated updates of this blog?" I smiled back and quietly informed her, "Oh, I been wandering somewhere down the road." She insisted that I elucidate what I mean, thus this entry.

Yes, my dear, I been wandering down the road and should you care, you can follow me on my steps:

First, let us draw the line. For here is the first stop: At Petrufied's corner. :-). She's kind enough to show me where else to go in my early morning wanderings.

The next stop is at Singapore's National Day Celebration where Lee Kuan Yew publicly aired his regrets for seeing too soon the sun setting on his beloved country's tomorrow. Mr. Michael Cook was kind to share "table" with me. :-)

From the Lion City, I went back to hear the turno en contra at the Philippine Senate. Sen. Sotto was emphatic defending his ground. Back at home in time for the Feast of the Assumption, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan enacted a pro-life Universal Health program contrary to what USAID has originally proposed per its pro-forma ordinance (the so-called KP Ordinance).

Then later in the day, I came across this Catholic Thing musing about the limits of liberal mind when encountering Catholicism. I lingered for a while and met articulate Dave whom I suspect to be a theologian of good heart.

Yes, my dear, I been wandering through a lot of corners down the road these days that I failed to update this blog. I am sorry for having you waited and for failing to inform you beforehand of my whereabouts.

I am sorry that I can't be at your feast day celebration too. Happy feast day, anyway. :-D

Never a Quitter

Olympian Rene Herrera (Photo credit:  InterAksyon.com/Joseph Agcaoili)

   He finished last. The diminutive veteran runner and navyman Rene Herrera was the Filipino representative to the 5000 meters race in the 2012 London Olympic. Kaibahang Butch of the DYRU however related that Herrera was much applauded not because he bested the other 20 runners (although he bested himself in the Heat 1 with a record of 14:44.11) but due to his determination to finish the race even if he is the last man running in the stadium. Such attitude is what a true Olympian has to exemplify. It is not to win, but to take part (cf. Pierre de Coubertin). It is as what Agence France-Presse wrote in July 18, 2008 and I quote, "True Olympic spirit is often found away from gold medalists with their agents and sponsorship deals -- it is found in its purest sense in those that come last." 

Rene Herrera did finish last because he never quits. And because he never quits he comes first to the hearts of men watching in that London stadium. 

The Three-fold Functions of a Punong Barangay

An elementary pupil was tasked by her teacher of interviewing the chieftain (Punong Barangay) of a barangay (village). Such is a hard tasked for a toddler in primary education, I reckoned.  But the child was adamant to oblige the wishes of her mentor. She asked her parents for help, who in turn, asked for my intervention. So one fine day, I arranged the meeting of the child and the village official. Their conversation went this way (in vernacular):

Q – What is your name, sir?

A – I am Roberto A. Cuare. I am the Punong Barangay of Barangay Morales.

Q – What is the nature of your job, you being the Punong Barangay of Morales?

A – As Punong Barangay, I perform the three-fold functions of the government. First, I am the chief executive of the barangay government. Second, I am the presiding officer of the legislative council, locally known as the Sangguniang Barangay. And third, I sit as the chairman of the Lupong Tapapamayapa, previously known as Barangay Justice, which is tasked of mediating or arbitrating disagreements among the local residents. For that matter, I sit as judge in this quasi-judicial body.

Q – How many households are there in your barangay today?

A – Barangay Morales has a total population of 2,618 or a total household of 573 per the 2007 National Census of Population. Our population growth rate is at 1.3% per annum.

Q – What projects are being implemented today that will benefit the people in our community?

A – There are many projects being undertaken to address the situation in the community. We coded them under the SPECSE paradigm as follows:

a.     S stands for Social Services. Under this area, the Barangay takes active part in implementing the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) or the so called 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program) among the poorest families. Also, it assists the DOH in conducting the National Household Targeting System-Poverty Reduction through the organization of Community Health Teams. Through these programs, the poor are made members of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. Parent-beneficiaries are required to enroll to schools their school-going age children and are enjoined at availing the health services being offered at the Health Center.  The Barangay also maintains a Health Station and a couple of Daycare Center situated in strategic areas in the locality. It actively coordinates with the DepEd and the Local School Board in the maintenance of the Morales Elementary School. It sets up Tanod outposts and established its own Barangay Disaster Risk Reduction Management outpost and linked up with the Balete PNP and the Municipal DRRMO.

b.     P stands for Political maturity. People empowerment is made possible to transparency, accountability and good governance. We make it happen through the conduct of regular Barangay Assembly and afford our people with the correct information and progress report concerning the administration of the barangay. In the implementation of programs and projects, we see to it that community involvement and their active cooperation.

c.      E stands for economic development. To compliment the 4Ps and NHTS-PR programs we encourage micro-financing to facilitate loan windows and the inflow of local investment in the community. In Morales, several lending agencies such as Taytay sa Kauswagan, Microsavers, Uswag, etc., open their windows to those who would want to start backyard hog raising, multi-cropping initiatives, etc. Morales is basically a farming community and most of my people derived their living through the fruits of their harvest.

d.     C stands for cultural identity. The people of Morales are proud of their heritage as part of the Baleten-on people. We hold dear to our hearts things or events that identify us from among the rest. We thus give time and the rest of our resources to upholding and preserving our cultural and heritage through our active participation it the annual Kultura Balete celebration.

e.     S stands for Spirituality. Our barangay officials took time to attend to their spiritual needs. Just of the recent, we underwent a Moral Recovery Program initiated by the DILG. Our SK officials too have their seminar on Ethical Standards for Civil and Public Servants. These are non-sectarian activity that seeks to rejuvenate our noble aspirations for our people. Having humane and God-fearing officials will not be to the disadvantage of the community and to the individuals, much to those sectarian groups in the barangay.

f.          E stands for the Environment. We are what we are primarily due to our environment. Without it, nothing can there be. Precisely that the Barangay is stringent on imposing environmental measures. Its proactive project is on its establishing nurseries for tree saplings, the conduct of regular tree planting and cleaning and greening in the community.

Personal Insights

·        Punong Barangays are tasked of fulfilling the three-fold functions of the government, i.e., as executive officer, as legislator and as judge in a particular community.

·        Punong Barangays, despite the burden their carry on their back are salaried very low as compared to executives, legislators and judges in both the government and private sectors.

·        Punong Barangays are the ones who have direct encounter with the people. They see, hear and feel their sufferings and daily struggles and yet they are paid low. They attend to their problems 24/7 a day and yet they don’t have social security insurance. 

Paint Me a Somber Sky in Monochromatic Blue

Aragorn misses his Lady Arwen. The heavy downpour sets him in reverie.

Rain. More rain.

A dark gray sky. And yet I saw you smile. And I thought, you are weather-proof. Then something inside told me that I ought to smile back. I did smile back, appearing the fool.

But honestly, I find our meeting a kind of sweet and memorable moment, although bordering to melancholic. You beckoned me to follow you to your place. Our pretext, oh, we do have lots of pretext to justify such meeting. We walked in the rain under the protective cover of your umbrella. That was romantic, I supposed. My subconscious though saw the two of us walking away with our reflections painted on the wet pavement and from a vantage point in monochromatic blue. That scene was lovely and yet lonely; so true and yet flawed. It was a sad scenery of a supposed happy moment worth remembering.

Inside your place, you flooded me with your concerns, subtly informing me that I remain to be the man you can count on; your strong arm in times of trouble.  You made me your hero that carries you always out of the troubled waters.  And yet you worry of my failing health, asking me directly if I still experience those dizziness and nausea.

I remember telling you that I got fired up whenever you requested me to do you some favor. You inspired me even if your presence is an interruption.  You excite me even if you disturbed my quiet. And I am always glad to be by your side. Then I felt strong and whole. Life is meaningful, is beautiful and true.

Even if it rained. Even if the rain flooded our lives.

That They May Be One

    So that we may believe that God the Father has sent you to shepherd us, we pray for your oneness in mind and heart. We pray that you lead us away from the encircling gloom with your staff and protect us by your strong arms from the malaise that prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

    We pray to Jesus, our Lord, that you parry the confusion out of our tired hearts and that you may win the trust and confidence of those that you pasture.

    We pray that the Holy Spirit inspires you to break bread with your brethren and show us the example of how good and pleasant it is for brothers to live together in unity.

    With Mary, our mother, we pray for all to be sympathetic, to be compassionate and humble in dealing with one another whom we see Jesus in each of them, more so in the poor and the least among us.

    Amen.

Stumbling into R.A. No. 1716 dated June 21, 1957

Republic Act No. 1716 is a very short law promulgated in June 21, 1957. It only contains two sections, the declaration and its effecacy. No other explanation was supplied. But the title speaks for itself and it says, "An Act Changing the name of Barrio Morthon in the Municipality of Balete, Capiz to Barrio Fulgencio".

See herewith its capture form from Chan Robles Virtual Library:

A Textual Analysis on a Text Message

A relevant resident by the Jal-o sent me the following text message through short message service (SMS) the other day. The message reads:

"Look at the month of July, you have never seen this. This year July has 5 Sundays, 5 Mondays and 5 Tuesdays. This apparently happens once in every 823 years.

"This is called money bags.

"So send this to any 20 friends and money will arrive in 5 days. Based on Chinese Mythology, the one who does not pass this on will have money troubles for the rest of the year. It won't cost you much for that 20 text." (sic) 

 In logic, this is called a fallacious argument, or better still, an informal fallacy known as a mixture of an argument from the scripture, retrospective determinism and argumentum ad baculum. Let us deconstruct it for clarity's sake.

There are three components in the text message. First, the framer awed the reader with a fact, i.e., July 2012 being the most unique having 5 Sundays, 5 Mondays and 5 Tuesdays which only takes places every 823 years in the cycle of the Gregorian Calendar. The framer anchored on this wonderful fact to convince the reader of his next premise.

Second, he associated such relative occurrence in the Gregorian calendar with the lunar calendar-based conceptualization. He shifted the reader's consciousness from the initial Western weltanschauung to oriental perspective. Money Bags.

Finally, the baculum. One is not only to accept it as truth but is to act on such truth for fear of something worst to happen. The generally accepted but subtly deterministic criterion of Chinese folk beliefs coupled by the threat of bankruptcy are sufficed to create panic in the heart and mind of an unsuspecting reader. Add to that is the relevancy of the sender who may be out of fatalistic attitude (that there is nothing to lose, but all to gain) just mechanically "group send" such message to 20 contacts.

Then the pyramid builds up....And the telecommunication companies will gain much from out of the mere 20 pesos.

My Humble Opinion

For sure it will cause me much if I give in to such threat. It will cause me my 20 pesos, my time and effort of sending such nonsense. It will cause me my peace of mind. It will cause me the displeasure of my 20 friends, if such friends are critical enough to notice the fallacies. Ultimately, it will cause me of sending the wrong message and eventually of proclaiming a contradictory news about my faith in a loving and merciful God who desire only good for his people by sending in his only begotten Son that all maybe one.

A Prayer for the Christian Community who Journeys into a Better Balete than Yesterdays

        O, Ginuo, amon nga Diyos nga Amay, ano kanami tan-awon ro imong mga tawo nga nagakabuhi sa gugma ag pag-ambitanay. Ano ka sadya pamatian ro andang kanta it pag-iegmanghuran ag pagbueuligan sa oras it pagtilaw!

      Ikaw ro amon nga ginadayaw sa tiempo ngara it pagbag-o. Kabay, nga sa rayang panahon padayon kami nga ibhan ni San Rafael nga Arcangel sa among nga pagpamanawon sa daean it pag-eigmanghuran kay Kristo-Hesus. Ro imong presensya hay magtao kamon it inspirasyon nga panestigusan rong kamatuuran sa pihak kung pagtilaw it kapurilan. Ikaw ro among kaisog sa pagbag-o ku dapat bag-uhon, rong kaaeam nga nagagiya kamon sa paghimo it tama ag matarong nga desisyon.

        Ro Imong Espiritu ro among manuglipay ag kabulig sa pag-abaga ku mga paeas-anon daea ku among responsibilidad bilang mga lideres ag miembro kung Kristianong Katilingban. Kabay, nga padayon imaw nga mag-tao it kaaeam kamon, eabi eon guid sa rayang adlaw it pagbag-o, sa among pagpang-eakaton nga nagapas-an ku krus it pag-eigmanghuran pauli sa baeay nga imong gintigana kamon.

        Guinapasaeamatan namon ikaw sa imong mga manuggiya nga ginpadaea kamon riya sa Katilingban. Kabay kunta nga sanda hay magpanistigos man sa kamatuoran it Gugma nga nagatubod una sa imong pagka-Dios kaibahan si Kristo ag rong Espiritu Santo. Mangin hueuwaran namon sanda sa pagtao it katumanan sa imong Pulong para maibantala ron sa tanan, eabi eon gid sa mga kubos kamon.  

Sa gahum it Imong Espiritu, magpadayon, kami nga magmatutum sa among sinumpaang responsibilidad, magpadayon nga madaea namon sa kauswagan rong amon nga comunidad sa pihak ku mga sab-eag nga among gina-atubang.

     Amon rang ginapangayu, paagi kay Kristo, kaisa ku Espiritu Santo, Dios sa walay katubtuban nga tanan.

       Amen.

       O Maria nga ina it Dios, ig-ampo mo kami. 

FAQ on Pledge System in Balete

With the expressed interest of giving the Pledge System a second look following its lull of more than seven years, questions from the younger generations are cropping up with little answers being justly provided for. Thus, in this article, let me devote some time approximating the answers to frequently asked questions regarding the system.

 Question 1 (Q1) - What is Pledge System?
 Answer 1 (A1) - Pledge System is a means of providing or extending expressed temporal support by the faithful to the local church where they are ecclesiastically part of for her proper objectives. It is a method of fulfilling one's obligation as provided for in Canon 222 §1 according to each person's possibilities by taking into account his or her familial obligations. Pledge is not tithing per se as biblically understood. Rather, it approximates tithing as while it is not compulsory, one binds herself/himself to the pledge she/he made before God and her/his neighbors (i.e., the local church).

Q2 - How is Pledge System administered?
A2 - There are diverse paths towards implementing the Pledge System. One has to primarily consider the context upon which the system is to be introduced. The Balete experience (during the time of Rev. Fr. Tito S. Gelito [1987-1997] and Msgr. Pedro C. Frac[1997-2004]) is a radical paradigm shift from the seeming commercialized orientation of the Arancel System grounded on a pastoral program that is anchored on a theology of life and love command (Rong pagpas-an ku krus it atong pag-ieigmanhuran kay Kristo Hesus) (cf. Mat. 22:34-40 and for a commentary on this particular topic, you may follow this link: The Two Greatest Commandments). The introduction of the Pledge was on voluntary basis and each parishioner gave his/her assent according to one's resources. Without discrimination to their capacity to pledge their financial support to the local church, the priests in return afforded them all the sacraments they want to avail without additional obligations in their part. And yet love responds to love in the manner that the sacrifices of the shepherd are requited by the outpourings of generous hearts.

Q3-Can you further differentiate Pledge from the Arancel System?
A3- As mentioned above, there is a semblance of commercialism in the manner Arancel System is now understood. The reception of sacraments and sacramentals and other rites performed in the parish church as part of pastoral administration are often seen as commodities or services demanded by consumers. Precisely, that demands for "special" services by those who can afford the price are manifest in the way we request for such sacraments. In the process, the divide between the rich and the poor is also made manifest in the Church contrary to the teachings of Jesus.  Pledge is thus introduced in Balete to correct this misconception or to complement renewed catechism. Pledge made it possible the approximation of unity in the local church. The Church of Balete under the stewardship of its then parish priest, Fr. Tito S. Gelito was fulfilling its prophetic mission for the Diocese of Kalibo to gradually abolish the Arancel System as encouraged by Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II) [Art. 118] and affirmed by the 1st Synod of Kalibo (cf. Synodal Document, Temporal Goods of the Church No. 16, 17). Msgr. Pedro C. Frac sustained this program and even replicated it in Batan Parish afterwards when he was assigned parish priest thereof. (Today, Batan Parish is the only one with successful Pledge System in the entire Diocese of Kalibo)

Q4- Is there any ideal parish structure for Pledge System to succeed?
A4- Again, it depends on the local situation. The Parish of St. Rafael has developed a structure fully supportive of its pastoral program of which the Pledge System operates. The parish is subdivided into several chapels where each chapel has its own chapel president and finance committee. The parish priest was consistent in his regular masses in the chapels even if such does not yield much financial rewards on his part. The parish has its distinct core group and education committee (all volunteers) tasked of communicating the program among the chapels. The president and the finance committee did the leg work to clarify issues and concerns on the household level. They are also the custodians of and exercise proper management of the chapel fund generated out of the pledges collected in their respective areas.

Q5- How is the income collected out of the pledge being appropriated?
A5- 50% of the monthly collections (usually offered inside a specially made Pledge Card during Sundays and monthly masses in the chapels) is set aside as Parish Fund. 10% is remitted to the local ordinary. 25% serves as Chapel Fund. Another 10% goes to the catechists (catechetical fund) and the remaining 5% serves as the stipend/transportation allowances of the Capilya Presidents and the Finance Committee. The parish priest reserved for his personal expenses the Sunday collections (colectas).

Q6- What is the basis of the Pledge System?
A6- Pledge as already explained is an approximation of tithing. It has its biblical bases therefore on both the old and the new testaments as illustrated in the following passages:
   In the Old Testament: Dt. 12:17-18; 14:22-29; 15:7-11; 26:1-15; Num. 18:21-32; Neh. 10:36-40; 13:4-5, 10-14; Sir. 35:1-10; Mal. 3:6-10.
   In the New Testament and Early Christians: Mat. 25:44-46; Lk. 6: 24-25; 9:25; 16:19-31; 18:25; Acts 2:44-45; 20:35; 1 Tim 6:17-19; 2 Cor 8:2; 9:7; Jas 2:15-17
  
         

When I Say "I Love You", I Pledge

My promise of love:

Ginakueang ako it bisaea

Agud ika paabot kimo

Pero bisan pa, akong hinyo

Nga sa akong pag-ako

Nga ikaw hay hinigugma

Kunta hay mahangpan mo

Ako hay tawo man lang

May kinahang-ean, may kahinaan

Indi ko kimo ika-promisa

Pareho ko iba

Rong mga bituon ag ro buean

Una sa kaeangitan

Haead ko kimo

Akong taguipusoon

Puno it nina

Padayon nga nagabaga

Bisan pa nga kon amat

Hay maeuya.

I wrote it because I am loved. I am loved and called to love in the process. I respond to it in my own pace. In my day-to-day approximations, I am becoming certain that Euclid's postulate that straight line is the shortest way from one point to another is wrong when it comes to human intersubjectivity.  In loving, I have to mean every word of it and approximate its meaning every day of my life. Aware of my strengths and flaws, I hasten to live its truth in my day-to-day struggles. Even if at times, love seems to stab the wounded and scarred heart. Even if love remains unrequited, and the embers of love are fainting in the core of this restless heart, I shall be for I cannot compromise what I am.

A  Theology of Love

I cannot compromise my humanity. I cannot imitate or agree with the examples of paid shepherd who always barrage my people's sensitivity with whining: “Alcanse man ako nga ighando ko it libre ro ang manggad, tiempo, ihibaeo para kinyo.” 

I am called to love, no matter what and however it may be. I am dignified by being capacitated to love. “Love consists in this, not that we have loved God, but that He has first loved us” (1 Jh 4:10). My God. My neighbor. Myself. My community. All made me to understand that it is my nature to love. I am called to care; to share however big or small the gifts that I have. I do justice to Love by living it out everyday in the here and now; by embracing the Cross of Christian Brotherhood not only on restful and holy Sundays but more so every moment of the busy MWF and the demanding TThS. I stand witness to its truth by my affirming my existence in awareness of the significant-other and valuing meaning even if it may seem meaningless.

(My nature, I owe it to my God. He is the font of everything that is—of both the existential tree-haters and the ethereal elfin ladies. Without him nothing ever is. He is Love. Such Love makes it possible for three persons to be One God. Such Love calls and unites the community to be of one mind and one heart. Love emanates unto and ennobles lesser loves and transforms human family into an experiential situation of divinity. Love is everything and without it nothing ever is.)

A Small Christian Community is My Church.

   It is so for by Love that we all become brothers and sisters in Christ. By Love, God becomes our maternal Father for which Christ is the firstborn. By Love, we made up the Body of Christ. By Love, the Holy Spirit awakens in us our unique and distinct gifts that we may wield our God-ness to become stewards of God's creation. By Love, it becomes possible for each of us to lovingly carry the Cross of our Brotherhood in Christ. Bearing each other as St. Paul says as we journey back home to the house of the Father. In our responsible service of one another we approximate our love for the Father whom we have not seen. We experience the incredible love of God in a loving community, concretely in a small community that affirms our uniqueness and forgives our imperfections. We express our love for God as we care for and share with one another in that community, more preferentially the least among us (cf. Mat. 25:40ff).

My Church is a Church of the Poor

           The demand of Love in a Christian community is that “there should be no poor among you” (Deut. 15:4). The reality as brought about by sin however is that the poor will always be with us (cf. Mat. 26:11). In Balete, NSCB reports that poverty incidence is at 60.9% making it the 4th municipality in Aklan with high incidence (cf. 2003 Small Area Estimates of Poverty). Corollary to that is the fact that the health problem of utmost importance that besets the community is malnutrition among less than six-year old children, Balete having a prevalence of 12-14% malnutrition in this age group for three (3) consecutive years and being the municipality with the 2nd highest rate of malnutrition in this age group in the province of Aklan in 2009 to 2011 (cf. PHO, 2011 Annual Program Implementation Review). 

            The local church is not blind to this reality. She knows her sons and daughters in Balete. Precisely that since the pastorship of then Rev. Fr. Jo Parohinog, she had opted to give due preference to the poor. She became the Church of the Poor. Not because she encouraged poverty but because she realized that Jesus sees also the poor as the least and the marginalized in a sinful structure and that they are in urgent needs of her love. One concrete manifestations of this preferential option is that from Arancel system, she led them to espouse and get involve in the maintenance of her temporal goods and even encourage their availment of the sacraments through the Offering approach. Later on, in Fr. Tito's time, she invited them to step up higher to Pledge System which enabled the establishment of parish-based credit union. This pastoral program based on the Theology of Christian Life and Love was sustained by Msgr. Frac. The local church was vibrant and optimistic. The Pledge System was positively accepted and the outpourings of love and generosity spilled even to other needy parishes. Then came the storm. 

A Dark Cloud of Unknowing

         The reshuffling of shepherds in the Diocese of Kalibo in the middle of 2004 was the beginning of the diaspora in the journey of the Christian community in Balete. The resurgence of contrary orientation alienated the little ones from the Church they have identified with and learned to love for more than three decades. It ceased to be the Church of the Poor which they are part of. It ceased to champion the building up of "New Heaven and New Earth" in the here and now. 

       The trying times affected the fruits of the struggles of the Christian community. The monthly collections had sagged from 60 grand seven years ago to only 5 grand at the present moment. Why is that, someone asked?

         People ceased to care. They fall out of love. They bothered to put strings on things that they give. To give is to expect for something in return. It is an investment, so it seems. Alcanse man kon medyo mahina do balik. Such is the expression we often heard these days. Such is the dark cloud looming that obscured the virtue of Love once aflame in the hearts of men. 

         A friend referred to such as Realist—a lover who does not believe in unrequited loves. That’s how they put it these days. Gone were the days of Jesus of Nazareth. Gone were those examples of his of protecting his sheep from greedy wolves to the point of laying down his life for them that they might pasture in verdant meadow. Today, it is in sync to state, “No greater love there is than to lay other’s life for oneself. Mas mayad t’a nga ikaw do galimos, kay sa ikaw do ginalimsan. Pero hay ayos eon do limos nga singquenta (50 pesos) kon pobre ag sanggatos (100 pesos) kon may una-una.” 

The Marginalized Church is a People Wandering in the Wilderness

    There are those who surrendered not to pragmatism and accommodation and keep up the faith. They are however marginalized from the mainstream and wandered in the wilderness like their forebears of old. The Church of the Poor undergoes purgation in the region of dissimilarity. 

The Sun Shines out of the Dark Cloud

Hope is not lost. Love conquers all evil. A new shepherd is sent. The tree of love regrows. And the scattered and the lost are sought after and gathered again. Soon, the celebration will begin. For once we were shepherdless but now is being led home. The poor is invited to the banquet again. 
Will you heed the invitation then?