by Telly G. Ocampo
2 ka bulig Lakatan – Can you beat that?
Barangay poblacion of my hometown, Baclayon,
has distributed tubers of lakatan to the members.
Though my family and I, already reside in
barangay Taguihon, we remain registered in the
poblacion. But it does not mean that we don’t
cooperate with the activities of Taguihon. We
have a good barangay kapitan, Ulysses
Tomarong. Even before him, we maintained good
working relationships with whoever was at the
helm of the barangay government. Why do we
have to fight? There is no sense in that.
I can just imagine how a simple project of giving
out seedlings of plants, can already provide food
on our table. I chanced upon a post on facebook
saying lakatan tubers were ready for distribution.
Mitubag pud ko: “Mangayo ko.” Makalipay kay
duna pa gyud diay silinganay bisan dia na ko
sa Taguihon. Our neighbor at the poblacion, Awel
Dagoldol, delivered the tubers right our our
doorstep.
Over a year after, we are starting to harvest. Duha
ka bulig gyud nga lakatan ang tambok nga
bunga sa among saging nga gitanom. Thanks
to my old reliable Romeo Daing who loves tilling
the land. A few more months and we can expect
another harvest.
Bananas are real blessings from Heaven. They are
easy to grow. You plant one and after fruiting, the
main trunk dies but tubers simply sprout out – not
just one but 3; not just here but also there and
everywhere. They are not selfish. They give more
to be planted. Ang kakugi lang gyud sa tawo
ang gi-agad aron kini motubo ug molambo
aron mapahimuslan. Sige na, pananom na!
If only each barangay would integrate tree planting
in their Saturday cleanup; it will be a boon to
humanity. We just have to Involve the citizens and
do/sustain a monitoring mechanism to find out
which household is successful in their planting and
production project. The purok level can even be
better in implementing this dream. Why is there a
need to monitor? You see, sometimes the process
is frustrating. Kay mura man gud ug kutob ra
kita usahay (ug kanunay pud) sa reporting.
Years ago before the covid pandemic, there was a
project that gave work to those included in the list
of “natukhang” tungod sa droga. I still remember
that the ones who were in charge of the project
asked for the use of my lot nearby for the panting
project.. As a result, Gmelina trees were planted. I
am willing to share whatever lumber can be
harvested when the cutting season comes. And
that will be two more years from now, supposedly.
But where and who are they? I don’t have the
names of the cooperators; I don’t have the name
of the person-in-charge of the project. And now,
the place is back to its former state. Kabugangan
na pud ang dapit. Kabuganan gihapon.
Right now, im going back to the basics. Though I
have my philodendrons and snake plants and
banderas Espanola’s, I also have our kamunggay,
tangad, camote, and replanted alogbati. We
have our native chicken. But the irony is: dili mi
moihaw aron makaon ang among binuhi nga
manok. We consider them our pets.
So, if only we would plant right in our own yard –
front and back – now, we will never go hungry.
Years back, we had the kolo (bread fruit) during
our BAHANDI walking tours. But sad to say, they
are gone. If we have one kolo tree, the fruit is
enough to provide for our carbohydrates
requirement. The kolo tree, the ube, the gabi
and the apale sustained our forbears during the
war years.
I used to have my nangka tree. This gave us
sweet fruits before the covid pandemic. The
seedling was a giveaway from a friend in one of
our reunions at casino Espanol. Pero, sige ug
katibak kay kaunon ug kabog. Ug matibak na
gani ang unod, dili na gyud mahimong humba
nga nangka. Naputol pa gyud ang katunga
tungod ni Odette. Daghan gyud untang buna
ang nangumbabit.
And so is life. Into each life some storm must
come; some rain must fall. But in every storm,
there is a beautiful tomorrow.
Thank you, Lord! Duha (2) na ni ka bulig sa saging
nga lakatan.