SPRING TIME IN ASINGAN
There is no spring season back in my hometown Asingan, Pangasinan but there is its equivalent – when life seems to be resurgent and suddenly asserts itself from the withered earth of the dry season.
During the sizzling months of March and April just after the mongo harvest, the fields of masicampo turns into a dustbowl where the only remaining signs of life are the toughest weeds in the tambak – puriket, cogon and talahib and the hardy tantandoc. And even these are burned in preparation for the next planting season. Seeing masicampo at this time of the year, it is hard to believe that it actually sustains the livelihood of the farming population of dupac and kalawagan. It's a sun-soaked place full of beige, stone-like lumps of soil called bingkol, with patches of scorched earth that seems to wave and dance in the intense heat of the April sun. As boys, masicampo at this time of year is a huge airfield for our homemade kites fashioned out of bamboo sticks and papel-de- hapon. We take our carabaos and cows further east towards the river banks and pasture them to some patches of land that remain verdant near the river. There, in places called Labak and Aragaag, our band of cousins and playmates would feast on damortis and lomboy which grew plentiful in the wild. We would hunt for spiders among the bushes and encased them inside matchboxes intricately partitioned with coconut leaves. During the day, the spiders are not on their webs but are hibernating inside some old leaves which they curl and tie around them. It's not easy to hunt for these cunning creatures if you don't have the wiles of a barrio boy. We would shade our eyes with one hand, crinkle them a little bit and look for the silvery thread which would glow from afar under the sun and test for its tensile strength like you would pluck a guitar string. The tighter these are, the more chances of bagging a fierce warrior. We would starve them in captivity for a day or two and then let them fight on the ribs of coconut leaves. These gladiatorial contests are a real spectacle in our childhood days. A UFC match would pale in comparison.
Butoverhead, the cirrus and the stratus clouds would unexpectedly give way to dark, rain laden kind in one of the afternoons. And soon, the floodgates of heaven, amidst the claps of thunder and the fireworks in the nimbus-cumulus, would pour the first rains of May.
While the old folks would be scrambling to gather their sinampay or to bring in some firewood, we the little boys would strip to the waist and run wild under the copious outpour, basking in that large open-door shower – what a celebration it was. Pure, innocent and spontaneous eruption of joy and revelry!
As suddenly as it would begin, the rain would stop before dusk. The whole place would be pervaded by the refreshing smell of the still warm and smoking but newly drenched earth of Asingan. The scent is something wonderful and inimitable and remains in my nostrils up to the present. The night after the first outpour is totally magical. Gone is the hot and humid air of April. Out comes the inabel blanket from its lakasa storage, still quite stiff and raspy from all the rice starch. The cicada violins will be noticeably melodious this night doing a duet with the newly released frogs, lulling everyone to a deep and sweet slumber.
In the next morning, the sunshine would glow a little brighter perhaps because the air has been washed of its dust. The acacia, the bayabas, the kaimito and the mango trees would be radiant like their hairs have been shampooed and conditioned but also because their old and yellowed foliage now mats their feet. The gumamelas and bougainvellas and sampaguitas would glow from the moisture. The clumps of bamboos would seem to be harried and suffering from a few fallen comrades but give it a few more days and it would grow swords from the ground. Give it a few more days and everything would come back alive. Why, even that old madre-de-cacao fence post at the corner of the yard- long given up for dead- would sprout tiny little leaves. Even the bamboo legs of the fixed benches in our tambayan would be growing mushroom ears. The saluyot and the kalunay will reclaim their turfs. The open fields of Masicampo will be verdant again - putting golf courses to shame. Herbivores of all sizes would be dotting its wide expanse. The chickens would be extra frenzied scratching for the newly exposed wealth in the ground. From out of nowhere, thedodon, the kuriat, and the araarawan will be merrily starting their colonies.
Life has not gone, definitely. It merely hibernated and waited for the right moment. Now it has resurrected with a vengeance, thanks to the first rains of May. You couldn't pray for a more profound miracle than this! This is springtime in Asingan, by all means!
-Sonny Espejo
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NOTES by Vic Costes
mongo-a very common legume in the Philippines
Masicampo, Dupac & Calaoagan - well known parts of Asingan
lomboy-a kind of black berry
papel de hapon-very thin paper
inabel-woven
bayabas-guava
kaimito-star apple
saluyot, kalunay-popular Filipino veggies
dodon -locust
kuriat-cricket
ararawan-a kind of burrowing insect, smaller than the cricket
sinampay-clothes hung on the clothes line, usually made of wire
addendum
There are only 2 seasons in the Philippines: the rainy and the dry seasons.
Nov-April ( roughly ) comprises the dry season, the rest covers the rainy season. The hottest months ( at least in Asingan )are March and April and comes May, the rains start usually in the afternoon, to the relief of the townspeople.
May 1st is a unique day on Pangasinan, some people save the rain that comes down on this day. May 1st marks also the Pistay Dayat, (Feast of the Sea) and the whole sealine of Pangasinan is crowded with tourists who come to watch some fluvial activities: beauty queens parading on decorated boats, movie star guests and of course, family picnics...
In Asingan, in the '60s, there is a daily floral offering in church in honor of the Virgin Mary during the whole month of May..On the last Sunday of May, there is a procession of beauties commemorating Sta. Cruz de Mayo..There are Queens and Princesses plus their consorts.
But now a days do not be surprised if some of the beauties are not really women. Some Filipino cross dressers, when garbed to the hilt including layers of make up would really look like Hollywood movie stars!
