ILIGAN CITY (MindaNews / 14 April) – The irony of the whole thing is as funny as it is infuriating.
I was born and raised in Bukidnon. In Malaybalay, no less. Every year, without fail (or at least before I came to Iligan for college), I had all the chance to enjoy the Kaamulan Festival. And I did. I didn’t get up at 4 a.m. every year to secure a good spot to witness the tribal street dancing, but I did have fun with my family and friends nonetheless. It’s my fourth year in college, and also my fourth year of not being home for Kaamulan, and I regret not dancing in the streets a little longer and singing along to the Binukid chants a little louder when I still had the chance. Ah, the irony of only fully appreciating something you once had at the tip of your fingers when it’s no longer in your grasp.
The bigger irony though, and also my bigger regret, is only realizing the gravity of Kaamulan when I was no longer living in Bukidnon. But perhaps I needed that distance to get a better vantage point. Maybe it was true when they said you see the bigger picture from afar.[]/a> with |||
Maayad ha pag uma.
(Batang Mindanaw is the youth section of MindaNews. Alexandria M. Mordeno, 19, is a senior Political Science student at Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology.)