BRIDGING THE GAP
Traditional Panayanon farmers' reckoning of time
Many old farmers in the mountainous sections of Panay still stick to the familiar traditional beliefs and practices handed down through generations. Mother Nature is the key to a successful harvest and, therefore, they give it due respect. Their sensitivity to their natural environment and what it can provide is shown in the extra care they accord the rice grains, from planting to eating. This is based on the popular belief that palay and other plants have feelings and cannot be taken for granted. Neglect or apathy will mean gradual loss of rice or fast consumption of it.
These farmers also take extra caution in cultivating the land, particularly for kaingin purposes. They believe that there are spirit-dwellers in these lands and care must be observed not to provoke them or harm them, or else, something dreadful will happen to the farmer or his family. Thus, wise utilization of natural resources is observed by them.
The farmers' respect of and sensitivity to Mother Nature make them familiar with the movements of the sun and the moon. They use this to determine time and weather. Surprisingly, even without the heavenly bodies during foul weather, the farmers are able to closely estimate time through the sounds and behavior of fowls, animals, insects, and even plants. The traditional farmers continue to go through the cycle of farm work using their keen observations of what is going on around them.
There are some interesting examples. Some people in the mountainous sections of Panay know that it is between 4:00 and 4:30 a.m. or time to wake up because of the noisy crowing of roosters. It is 5:00 a.m. when chickens start to abandon their perches. Six in the morning is indicated by the flight of herons and the movement of spiders from the web. The time 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. is signalled by the sound ofa tiny bird known as tigwati and the opening of the leaves of such plants as apat-apat, huya-huya, and gaway-gaway. The call of the wild pigeons and the sound of the cicada denote that it is 11:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon.
The time 3:00 to 3:30 p.m. is marked by the closing of the petals of a certain variety of tapulanga or gumamela flower. At 4:00 p.m., the flowers of the plant called "alas kwatro" close. It is 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. when the sun sets and the herons in their formation fly home. Also, the leaves of apat-apat, huya-huya, and gaway-gaway close, and the lizards also crawl down to pay homage and kiss the earth at this time.
As night falls, one can hear the sound of sirum-sirum, a small grasshopper-like insect. About 6:30 to 7:30, a kind of insect called suhong or mara-mara gets inside the house of the farmers. Ants with wings appear too. Large earthworms and certain species of frogs make sounds. Between 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., cockroaches come out of their hiding places. Finally, at sleeping time, about 9:00 or 9:30 p.m., the bird sagoksok makes its peculiar call in the stillness of the night.
The traditional farmers' close observance of the movement of the wind, the changing behavior of the heavenly bodies, the rustling of the leaves, the cascading water in the brook, the melting of the moisture of the dew, the movement of insects, the chirping of birds, the blooming of flowers, and many more, enable these farmers to communicate with nature. This very intimate relationship with nature is deeply ingrained in farmers.
Nature speaks to the traditional farmers. One instance is the abvsence of stars at night which is nature's sign that rain is coming. This jibes with science as the absence of stars is due to the thick cloud cover that eventually transform into rainfall. In their econsystem, the farmers are expected to be observant of changing weather conditions and the movement of heavenly bodies.
The traditional farmers are subtle observers in the more complex network of interdependence that exists in their natural environment. For them, success depends mostly on various surrounding forces. These include not only the supernatural and invisible beings who are supreme in the network but also other elements believed to be beneficial in helping them achieve their goals. The various forces are prayers and faith in God, charm, magic, association, industry, and creativity, the will of the spirits, luck, his understanding of the behavior of plants and insects, and favorable climate. Having considered these, the farmers then plant their crops with ease and assurance that they will achieve a good harvest. They can now believe that all the forces that surround them are interdependently working and aiding them in the realization of their undertaking.