“Pagbangon sa Sidlangan”: An Autobiographical Essay

by: Knarz Dominique Jayme (M. Ed. Social Studies)

One thing that makes people diverse and gives them a sense of identity is their
upbringing. In different realities, in different time zones, and in different beliefs, we grow up
the way we are raised. As for me, we have been living in the city for more than a decade
already after my family decided to start a new life away from our ancestral home in Zaragga,
Iloilo. However, the memories and experiences I had in my hometown were something that can
never be replaced and devalued, especially the family traditions and community practices that
were handed down from generation to generation.

I spent most of my early childhood years in a small barangay in Zaragga, at a farm

owned by my grandparents. The setting could be depicted as one of those ordinary and local
provinces with all the pine trees and sugarcanes uniformly parading around the margins of the
mud-sunken roads. Our ancestral home, a robust nipa structure built by my grandfather,
housed 3 extended families including my own. We were huge in volume, but that was one
fundamental reason why we are physically attached and emotionally affiliated with my cousins
until now. I grew up in a traditional Filipino family wherein individualism is non-existent and
groupism is being valued, since my grandparents would always make an effort to keep the
family together. The bond and the family linkage that we had established when we were young
stood just as firm even if decades had already passed and gone. Although my ancestors are not
with us anymore, the values and traditions within our household that they have conserved for
and instilled to us remain and even surpassed up to now.

Growing in a rural community where farming is the core livelihood of the people, I was
exposed in a provincial way of living. My Lolo who was a farmer direly lived with the quote,
“Early bird catches the worm”, for he believed that people who fail to do so will never get
anything done much more than that. Since farming takes time and it requires heavy labor,
waking up early is a must for a farmer. My mother used to tell us that Lolo would reprimand
and not tolerate any of them who tend to slack off. He would even splash water or forcefully
take away their sleeping mat if they failed to wake up early. It may be seen cruel if we look at
the lens of the 21st century standard for parenting, but back at the days, discipline takes
different forms believing that people will learn the hard way. Thus, it is of no wonder that we
somehow practiced this kind of family tradition at home up to this day. My mother always
reminds us that people who do not wake up early are lazy and unproductive, so we grew up
embodying the value of self-discipline.

Another significant family tradition we have developed is the routine that Sunday is
indeed a family and a market day. Our ancestral house happened to be situated away from the
town’s market so we usually buy our week’s commodities during Sundays to save money and
time. Our meals during Sundays are extra special than the usual food we eat every day. It is
also our time to gather and invite relatives from other barangays to eat with us. Until now,
though we are not living under the same roof with my titos, titas, and my cousins, we still
practice the Sunday gathering. In our family, I am in-charge of buying the commodities in the
market such as fish, meat, and vegetables. Then, my mother would prepare a special meal and
invite our relatives for a family gathering. This practice recognized kinship and the act of
strengthening family ties.

My Lola was a very caring one. She was sentimental, sensible, and calculated. She
would always tell Mama and my titos and titas to look for each other. She would always
emphasize the value of caring for one another, especially in times of need, reminding them the
essence of family relations and dependability. We even have this unique family belief that my
mother taught us of which she learned from my Lola, believing that it is an effective way to
develop closeness among siblings. Instead of building separate rooms for us, my mother would
let us share rooms. My older brother and I share a room, the same with my two younger
sisters. She would also let us share blanket and pillow even though we have tons of those at
home. Personally, I can say that this unique family tradition is significant in a way since we
actually developed closeness with each other. We have learned to depend with one another. In
times of needs, may it be financial or not, we would extend to one another, mutually giving and
receiving support. The sharing of pillows and blankets taught us how to value each other.

For me, the most significant family tradition that we still practice today is the value of
having meals or eating and gathering together in the table. If my memory serves me right,
there has never been a time when we did not eat together. My grandparents would always wait
for everyone to gather around the table before eating. Though we are not in Zaragga anymore,
we brought with us this family tradition. My parents will not allow someone to dine first until
everyone arrives. There may be times when work and other circumstances did not permit us to
eat together but we would always make sure that this practice will never demise.

Rural life may not be the ideal life a person dreams but it is definitely the best
experience one can have. We may be living in different realities right now but my heart will
forever be with my hometown. The experiences I had, and the practices I have learned made
me who I am today. Growing up the way I summed up and portrayed our values, I now
realized that we had more wealth then we did. We may have dried fish served in the dining
table and a nipa for a house, but more than and beyond that, we have something more
precious than just what was there. We have something we can never trade for what we have
learnt is priceless. We grew up with character and pride knowing that we bear with us our
family’s name. With that, just like the way I had seen the sun clearly beaming through our
naked oaked windows as if unfairly giving off light to our home more than to the others, I can
now infer that it is not only in the East the sun rests, but in the hands of the old and wise and
in the hearts of their descendants.