Prints and Traces

It has come! There’s no question about it! What has been feared would happen is now happening. And happening fast! It’s like the US and Philippine authorities are making up for lost time. And so we witness a scenario akin to “a scampering for space” in military camps all over the country! Here and there, this and that AFP officer is offering a space within a military camp for use as military base for American soldiers. There’s no feeling of restraint or hesitation—or shame!— no different from an offer of a booth space in a carnival fair!

What happened in Malacanang the other night couldn’t have escaped the impressionable mind of my good friend Lito. He commented, “Bai, mura mag naa sa libro sa history tong nahitabo kagabii sa Malacanang?” [Bai, what occurred in Malacanang last night seemed to be in the history books?”]

My good friend Lito posed a very intriguing question: “Bai, nganong makuli man pasabton o makabana ang mga arangan og kahimtang sa kinabuhi?” [Why is it so hard for the well-to-do to understand or to be socially aware?”

On Earth Day, our hearts throb synchronous with the rhythm of the epic song of the Lumad balyan, the keeper of the cherished annals of the tribe. I imagine I engage in a one-on-one intersubjectivity with him as he reechoes his epic tales. . .