Litratong Pinoy: TULAY (Bridge)

Isang eroplano ang bumagsak sa pangunahing paliparan ng isang mataong lungsod. Ano ang gagawin mo? Ito ang ipinakita ng sandatahang lakas ng Indonesia nang dumalo kami sa isang dalawang linggong pagsasanay sa kanilang bansa. Sa panahong ito na ang unos na gawa ng kalikasan at gawa ng tao ay tila laging nagbabadya, walang hindi napaghahandaan. Paghahanda ang posibleng tulay na magpapahaba ng ating buhay bago pa man tayo tamaan ng sakuna o sigalot.

Sa usapang paghahanda, narito ang paalala ng Kagawaran ng Kalusugan ng Pilipinas ukol sa swine influenza virus. Pakikalat na lang sa lahat ng inyong kaibigan at kapamilya.

TULAY = BRIDGE An airplane crashes in the major airport of your populous city- what do you do? This was what the armed forces of Indonesia demonstrated to us in the form of a simulation exercise during a two-week training in their country. In this day and age when natural disasters and human-made calamities are always just around the corner, preparedness maybe the bridge that will extend and even improve our quality of life.

Speaking of preparedness, click here to read the Philippine Department of Health advisory with regard to swine influenza virus. Kindly spread the word- not the germ!- to your family and friends.

at the Adisutjipto Airport, Jogjakarta, Indonesia, June 2007, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: GUSALI (Building)

Sa gitna ng magkakahalubilong kabukiran, kabundukan, at karagatan, nakatindig ang kumikinang na puting bahay pamahalaan ng lalawigan ng Sarangani. Tiyak mo itong mapapansin habang binabagtas mo ang maayos na patag na daan sa bayan ng Alabel, sa bandang kaliwa, kung galing ka ng Lungsod ng Heneral Santos. Bagaman pangkalahatang payak- kung ihahambing sa kapitolyo ng Sultan Kudarat o Maguindanao- may pakiramdam pa rin ako na parang lutang o alanganin ang istrukturang ito sa kanyang kinalalagyan. Totoo, sagisag siya ng kapangyarihan ng pamahalaan at ng nagsusumigasig na umunlad na probinsya, subali't para siyang hinog sa pilit, sa aking pananaw.

GUSALI = BUILDING In the midst of farmland, mountains, and the sea glistens the white provincial capitol of Sarangani. You won't miss it as you zoom through the town of Alabel, on your left side, General Santos City behind you. It is relatively plain and benign- when compared to the provincial capitols of Sultan Kudarat or Maguindanao- but I cannnot shake the feeling that this edifice is just out of place where it is currently situated. True, it is a symbol of the governance of this emerging province, but it feels a little... forced. But that's just me.

Alabel, Sarangani, March 2008, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: PABORITONG LITRATO (Favorite Photo)

Isa siya sa mga batang makukulit sa isang mahirap na barangay na aking pinaglilingkuran noon. Kasama ang mga batang doktor ng pamantasan, nagpupunta kami sa kanilang barangay upang makipamuhay nang pansamantala, makilahok sa kanilang mga gawain, magbahagi ng mga praktikal na karunungang pangkalusugan. Madalas makikita namin siya nakikipagharutan sa kapwa bata, aali-aligid sa mga matatandang kausap namin habang nagtatalakay kami ng mga usapin tulad ng TB, nutrisyon, o bakuna. Kapag sinasabihan namin siya sa isasailalim siya sa isang simpleng pagsusuri, kakaripas sya ng takbo papalayo, iiwan lang sa amin ang kanyang ginintuang ngiti- isang bagay na hindi ipinagdaramot at nag-uumapaw sa gitna ng kahirapan ng kanilang lugar.

PABORITONG LITRATO = FAVORITE PHOTO He is one of those mischievous kids living in one of the lower income community of informal settlers I previously worked with. With the medical students of the university, we go to their village for short immersion sessions, swimming in their daily routine, sharing practical health information through health lectures. We often see him playing with kids his age, loitering at the periphery of our health activities while we discuss topics as basic as TB, nutrition, or the value of immunizations. When we'd encourage him to come over so we can do a simple health check up, he'd run away as fast as he can, leaving behind his golden smile- something that is of great abundance and selflessly shared by almost everyone in his community despite the trying economic times.

in an urban poor village in Pasay City, 2006, using my Woca 120G toy camera.

Litratong Pinoy: SAPATOS (Shoes)

Kakaibang karanasan ang Night Cafe sa Divisoria ng Cagayan De Oro. Dalawang araw- Biyernes at Sabado- linggu-linggo, isinasara sa sasakyan ang isang pangunahing kalye ng lunsod upang maging isang higanteng pasyalan kung saan mahahanap ang pinakamasasarap na pagkain, pinakamahuhusay na musikero, at pinakamalawak na pagpipilian ng mga bilihin- lahat sa pinakasulit na halaga. Kabilang na rito ang mga sapatos na may iba't ibang tatak para sa iba't ibang pagsusuotan. Mukhang patok naman ang mga paninda, isa marahil na positibong kabahagi ng nararanasang krisis pinansiyal sa buong mundo...


SAPATOS = SHOES The Night Cafe of Divisoria is a wonderful experience unique to Cagayan De Oro City. Twice a week- Friday and Saturday- of every week, a major city thoroughfare is closed to vehicular traffic and gets converted into this massive marketplace where the most delicious food, most talented musicians, and widest selection of wares- all at the lowest cost- can be found. Included in the for sale items are shoes that will fit every need of any feet. Sales seem to be brisk, one of the positive impact perhaps of the global financial crisis...

Divisoria, Cagayan De Oro City, March 2009, using a digicam.

Litratong Pinoy: BAG

Hindi halos nahabol ng aking mata at kamera ang kumakaripas na tricycle na ito. Lulan nito ang may walo kataong dala-dala ang pangkaraniwang laman ng isang shopping bag sa Kamaynilaan: dalawang tig-kalahating sakong bigas, dalawang dosenang sardinas, at anim na litrong matika. Nguni't hindi galing sa ordinaryong pamilihan ang mga ito: mula sila sa Pulahang Krus at World Food Program ng United Nations. Dahil hindi rin naman sila pangkaraniwang "mamimili:" sila ay kabilang sa may 1000 pamilya na nanantili sa mga evacuation camps sa Pikit, Hilagang Cotabato, mga nakaligtas sa punglo ng mga nagbabakbakang armadong grupo, pumila sa plaza sa harap ng munisipyo para makuha ang mga biyayang ito na harinawa'y magtatawid sa kanila hanggang sa Abril.

Sa harap ng mga hirap na ito, sila ay nananatiling buhay, nagsusumikap, umaasa na sa gitna ng labanan ay makikita nila ang katuparan ng pangako ng kapayapaan.

BAG My eyes and my camera can hardly track this speeding tricycle. Loaded into this local transportation are about eight men and women, along with a nondescript set of items typically found in a Manila household's shopping bag: two half-sacks of rice, two dozen cans of sardines, six liters of cooking oil. These folks did not come from your usual supermarket; the foodstuff came from the Red Cross and the United Nations World Food Programme. It is likewise because these men and women are not your usual "shoppers:" they are internally displaced people who have lined up in a plaza in front of their municipal hall to get their share of blessings that will hopefully tide them over 'til April. They are survivors of the armed conflicts in their areas, evacuees living atop soil that is not theirs for the last nine-odd months.

In the face of crises, they remain alive, continuing to struggle, hopeful that they will live to see the promise of peace in Mindanao become a reality.

along the National Highway in Pikit, North Cotabato, March 2008, using a digicam.