Bagobo

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 12

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 05 Dec 2020 20:01:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued from Episode 11

As they approached Eban’s house they heard screaming and crying. Tadeo bounded up the stairs. Agawe saw two men run from under the house and he gave chase with Ansel at his heels. Ansel fired at the fleeing figures and they heard a cry of pain but lost them in the dark. They went back to Eban’s house.

Inside, Agawe saw Tiyo Tadeo talking to the crying wife of the dead Eban.

“Tadeo, he looked bad when he came home from work. He said he was just tired and he needed rest. Then suddenly, he became violently sick. He said he might have been poisoned. I was crying and screaming until he calmed down… that was when you came in. I did not even realize he’s dead!”

“Did he say who might have poisoned him?” Tadeo asked.
“No… All he said was they did not like the deal he made with you. He kept repeating that they accused him of betraying them.”

Tadeo’s next order of battle was to get information from Oleg but he was not in his house. His wife said that he did not come home from the plantation that afternoon.

The following day, arrangements were made for Eban’s burial. Agawe noticed that three relatives were missing from the burial ceremony. Umed, who was still recovering from his gunshot wound, Oleg who was hiding, and Tadeo’s cousin, Eluy.

Agawe confided his suspicion to Tadeo who agreed that it might be useful to talk to Eluy so he ordered his men to bring Eluy to him at once.

It did not take long for Eluy to be brought to Tadeo’s presence. His face ashen and he looked gaunt. His arm swollen and covered with all kinds of herbs and leaves.

“What happened to your arm,” Tadeo asked.

“I cut myself accidentally…” he said weakly.

“That is a gunshot wound…” Ansel said, “I shot you that night you planned to kill Tiyo Eban if he did not die from the poison.”

“Innà…” Tadeo turned to Apô Ira who had a cup of steaming liquid.

“Here, make him drink this … if he is lying, he will die instantly but if he tells the truth, his wounds will heal…”

Eluy squirmed as the men tried to make him drink the liquid. He shut his mouth firmly but the men forced it open and poured the liquid into his mouth. He spat it out and howled, “I did it! I poisoned the water….” He cried uncontrollably.

***

Umed opened the door and was shocked to see Tadeo who entered his house unceremoniously. Agawe and Ansel pushed Eluy into the house.

“What is this?” Umed asked, fear on his face. His wife ran to his side, totally confused.

Ansel poked Eluy with the barrel of the gun and ordered, “Talk!”

The man, doubled over with pain, started to talk, “Tiyo Umed planned everything. He convinced us that we can get rich if we follow his plan. We are all going to get a piece of this land…”

“How dare you accuse me!” Umed screamed at the man. “Clearly he is out of his mind…”

He charged at the man but Tadeo stopped him with a sheathed sword on his chest. His wife screamed and pleaded not to hurt him but the old man pushed his wife away.

“So, what is this? You are going to kill me? In front of my wife?”

“How do you propose I kill you? Poison? Just as you killed Eban?” Tadeo asked.

“Eeehhh…! Umed… what did you do?” Umed’s wife started wailing in the corner.

Tadeo turned to the wife. “He ordered Eluy and Oleg to poison Eban and to wait under his house to make sure he died…” then turned back to the old man, “Why Umed?”

“He sold us out! He is the shrewd one… just waiting for us to kill each other … but all the while working for his own benefit… he got his land but we had nothing..!” he spat out the words.

“You murderer…!” Tadeo roared.

“I am murderer? How about you? Did you not murder Maramag and Waeg? You work us like your slaves in the land of my brother? I have a right to own this land!”

“This is my father’s land. If he promised you a piece of his land, he would have told me,” Tadeo answered in a steely voice. You have no right in here, Umed!” He slapped him hard in the face and the old man reeled.

Umed’s eyes darted from Tadeo to Agawe to Ansel who was holding the gun. “Why don’t you fight fairly? You can do what you want because you know you have a monster who will shoot me if you lose? You coward! You treat your al-lang better than you treat us your family…”

“What do you want from me, Umed?” Tadeo hissed.

“I want my share of this land. I will not stop until you give me my share….!!!” “No! Get out of my land, you traitor!” he turned and left Umed.

Tadeo was still raging when they got home. Apô Ira gave him a hot drink which calmed him down.

“I should have known. I never trusted that old man…,” Tadeo muttered. “I can’t believe he persuaded Maramag to kill you,” Amaya said.

“He promised Maramag equal sharing of the land when I die… and it’s not only Maramag… he has persuaded others, too.” Tadeo turned to Apô Ira, “Eluy said my three brothers-in-law and my other cousins are working with Umed. They could be with Oleg right now and planning their next move. So they think they can frighten me?” Tadeo thought for a moment.

“Agawe, tell all the workers to stand guard in the plantation now and not to allow any of these people to enter the plantation. Work will stop. Tell them not to worry. As long as they stand guard and no one gets inside, I will pay them just the same. Half of them will stand guard during the day and half during the night.”

“And I will need more people to stand guard here,” Tadeo continued. “Let’s see if these people don’t leave when they starve….”

“Where is Eluy now?” Apô Ira asked.

“We took him home, Apô,” Agawe replied. “But he looked bad. I’m not sure he will survive.”

“Ahh… so much death around us… not good…” Apô Ira muttered.

Agawe was again burdened. With everything that’s going on, he wondered if he brought bad luck to this family.

When Agawe came to the wooden house the next morning, he found more men roaming around the house. They knew him from the plantation so they let him get inside the kitchen.

He almost bumped into Ansel, “I was going to get you… there’s trouble at the plantation.” Ansel pulled him into the large room.

Agawe saw a breathless worker explaining to Tadeo and Apô Ira, “The guards caught Oleg and your other brothers-in-law cutting the abaca so the guards chased them away but did not catch up. When they came back, more abaca plants were felled down.”

“I need more men,” Tadeo said to himself.

Agawe was immediately sent to Shaman with a gift of “agong” to request help from him. Shaman is known to have more or less a hundred al-langs working in his hectares and hectares of ricefield and coconut plantation. Agawe was worried about the request because it meant Tadeo was asking help based on the fact that they were going to be family soon because of the marriage of Ansel and Shaman’s daughter. He saw that Ansel was worried, too.

Agawe did not understand how he felt in the presence of Shaman and his son. Only the presence of Maleah made him comfortable. She looked so motherly.

“Tell Tadeo I will send him the men he needs before the sun sets today…” Shaman said. Agawe stood up and was about to leave when Maleah who was quietly sitting next to Shaman said, “Yaka pa…”

Agawe wondered nervously why Maleah wanted a moment. Maleah moved a step closer and stared at Agawe. Then she stepped back and moved away.

Agawe heard Shaman ask her sharply why, “Manan?”

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 11

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 04 Dec 2020 01:09:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued from Episode 10

Agawe saw Umed writhe in pain but he kept howling, “Your father will roll in his grave. This land belongs to all of us – your father promised a portion of this land to me… you greedy son of …”

“Get him out of here,” Tadeo ordered. Two men carried Umed.

“Eban, get help for Umed. Get a mabalian. Agawe, get these men to clean up the damage.”

They stayed in the plantation the whole afternoon.

That night at the wooden house, Apô Ira scolded Ansel. “How did you even know how to shoot a gun?” she shrieked.

Ansel sat silently looking at his feet.

“Innà… Umed charged at me when my back was turned. You should be thankful that Ansel did as he did.”

“What is happening to this family? If Shaman hears of these troubles….” Apô Ira said to no one in particular.

“Apô…” Ansel started slowly.

Oh-oh, Agawe thought, not now Ansel… wrong timing!

Apô Ira turned to Ansel who continued, “I… I don’t want to get married….”

Apô sat on the bench weakly, like a heavy rock fell on her. Her head rested on her hand and she groaned, “Manama… Ansel…!”

“It is not for you to decide, Ansel!” Tadeo snapped.

“I will work in the plantation … you did not have to pay me… just let me stay here…” To Agawe’s surprise, Ansel started to sob. “Don’t send me away… I don’t want to stay in Shaman’s place…” He was crying when he ran out.

Agawe felt for Ansel. Earlier, he was the warrior when he shot Umed but now, he’s just a child.

“You have to talk to Ansel, Innà… we have sent word to Shaman and he has accepted. We will not be dishonored…!” Tadeo said as he climbed the stairs to his room.

“Agawe…” Apô Ira said softly. She motioned for him to sit down. He sat opposite her in the long table. “I am old. I have taken care of Ansel since he was a baby. All I wanted is for him to have a wife when I leave him.”

“Can Tiyo Tadeo take care of him when …. you are…” he could not finish what he wanted to say.

“Agawe… Tadeo and Shaman have known each other for a long time and they want to make a deeper bond by marrying off Ansel and Shaman’s daughter. If Tadeo’s son was still with us, he would marry Shaman’s daughter.”

Agawe could not control his emotions when Apô Ira mentioned the lost son…. and Apô Ira noticed. “What’s wrong, Agawe?

“I… I am thinking how lucky Ansel is, Apô,” he lied. “Madallay is beautiful so the daughter must be beautiful, too. If I am not al-lang, I could also find a woman to marry…”

“Agawe… do you want to marry?”

“Oh, no! Not now, Apo. Besides, even if I want to… no one will marry a slave, Apô…”

“If you are freed by your master, you will not be al-lang anymore…”

“Tiyo Tadeo is my master…” Agawe said with so much anguish because his master could be his father.

“I will talk to Tadeo about it…” Apô Ira assured him, then she sighed, “Agawe… will you promise to take care of Ansel when I am gone? Be a brother to him…”

“I will do anything for you and Ansel, Apô… right now, you are the only family I have… but Ansel… he does not want to marry…”

“Shush..shush…let me handle that… go look for Ansel…”

Agawe knew where to find the young boy. And true enough, he was in his hut when he got there. That night, Agawe and Ansel made a pact to help each other and to be each other’s brother.

In spite of what’s going on around him, Agawe was happy. He decided he was going to stay with his new-found family. He promised his Apô Ugay and Innà Lungkayan that he won’t do anything when he found his parents. Now he thought he found them and it was enough for him. If his parents did not want him, he was content to have found a family in Apô Ira and Ansel.

The following days were harrowing. More and more abaca plants were felled down and the scary thing is that it followed a path to the wooden house. The warning was clear to Tadeo. He had to give-in to their demands or the carnage will get to his house and his family.

Amaya pleaded, “Tadeo, I know those people will not hesitate to kill us all. Why don’t you talk to them and give them something … I cannot live in fear like this. I fear for my daughter.”

Late that afternoon, a meeting with all of Tadeo’s half-brothers and half-sisters without their husbands and wives was held at the wooden house. Again, Eban was their spokesman.

Agawe and Ansel quietly watched the proceedings. Tadeo sat on one side of the long table while the others sat opposite him.

“If not for Amaya, I will never talk to you… but I am a reasonable man, let us see if we can settle this peacefully.”

The others nodded.

“Now, what do you want?”

Eban cleared his throat. “Tadeo, our brothers and sisters want to get their share of our father’s land. They feel that they deserve to till their own land as all of us here are children of our ammà who owned this land.”

Agawe saw Tadeo’s jaw tighten before he asked, “Why do you want to till your own land? What will happen to the plantation if we divide that into …” he counted his siblings, “ten – including our living mothers. Do you think you will gain more if you each tend your own small abaca plantation? How will you sell your fiber? The merchants will only buy from me.”

Murmurs became louder as they discussed among themselves. One of the sisters said, “We are going to cut down the abaca and plant other crops.”

“That is a good idea but what are you going to eat while waiting for your crops to grow?” Tadeo asked. “Where are you going to get the seedlings to plant? Where will you get the fertilizers and the pesticides? Can you do the plowing yourselves? A carabao costs much, a plow costs much.

They again discussed among themselves. “We still want our share, Tadeo,” another sister said.

“Yes, the others agreed… but we have a proposal. Since we cannot till our own land without a carabao, or seedlings… we will sell our share to you so the plantation does not need to be partitioned…”

Tadeo took a deep breath before he said, “So, this is about money. Why don’t you just tell me that you want me to pay you for your share of our father’s land!” he hollered.

Agawe now realized that Tadeo’s siblings were really stupid and lazy, except perhaps for Eban who was shrewd.

Eban said he won’t sell his share. He wanted his own piece of land.

Tadeo looked at Eban intently and Agawe wondered what Tadeo was thinking.

Tadeo said deliberately, “So after I pay your shares, you are going to leave my land? I can get al-langs to work in the plantation…”

The group was stunned. From the look on their faces, they did not expect that.

Tadeo seized the moment of their confusion. “The money you will get from your shares could be enough for you to buy another piece of land in other villages but I doubt if you can build a house or till your land or buy your food… but that is not my concern anymore. Father said I should take care of you all … but since you want to leave… then off you go. Now, tell me how much do you think your share is. I will see if that is reasonable… then I will deduct the amount of damage you did to the plantation…”

Agawe was impressed by how Tadeo handled his siblings. They left without getting what they wanted, and they promised to forget their demands, and to stay with Tadeo working in the plantation. After all, Tadeo had provided for their needs even beyond what they worked for. But Eban came out with a different deal – Tadeo grudgingly agreed to give him his share and he would be on his own.

When his siblings left, Tadeo told Apô Ira, “I don’t trust Eban. It seems to me he is the one who wants his share very much and is using the others…”

If Agawe or Tadeo thought that was the end of the family crisis, they were wrong. On a particularly hot day, Agawe came to the shed for a drink of water but he walked into a heated argument between Eban and Oleg.

“What do you want? Why are you here? Don’t you have work to do?” Eban snapped at Agawe.

Agawe was surprised at the hostility. “I just need a drink of water…”

“Get out of here!” Oleg charged and pushed Agawe who struggled to steady himself. “Off you go! You are trying to spy on us…”

“Leave him alone, Oleg!” Eban barked, then turned to Agawe, “Go back to work, Agawe.”

Agawe decided to leave the two hot-heads alone. It was not worth fighting with them. He decided he’d be back later for water.

When he came back and scooped water from the jar, the water in the dipper he was holding bubbled up. He touched the jar and the water inside the jar also bubbled up.

“Poison?” he muttered.

He emptied the jar so no one could drink the poisoned water.

“Who poisoned the water? Who was the target?” he asked himself.

That night, Agawe recounted the day’s events but was careful not to mention the bubbling water. All he said that he smelled something awful in the water so he emptied the jar.

Apô Ira said, “Hmm…Tadeo, why don’t you take Agawe and give Eban a surprise visit. I suspect he knows more than he is telling us… ” she spat out the window, “your siblings are being brainwashed by someone… if it is not Eban, then it’s someone else…”

Episode 12

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 10

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 30 Nov 2020 19:24:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued from Episode 9

That night, as Agawe sat at the top of the stairs of his hut watching the stars, he remembered Apô Ugay’s story about his heritage. He’s not al-lang but which could be worse – being a slave or rejected by parents... his father wanted him dead and his mother gave him away.

He suddenly sat up when he heard rustling. He unsheathed his sword and slowly climbed down the stairs, “Who is that?”
“Hey… Ansel here…”

Agawe heaved a sigh of relief, “What are you doing here?” “Can we come up? It’s cold out here…”

They made fire on the stone stove and sat on the floor. “Did you see the girl? What does she look like?”

“We did not see the girl. Only the mother, the brother, and the father were there.” “I don’t want to get married. Not now… maybe when I am older…”

“Why don’t you tell Apô Ira?”

“Because I think she wants me to marry so I won’t be a burden to her anymore…”

“That is not true… it is usual for your age to marry so …”

“They should have asked me first if I want to marry… I don’t want to stay in the house of that Shaman after pamalaye…”

“I don’t understand the custom of living with the girl’s parents before the wedding…” Agawe mused.

“To serve them… the girl and the parents…”

“Like a slave?”

“No… it’s a way of getting to know each other and so that the parents of the girl will know the character of the boy…” Ansel explained.

“Then problem solved…. when you’re there, be lazy, be arrogant, be disobedient…” Agawe suggested.

“You want me killed?”

“Shaman will kill you?” Agawe was horrified.

“If not him… I’m sure Uncle Tadeo will….” The young boy declared.

They sat there mulling over Ansel’s dilemma.

“You know what,” Agawe started, “you pray to the anitos that the girl will not agree to marry you…”

“Girls can never refuse when they are married off… what world did you grow up? Why don’t you know our tradition?”

“Al-langs belong to the world of animals… al-langs can be bought and sold …the only tradition we know is the one where we have to die when our master dies… we die when someone who can afford to buy a slave dies…”

“I’m sorry… I did not mean it that way…”

Agawe grinned. “I’m just messing up with you… See? You forgot your problem.”

***

Agawe stood motionless as he listened to the meeting between Tadeo and Eban.

“Tadeo, I am here to represent our brothers and sisters… this is not my idea. Maramag must have planted this on their minds…” Eban explained.

“Eban, if it was indeed Maramag who started all of these, then they would have stopped now that he is dead… there is someone else behind this… someone who persuaded Maramag to kill me…”

“Tadeo, be reasonable. Maramag planned all these. Now that he is dead, our brothers and sisters want to continue what he started. We… they… they believe that Maramag was right. As your brothers and sisters, we… they… have a right to own the land which is from our father, right?”

Tadeo asked quietly, “Are you part of this plan, Eban?”

Eban swallowed, “Tadeo, I am a peaceful man. You know I don’t want violence… that is why, I tried to reason with them to do this without violence…”

“So you know this all along?” Tadeo asked calmly but suddenly roared, “You know Maramag wanted to kill me?”

Agawe saw Eban flinch. “Tadeo, I know they wanted to talk to you about partitioning the land and asking for their share… but I have no idea about the plot to kill you.”

“And you never informed me about this partitioning plans they have! Where is your loyalty?” Tadeo screamed at Eban. “Of all my half-brothers, you are the one I expect to be loyal to me… you are smart, Eban… you should know whose side to take…”

“Tadeo… please understand my situation. I would have told you but when Maramag was killed, I was scared!”

“Scared of what…?!”

“Everybody knows you had him killed…” Eban said meekly.

Tadeo stared at Eban and took a deep breath. “What would you do if you were in my place?”

“We have the same blood running in our veins, Tadeo…” Eban said proudly.

Agawe could not believe it. It’s true then that Tiyo Tadeo had Maramag killed, he thought.

“Tell our brothers and sisters that they will not get even a small part of this land. My father left his land to me to till so that I can take care of all his children because according to him, his other children are lazy and stupid and they need someone like me to guide them… lest they starve…”

Before Eban left, he pleaded, “Tadeo, please be reasonable. These people can do harm if they feel you don’t listen to them… let us work things out…”

Tadeo said with finality, “Tell them they will get nothing from me!”

***

“The whole two rows of young abaca were felled down,” Eban reported to Tadeo that morning. “When the workers came, that’s what they saw…”

Tadeo was fuming while Apô Ira was quietly preparing her buyo.

“If I catch those who did this, I will shoot them myself!!!” Tadeo roared. He turned to Eban. “Did you talk to our dear brothers and sisters already?”

“Yes, I did.”

“You told them they will get nothing from me?”

Eban nodded.

“And this is how they chose to respond?” Tadeo thought for a moment. “Eban, don’t touch anything before I see the damage. Gather all the workers after lunch and wait for me there,” Tadeo ordered.

When Eban left, Tadeo turned to Agawe. “Did you notice anything unusual in the plantation the previous days?”

Agawe hesitated, “Nothing unusual, Tiyo… except when we got

paid … most of the workers complained…”

“That is not unusual,” Apô Ira said, “especially that Umed.” Then she walked to the window and spat out.

“I will go to the plantation. Ansel, get my gun ready. Agawe, you’re coming with me.”

The workers gathered at the shed. It was the first time Agawe saw all of them at once. There were more men than he thought. Eban showed Tadeo the destruction. It was meant to inflict damage because the ones felled down were not mature enough to be useful.

At the shed, Tadeo interrogated the husbands of his half-sisters but they denied cutting down the abaca plants.

“Maybe it’s the anitos punishing you for grabbing the land that does not belong to you…” Umed, the brother of Tadeo's father, hollered.

Agawe saw the blood rise to Tadeo’s face. He walked to where Umed was and without warning, punched him straight in the face. Umed reeled and fell. Nobody dared to help him.

As Tadeo turned away, Umed struggled to his feet and charged like a raging bull when a deafening blast permeated the air. After the shock, Agawe saw Ansel aiming the gun at Umed whose leg was bleeding as he fell back.

Episode 11

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 9

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 29 Nov 2020 04:26:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued from Episode 8

Waeg was dead when they arrived at his house. The mabalian had applied oils and leaves all over Waeg’s swollen legs and body.

“It’s not in my hands anymore. Waeg has offended the spirits… the spirits has caused his death,” the mabalian panicked.

Waeg’s wife screamed and wailed.
Apô Ira told the mabalian, “Help the woman prepare the dead body for burial.”

Apô Ira grumbled all the way home. “This is what happens when these people are not content with what they have. If their father was alive… I’m sure he will whip them to death…. After all, he left the supervision of his estate to Tadeo… and now, they are trying to kill him! What about their mother? She cannot even admonish her sons to be contented…. What more do they want? Can they run this land with their brains? Tadeo is the smart one… that is why he is running the plantation….. They ought to thank Tadeo because if it were up to me… I will kill all of them and get al- langs to work in the plantation…”

She turned to Agawe who was walking behind her. “You know, my husband and I did not have this problem when he was alive. He had al-langs and they were good people but he had all these sons from his other wives and he thought it was good for them to know how to work the fields… so he set free his al-langs… sent them away to work on their own… Hah! I have not heard of an al-lang who tried to kill his master…”

When Agawe reached his hut, he could not sleep. He thought about all the events of the day. That woman trying to poison him and Waeg dying a day after Maramag hanged himself. And what about the fact that Tadeo and Amaya lost a son? Could it be that Amaya is his mother and Tadeo his father? But Apô Ugay did not tell it that way. Was Apô Ugay the mabalian? Did Amaya send her boy away because it was blemished and Tadeo would kill him? Did Tadeo have Maramag killed?

Agawe woke up to the crowing of the rooster perched on a tree near his window. He decided to go to the big house and get breakfast. He did not want Apô to send Ansel to wake him up.

He walked to the kitchen side of the house and scooped some water from the large jug. He needed a drink. His mouth was dry and he splashed water on his face to remove the sleep from his eyes.

He was about to enter the kitchen when he heard the two cooks talking.

One said, "She just started bleeding right where she was sitting. It was weird. It was such a heavy menstruation she suddenly had."

“Eeeee… I would wish to die if that happens to me…” the other shuddered. “No man will marry her now… What a shame!”

“And there were so many people who saw it. She’s not from here. She just came to help Maramag's wife, her sister.”

Agawe knew it. Apô did something to that girl who wanted to poison him. For a young woman to bleed in front of men is the worst thing that can happen to a single girl. He could not feel sorry for her though. Without the purple stone, that woman could have successfully poisoned him.

A day after Maramag was buried, Waeg was also buried.

"It was Apô Ira who killed Waeg,” Ansel told Agawe. “Hey, don’t keep saying those things…”

“Remember the day they were brought to uncle, Apô gave Waeg a drink to help with his pain? That was poison to kill him slowly…”

Agawe thought that Maramag and Waeg brought their deaths upon themselves. Unlike Egul who did not do anything wrong.

***

Agawe started working in the plantation. It was a nice place to be. The abaca leaves provided shade for the workers that even at mid-day it was always breezy. His job was to clear out the weeds and the old abaca trunks to give way to the new ones growing in the same spot.

It was an easy but boring job for Agawe who was used to running around with Egul and doing heavy stuff like fetching water from the stream down a steep hill. They used to carry the long bamboo tubes called “sag-ob” filled with water and race up the hill. They went hunting for deers and wild boars which really tested their stamina and strength.

Eban introduced Agawe to the workers and as Apô said, most of the workers in the plantation were their relatives, uncles, nephews, cousins, half-brothers and half- sisters. He noticed that only Eban talked to him.

“So Tadeo gave you a job because you saved his life, ha? He usually doesn’t hire al- langs.”

Agawe did not want these people to think that he was there to spy on them, so he was evasive. “It was good of Tiyo Tadeo to give me a job here.”

Eban was a friendly man, always joking and always ready to help the workers. He seemed to take a liking to Agawe but the others were not as friendly.

After a week of work, Agawe got his first pay. He counted his money happily while the other workers grumbled. The loudest grumbler was Umed.

“This is what I worked for? I… the brother of his father who owned all of these?”

“Look at that al-lang,” Umed turned to Agawe. “He is being paid just like us – we are working like slaves here, we are being paid like al-lang..!”

“Umed, stop that!” Eban scolded. “Agawe is paid only half of what we get… don’t compare yourself to him. Why don’t you be happy with what you have…!”

“Because I am not al-lang!!!” Umed hollered.

For the first time, Agawe hated to be called al-lang. He wanted to tell Umed he was not a slave … but he walked away instead.

“Go and tell Tadeo about what I said! You spy! Tell that old hag to kill me, too...”

“Umed!! Are you insane?” Eban snapped at him. Then he ran to catch up with Agawe.

“Hey… don’t mind the old man. He does that every payday. He has this notion that he has a right to own my father’s land, too.”

“You don’t have to worry, Tiyo. I am alright. I am just happy that I get paid. You know al-langs don’t get paid…”

“Well…it seems that you got on the good side of Tadeo and Ira. Agawe, can I ask you a favor? You don’t have to tell them what Umed said, right? It might cause trouble…”

“Oh… I understand Tiyo. I will not mention it to anyone…”

“Good….” He good-naturedly punched Agawe’s arm and went back to Umed.

Episode 10

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 8

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Nov 2020 23:24:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued from Episode 7

“Eban, since you are the eldest son in the third family, I will assign you to do Maramag’s job. You will supervise the workers.”

Eban grinned from ear to ear. “I’ve been telling you that Maramag could not be trusted, Tadeo. I am right!”

“Eban, you know I hate traitors… I trust you are unlike Maramag or Anson?”

“You can trust me, Adi.”

“Agawe here will work in the plantation. Teach him how to do work here.”

Tadeo then called out to the workers, “You there… is everything alright with you?”

“Yes…” everybody nodded.

As they left the plantation, Tadeo gave instructions to Agawe, “You will work in the plantation. You will tell me everything that is going on with the workers and especially Eban. Gain his trust. I want to know if that one is loyal to me. Can you do that?”

“Yes, Tiyo!”

That afternoon, Agawe and Apô Ira negotiated the narrow trail through hills and brooks to the next village. Apô Ira sat on a sled with the gifts she brought for the girl’s family. Agawe rode on top of the carabao that pulled the sled. Two men on horsebacks escorted them.

They travelled quietly. It was past noon but the weather was fine. It was a breezy day. Maybe it was the wind that made Agawe ask, “Apô… does Tiyo Tadeo and Tiya Amaya have other children?”

Agawe thought Apô did not hear him because she did not reply. He let it go.

They reached the village of Ammehan after a long trek and stopped near a large bamboo house next to a rice field.

They were met by two men who led them up the house. At the long bamboo porch, an older man stood waiting for them. With him was a young man about Agawe’s age. Agawe could see they were richly dressed.

“Andin ag ulitn no?” The man asked Apô Ira the reason for her visit as they were ushered inside the large bamboo house.

As Agawe was about to enter, the man stared at him and asked, “Sadan ni? Apô no?”

He wanted to know who Agawe was and if he was Apô Ira’s grandson.

To Agawe’s surprise, Apô Ira said yes.

The man named Shaman introduced his wife Maleah and their son Isagani to Apô Ira and Agawe. Isagani’s eyes swept him from head to foot.

Agawe thought that the young man was a brat.

The man of the house offered fresh betel nuts, betel leaves, and lime for “mamâ” but Apô Ira refused saying that they would not stay long.

“We are here to inform you about our intention to ask the hand of your daughter in marriage for our young Ansel. Ansel is my grandson and I have taken care of him since his parents died when he was just a baby.” Apô Ira explained.

Shaman seemed pleased.

Apô contined. “I brought gifts for you and your household from Tadeo and we are willing to give a “sablag” fit for you and your daughter. If you accept the gifts I brought today, then we will be back for “pamalaye” and we will bring more gifts.

“What have you brought for us?”

Apô Ira turned to Agawe and he unfolded the gifts in front of the man. There were colorful t’nalak cloths, bright colored beads, and a sword with brass handle. The man pulled the sword from the sheath half-way, pushed it back in and laid it on the floor.

“I am glad you and Tadeo chose my daughter to be part of your family.”

He turned to his wife who sat next to him in silence throughout the conversation. “What do you think?”

“I have no problem with Tadeo’s family. They are good people,” the woman called Maleah replied.

Agawe was drawn to Maleah. She looked beautiful but there was a sadness about her.

“So it’s settled. We come back in the full moon for the pamalaye,” Apô Ira stood up. “Agawe, let’s go..”

Agawe scrambled to his feet.

Agawe sat in the now empty of gifts sled with Apô Ira. Apô Ira sat there chewing her “mamà” and occasionally spitting red on the road.

“Agawe, you asked if Tadeo and Ira have other children…”

So she heard me, Agawe thought. “Yes, Apô… I wonder…”

“Agawe, I have to warn you … never talk about this in front of Tadeo and Amaya. Yes… they have a son…”

Apô Ira seemed anguished so Agawe did not pursue the subject although he wanted so much to ask where the son was.

After a deep breath, Apô Ira continued, “When Amaya gave birth to the boy, the mabalian took him away… and we never found him.”

Agawe could not believe his ears! “The mabalian took him away? How? Why?”

“No one knows. Amaya had a difficult delivery. She almost died so she did not know what happened. Agawe… remember, do not talk about this anymore, do you understand?”

***

That night, they were at Maramag’s house where his body was laid in the middle of the house flanked by his family and the wailers. The body was dressed in his best clothes. Food and drink were partaken while his family and friends talked of his virtues.

Agawe wondered if plotting to kill a half-brother was a virtue.

They were all seated on the floor when the mother of Maramag approached Tadeo, “We will bury him tomorrow beneath this house.”

Tadeo nodded.

The woman turned to Agawe and without warning, “You, you brought this upon my son… madat to gimokod no…”

The other women pulled her to a corner as she repeatedly screamed that Agawe possessed an evil spirit.

Agawe did not know what to do. Tadeo turned to him and whispered, “Go down the house.”

***

Agawe stood looking up to the moon and his mind wandered. He was jolted out of his thoughts when a figure suddenly appeared next to him. His hand flew to his sword.

“Don’t fear. I just want to offer you this coffee. It’s cold down here,” a woman said. “Who are you?” Agawe asked.

“I am the sister of Maramag’s wife. I am helping out here.” She handed the cup to Agawe.

“Thank you,” Agawe said as the woman climbed up the stairs.

It was a cold night and the coffee smelled so good. He was about to drink when he remembered the purple stone. He moved to the side of the house and fished the stone from the pouch.

As he laid the hot cup on his open palm over the stone, he again did not feel the heat of the cup and he was amazed. Suddenly, the coffee bubbled over like soap suds.

Agawe jerked and the cup fell from his hand. His other hand gripped the stone so hard as he dashed up the stairs. Half-way, he stopped. The woman who gave him the coffee stood at the top of the stairs giving him the most venomous stare, then she turned and disappeared into the house.

His heart racing, he bounded up the stairs but Apô Ira appeared at the door. She motioned Agawe to go back down as she climbed down.

“You did not drink the coffee?” she asked when they reached the ground.

“It was poisoned…” Agawe said, still shaken.

Apô Ira stared at Agawe, took a deep breath and said, “I know you can take care of yourself. Where’s the cup?”

“Over there.” They walked to where the cup was and Apô bent down to look at it. She slowly stood up and spat on the ground.

“Come up with me. We’ll get Tadeo and we’re going home.”

Apô asked Agawe to stand by the door while she walked to where Tadeo was. He saw her whisper to Tadeo, then slowly walked to the woman who gave Agawe the coffee. She was seated in one corner with the other women. Apô Ira gently patted the woman’s hair who looked up scared. Apô Ira smiled faintly and walked to the door. Even before Apô reached the door, the woman shrieked and everyone ran to her. Apô Ira, Tadeo, Amaya, and Agawe casually got down the stairs.

On their way home, Ansel came running to meet them. “Waeg is very ill. His wife is waiting for Uncle to ask help because the mabalian cannot do anything.”

“And she thinks we can do something?” Ira asked with a trace of annoyance.

“I will take care of this,” Apo Ira said. Tadeo, Amaya, go with Ansel through the kitchen door so she won’t see you. Agawe, come with me. We will take this woman home.”

Episode 9

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 7

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 22 Nov 2020 22:21:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued From Episode 6

“Ansel… you’re back,” he said nervously as he stared at the boy and at the sword. He slowly got up. “What do you want?” Agawe forced himself to be calm.

“Apô said I should…” Ansel said seriously as he brandished the sword, “give this to you,” and grinned sheepishly. “She wants you to have a sword,” he put it in the sheath hanging from his waist. He untied the rope and gave the sheathed sword to Agawe. “Apô sends you some clothes, too…”

“Wheww…. You scared me…”

“You thought I was going to hack you?” Ansel was visibly amused at the thought. “Apô will not like that but if Apô says I have to, I will...”

“I know you would… but I also know Apo will not let you do something like that…” Agawe said as he picked up the clothes Ansel brought him. “These are mine?” he asked. At last, his worn out t’nalak shorts can now be replaced, he thought gleefully.

On the way, Ansel said, “I’m sorry for last night. Apô said you can be trusted.” “It’s alright… so you don’t talk to al-langs?”

“My real grandmother said al-langs should be avoided…”

“But how do you know if someone is al-lang…”

“Al-langs are ugly…”

“You did not know I’m al-lang… I’m not ugly?” Agawe asked smiling.

Ansel stroked his chin as he looked Agawe up and down, “you are tall and you look good… just like me…” He giggled. “And those clothes make you look a lot better … no one will know you’re al-lang now…”

When they came to the front yard, Ansel said, “Let’s go through the kitchen door.”

Inside, they saw food laid on the narrow table. The woman in the kitchen said to Agawe, “Sit down and eat your breakfast. There’s coffee in the stove.”

Then to Ansel, “Go join the family inside.”

After breakfast, Agawe followed Ansel to a huge earthen jar outside filled with rain water collected from the split-open bamboo gutters around the house. Ansel took a dipper made of coconut shell with bamboo handle and scooped the water. He drank from it and gave it to Agawe who also scooped water to drink and splashed the remainder on his face.

“You two, get inside. Apô needs you,” another woman called them in.

There were several men in the large room. “Agawe, go with Tadeo. Maramag hanged himself last night.” Apô instructed Agawe, “Always walk behind Tadeo. Do not trust anyone.”

“Yes, Apô…”

***

There was so much wailing and screaming at Maramag’s house. It was a bamboo house with a steep bamboo staircase. Tadeo negotiated the stairs with ease with Agawe on his heels. There were so many people in the house and Agawe wondered why Maramag was still left hanging from the rafters of the bamboo house.

“Take him down,” Tadeo ordered without emotion. The men took the dead body and laid him on a mat in the floor. Tadeo turned to the women weeping in one corner. “What happened?” he asked the wife.

The wife just stared at Tadeo with eyes swollen from crying. Agawe saw terror in those eyes.

Tadeo bent down to look the woman straight in the eye. “What did you see?”

The woman bit her lips and shook her head. She took one deep breath and fainted. Tadeo straightened himself as the other women revived Maramag’s wife.

“Prepare him for burial,” Tadeo ordered and turned to leave.

Back at Tadeo’s house, Agawe was ordered to wait outside while Tadeo and his mother conferred.

He was seated on the tree stump, which was becoming his favorite spot, when someone startled him. Hands on his sword, he quickly stood up and saw that it was Ansel. He breathed a sigh of relief, “Don’t sneak up on me like that…”

“So … is Maramag dead?” the boy asked.

“Yes… he’s dead. Hanged himself… because of shame or repentance perhaps…”

Ansel looked around and whispered, “He was killed…”

“Hey, Ansel… don’t say that… he hanged himself…”

“Agawe… do you really think Uncle will let Maramag live? He was killed last night.”

“How do you know these things?”

Ansel smiled wickedly. “I know a lot of things around here.”

The kitchen door opened and three women carrying baskets of laundry on their heads came out. “Ansel, come with us to the stream. You carry the lunch.”

Ansel made a face and followed them but not before he whispered to Agawe, “Waeg will also die, you know.”

People are dying around me, Agawe thought miserably.

A younger woman came out balancing a laundry basket on her head. “Agawe… Apô wants you inside,” she said before she caught up with the procession to the stream.

Inside the large room, Apô sat opposite a mature woman and a young girl. “Agawe, this is Tadeo’s wife Amaya and their daughter.”

Agawe bowed slightly to the woman.

She and her daughter wore short blouses with lace edgings around the neck and the bell sleeves. Their blouses were short and showed their abdomen. The tube t’nalak skirts they wore were in striped design. While the daughter’s hair was short and hang loose, the mother’s hair was brushed back and tied in a loose knot on top of her head where a crown-like comb was inserted. From the lobes of her ears hang the most elaborate necklace of many, many strands of white pearls and shining stones. The first strand fell a few inches under her chin followed by strand after strand until the last one fell on her chest.

They were adorned with decorated brass armlets and leglets. The girl, like her mother, had rows of bells around her ankles which produced tinkling sounds as she moved around the mud floor barefoot. And on both their hands were gold “pankis” or bracelets.

“Agawe…” Amaya started, “Be good and we will treat you nice.” There’s a pleasant ring to her voice which seemed to vibrate and Agawe found himself drawn to her. She is warm and gracious but the young daughter would not even look at him. She looks down on al-langs like me, Agawe thought.

“Madita salamat, Tiya,” was all Agawe could say. He did not know what else to say except to thank her.

“Agawe, we found a young woman for Ansel in the other village. You and Innà are going to bring gifts to the father of the girl to let him know that we want his daughter for Ansel,” Amaya said.

“We will leave after lunch,” Apô Abet declared.

Tadeo popped his head through the door, “Agawe, come with me,” he ordered.

When Agawe was outside, Tadeo said, “Walk with me.”

He was behind Tadeo in an instant. Tadeo turned and motioned him to walk beside him.

“You know my father owned these vast acres of land… as far as you can see…” He swept his hand around. “Ammà was a datu. The people came to him for important decisions. He settled disputes and render judgment. He was a good man…”

They followed a narrow trail into the abaca plantation. Up ahead Agawe could hear voices.

“Maramag used to supervise the workers here… but now that he is gone….” Tadeo did not finish his sentence.

They emerged into a small clearing where a bamboo shed stood in the middle. It had four bamboo posts with a thatched roof and an elevated flooring. It could be where the workers take a rest and eat their lunch, Agawe thought. There was a large earthen jar in the corner for water.

Nearby was the contraption used to extract the fibers from the abaca pulps. Agawe knew a little about plantation work from the stories his ammà used to regale him when he was young. His slave father worked in an abaca plantation when he was alive.

The mature abaca plants were cut down and the leaves removed. The trunk was the main part needed to make fibers. Each pulp of the trunk would be squeezed into the contraption and the fibers were pulled out and dried under the sun which were then sold to merchants.

As he thought, Tadeo was one of the richest abaca plantation owners in the area.

Episode 8

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 6

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 21 Nov 2020 03:24:00 +0000

Agawe Series 1 Episode 6
Continued from Episode 5

Agawe slipped out the door. He heard voices in the front yard. He quietly walked to the side of the house until he could see the front yard. There he saw several men. And he saw two men carrying Waeg by the shoulder. He also saw Maramag walking behind them.

As they entered the house, Agawe hurried back to the kitchen door. He found a tree stump nearby and sat down.

Voices flared up but Agawe could hardly make out the words. The kitchen door suddenly opened and Agawe jumped up. The old woman came out, “Agawe…get inside,” she said calmly.
Agawe followed her into the large room where Waeg and Maramag were seated on two stools facing Tadeo who sat like a judge on the bench next to the wall, his hands on the table over his sword.

The old woman made Agawe stand at the end of the long bench facing the two brothers on trial, as Agawe thought.

“Agawe…” Tadeo said, “tell these two here what you heard them talk about in the forest.”

Agawe took a deep breath and slowly narrated what he saw and heard.

Masami’s eyes were fixed on Agawe while Waeg’s head was bent. He was moaning in pain as far as Agawe could tell and nobody even tried to help him. Many times Maramag interrupted Agawe by screaming “liar’ and tried to charge at him but the men standing next to him subdued him.

“So this man is lying, Maramag?” Ubo asked. Agawe’s heart was pounding. He could be in danger here. These people are family. What have I gotten myself into, he asked himself, quietly shaking.

“He is lying! Would you believe that stranger than your own brother…?!”

“Half-brother…” Tadeo corrected him. Then turned to Agawe, “My half-brother is saying you are a liar, Agawe…”

“I… am telling the truth, Tiyo! I have nothing to gain if I lie and you saw how your other brother was about to knock you down… with… with that wood…” Agawe stammered.

“Two against one, Masami… Anson and Agawe have said the same thing…” Tadeo looked at Waeg, “Waeg! Look at me!”

A man lifted Waeg’s head. Blood drained from his face and his eyes were shut. Tadeo turned to his mother, “Innà….”

The old woman left and when she came back, she had a cup of hot liquid which she handed to the man next to Waeg. “Make him drink that…. It will help ease the pain…”

While the man made Waeg drink the concoction, three wailing women burst into the room.

Agawe saw Tadeo took a deep breath and exhaled in exasperation. The oldest woman screamed at Tadeo, “What did you do to my sons?” The other two women were the wives of Waeg and Maramag.

While Waeg’s wife went into hysterics, Maramag’s wife angrily demanded what was going on.

Tadeo was unperturbed while the women continued to make a ruckus.

The mother of Waeg and Maramag turned to Tadeo’s mother. “Ira… how could you allow your arrogant son to do this to my children? If Husband was alive, he would not allow this!!”

“Silence!” Tadeo roared as he banged his fist on the table. The room fell into silence. For a moment, Agawe felt that nobody even dared to breath. “Go home… all of you! Maramag, help your brother get home.”

Everyone scampered out but Tadeo asked Odin, the mother of Waeg and Maramag, to stay behind.

“Odin, did you know that your children plotted to kill me?” Tadeo asked the woman.

“Manama… they will not do that!” she gasped.

“What did I do to your children? Did I not treat them well?” he said very calmly.

“It’s not them,” she lowered her voice, “It’s their wives… always wanting more… always telling my sons that they should get their own land…”

"Own land? So that is why they don't work enough because they want their own land? Is it not enough that I make him supervise the workers at the plantation? Even when I know he works only when he wants! Your son is lazy, Odin!"

"Tadeo, don't worry... I'll talk to them..."

When Odin left, Tadeo's mother talked to him. “Agawe here will go wherever you go. You cannot trust anyone now.”

Tadeo stood up and took his sword. “Agawe, Innà trusts you… but if you betray that trust…” he pointed the sheathed sword to Agawe’s face, “I will kill you myself.”

Agawe swallowed. “I will not betray Apô’s trust, Tiyo… and I will not betray you…”

He nodded. “And I will not forget you saved my life…”

When her son left the room, the old woman called out in a shrill voice, “Anseeel….”

A young boy’s head appeared from one of the rooms on the elevated flooring, “You called, Apô?”

“Come down …”

“Agawe, this is Ansel. He will take you to where you would live. He is a good boy. He runs errands for me.”

“Follow me,” Ansel told Agawe.

Agawe looked at the old woman and she dismissed them with a wave of her hand.

“You are working for my uncle?” the young boy asked.

“Is he your real uncle? I mean are you his brother’s son?”

“I am the son of his half-brother in the third family…”

“How old are you?” Agawe asked.

“Fifteen…”

Agawe kept quiet. He did not want to sound too inquisitive. This boy might tell Tadeo or the old woman about something he said that would not sound good. They turned a bend and there it was, a little bamboo hut with stairs.

“This is where you live,” the boy said. “This is where my grandmother and my aunt lived but when my Apô died, my aunt was married off so no one lives in this house anymore,” Ansel explained.

The hut was surrounded with coconut trees and there was a little unattended flower garden in front. They climbed up and Agawe liked it that the bamboo floor was elevated from the ground. He had had enough of sleeping on mud floors. Aside from the stone stove, the house was just an empty box. There was a window on two opposite walls. For Agawe who lived all his life in a hut with a mud floor, the house was a big improvement. Agawe was happy with his hut.

They returned to the large wooden house for dinner. Agawe shared his meal with the other household staff in the kitchen table while Ayong joined the family in the large room with the long table.

After he made sure that he was no longer needed, Agawe walked to his hut. To his surprise, Ansel walked with him with a glowing piece of wood from the stone stove in the kitchen.

“You might need fire…” Ansel said and strolled with Agawe until they reached his hut.

Ansel fumbled at the stove and used his piece of ember to kindle the dried twigs. He added more wood and in no time, he had a crackling fire which lighted the hut.

Agawe was amused. “I am surprised you can do that… ”

“Apô Ira trained me to do many things…” Ansel said. “She wants me to be able to fend for myself at all times…”

Ansel settled on the floor. “Tell me about you…” he said.

Agawe thought this boy was put up to it… they wanted to know more about him. “Your Apô could be waiting for you.”

“She knows I am with you… and they have people coming to the house tonight … I am not needed there. So where are you from?”

Agawe knew there was no way out of talking to this boy. Actually, he liked the boy so he started telling him about his life when he and his friend Egul were younger.

“When we were twelve, we learned how to hunt deers. We started with small ones. We can never outrun a deer so Egul and I, we ran everyday until one day, we chased a deer and we got him. We were so proud that first time we brought a deer home.”

His stories were filled with his adventures with Egul that Ansel got curious. He asked where Egul was.

“He is … ahh…serving a master now.”

“Is Egul al-lang?”

“Yes…”

“Your friend is al-lang? Your Innà allows you to play with al-lang?”

“Why not? Innà is al-lang, too…”

Ansel’s eyes grew big as he struggled to stand up. “You are al-lang?” he asked in disbelief as he tripped but got up fast. “I can’t talk to al-langs…” He slowly stepped back towards the door.

“Your Apô knows I am al-lang. Your uncle knows… They said al-langs are more loyal than relatives…” but Ansel had bounded down the stairs and sped off.

Agawe was left scratching his head. He took a deep breath and tried to make sense of everything that happened since he followed Egul. When was that? It seemed like it was years ago. His thoughts drifted to his Innà and Apô Ugay as he lay down in the bamboo floor. Will he ever see them again? Then he drifted off.

He heard someone calling his name from far away. He kept asking, “Who are you?” but there was no answer except that faint sound of his name.

“Agawe… Agawe…” It became louder and louder. “Agawe!”

He woke up. He realized he was dreaming but before he could collect his wits, Ansel was standing right next to him with a sword in his hand.

Episode 7

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 5

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 03:59:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued From Episode 4

They had been walking for quite sometime when a group of men appeared from across the footpath they were following. The men ran to them excitedly.

“We found your horse so we came looking for you. What happened?” one of the men asked Tadeo.

He told them about Waeg and Maramag's failed plot against him. He ordered them to find the two men and bring them to him immediately.
The men sped away while Tadeo and Agawe continued walking. They followed a trail down the hill and another winding path before they came to a wide road. They crossed the road to the largest abaca plantation Agawe had ever seen. It went as far as his eyes could see.

They cut through the plantation and came to a wide clearing surrounded by fruit- bearing trees and flowers of all kinds. In the middle was a huge two-storey wooden house.

“Stay here,” Tadeo instructed him as he entered a large door.

Chickens walked around the yard freely. Agawe was amused by piglets walking with their mothers and then he saw the horses in one side of the spacious yard. If the man owned all of these, he was a rich man, Agawe thought. He smelled the aroma of coffee. When was the last time he tasted coffee? It’s not often that his innà could pick some red coffee beans along the road. She would roast them and pound them in the mortar.

“Agawe!”

The man’s voice brought him back to the present. “Come inside.”

He followed him into the door which led into a large room with mud floor. On one side of the room near the wall was a long wooden table with wooden benches on each side. On his right was another door which he assumed led into the kitchen because it was where the smell of coffee wafted from. On the left were open windows which in the morning would have allowed the sunlight to flood the otherwise dark room. Agawe noticed a short flight of stairs going up to an elevated flooring from where he also noticed a longer flight of stairs. He thought it led to the second floor.

From the elevated flooring, Agawe noticed a few rooms and a set of agong was prominently displayed.

“Sit down,” Agawe was ordered.

Agawe became aware of an old woman, a little younger than his Apô Ugay, sitting at the far side of the table with an open betel box in front of her. Agawe could tell it was a bronze betel box. His Apô Ugay had one like it and he had been wondering how his Apô came to have such an expensive betel box.

Now I understand, he thought, it’s from my real mother.

Agawe sat down and Tadeo sat opposite him in the long table. Agawe assessed the man. He exuded power and confidence. The sheath of the sword he placed on the table was heavy with beadwork. Agawe did not miss the elaborate design on the brass handle of the sword.

“Who are you?” the old woman asked.

Agawe turned to her and replied, “My name is Agawe...”

“I know your name. My son told me. I ask who you are?” The shrill voice scared Agawe.

Agawe thought his answer could mean life or death for him. Would he tell the truth or would he lie? He was scared but did not want to show it.

“I am from Edeng. My ammà is dead. I left my innà and apô because … I want to know what life is in other places.”

“Is your father al-lang? Or are you just another poor tribesman?” she asked.

"My ammà is al-lang..." he answered simply. He did not deem it necessary to tell them about his real story.

Tadeo stared at him. “I did not think you’re al-lang when I saw you in the woods…” he creased his brow, “but it doesn’t matter... Innà has this notion that al-langs are more loyal than relatives…”

“Relatives will plot against you … I told you that but you did not believe me…” the old woman said.

“Innà …” he sighed, “what happened today proves that you are right… as usual.”

The old woman whispered something to herself which sounded to Agawe like a prayer.

“Innà, I have asked Agawe to work for me. If you say that he can be trusted, he stays but if you say he is not fit to work in my household, he leaves after his meal.” Then he stood up and left.

“Are you here for a reason?” the old woman asked, her eyes never leaving his face. Agawe looked at her and answered, “No, Apô… I was just passing by.”

“Where are you off to?” “Wherever my feet take me.”

“Do you want to work for my son? He needs someone he can trust.”

“But you don’t know me, apô…” He called her grandmother, the tribal respect for old women.

“I assure you I can tell a bad man from a good man ... even when his back is turned to me.”

Agawe was astonished. That’s what his Apô Ugay used to say.

“You are a good man,” the old woman said with finality in her voice. “Do you want the job?”

Agawe could not make up his mind.

“You will be paid half of what he is paying his half-brothers working in the plantation. Like them, you will be given a place to live in. Since you are going to go where Tadeo goes, you will eat in his household, the same food the staff eat.”

Agawe couldn’t believe his ears, “I will be paid?”

The old woman nodded. She stood up and disappeared into the kitchen. Like his Apô Ugay, the old woman’s hair was brushed back and tied in a knot, into which a decorated comb is inserted. The rows of bells around her ankles produced a tinkling sound as she walked barefoot.

She came back and signaled Agawe to follow her. In the large kitchen, he saw a narrow table pushed against the wall and he was asked to sit on the wooden bench while a younger woman placed in front of him some boiled cassava and grilled meat neatly arranged on top of banana leaves. Another woman placed a tin cup of steaming coffee next to it.

The white cassava looked appetizing and Agawe was so hungry… but he dared not start eating.

The old woman saw his hesitation. “It’s not poisoned. My son is a datu and it will not look good if an al-lang dies in his household.”

He opened his mouth to ask a question but the old woman interrupted him, “I will leave you to eat… then I will talk to you.”

Agawe wanted to trust these people but his Apô Ugay said “trust no one” so when left alone, he fished the stone from its pouch, pressed it under the coffee cup. The hot cup did not burn his palm. Nothing changed. He then slowly ran his palm with the stone on it under the banana leaf and nothing changed. What did I expect to happen anyway, he thought.

He gobbled the cassava and gulped down the hot coffee. He took big bites off the meat. It was deer meat and it was good. It took him only a few minutes to finish his food. He had always been a hearty eater. He loved deer meat. He and Egul used to hunt deer and wild boar for food. They used to make a game of it. Everything was a game for him and Egul. Who could chase the deer and disable it with a rock? Agawe always outran his friend but Egul was clearly the stronger one. He could knock a wild boar down with a rock and his aim was good, too. The wild boar had no chance when Egul wanted to get him.

The woman who brought the coffee told Agawe to wait for Apô in the large room. Agawe went back to the room and stood waiting. The old woman appeared, told him to sit down and sat opposite him.

“Have you killed anything?” she asked. “Animals… for food….” Agawe answered. “Did you kill a man?”

“No… Apô.”

“Would you kill a man if I asked you?” Agawe’s eyes grew big and he swallowed hard.

“Would you kill a man who wanted to kill you or a member of your family?” “I would kill him first if I could….”

The old woman squinted her eyes as she looked at Agawe. “There is something about you … I can feel it…”

“They are here!” a woman announced with urgency in her voice.

The old woman stood up. “Agawe… go and wait outside. Hurry!” She pointed to the kitchen door.

Episode 6

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 4

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 14 Nov 2020 17:00:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued From Episode 3

Agawe prepared for his journey that afternoon. When darkness fell, he said goodbye to his Innà and to his Apô Ugay. He held his apô’s hand, “I am not sure if I can be back or if you will be here when I come back …” he paused, “goodbye, Apô.”

His apô’s tear fell on his hand.

He looked at them one last time and was out the door. He ran towards the forest. He went straight to the stream where he and Egul used to bath. It was their own find. No one ever went there. He was safe there for the night. It was cold but he did not mind.

His body could withstand the cold. There were times when he would wonder why he was tougher than anyone else. When Egul would shiver from the cold or almost faint from the heat, he would be alright.

Many times, Egul would joke, “You are not human.”
He laid on a flat rock on the bank of the stream. He thought he could not sleep because of the events of the day but he slept soundly.

It was daylight when he woke up. He could see the streaks of the sun’s rays between the huge fern leaves covering the stream. He was hungry. He unwrapped the banana leaf his Apô Ugay prepared for him and found several pieces of boiled gabi and grilled deer meat.

After breakfast, he drank from the stream and washed his face. Agawe often wondered where the water came from. From where he stood, all he could see were huge rocks, trees, fern leaves and flowing water.

Once, he and Egul followed the stream upwards until they could no longer climb up the rocks which jutted out of the mountain side. Water seemed to come from the bowels of the earth flowing up the mountains and spewing out of the cracks in the large rocks and flowing downwards. At the bottom, a large rocky basin caught the flowing water from where it cascaded slowly to the more shallow part of the stream.

Before he left, he stood on a rock and whispered a prayer, “Manama, please protect and guide me in my journey. Protect my Innà and my Apô Ugay as I leave them.” He jumped off the rock and started walking.

He decided to walk through the forest. It would take him faster to the other side of Mt. Sandawa.

Agawe knew it was mid-day but the sun’s burning heat was blocked by the thick undergrowth of the forest. Agawe walked for sometime when he heard voices. He crept to where the voices came from.

Hidden from view, he saw two men deep in conversation. These people are not al-langs, he thought.

His curiosity getting the best of him, Agawe crept nearer until he could hear them clearly.

“Why don’t you do it? Kill him yourself!”

Fear filled Agawe’s heart. They were going to kill an al-lang. He had to go away before he witnessed another killing.

“He is our brother…” the same man told the other one.

“Half-brother …” the smaller man corrected the bigger one. “You can do it with one blow… you are bigger and stronger than me.”

“Maramag, you know Tadeo can wield his sword like a warrior.”

“That is why we have to take him by surprise. Waeg, he does not treat us like his brothers. We work in the plantation…”

“He pays us well, adi,” Waeg interrupted the man he called brother.

“Waeg, are you not thinking? We are part owners of that plantation. He should hire al-langs and they should work for us. When he dies, I am going to be the eldest son...”

“How about his mother and wife … ” Waeg reminded.

“They are women… I could easily subdue them.”

“Are you forgetting what Tadeo’s mother is? She has this strange power…”

Agawe listened with his heart pounding. The mother was like his Apô Ugay with those mysterious powers.

“Ahh… Waeg, listen… Tadeo is there waiting for us to bring water for his horse.” He spat on the ground. “We are not al-langs to run for water when his horse is thirsty!” Then he continued, “Go back quietly… and do as planned.”

“I am scared Maramag…”

“Remember, the two of us will become rich. We are the only brothers in the second family. I will wait for you here.”

Agawe did not know why he followed the big man called Waeg who cut through the thick bushes. Agawe decided to lag behind in case the burly man had acute hearing.

Suddenly, Waeg stopped and Agawe heard a horse’s bray. From where he crouched, he saw the man whom Waeg intended to kill. He was tall and dressed in a rich man’s clothing. He was tending his horse so Agawe couldn’t see his face.

Waeg started to move surreptitiously. Agawe wanted to warn the man but he might endanger his own life. He looked around not knowing what he was looking for. He found a small dried up coconut, not heavy enough to knock a man out.

Waeg was dangerously getting nearer without the man realizing the looming danger. Agawe had to act fast. He picked up the coconut and aimed.

It happened so fast. Agawe hit his mark and the horse brayed and lifted his front legs. The man quickly dodged the horse’s legs and that was when he saw Waeg with a thick piece of wood ready to swing at him.

Agawe was amazed by the man’s agility. He ducked in time to avoid the blow. At this, Waeg panicked and ran. Without thinking, Agawe tripped the big man as he ran past his hiding place.

Before Waeg could get up, the man’s sword was at his neck. “You are going to kill me?” the unnerving voice said.

Agawe saw Waeg cringe in fear in front of the towering man. “Maramag… Maramag told me to do it!”

The man noticed Agawe behind the tree. “You! Give me that wood,” he ordered as he pointed to Waeg’s weapon lying near Agawe’s feet.

Agawe picked it up and handed it to the man nervously. The man sheathed his sword and held the piece of wood in both hands, and without warning hit Waeg's legs so hard Agawe swore he heard bones cracking.

Waeg’s scream reminded Agawe of Egul’s scream before he died. Waeg thrashed about in pain. Tadeo tossed the wood angrily on the ground. “That will keep you from getting away.”

He looked around. “Now – where is my horse?” He turned to Agawe. “Did you hit my horse?”

Agawe swallowed and stammered. “I… I just want … to…”

“Thank you,” he said simply. “You saved my life.”

As Agawe turned to go, the man said, “You must be tired and hungry. I live beyond the knoll. It’s a long walk but if you have nowhere to go, you are welcome in my house.”

Then he started walking leaving the injured Waeg crying for help.

Agawe hesitated but he was so hungry and he knew that all he could get from the forest were wild berries. He was sure this man could offer him real food so he followed him.

“What is your name?” the man asked when Agawe caught up with him.

“Agawe…”

“Why did you save my life?” he asked without even looking at Agawe.

“I thought it was the right thing to do, Tiyo…” He used the tribal term uncle to address the man with respect.

“Do you want to be paid for saving my life?” he asked.

“No…. no, Tiyo. I... ahh…honestly… I want food… then I would be on my way…”

Tadeo stopped walking and turned to Agawe. His gaze was penetrating. “I want you to work for me.” It was more of a command than an offer and Agawe recoiled but he was afraid this man would not take ‘no’ very well.

“And what work would you like me to do, Tiyo?”

“Innà will see you and she will decide if you can be trusted to work for me.” He continued to walk.

Agawe remembered what Tadeo's half-brothers said about his mother. She had unusual powers. That is why he depends on her advise, Agawe thought.

As he followed the man, Agawe had time to observe his clothing. He wore shorts made from the expensive weaved cloth called t’nalak and bordered by wide horizontal bands beaded with intricate designs. It was secured at the waist by a wide, buckled belt. A second belt held his sheathed sword. He wore a close-fitting undershirt and the t’nalak coat he had on was beaded with complex designs around the neckline, the sleeves, and its borders.

This man could be a datu or a chieftain, Agawe thought.

It was the first time Agawe was even near a rich man. As both of them walked barefoot, he could not take his eyes off the layers of bells below the man’s knees. His hair was wrapped in a kerchief with edges bordered by colorful tassels and beads. He must have come from an important occasion because he had on huge earrings but instead of shell earrings, he wore a finer one. His Apô Ugay talked about those – they were ivory earrings.

Continue to Episode 5

More Bagobo Words With English Translation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 13 Nov 2020 09:20:00 +0000

You will find a few of this symbol “Ə” which is the symbol for the schwa sound that is most common in the Bagobo dialect.

1. KirƏm - lightning

2. Kayaan – shy/ashamed

3. Kalingasa – angry/irritated/annoyed

4. Abu (stress on the first syllable “a”) – ashes

5. DakƏl – big

6. DilƏk – small

7. Mapa-it (long stress on the “pa”) – bitter

8. Kisi – blanket

9. Dipanug – blood

10. Tullan – bone

11. Karabo – carabao

12. Kagpa – chest

13. Baha (long stress on “ba” then maragsa on “ha”) – chin

14. Suwat – comb

15. Maripa – dirty

16. Talinga – ear

17. Liwati – earthworm

18. Tallug – egg

19. Tagotong – eggplant

20. Battuk – face

21. Kamaddangan – afraid

22. Assag – floor

23. BukƏd – forehead

24. Madiyu – far

25. Mapun - afternoon

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 3

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 10 Nov 2020 17:00:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued From Episode 2

“Agawe, you are smart. I know you are wondering long ago why you are different… you are taller, you look better than anyone in this place, and why I tell you to keep your shirt on at all times…”

Agawe sat frozen on the cot. After a long silence, he took a deep breath filled with anguish, “I am not a slave? Innà is not my mother and you are not my grandmother?”
Apô Ugay nodded weakly.

“I can’t believe this!!!” He felt his blood rush to his head and he closed his eyes as he buried his face on his hands. When he opened his eyes, he asked, “Apô…. your mistress… where is she now? Is she still alive?”

“I don’t know… I haven’t heard about her… We’ve moved from village to village until we found this place where other al-langs live unbothered… her husband may have killed her… for what she did.”

Agawe did not understand how he felt but one emotion came to the fore… he was angry! He stood up and stepped outside. He needed to get out of the confining hut. He felt suffocated.

Outside, there was no moon and the trees were shadows against the dark sky dotted with few shimmering stars. Agawe sat on the ground, head bent, arms around his knees.

He felt so alone. He remembered Egul, his only friend. Many times, Egul would tease him, “If you dressed in rich man’s garments, no one will ever know you are al- lang…”

The first time Egul saw him shirtless, he shrieked, “Don’t move! There’s something in your back!”

He could still hear Egul’s words, “You’re lucky you are al-lang… with that black mark on your back, you would have been fed with hot ashes when you were born… because you bring bad luck.” Then he would laugh and tease Agawe, “I don’t want to be your friend anymore… you might bring me bad luck…”

Agawe jerked from his thoughts. It’s true! I brought Egul bad luck. The thought grieved him and with a heavy heart, he looked up and allowed the tears to flow freely.

He screamed to the heavens, “Who am I? An al-lang who is worthless… like an animal that can be bought and sold… or someone whose father wanted dead because I bring bad luck… My mother might be dead because of me…. I brought her bad luck…” Agawe cried out loud, “Why did she save me? Did she not know that the life of a slave is worse than death?”

Agawe did not know how long he sat outside. He came back inside to see his Apô Ugay fast asleep on the cot without her mat. She put the mat on the mud floor for Agawe.

Agawe woke up at mid-day. His Apô Ugay sat in the bamboo cot with boiled bananas on a tin plate next to her.

“Pour yourself some ginger tea,” Apô Ugay said when he got up and rolled the mat.

“Agawe…” his mother called from outside the hut with urgency. She closed the door behind her, fear clearly written all over her face.

Agawe’s grandmother asked, “What is happening? What brought you here?” “Agawe… there are people asking around for you…”

“Innà… why would they chase me this far?” Agawe asked.

“I don’t know, Agawe… you might have angered them. You are not supposed to see those rituals. I told you they will look for you.”

His grandmother heaved a deep sigh, “Oh, Agawe, what have you done to yourself.” Agawe ignored her apô’s anguish. “Innà, Apô Ugay told me about my parents…” “Innà! Why did you do that?” Lungkayan screamed at her own mother.

“I want to know the truth from you, too.” Agawe continued.

“Agawe… please get me some banana leaves,” Apô Ugay calmly asked her grandson. Agawe hesitated for a moment, then left.

“It is time he knows the truth…” Ugay said unemotionally.

“The truth? The truth will kill us all, Innà! What if he goes looking for his mother? We don’t even know if she still lives… what if… if his father hears about him? We all die, Innà,” she hissed.

“If you love the boy, you should let him go…”

“There’s no question that I love the boy, Innà. I served him like a master and not just a son…” Lungkayan sat down. “Innà… I don’t want any harm to come to Agawe…. even if I sometimes think that he had brought bad luck to our family.”

“Heh! What are you saying?”

“Innà… all the men in our family died except him. Amma… Uon…”

“Your father died from illness and your husband ate poisonous mushrooms!”

Lungkayan ignored her mother. “You think that if Agawe did not bring us bad luck, Amma did not get sick and Uon did not eat those mushrooms… think Innà… he brought bad luck to his mother and….” Lungkayan stopped when she saw Agawe at the door staring at her.

“You are right, Innà... I bring bad luck,” he tossed the banana leaves on the cot and slumped on the mud floor, dejected. “I need to leave you before more bad luck come to you.”

Lungkayan turned to his son, “I’m sorry, Agawe, I did not mean what I said. I am just so scared…”

“I understand, Innà... maybe if I leave you… bad luck will leave you, too.” “Agawe…” the worried Lungkayan started to say something but Agawe stopped her.

“Innà… I am so confused. I cannot stay here because there are people looking for me. I need to go away… but I don’t know where.”

“Agawe, remember the place where you followed Egul? Go to the opposite direction. Find a way around Mt. Sandawa.”

“Innà… you are sending him to find his parents?” Lungkayan asked.

Before Ugay could reply, Agawe said, “ Don’t worry, Innà… I know I want to see them, to know what they look like, and….” he sighed, “ but even if I find them, they will not know me and I don’t want to cause any more trouble to anyone. I will leave tonight.”

“Agawe, come sit next to me.” He sat next to his apô on the cot. She held a small black pouch and slid the content into her palm. “This is your protection from anyone wanting to harm you.” Agawe saw a dark purple stone. “Many times along the way, you find yourself among strangers who will offer you a drink, food or even a rest in their homes. Always hold this stone under the cup or bowl and you will know if it is poisoned. Keep this with you at all times. This stone will protect you … not only from poison but from all kinds of harm.”

“Why would anyone wish to poison or harm me?”

“Tribal men and women do not want strangers going through their village. You are going to meet many of them. Even al-langs are not to be trusted.” The old woman stared at his grandson with tears in her eyes, “Please take care of yourself.”

“Innà… are you ready to part with that? It has been with you for a long time…”

“Lungkayan… this is not mine to keep. I live alone... I don’t meet many people anymore. I am tired…. I am old. I need to part with this before I harm more people…”

“Harm people? You said this is for protection...” Agawe asked.

“Agawe, there are times when you have to inflict harm to protect yourself…” “Apô… did you ever … I mean… I hear rumors that you can hex people…”

“Innà does not want to do harm but sometimes people are so evil…” Lungkayan stole a glance at her mother.

“Ahh… let’s not talk about that… remember, Agawe… never part with that stone… it can protect you…wherever you go…”

“Apô, tell me more about this stone,” Agawe implored.

Continue to Episode 4

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 2

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 08 Nov 2020 09:56:00 +0000

Video is in Tagalog

Continued From Series 1 Episode 1

He always felt safer in his grandmother’s hut. He believed that his Apô Ugay had some supernatural powers that could protect him.

“Agawe… what happened to you? You look terrible.”

Agawe liked spending time with his Apô Ugay. He learned the art of chewing betel from her. He is fascinated by her dexterity in putting together the betel nut and lime, then wrap them in a betel leaf.

“Agawe… I can sense you are in trouble.”

“Apô… they took Egul this afternoon..”
“Manama….. I knew it… I know they will look for al-langs here … someone in their village died…”

“How did you know, Apô? Did anyone tell you?”

“Agawe, I don’t need someone to tell me when bad things happen… I just know…”

“Egul is dead, Apô.” Agawe sobbed. “I saw how he died… why are they killing al- langs when one of their own dies, Apô?”

The old woman sighed. “It is believed that when a datu dies and goes to the other world, he needs his wordly possession to live comfortably in that world and he also needs a slave to serve him there. Most of the time, it is his own al-lang who should die with him but if before he dies, he chooses to spare his own slave, then the family goes to buy another one from far away villages.”

“You told me that Manama looks after all people… are al-langs not people?”

“Manama is our Supreme God. He is powerful… He knows what He is doing. Trust in Him, Agawe…”

“I am so scared, Apô. I don’t want to die like Egul …” Agawe sobbed uncontrollably.

There was silence as Apô Ugay seemed to struggle with something. Then she took a deep breath before she said. “Let me tell you a story, Agawe…”

Agawe loved his Apô Ugay’s stories. Maybe a story would erase the image of Egul’s death from his mind. He sat on the cot next to his apô. His Apô Ugay had a way with words and Agawe had a vivid imagination.

His Apô Ugay’s story was about herself – when she was the slave of a kind master, seventeen years ago.

***

“Ugay, my son will marry a young woman. I will present you to the bride as my gift to her. She will become your master. Serve her well. I know she will like you and you will like her,” her old master said.

After the wedding, the young bride said, “I like you Ugay. I want you to think of me as your daughter, not your mistress.”

One day, the news came out that the young wife was pregnant. “I pray to the anitos that it is a boy,” the overjoyed husband said.

It was one sad day when the baby was born. The mabalian announced, “It’s a boy but there is an ominous black patch on the right side of his face.”

“No! No! Manama, help my baby…” the weak mother cried and prayed to Manama when the mabalian showed the baby to her husband.

“He cannot live,” the husband said and the mabalian was ordered to feed the baby hot ashes from burning coals.

“No, Husband, No…! Please have mercy on our baby…” the mother pleaded for her baby’s life.

But the husband’s order had to be executed. The new-born was fed with hot ashes because it was believed that any deformity or blemish on a new born brought bad luck to the family so the baby had to die.

After the baby’s death, the young wife was inconsolable.

“Please eat so you will regain your strength,” Ugay begged her mistress who became so ill after her baby’s death.

“Ugay,” she said weakly, “It hurts so much to see my baby die. I don’t want to live anymore.”

“Mistress, you are young, you can still have other babies. I believe your other babies will be unblemished. Just pray to Manama. I know you are hurting too much and I am only your slave but I implore you to eat so that you will not die. You know that when you die, I might also die with you…”

The young mistress looked at Ugay and her tears began to flow. “Ugay… help me. I don’t want to feel this pain anymore….”

“Then be strong. I will be here as long as you need me.”

Ugay took care of her young mistress and nursed her back to health. A month quickly passed.

“Ugay… my husband wanted me to choose a second wife for him,” the young wife said. “I am thinking my cousin will be a good second wife.”

So the husband took the cousin as his second wife. The husband could marry as many times as he could afford for he was a rich man. The second wife got pregnant but died at childbirth.

Ugay's mistress gladly raised the second wife’s daughter as her own. The husband did not take another wife anymore but he wanted to have children with his first wife. She was afraid because her husband could not promise that the baby would live even when blemished.

In spite of her apprehension, the young wife had to submit to the husband’s wishes so Ugay’s mistress became pregnant again.

On the month that she was due, her mistress asked her, “Ugay, how old is your daughter?”

“She’s fifteen now, Mistress…”

“Are you and your husband well provided?”

“Mistress, your father-in-law has been very good to us. He has allowed us to live in his land unbothered. We can never thank him enough for allowing us to become husband-and-wife.”

The mistress smiled, “You told me you married yourselves in front of the anitos?” “Yes, mistress… because no tribal leader will marry al-langs…”

“Then you and your husband must be very loyal to my father-in-law…”

“My husband is still his slave but I am yours now… for me you are my only master…”

“Ugay… my father-in-law is old. He could die anytime. His children could drive you away from this land when he dies…”

“What are you saying, mistress?”

“I need you to do something for me… I fear for something to happen but it may not
… but when my fear happens, you and your husband and your daughter have to leave this place. If nothing happens, forget that we ever talked about this…” she paused, then asked, “Can you do that for me, Ugay?”

“I will do anything for you … you know that,” Ugay said. “I did not go home to my husband and daughter for months just to be with you.”

“I am grateful, Ugay….”

A week before she was to give birth, Ugay’s mistress sent her to the ritual practitioner who was going to assist in her delivery. The practitioners called mabalians were the tribal healers. They helped pregnant women in their deliveries. They healed those who had been hexed but they could also put a hex or a curse on anyone. Ugay presented the mabalian with a brass betel box containing fresh betel leaves, betel nuts, and lime.

Two days later, the mabalian died and she could not help but wonder if the contents of the betel box caused her death.

“Innà is coming to assist me in my delivery,” her young mistress said. “And Ugay, you are going to assist my mother…”

The mother of her mistress came just as soon as her daughter started labor. There was something in the old woman that scared Ugay. She exuded something inexplicable.

“Ugay, when the baby comes out, immediately check his body. If you see a blemish, then you know what to do… I trust you, Ugay,” the mistress said as she struggled with the pains of labor.

When the baby came out, the old woman held it up. It was a boy. “Manama!” Ugay’s young mistress gasped.

“What..?” her mother asked.

The young mistress sobbed as she stared at the dark patch on the back of the baby.

The mother of the young mistress immediately cut the cord and handed the baby to her daughter. She cried silently as she held the baby close to her chest.

“Goodbye… my son,” she whispered as she handed the baby to Ugay.

Ugay wrapped the baby and went to the window where her husband was waiting with a horse. She lowered the baby to him and she slowly climbed down. They left quietly… but when they were a little farther… they rode the horse as fast as it can go. They picked up their daughter waiting at the end of the road and went as far away as possible.

Continue to Episode 3

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction| Series 1 Episode 1

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 05 Nov 2020 12:04:00 +0000

Years and years ago, there lived an aboriginal tribe in the highlands of southern Philippines who followed a culture characterized by violence and heartlessness. This tribal community lived in a caste system where the datus or the chieftains occupied the highest strata, followed by the warriors called magani, then comes the common tribal members, and the slaves called al-lang who belonged to the lowest strata. It was in this setting that Agawe was raised by al-lang parents until his destiny beckoned sending him on a journey to find a better fate than that of a slave.

The video is in Tagalog.

AGAWE - The Adventures of The Slave Prince Series 1 Episode 1

Egul’s head hang when he was tied to the post. He was still unconscious. Agawe could see Egul clearly from where he was. He could also see the dead man lying on a mat in the floor. The body was surrounded with flowers and dressed in the most beautiful clothes he had ever seen.

He must be a datu, Agawe thought. He looked around to check that no one could see him. He was hidden from view by thick bamboo poles piled high under the house. He could only see a little inside the house through a slit in the bamboo wall.

His eyes returned to Egul who started to regain consciousness. Agawe heard some chanting or praying going on. He noticed people coming up the short stairs. Scared that they could see him, he crouched lower.

Then he heard a scream. He looked through the slit again and froze at what he saw. People were stabbing the screaming Egul with their short knives called gal-lat.

“No… please no… stop..! Have mercy….” Agawe heard Egul crying and pleading but no one listened.

Everyone who came up the house stabbed Egul who screamed at every thrust of the small knives until his blood-curdling scream became fainter and fainter.

Egul bled and his shorts soaked in blood. Agawe cried. He was helpless. He couldn’t do anything for his friend. He slowly moved away.

Suddenly, he heard a voice, “You! Who are you?”

Agawe turned and saw a man unsheathing his sword as he bounded down the stairs. Agawe ran as he had never ran before. His heart pounding as he raced through the abaca plantation. When voices got nearer, he cut through the thick bushes with no regard for the twigs slapping his face and the thick vines pulling at his arms and tearing his flesh.

He got to a small clearing and he fell to the ground kneeling. He was panting as he looked up and cried to the heavens, “Manama… Manama…” He wanted to scream but all he could manage was a whimper. Weak from anguish, he slumped forward sobbing.

The sound of horses’ hooves mobilized him into action. He darted from the clearing and found himself going down a steep and narrow pathway. He could hear the sound of water.

At the bottom of the steep hill was a stream of clear water. He rushed to the water but as he looked up the hill, he changed his mind. He jumped from rock to rock until he found one large enough to hide him from view. He scooped water with his hands and drank from it.

He splashed water on his face and he felt the searing pain on his arms and neck but the water cooled his spirit. He kept splashing water on his face. He did not want to stop. It was something he needed to do to forget what he saw back there. When at last he stopped, he leaned back exhausted on the large rock. He sobbed uncontrollably.

I need to get a grip of myself, Agawe thought. I need to go home.

He pulled himself up and again jumped from rock to rock until he got back to the bushes. He crept slowly, ears straining for any human or animal sound.

***

It was dark when he reached their hut. Outside the hut his mother, Lungkayan was sitting on the ground. She stood up when she saw him.

“Agawe, where have you been?”

“Egul was not a gift, Innà… they killed him!”

“What? How did you know?” Lungkayan pulled him inside their hut.

Agawe sat on the bamboo cot. “I … followed … them…” he said catching his breath. “Manama… are you out of your mind?” his mother hissed. “They did not see you?” “They chased me …”

“Ay, Manama!” She looked up as she called on their supreme being. “They will kill you!” she screamed.

He ignored his mother’s hysterics. “Innà… it was horrible,” Agawe sobbed like a child as he watched his Innà move around the hut.

Lungkayan took a shirt and an old t’nalak shorts from a woven basket. “Here, get into these… ” She turned to her kitchen where a black pot stood on a stone stove while Agawe got into dry clothes in the corner. She blew on the coals. They glowed and burst into flame. She stood there for sometime before she took the pot by its wooden handle and poured hot liquid into a tin cup. She handed the cup to Agawe and sat next to him. “Agawe, tell me what you did…”

After a few sips, Agawe started, “Egul and I agreed to go to the stream this morning so I went to their hut but I was scared when I saw people with horses. I hid in the bushes and watched as they took Egul away. They left two horses with his father and they gave him money. I knew Egul did not want to go because he kept looking back.”

His mother was silent.

“Why did his father sell Egul, Innà?”

“It’s not our business, Agawe…” she snapped. “Why did you follow them?” “Egul is my friend…”

“Do you know that if they saw you, they would take you, too?”

“I was careful… they did not see me at first…” “Manama… tell me what happened next.”

“They were walking and talking to Egul like they were all friends. I cannot hear them but I was afraid to go nearer… I was happy that they were treating Egul nice. I thought I would go back but I wanted to see where they would take him so I can visit him sometime.”

“You are foolish, Agawe…”

“They stopped at a clearing and they all sat down. They were laughing together. Then the one holding a heavy piece of wood stood up and suddenly hit Egul on the head.” Agawe shuddered and started to cry. “Egul fell on the ground and I… I was too scared.”

Lungkayan breathed a prayer. “Then you ran?”

“They put Egul in a sack and carried him … so I followed them.”

“What? Agawe… what did you do? Do you want to die?” Lungkayan became hystrical.

“Innà… I want to know where all the al-langs go when they are taken from here… what happens to them, why they don’t come back! Innà, I have to tell Egul’s father.”

“No, Agawe! Let him believe that Egul is serving a young master… that his son is part of a wedding dowry.”

“But Innà, he needs to know the truth…”

“For us al-langs, Agawe… we need to believe that our sons are treated well when they are taken from us. That is how we survive … we hear stories…” Lungkayan took a deep breath and continued, “but we console ourselves that it’s not our son… it will not happen to our son…”

Agawe wiped his tears and looked at Lungkayan, “Innà, are you going to sell me?”

“Five years ago, when you were only twelve, someone came to buy you … he offered a good amount and a horse… it was a good horse… and he promised that you were for a dowry … that his master would be happy to present you to his wife…”

“Why did you refuse, Innà?”

“I could not … ” she stopped suddenly, took a deep breath and continued, “I will not sell you…”

“How about now? If someone comes to buy me…?”

“Not even for the finest horse or for gold pankis…” she declared with determination, then she turned to Agawe, “but what you did was very dangerous. Those men will look for you. If they chased you, they can track you here…”

“I lost them at the stream, Innà…”

Lungkayan thought for a moment. “Agawe, go to your Apô. Stay there until I get you. Hurry up.”

Continue to Episode 2

When Bagobos Come To Visit

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 14 Jun 2018 07:00:00 +0000

Image by Ingrid Russelle Barcelona

Simple conversation when Bagobos visit or accept visitors into their homes:

Madiggir - (Tagalog: Tao Po) - the word in itself means "good" but in the context of visiting a home, it can be loosely translated as "hello" in English or any other greetings you say when you announce your presence in the home that you visit.

Al-lus ko - an invitation for some people to drop by your home.
Al-lus ka - an invitation for one person to drop by your home.

Penek ko - come up (the stairs) - plural
Penek ka - come up (the stairs) - singular

Ahu ko - come in (plural)
Ahu ka - come in (singular)

Unsad ko - sit down (plural)
Unsad ka - sit down (singular)

Andin eg ulitin no? - Literally: what is it that you want to tell me? But conversationally, it means: "Why have you come?"

Variation: Dun ag ulitin no? - Do you have anything to say? (This is mostly heard when someone suddenly comes in the night which implies that there must be some urgency in the visit.)

There is not much distinction between "ag" and "eg" because the word sounds like "ugh."

Dun is short for duwon/duwan (Tagalog: mayroon) Again - there is no distinction for duwon or duwan because what you hear is "du-wn" -- vowels are not stressed in this tribal dialect.

Andin to kalyag no? - What do you want?

By this time, it must be clear that "andin" means "what."

Duwon pd ulitin ko kaneko - I would like to tell you something.

(again, no vowels between P and D though you might want to use "pod" or "pid" -- it really is hard to distinguish what vowel to use between p and d)

Andin to? - What is it?

Memu a mal-las kato pala nu? - Can I borrow your shovel.

Note: mal-las is the conjugated form of bal-las (to borrow).

Uli-en ko kanik mapon. - I'll return it in the afternoon.

Mal-las a pid kaneko ka salapi kaliman pisus. - May I also borrow fifty pesos from you?

Oo, paballas-san ku sikuna ka kaliman pisus. - Yes, I'll lend you fifty pesos.

Salamat, bullasan ko ni dumunggo linggo. - Thank you, I'll return it next week.

Muna ad kaniyo. - I'll go ahead.

Muli ad. - I'm going home.

Pano kid. - Let's go now.

Lonod ka. - Come again.

Oo, lumunod a. - Yes, I'll come back.

More coversations in the next posts. Nah! Ginawa yu....!!!

Most Common Bagobo Animals

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 06:00:00 +0000

In any Bagobo community, you will always find the following animals:

1. Horse - Kuda

Kuda

2. Dog - Aso

Aso

3. Cat - Mengko

Mengko

4. Pig - Baboy

Baboy

5. Carabao - Karabo

Karabo

The Bagobo Numbers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 26 Jun 2013 06:36:00 +0000

Let's count the Bagobo way:

1 - Sab-bad

2 - Duwa

3 - Tal-lo

4 - Ap-pat

5 - Lima (stress on the first syllable)

6 - An-nm (no vowel on the 2nd syllable)

7 - Pit-to

8 - Walo (stress on the first syllable)

9 - Siyo (mabilis like the way you say "kayo" in Tagalog)

10 - Sapulo (stress on the 2nd syllable)

20 - Duwapulo

100 - Sab-bad gatos

200 - Duwa gatos

1000 - Sab-bad mararan

2000 - Duwa mararan

Have fun with the Bagobo Numbers.... Nah! Ginawa Yu...!!!

The Early Bagobo Society

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 06:31:00 +0000

Traditional Bagobo society was divided into three classes.

Magani – the warrior class

The Datu was the chief magani who inherited his position from his ancestors. He did not enjoy special privilege except for the title and rank. His main function was to be a judge, arbiter, and a defender of the tribe. The magani who should have killed at least 2 persons was allowed to wear blood-red clothes and a headkerchief called tangkulu, and he was allowed to possess a small bag for betel nut and lime which was considered a property of the spirits.

If the magani was held in high esteem, a man called the matalo was scorned by the Bagobo society because he had never killed a person and had no desire to fight.

Mabalian – the ritual practitioners or the healers

The elderly women who were usually distinguished as skilled weavers. Accordingly, they were first selected through a dream or a vision from a benign spirit who revealed the secret of a new cure for an ailment. Then they became apprentice to seasoned mabalians who taught them, among other things, how to weave the clothes of the magani.

Like the magani, mabalians wore special clothes that signified their position.

Al-lang – the slaves

The slave class was composed of women and children taken during raids. Slave women sometimes became concubines of their masters. The children of such unions were considered free because their fathers were freemen.

Al-langs could be sold and bought, or presented as part of a sab-lag or a wedding dowry.

The Justice System in the Early Bagobo Society:

The datu meted out punishment to all offenders. Crimes punishable with death were

murder, incest, and refusal to serve in payment for one’s debt. A husband whose wife cheated on him could kill his wife and her lover but must leave his weapon embedded in their bodies. Otherwise, the families of the victims could avenge the deaths.

Bagobo 101

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 09:17:00 +0000

Ulo means head or hair

The following are Bagobo terms which mean the same in Tagalog dialect:

Hagdan - stairs
Ulo – head (which can also mean hair)
Pinggan – plates
Aso – dog
Kagat – bite (but it is pronounced differently from the Tagalog term – the stress is on the first syllable)
Labas – outside; go out

Let's use them in sentences:

Sun-nod mallayat to hagdan katò bale dan.

Translation: The stairs of their house is very high.

Vocabulary:

a. sun-nod – very

b. mallayat – high, long

c. bale – house

d. hagdan - stairs

Dakil to ulo din.

Translation: His/Her head is big.

Vocabulary:

a. dakil – big

b. ulo - head

Mallayat to ulo din.

Translation: His/Her hair is long.

Vocabulary:

a. mallayat – long

b. ulo – hair

c. din – pronoun which applies to male and female

Kange no to pinggan duton labas.

Translation: Get those plates from outside.

Vocabulary:

a. kange – get, take

b. labas – outside

c. duton – is a preposition

Ag kagat yan aso dan.

Translation: Their dog bites.

Vocabulary:

a. kagat –bite

b. aso – dog

c. dan – is a pronoun (in this context it means their)

More of Bagobo 101 next posts..... Nah! Ginawa yo....!!!

Life with the Bagobos

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 13:44:00 +0000

My Mother - 1951

I grew up in the midst of the Bagobos in the highlands of Davao. My mother was a Bagoba and my father a Pampangueño.

Growing up with a father from Luzon, we learned the art of “mano po” – taking the hands of the elders and touching it to our forehead – it’s a sign of respect.

We learned that elders are not to be addressed by their names. My father got the shock of his life when my mother’s small nephew called him by his name. “Walang respeto,” he says.

We call our eldest sister “attê” (the Kapampangan term is supposed to be "achê" but thanks to my inability to say the "ch" when I was small -- it became “attê” instead). We call older brothers “kuya” -- but I am not getting into the culture of my father’s people. I want to explore my mother’s ancestry.

First of all – in the Bagobo culture, young tribal members address their elders as Tiyo (Uncle), Tiya (Auntie), and Apo (Grandma/Grandpa). But for older brothers and sisters, there are no definite terms of respect. They call each other by their names – no matter if you are the youngest of 11 siblings calling your oldest brother, Anson. It will be, “Anson, manda ka?” (Anson, where are you going?)

By the way, when I say Bagobos, I mean the Tagabawa Community because there are other Bagobo communities.

For the Bagobos, all other people are called “Bisaya” even if they are Tagalogs, or maybe English people – though I am sure they call the Americans “Merkano.” Anyway, there are no distinctions for them – everybody who is not a Bagobo is a Bisaya. Just like in the Old Testament when everybody who is not a Jew is a Gentile.

Let’s see – my mother was the youngest of five siblings. She had one elder sister and three older brothers. Sad to say, they had all passed away. This could be the reason why I am trying to write everything I know about my mother’s people because with her passing away, all memories about her ancestry seemed to vanish, too. I lost contact with her relatives completely when she went to be with the Lord.

Then I heard that the Bagobo tribe would be declared an extinct tribe. What does it mean? Will it mean that my mother would lose her ancestry? When my descendants talk of their great-great grandmother, no one can say where she came from because the Bagobos were declared extinct?

I have six other siblings. We have not really learned the Bagobo dialect like native speakers but we know enough to understand that we are being maligned or gossiped about. Many times, my mother’s relatives talk about us in our face because they thought we do not understand the dialect.

My father who married a Bagoba and lived in the Bagobo community had forbidden everyone to speak to his children in Bagobo – well… maybe he did not want to have little ones running around calling him by his first name… LOL! So we learned little and by now I have lost all that I have learned. My sisters and I would exchange notes and update our vocabulary as much as we can.

Looking back, it had been a source of amusement and irritation when we tell our mother that her niece or her cousin gossiped about us. We grew up with enough knowledge of what people thought of us – I tell you it’s a good thing because when those same people come to my father asking for favor, my father knows whom to give and whom to deny favors.

Our Bagobo relatives think we are stuck up kids because we are the children of a Bisaya, particularly a Bisaya who speaks Tagalog. Our Bagobo cousins did not like us so much. The problem is that our paternal relatives thought less of us because we are the children of a Bagoba. Talk of being between a rock and a hard place. But we did not mind.

We took advantage of the Bagobo dialect when we needed to talk among ourselves and we did not want those around us to understand – we had our own language (like a code) and it served us well as we grew up.

My Bagobo grandfather was a rich man – his name was Bangkas. Clearly his favorite daughter was his first wife’s youngest girl – my mother. My grandfather had three wives: my grandmother Apo Abet was first, Apo Abet’s sister was the second, and Apo Abet’s cousin was the third. All in all, my grandfather had 24 children – five of whom were from Apo Abet and the rest from his second and third wives.

During his lifetime, tribal members come to my grandfather for advice and settlement of disputes – that would make him a tribal elder or a datu, or a chieftain.

In Davao City, I often hear people say, “Murag Bagobo” (Like a Bagobo) when describing an ugly and disheveled person, or a person showing ignorance and stupidity. Sometimes, they even call those mendicants Bagobos.

It really hurts because I have seen how proud the Bagobos were. From my uncles to my aunts, to my mother. These people would rather die from starvation than beg for food. But they would never come to begging for food because these people know how to work -- they are industrious people.

Most of all, Bagobos are so portrayed unfairly – they are not ugly. My mother was a pretty lady and she grew to be a beautiful woman. Her brothers were handsome men. While growing up in the Bagobo community, I was surrounded with beautiful women and handsome men – not the dark, short, kinky-haired, flat-nosed, thick-lipped stereo-typed natives they were portrayed to be.

Bagobo conversation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Let's look at some simple Bagobo conversation.

Agawe and Ayong talking as they walk home together.

Agawe: Inná mudan ngan-ni. [It looks like it will rain today.]
Ayong: Diri pa mudan ni... ago kani dukilim pò. [It will not rain yet... maybe tonight.]
Agawe: Madiggir gó ka mudan kani dukilim… anda din wayig to tangke ko. [It’s good if it rains tonight. There is no water in my tank anymore.]
Ayong: Sunnod manggo masirap ka anda udan. Agad to dram ko anda din wayig. [It’s very hard when there’s no rain. Even my drum does not have water.]
Agawe (reaches home): Nah, ad-ding ka pa. (It’s an invitation to come into his house which is usually just a formality.)
Ayong: Be-e din. Muli a din pagsik. [Don’t bother. I am also going home.]

*****

Mother talking to daughter.

Mother: Omeng ka din, mapon din. [You cook now, it’s already late in the afternoon].
Daughter: In-na, anda bag-gas ta. [Mother, we don’t have rice.]
Mother: Dun ig bal-le to ammà no baní. Sil-lig no dun. [Your father bought some yesterday. Look for it there.]
Daughter: O, dini kan-nè. Anda ko ig kita. [O, it’s here. I did not see it.]
Mother: Yan manggo tog kagin ko kaniko. Sil-lig no pò… yaka dig kagi anda. [That’s what I am telling you. Look for it first … don’t just say there’s none.]
Daughter: Ay, in-na… yaka din manggog kasuko. Momeng ad. [Ay, mother… don’t get angry anymore. I am going to cook now.]

*****

Vocabulary:
1. Mudan (from the root word udan meaning rain) - it's going to rain
2. Dukilim (Duki-lm) - evening or night
3. Madiggir (Madi-gr) - good
4. Wayig - water
5. Tangke - water tank
6. Sunnod - very
7. Masirap - difficult
8. Pagsik - also
9. Omeng - to cook
10. Bag-gas - rice
11. Bal-le - to buy
12. Baní - yesterday
13. Anda - none, did not, no more
14. Sil-lig - to look
15. Kagi - to say

Again, if there are those from the Bagobo Tagabawa Community who find mistakes in my rough translation of this tribal dialect, please let me know.

Bagobo Tagabawa: Proud and Courageous

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 10:22:00 +0000

It's sad that the Bagobo tribe, specifically the Tagabawa -- accordingly has been made an extinct tribe. The reason is that no one at this time and age has continued to uphold its culture and dialect. The current generation Bagobo Tagabawa has turned its back on its roots and origin.

A young beautiful lady garbed in colorful Mindanaoan tribal costume. This image is from a
Davao ad in 2011 courtesy of Davao Tourism. This sure looks like a tribal costume of a
Bagoba Lady.

Most young Bagobos today are embarrassed to admit their heritage. I don't understand because at every opportunity, I declare to all and sundry that I am of a Bagobo Tagabawa descent -- my mother is a full-bloodied Bagoba, the daughter of a Bagobo Tagabawa and a Bagoba Tagabawa.

Although my father is a pure-bred Kapampangan, I have spent a few years of my childhood in the midst of the Tagabawa tribe and I have a good grasp of their culture and I understand every bit of the dialect -- I may not be able to speak it through and through but I do understand.

When my mother died, I knew we all were gonna lose our connection with her roots -- we might even forget the dialect. So I would try to preserve the culture and dialect of the Bagobo Tagabawa by featuring them in this blog. Everything in here would be from my own experience growing up with the tribe and from the stories of my grandmother and my mother.

The first generation Bagobo Tagabawa are proud people, intelligent and courageous people -- ready to kill for their family and their honor.

I understand that there are other groups of Bagobos -- the Guiangans or Clatas, and the Ubos. Sad to say, we Tagabawas and the others, though under the same Bagobo tribe, cannot understand each other. There maybe a few common words in the dialect but not enough to completely understand one another. The truth is, I have no idea about the customs of the other Bagobo communities -- I have never met one of them. That is why, it would do all groups a lot of good if people do not call them Bagobo in general or if they tell people themselves that they belong to this particular Bagobo group.

I take umbrage with one particular episode of the show Maalaala Mo Kaya entitled "Gong" which featured the "Bagobo" tribe. I do not blame the show for the discrepancies in it, though they should have made a thorough research to get the facts right. And the letter-sender should have correctly identified the Bagobo community from which his wife comes from because just saying Bagobo is unfair to the other groups.

Why am I offended by the episode? Here's Why:

"Bumaba sa patag para magpalimos"

A Tagabawa never begs or resorts to mendicancy -- never namamalimos ang mga Bagobo Tagabawa! When someone says Bagobo, it embraces all groups so to say that the episode is about the Bagobos and they establish that these indigenous people ay namamalimos is offensive to us Tagabawas. The letter-sender is young -- his wife must be a 3rd generation Bagoba. If she does not know that there are other groups of Bagobo, then she does not know her tribe well.

Tagabawas are proud people. Even the slaves do not beg for food. My mother use to tell me about one al-lang (slave) -- the only living al-lang left after the war -- he lives in an obscure part of my uncle's large estate or my grandfather's large estate under the administration of my uncle. The al-lang bothers no one, he keeps to himself, and when kids happen to meet him on the road, he takes another route. He tills the land for his food... and never begs.

I was concerned that it was a Tagabawa who carelessly sent her "life story" to the show but upon intently listening to the "dialect" and did not understand a word (maybe because of the WORST accent ever), I knew it was not from a Tagabawa.

"Magpapakasal ka sa isang Bagobong babae! Paano mo maipagmamalaki ang Bagobong iyan?"

First of all -- our women are called BAGOBA.

Second -- if the problem of maipagmamalaki involves the physical look -- let me say here that the Bagobo Tagabawas I know are not plain and homely. Let's start with my mother. She has a flawless fair skin, wavy black hair, beautiful deep set eyes, and well-shaped nose. That is why a man from Luzon who has left behind pretty girlfriends in Pampanga becomes enamored with her and has opted to marry her.

My mother's eldest brother was tall and robust, with a handsomely chiseled features. Another brother broke so many hearts when he went to school in the city (patag -- as the show kept repeating). Yes... my uncle (a Bagobo Tagabawa) went to school in the city in the early 50's. And yes -- civilization had crept into the Bagobo Tagabawa tribe that early... and please -- weddings were no longer officiated by tribal chieftains even way back then!

Now -- if the problem is the "smart factor" -- let me tell you this. My mother was born and raised in the Bagobo Tagabawa environment and married a Kapampangan who did not speak any other dialect and who refused to learn the Bagobo dialect. To bridge the communication gap, she learned Kapampangan and in a few months, was speaking Kapampangan like a native speaker. If that is not smart, what is?

My cousin, as handsome as his father, became a sought-after bartender in a luxury ship before he retired. Another uncle topped his class in school but unfortunately died after the war. He would have become a good lawyer. Yes -- Bagobo Tagabawas have ambitions, too!

The Wedding

Again -- weddings as far back as 1950's are already officiated by priests in churches and licenses are applied for a few weeks before the ceremony -- much like what's required today. Hellooo...!!!

The letter-sender and his wife are a young couple. I assume they have gotten married somewhere in 80's or 90's? Married by a tribal chieftain? In full Bagobo regalia? I don't think the Guiangans or Ubos are that backward! Or are they still practicing their wedding customs?

Well.. as I said I have no idea how the other communities do their thing -- but it still is absurd! If we Tagabawas have moved on with the times, I would assume they too would have kept up.

The rice paddies

The characters keep saying "patag" and keep referring to their home as the "bundok." I may need to check on my geography because I might have missed something. What I know is that planting rice in the "bundok" does not involve rice paddies -- that is why the rice is called "upland rice" in contrast to "lowland rice" planted in rice paddies. And I know that Bagobo Tagabawas are indigenous people of Davao and where they inhabit, there are no rice paddies. But as I said, I'll have to check on that.

Well... I could go on and on and on -- but I get comfort from the fact that the show might be right for I am not exactly familiar with how the other Bagobo tribes live -- we may have similarities such as the custom of giving dowry for marriages -- but based on the MMK show, I hope the similarity ends there!

If some indigenous people want to showcase their culture on TV -- I hope they make sure they don't come off as second class citizens!!

Learning Simple Bagobo Requests or Commands

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:52:00 +0000

1. Unsad ka. Sit down.

2. Yakag palagoy. Don't run.

3. Kan ka dn. You go and eat.

4. Kuman ki or Kuman ki dn. Let's eat.

5. Padigos ka dn. Take a bath.

6. Umeng ka din. Go and cook.

7. Tudog ka dn. Go to sleep.

8. Dap-pog ka dn. Wash your face.
9. Uras ka kanan lima no. You wash your hands.

10. Urasi no yan paa no or Uras ka kanan paa no. Wash your feet.

11. Pano kad. You can go.

12. Dini kam pa or Sad-dini ka. Come here.

13. Me-nm ke ka kape. Let's have coffee.

14. Sake ka kato kuda. Ride the horse.

15. Sad-duton ka kandin. You go to him.

Ginawa yu...!

Body Parts in Bagobo Dialect

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 04:59:00 +0000

So, let's identify the Body Parts in Bagobo Dialect:

1. Ulo - Head or Hair

2. Mata - Eyes

3. Talinga - Ears

4. Idong - Nose

5. Bibig - Mouth

6. Ngi-pn - Teeth

7. Bat-tuk - The Face literally but it can also mean the "look" (hitsura in Tagalog).

8. Lima - Hands

9. Paa - Feet, legs

10. Kuko - fingernails, toenails

11. Gt-tk - Stomach
(Note: to make it sound as close to the word as possible, I am not using vowels in some words. To put vowels between the consonants makes it sound different. Ex: Git-tak, Gat-tuk, Gat-tak)

Most of these words are pronounced with the stress on the first syllable except "talinga" which is stressed on the second because it has 3 syllables.

That's it for today. Have fun with the body parts in Bagobo dialect.

Ginawa Yu..!

Simple Bagobo Phrases

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 10:47:00 +0000

It's hard to write simple Bagobo phrases but I am going to try to translate common English phrases to Bagobo dialect:

1. Good morning to you. Madiggr sil-lm kaneko. (singular)
Madiggr sil-lm kaniyo. (plural)

2. Good afternoon to you. Madiggr mappon kaneko. (singular)
Madiggr mappon kaniyo. (plural)

3. Good evening to you. Madiggr dukil-lm kaneko. (singular)
Madiggr dukil-lm kaniyo. (plural)

4. Where are you going? Manda ka?

5. What are you doing? Andin ag lumon no?

6. Who are you? Sadan ka?

7. What is your name? Andin ngadan no?

8. Where do you live? Anda ka ag ud-do?

9. Who is your mother? Sadan to innà no?

10. Who is your father? Sadan to ammà no?

Like some people who greet you with a shortened "....evening", Bagobos also shorten some of their greetings like the one word "dukil-lm..." when they meet at night. Depending on who they greet, the manner the word is said changes... from a grunt to a stranger or extending the last syllable to greet a friend or a close relative.

There are simple phrases that I cannot find an exact translation like "How are you?" Bagobos greet each other differently. For people they have not seen in a long time, the greetings are horrible! They obviously are happy to see each other by their body language... they laugh and they shriek happily but greet each other this way:

"Eeeeeee..... mig-baboy ka dn! Andig lumon no kan-non? Minate ka dn! Ag lambo ka....madita dn salapi no ngan-ni?"

Rough translation: "(Shrieking....) You pig! What are you doing here? You are dead already! You are fat... you have so much money now?"

"Eh! Mirud-dog ka dn... andin salapi? Ago sikuna to madita salapi.... eeeh... mig-baboy dn ..."

Rough translation: "Eh! You are rotten.... what money? Maybe it's you who have much money... eeeeh..you pig..."

Then they chatter away happily!!!

Are you in culture shock yet?

By the way, there's this phrase "ginawa yu..." which I usually hear when people wish each other good as they go their own separate way.

Again... if there are native Bagobo speakers who find that I am not doing this right, please don't hesitate to comment.

Ginawa Yu!!!!

Learning the Bagobo Dialect

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 11:47:00 +0000

To learn the Bagobo dialect, we need to refer to our Pilipino subject in school: ang apat na bigkas ng mga salita: malumay, malumi (`), mabilis (´) at maragsa (^).

Example:
Pilipino (maragsa) : basâ (wet), hindî (no/not), gintô (gold).
Bagobo (maragsa) : apô

Pilipino (malumi) : lahì (ethnicity), diwà (spirit)
Bagobo (malumi) : innà, ammà, mamà

Vocabulary:

1. Apô: grandparent, grandchild
2. Innà: mother
3. Ammà: father
4. Batà: child
5. Adi/Kataladi: sibling
6. Bayi: female
7. Mama: male (unstressed)
8. Mamà: chewing betel
9. Bale: house
10. Duma: spouse

Usage:

1. Tugel dn tô apô Abét ko. (My grandmother Abet is already old.)
2. Mallayat ni ulo kaní innà ko. (This mother of mine has long hair … or My mother has long hair.)
3. Madita salapî ní ammà ko. (My father has so much money… or My father is rich.)
4. Pittò tô batà din. (He has 7 children.)
5. Duton Guam to adi ko bayi. (My younger sister is in Guam.)
6. Maripà to umpák katô dakl bayi. (The woman’s dress is dirty.)
7. Madita mama duton bale dan. (There are many men in their house.)
8. Diyá kalyagan ag tongkò katô mga manubò ag mamà. (I don’t like to talk to people chewing betel.)
9. Anda to bale no? (Where is your house?)
10. Duton lumo to duma ko. (My husband/wife is at work.)

Let’s learn more:

1.   tugel: old
      dn : already (this is the best I could come up with because a vowel
             would change its sound… thanks to text messaging style)
      tô : a demonstrative pronoun ex: to apo (that grandma)
      ko : a possessive pronoun meaning “my”

2.   mal-layat: long
      ulo : hair
      kaní : demonstrative pronoun ex: kani inna (this mother…)

3.   madita : plenty, so much
      salapi : money
      ni : short for “kaní”

4.   pit-tó : seven
      din : a pronoun which refers to the person (singular) who has 7 kids

5. duton: a pronoun referring to places ex: duton datas (upstairs), duton
                 siyong (downstairs)
      adi ko bayi: my younger sister
      adi ko mama: my younger brother

6. maripà: dirty
      umpák: dress, clothing
      da-kl : big, large (da-kel, da-kil may be right but not as right
                  as removing the vowel)
      di-lk : small, little (may be pronounced di-lik, di-lak, di-luk but it's
                 just not right)

7. bale : house, home
      dan : a pronoun which refers to several persons (plural of “din”)

8.   diyá : I don’t, I won’t
      kalyagan: like, being liked (from the root word “kalyag”) So many
                      meanings depending on its conjugation.
      tongkò: talk
      katò: a demonstrative pronoun which means “those”
      manubo: people, stranger

9. anda : where (unstressed)
      andà : none, nothing
      no : possessive pronoun meaning “your”

10. lumo: work, job

Note: The words I use here are the very words I hear from people around me when I was young... it is how my Apo Inna and my mother used to talk to their fellow Bagobos. Our mother did not talk to us in the Bagobo dialect because our father was not Bagobo.

If anyone who can speak perfect Bagobo (Tagabawa) can spot mistakes... please don't hesitate to comment.

Bagobo

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 12

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 11

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 10

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 9

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 8

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 7

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 6

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 5

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 4

More Bagobo Words With English Translation

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 3

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction Series 1 Episode 2

Agawe: A Bagobo Fiction| Series 1 Episode 1

The video is in Tagalog.AGAWE - The Adventures of The Slave Prince Series 1 Episode 1

When Bagobos Come To Visit

Simple conversation when Bagobos visit or accept visitors into their homes:

Most Common Bagobo Animals

The Bagobo Numbers

Let's count the Bagobo way:

1 - Sab-bad

2 - Duwa

3 - Tal-lo

4 - Ap-pat

5 - Lima (stress on the first syllable)

6 - An-nm (no vowel on the 2nd syllable)

7 - Pit-to

8 - Walo (stress on the first syllable)

9 - Siyo (mabilis like the way you say "kayo" in Tagalog)

10 - Sapulo (stress on the 2nd syllable)

20 - Duwapulo

100 - Sab-bad gatos

200 - Duwa gatos

1000 - Sab-bad mararan

2000 - Duwa mararan

Have fun with the Bagobo Numbers.... Nah! Ginawa Yu...!!!

The Early Bagobo Society

Bagobo 101

Life with the Bagobos

Bagobo conversation

Bagobo Tagabawa: Proud and Courageous

Learning Simple Bagobo Requests or Commands

Body Parts in Bagobo Dialect

Simple Bagobo Phrases

Learning the Bagobo Dialect

The video is in Tagalog.

AGAWE - The Adventures of The Slave Prince Series 1 Episode 1