CIRILO DUMOTAN ( one of the greatest teachers who ever lived)

Okey, so he is my paternal Grandfather :-)
And he helped raise me with my Grandmother.
But it is with no bias that i hail him as one of the greatest teachers who ever lived.
At the time when the mode of transportation was to hitch a ride on logging trucks and jeepney schedule was few and , very, far between. And to have a horse is an expense not easily raised.
My Lolo walked to the schools, yes schools, where he taught.
He would spend certain days in certain far flung villages to teach reading and writing and whatever else he can fit in his schedule. I remember my Mamalola would say that he would wake up at 1am when the moon is full and he would start walking to wherever he needs to be.
He started the Plantation Elementary School in Camp Phillips del Monte under tents. He walked the wilds and trails of Siloo, Abyawan and other places that even up 'til now are not that easily accessible.
I believe it was the school in Siloo that won an award for being a great school (i have to look this up in my Auntie's records). Some big wigs on the education dep't went to visit the school. From my father's account, they have to cross the same river a few times (Tagoloan River). And that made the award even more special.
A few years ago, someone reminded my Dad that there is still that piece of property that is reserved by the people for the Maestro (meaning teacher, and was what they used to call my Lolo) in Siloo.
Maybe this coming summer i can make a trip over there.
It's times like this that i really wish i have a lot of money :-) I am already thinking of maybe building a small reading center on that property. Of course, named after my Lolo.
Though, i don't think he's going to like that very much. He was always unassuming. Very hardworking.
My greatest shame is when i once saw him walking all the way to Manolo from Lingion with a load of firewood on his back, and i remember being ashamed of him. I thought that if he keeps doing that,  no one would ever think that he is a teacher. My young mind could not quite grasp the greatness of the man who raised me.
And i wish he knows how much he has influenced all the things i do today.
It's strange to cry for feelings that i felt when i was a teen-ager. But that is what's happening now.
I love you, Lolo.
I hope that you can look at all of us, your apos, now.
And be proud of us.
And may we continue to make you and Mamalola proud.

New Photos on The Blog Page

So obviously these are really old photos. My Youngest sister is not even in the pictures and my younger brother Poy is always at home since he was pretty sickly as a baby.

MaEm (short for Mama Em, who is my auntie) lent me these pictures so i can have them scanned and printed out in Cagayan de Oro. I am so grateful she did because my biggest worry is that these would all be lost or damaged. Now i have them for posterity.

I am hoping that i will find more pictures from other family friends. I would want one of my father's dad, my Grandfather.
There used to be one of him but we could not find it now.
I will continue to get all these information together and maybe someday, one of the younger ones will be interested to know about our ancestors. Just like me.

In Manolo, you are looking for a Dumotan, you would be led to two people. My father, Carlito "Boy" and his brother who lives in Camp Phillips del Monte, Victor or "Vic".
The only other Dumotan family i know of is our relative in Dalirig, Uncle Rudy.

Where the Dumotan name comes from i am not really sure of. Recently though i have been told that the origin is Muslim. I still have yet to find out more about it.

Romanticizing My Childhood in Lingion

Well, that was what my sister Neng refers to me when i go on rambling about the past :-) Romanticize!
 In a way it is true. I forget about the very sticky mud when the rainy season comes for one thing.
But then i was just a child.
And i lived with people who loved me and spoiled me.
My MamaLola and Lolo Dilo. Manits and Tita Lydia. My aunties who were both unmarried at that time.
And so to go back to those days when i was between 4 and 6 and living in Lingion, one of the highlights is...

Moonlight serenades.
Living with my paternal grandparents who have two single very beautiful and attractive daughters in the house, there are bound to be admirers. Suitors who would serenade them when the moon is full. No song comes to mind. But the excitement! I am sure my aunts were excited too. I know i was. First, there's the beginning strum of the guitar. Signaling the arrival of the "gapangharana". Then there's the apology and greeting. Apology for disturbing my Grandparents and Aunts sleep. Then the dedication. You can then tell whose suitor is downstairs. My grandparents house is a two-level old-style house. Then the singing.
Man, those guys really put their hearts into those songs. If they were favored, my Grandma would allow my aunties to light a lamp and open the window. If not, then the window stays closed.
Ah, harana! It's stuff from bygone days. It was gone when i was old enough to be serenaded. And that really made me sad. I wish someday it will have a comeback. Maybe for Camille's time?

At that time, a lot of the men (and women) knew how to play the guitar. If you have a guitar, you are popular. Everyone gathers around so they can sing. My Dad and Tito Victor (my Dad's brother) were great singers and guitar players. About 4 years back they sang together on stage for their cousin's birthday. The voice is not as good as it used to be but they can still belt it out and put on a great show for everyone :-)) I wish i had recorded that!

MEMORIES OF LINGION

Fireflies. They cover the two mango trees in front of the house. Sometimes a few would make it inside the bedroom and i would watch them as i lay on the woven mat inside the confines of the mosquito netting. My Mamalola (grandma) would then tell me tales of how the fairies love those fireflies. There is something comforting in seeing them in the middle of night when everyone is fast asleep and snoring. Many a night i have dreamt childish dreams of princes and princesses while watching a firefly.

Dragonflies. Lots of them with really beautiful iridescent wings. Some more green, others more blue. And there was this HUGE one with orange on its wings.  They were everywhere! Everytime we go to Libwangan to wash clothes on the weekends (there was no running water in Lingion for the longest time) i always look forward to the dragonflies. It was that time when the water still runs clear. It was a huge party for us kids then :-) bathing in the shallows, eating lunch, drying the clothes on the rocks so they won't be too heavy to carry back up the really steep climb. I remember we have our dirty clothes in rice sacks and we'd roll in down to the river bank before we make our way down. I was always scared going down but the thought of dragonflies kept me going!

There was no electricity in Lingion. We used Petromax or a plain kuatro-kantos (bottle of gin) filled with gas and a makeshift wick from an old shirt. But the nights were beautiful! I remember the stars were soo bright! My Lolo (grandpa) would wake up like 330 or 4 am and he'd have hi s transistor radio on. The Star- Spangled Banner then the Philippine National Anthem signals the beginning of the day. There will be songs requested in mail and dedicated to certain individuals, mostly from admirers. And the smell of ground coffee being boiled in my Mamalola's water kettle was just heavenly! The coffee came from my lolo's own trees. I helped harvest, pound, dry and ground them. Sometimes i can harvest enough for myself to sell :-) It was a very simple life. Now that i think about it, a lot of people would want to do that! I realize how blessed i was with a wonderful childhood. In the quiet of Lingion. Where the roads were unpaved.