And older folks usually would add: Sa kaluoy sa Dios! (With God’s mercy!).
In my younger years, when I blurted out my wish in the coming days or year without adding the word puhon, the older person with whom I would have this conversation would spontaneously say the word – Puhon! And both would assume that the wish could only be granted through heaven’s intervention. A synonym in Cebuano-Bisaya is hinaut pa (to be hoped for), but puhon has a deeper meaning.
It might no longer be possible to trace when this word arose and became part of the Cebuano-Bisaya lexicon. For sure it is not a loan word from the Spanish or American colonial languages like Kumusta or Hello! One assumes the word already was used in the pre-conquest period by our indigenous ancestors. And it would not be a far-fetched idea because our ancestors were in close communion with the spirit world. In their everyday lives, gods and spirits surrounded them and had to be invoked either to seek favors or to ward off misfortunes. Some words would therefore be used in a way to recognize this close inter-connection between the spirit and the human words. One thinks of Inshallah (if Allah wills), commonly spoken by our Muslim brothers and sisters when they express a wish for something. Or the Tagalog term – harinawa usually translated as – May God make it so or May God help. Integrated into this word are the three letters awa: mercy.
In the few hours leading to the unfolding of a new year – as 2019 gives way to 2020 – puhon figures prominently. As a new year – which is also a new decade – begins, many of us hope for the best that are yet to come. In the country today, we do wish that there will be less disasters that will create havoc on our lives.
In the past decade we experienced some of the worst natural calamities to strike the Republic – from Sendong to Pablo to Yolanda. In southern Mindanao, a series of strong earthquakes shook not just buildings but people’s faith in the structures that have been built – cathedrals, condominiums, malls, public markets and government edifices.[]