I am often asked what I get
out of mountaineering. The legendary
George Mallory said "It is no use. There is not the slightest prospect of
any gain whatsoever... What we get from this adventure is just sheer joy. And
joy is, after all, the end of life."
That joy is really something
that is best experienced. Words and
photos are often not enough to express the joy we experience when we climb.
Part of that joy is the goodness of people who live in the mountains. That is why we give back.
After the joy of TREK
Itogon, we decided we would continue with this mission. Our group is called Trails to Empower Kids or TREK.
One of our co-founders, Noel, suggested a site
from his home province, Aurora.
During our first project, we
didn't have time to conduct a recon and we realized we have to do it for all
the projects, for proper evaluation of the sites.
I traveled to Aurora by
myself. The bus trip from Manila to
Maria Aurora was around eight hours then. From Maria Aurora, where I was joined by our co-founder Noel, it was another eight
hours from Maria Aurora to Casiguran (around 125 kilometers). During that time, most of the road was unpaved
and only a few Delica vans ply that route.
It was a scenic route, nonetheless, and I had to stop the vans a few
times to take photos of Aurora's beautiful coastline and verdant mountains.
Casiguran is a quaint,
little town. It sits in front of the Pacific Ocean with the Sierra Mountain
Range straddling at its backdrop. From
the jump-off point, it was a relaxed 45 minutes’ walk, mostly river crossing.
When we arrived at the
school, the students were lined up, donning bright floral garments wrapped
around the body, on the waist for the male students. They were obviously
prepared for our arrival. When we were settled, they welcomed us with a song
"Welcome to our Family," which they sang so beautifully.
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| Posing with the students of Sentrong Paaralan ng mga Agta |
The students are Agtas, with negrito physical traits of dark
skin and curly hairs. The Agtas,
according to Noel, are mountain dwellers, compared to Dumagats, who are coastal
dwellers. They were the early settlers
in Casiguran.
After the song, Teacher Glen
Maceda formally welcomed us. She was wearing a shirt with a writing that says,
“Ako ay isang Agta, May isang gatang
kasya sa
marami, sa
iisa ay kulang”
(I am an Agta. I have a cupful enough
for many, but not enough for just one). She
led us to this medium sized multi-purpose room, which doubles as a kitchen and
meeting area. The students joined us. Noel asked me to do a brief introduction
about the group.
I really didn't know what to
say and how to introduce the group.
We are not a big NGO. We do
not have corporate backings. We also do not have big bank accounts to finance
everything. All we have are the willingness to help and families and friends
who are willing to support us.
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| Introducing TREK to the students |
I didn't want to get their
hopes high. I also didn't know if the rest of the group would approve this site
but I had a good feeling about this. We
decided that we would employ some criteria in choosing our project sites. We chose to help communities that are
inaccessible to major forms of transportations, have a lack of support from
government and other groups and of course and have an obvious need for
assistance.
So, I started by introducing
myself, then Noel, then our group. The students were all looking at me and I
wanted to give them hope. I wanted to tell them that I would come back with the
books they need and that my friends would be with me next time and we would
prepare a feast for them. I can't remember now what I said.
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Maricel, Ruffa, Sharon, Ruffa Mae, Soren, Regine are enrolled at SPA
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Agtas are nomads, which also
explains why there are dormitories inside the school compound. They just go
home during weekends.
They follow the homeschool system of the Department of Education
and they merge this with a lot of discussion about the culture of the cultural group,
which is really impressive.
After that, we went around the school compound. We
noticed slippers scattered around.
The students were not really used to wearing footwear.
After our goodbyes, we
headed back to the trail and waded again on those small rivers and streams on
the trail.
The Outreach
We timed the sharing of our
gifts during the long weekend of May 1. It was actually a special date for me
as I met most of my fellow TREK founders, except for Rex, May 1 during the
friendship climb of Pilipinas Sierra in Bolinao, Pangasinan.
Our TREK Casiguran
participants from Manila crammed in two small Delica vans we rented from
Cabanatuan to Casiguran. We arrived late in the afternoon, which was spent preparing
for the following day’s activities.
We arranged for a small pig,
which we bought and cooked for the community. His name was Junjun. The little boy who owned Junjun watched him
be butchered. I can't imagine how
difficult it must have been for the little boy to see his pet go this way.
One of the things that I
really enjoy during our projects is the meal preparation time. While we slice, dice and mince, we enjoy good
conversations with our friends, and bond with our new participants and some of
the locals. Of course, shots of local
liquor are also being passed around.
Our campsite was actually
really nice, with a good view of the beach and facilities like flowing water
and a comfort room. The barangay officials also allowed us to use their hall to
store our things. Some also opted to sleep there.
The following day, we
started our trek early.
The program
When we arrived, the
students were already lined up at the steps leading to the school. I once again
heard a beautiful rendition of the song "Welcome to the Family." That
was so heartwarming. Some of the participants were already teary eyed. We all
agreed the children's voices were so angelic.
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| The kids welcome us |
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| Our welcome committee |
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| they also prepared leis |
The students of the school, Sentrong Paaralan ng mga Agta prepared a small program, which we started with a prayer.
I, once again, had an
impromptu speech. I remember reiterating
that it is our group's hope that through our small donations, they will pursue their studies and do something to help their cultural group and community. I told them that we traveled far and we have
a genuine interest to help them and see
them succeed and eventually give back to their community.
The head of the cultural community, the parents-teachers association, and Teacher Glen spoke also. Much of their messages
were filled with appreciation of our group's effort.
The program ended with this song. After that, we had some games, which is my
most-awaited part of the program. That
is the time we let go of the formalities, just have fun and bond more with the
students. The participants joined in the
games, either as assistants or participants.
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| We were all teary eyed after hearing them sing |
We turned over the donations after we distributed the prizes for the
games, then ate.
Some of the food we prepared
was again a failure. We didn't want to
change their palate or even their way of life, but we wanted them to experience
something we are hoping they will remember for the rest of their lives. That is the kindness, which we hope they will
share later on in their lives.
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the students with their new school materials
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After lunch, we bid them
goodbye. I couldn't forget how the students called me Ate Kelly and asked for
souvenir photos. I know it is typical but coming from them, it means that they
have accepted me.
Enjoying the beaches of
Dilasag and Casiguran
After the outreach, we had a
side trip in Dilasag, which is the next municipality.
The tourism officer welcomed
us and he prepared our campsite, complete with welcome streamers. The highlight
of the night was the bucket of lobster we got for a very small amount.
The next day, we woke up
early. That was when we were able to appreciate the Dilasag coastline. A short
hike on a hill led us to these amazing rock
formations and natural pools. In
the afternoon, we went back to Casiguran.
There, we were allured by its cream-colored sand touching the blue
waters of the Pacific Ocean surrounded by the Sierra Madre Mountains.
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| posing with the mayor of Casiguran who allowed us to camp at his beach property |
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| TREK 2 |
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| Casiguran, Aurora
That was a nice cap to another awesome TREK.
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