If you feel deprived because you have not shopped for a cool new Herbench top in a month now and the design of your year-old Converse shoes is so last-season, think again (!), because we have been to a place where children wear unclean clothes every single day; simply glad for their raw skin to have some cover against the scorching heat of the sun. Most of them even trek on rock-strewn paths with nothing but calluses to protect their feet because they are too poor to buy a new pair of cheap slippers.
If you want to slap a waiter out of frustration because he failed to pour enough gravy on your Chikenjoy, stop for a while and reconsider (!), because we have been to a place where children had never ever in their lifetime taken a bite off a cracker nor a peanutbutter sandwich.
If you think your phased-out model of Nokia cellphone is embarrassing, you’d better reassess your point-of-view because hey(!) we have been to a place where children go wild with happiness at the sight of broken robots and patched-up teddy bears.
This intro might sound like a big fat sack of exaggeration but surprise surprise ladies and gentlemen because actually, this is a TRUE STORY. Indeed, we have been to a place that had touched a deep core in our humanity and we have returned to tell the tale and tap other hearts as well.
Away from the busy streets of manila, we have traveled for six hours to reach a piece of heaven hidden behind the stretches of coconut trees and the bulk of Sierra Madre in the easternmost part of Aurora. With our own eyes, we have witnessed the pitiable condition of a small indigenous community shoved in the sidelines of national development—the Dumagats. Composed of roughly 400 families, the Dumagat group was originally a nomadic tribe who decided to build a permanent settlement in Dingalen. Despite having a beautiful surrounding blessed with lush vegetation, white beaches and humble people, the Dumagat suffer from unspeakable poverty and discrimination.
The LYCEUM UNICEF branch with the cooperation of CIR Student Council, Student Volunteers and the Faculty heard their plea and hitherto, arranged a visit in Aurora to bring smiles on their faces with the gifts collected from the donation boxes that were set up in the Lyceum corridors before the classes ended. We carried with us boxes of packed clothes, canned goods, biscuits, toys, soap, toothpaste, sanitary napkins and other materials that the Dumagats might appreciate.
With the help of their Chieftain, we managed to pull off a short but amusing Christmas party that was enjoyed by everybody, mostly by the kids. They were a little shy at the beginning but eventually they broke out of their shells and participated in the games. Their little bodies danced to the tune of “Nobody Nobody but You”, they fought their way for a vacant seat during the Trip to Jerusalem, they concentrated really hard on the confusing “Hep Hep Horay” game. We would have wanted to extend the fun for longer hours but the sun was at the height of its temperature and we did not want the kids to suffer from too much heat.
We retired under the cool covers of a nipa hut and enjoyed the food prepared by our hosts while contemplating the important lessons we have just learned. All over the world, there are a lot more people struggling with same condition as the Dumagat tribe. They had been the victims of a rapidly changing society. They are the ones side-stepped by institutions because they can not cope fast enough with our high-speed modernization. This scenario will never be fair specially to our indigenous tribes who should have deserved the highest of respects because they are, in the most ways, preserved models of our early ancestors.
And friends, if you ask what significant changes did we make? If in the slightest we have indeed helped alleviate their poverty and hunger? Or if our visit mattered at all? We believe it did because in this fight against poverty and discrimination, every tiny bit of effort counts! Yes, maybe the donated items inside the plastic bags would last only for a few days, but more than the material benefit, there was no mistaking that the imprints that this experience had left in our souls are timeless. For in that short moment in time, we had discovered what Christmas season is all about—a time of year when people set aside their differences and take care of one another. We realized how much we are blessed with innumerable things that the Dumagat people could only dream of. From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank God (!) because He had given us this great opportunity to share what we have.
Kudos Dingalen! Until next time.
If you want to slap a waiter out of frustration because he failed to pour enough gravy on your Chikenjoy, stop for a while and reconsider (!), because we have been to a place where children had never ever in their lifetime taken a bite off a cracker nor a peanutbutter sandwich.
If you think your phased-out model of Nokia cellphone is embarrassing, you’d better reassess your point-of-view because hey(!) we have been to a place where children go wild with happiness at the sight of broken robots and patched-up teddy bears.
This intro might sound like a big fat sack of exaggeration but surprise surprise ladies and gentlemen because actually, this is a TRUE STORY. Indeed, we have been to a place that had touched a deep core in our humanity and we have returned to tell the tale and tap other hearts as well.
Away from the busy streets of manila, we have traveled for six hours to reach a piece of heaven hidden behind the stretches of coconut trees and the bulk of Sierra Madre in the easternmost part of Aurora. With our own eyes, we have witnessed the pitiable condition of a small indigenous community shoved in the sidelines of national development—the Dumagats. Composed of roughly 400 families, the Dumagat group was originally a nomadic tribe who decided to build a permanent settlement in Dingalen. Despite having a beautiful surrounding blessed with lush vegetation, white beaches and humble people, the Dumagat suffer from unspeakable poverty and discrimination.
The LYCEUM UNICEF branch with the cooperation of CIR Student Council, Student Volunteers and the Faculty heard their plea and hitherto, arranged a visit in Aurora to bring smiles on their faces with the gifts collected from the donation boxes that were set up in the Lyceum corridors before the classes ended. We carried with us boxes of packed clothes, canned goods, biscuits, toys, soap, toothpaste, sanitary napkins and other materials that the Dumagats might appreciate.
With the help of their Chieftain, we managed to pull off a short but amusing Christmas party that was enjoyed by everybody, mostly by the kids. They were a little shy at the beginning but eventually they broke out of their shells and participated in the games. Their little bodies danced to the tune of “Nobody Nobody but You”, they fought their way for a vacant seat during the Trip to Jerusalem, they concentrated really hard on the confusing “Hep Hep Horay” game. We would have wanted to extend the fun for longer hours but the sun was at the height of its temperature and we did not want the kids to suffer from too much heat.
We retired under the cool covers of a nipa hut and enjoyed the food prepared by our hosts while contemplating the important lessons we have just learned. All over the world, there are a lot more people struggling with same condition as the Dumagat tribe. They had been the victims of a rapidly changing society. They are the ones side-stepped by institutions because they can not cope fast enough with our high-speed modernization. This scenario will never be fair specially to our indigenous tribes who should have deserved the highest of respects because they are, in the most ways, preserved models of our early ancestors.
And friends, if you ask what significant changes did we make? If in the slightest we have indeed helped alleviate their poverty and hunger? Or if our visit mattered at all? We believe it did because in this fight against poverty and discrimination, every tiny bit of effort counts! Yes, maybe the donated items inside the plastic bags would last only for a few days, but more than the material benefit, there was no mistaking that the imprints that this experience had left in our souls are timeless. For in that short moment in time, we had discovered what Christmas season is all about—a time of year when people set aside their differences and take care of one another. We realized how much we are blessed with innumerable things that the Dumagat people could only dream of. From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank God (!) because He had given us this great opportunity to share what we have.
Kudos Dingalen! Until next time.