It was mid-afternoon in one of the bigger huts owned by an old farmer couple. The space was big enough that all of my friends were able to fit inside, but we were still sitting skin to sweaty skin. The smell of earth, cow manure, and fried hair after an hour of field work wafted in the cramped shelter.
Sa pagpakaon nako ninyo, nahimo ba kong sundalo? Diba mag-uuma gihapon ko? Akong trabaho ang mag-uma ug magpakaonAnd that’s exactly what farmers and farm workers do every time they host students like me during our immersions. They make it a mission to not only feed us, but feed us well, often taking out the canned goods they meant to save for a good day.
Unless the world has completely flipped upside down, the mantra only means to encourage activists to educate fellow students on national issues , come up with the best avenue to express dissent , and then amplify grievances through protests and petitions .