Direct Encounter With An Aeta

July 31, 2012


For  my major class, Philippine Arts 198 (Introduction to Cultural Heritage), my professor always told us that there will come a time that we will be given a chance to speak to a minority. Fortunately, an Aeta studies in our school also (University of the Philippines Manila).


A 2nd year BS Behavioral Sciences student, Norman (I wasn't able to get his last name.), gave us a glimpse to his life as an Aeta. At first, I thought it would be a simple storytelling but, honestly, I learned a lot from him and was impressed by his dedication in life.


Norman belongs to an Aeta community in Pampanga. When he was a kid, he was brought to an orphanage by his parents. Norman didn't find anything negative about this because he was able to communicate with different types of people and boosted his confidence. After high school, he had to stop and work as a helper in Pasay City. He also worked as a call center agent (no wonder he really spoke English fluently. I was shocked.) and after years of working experience, Norman's father asked if he wanted to go back to college and he eagerly said yes and is now an Iskolar ng Bayan. We asked about his age, and he said "Age doesn't matter. 'Wag na natin pag-usapan 'yan."


Since Norman didn't want a one-way communication, me and my classmates were able to ask him questions (personal, about his community, their practices, and the like). The first time I saw Norman, I was bothered by his tattoo on the arm. It looked like a tribal symbol, so I asked him if it was a symbol, indeed. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Haha! It only symbolized his pride of being a katutubo. The more important tradition of the Aetas was the "pagkikikil ng ngipin" or the sharpening of teeth. He said the sharper an Aeta's teeth was, the more attractive they find themselves.


Minorities here in the Philippines always end up becoming the object of the subject. People study their culture, then after that, left behind. Meaning, pinag-aaralan natin sila para lang sa sarili nating ikabubuti. Makakakuha tayo ng matataas na grado, ggraduate with flying colors, makakapasok sa magagandang opisina, tapos ung mga katutubo, wala na. Hindi na natin babalikan para magpasalamat. Yes, Aetas are given the recognition, but how about importance?


Hunting

Aetas are great hunters. That's a fact. What we do not know is how they do it. Norman said there's this act of mimicry. They imitate the sounds of birds to be able to catch them. "Kung hindi ka marunong gumaya ng tunog ng mga huni nila, eh patay tayo diyan. Wala ka talagang mahuhuli." He even gave us a sample of the mimic styles he do! I was so amazed. Before hunting, Aetas believe that it is important to give an alay or offering to the spirit guardians. They also believe in the saying na kailangan mo mag-tabi-tabi po para hindi makaabala sa mga nagbabantay ng kalikasan. After being able to catch wild animals, they have a specific way of cooking them. They use less condiments except for onions and pepper. Most of the time, they only grill or ihaw. If there are no wild animals to catch and cook, they eat vegetables.