At the mango farm
Mothers are our real first teachers and forever tutors. Before Google, there was Mama. “Mama, how many cups of water per cup of rice?” She had an answer for everything, and she was always right. Mama taught me to pray with my hands and eat with them too, as in the act of kamayan. She showed me how to wash the dishes the right way — by hand and with just enough sink power not to waste expensive water. Therapy in traditional Filipino families is unheard of; mama and I turned to each other in times of heartbreak, rejection, and family drama, preferably over merienda. When I think about food, I think about mama. Not only did she teach me how to cook my first dish, pinakbet (a Northern Philippine vegetable dish) — she also taught me that food is far more than fuel. It’s an expression of love.
At Mama’s childhood home in Pangasinan, that love has flourished into a thriving mango farm. My parents, now in their mid-50s and navigating life with pre-diabetes, pour the same care that raised us into our one-hectare farm. Health reasons is what my mom says motivated her to grow some of their food. Mama realized the benefits of simple, organic food later in life and introduced more plants to our family’s traditional diet. My parents, with the help of my uncle and grandparents, grow a variety of produce, including pechay (bok choy), alugbati (malabar spinach), gabi (taro), okra (lady’s fingers), labanos (raddish), siling labuyo (chili), luya (luya), kalamansi (local lemon), papaya, santol (cotton fruit), duhat (java plum), balimbing (star fruit) kaimito (star apple), kamias (Averrhoa bilimbi), kakaw (cacao), bayabas (bayabas), atis (sugar apple), guyabano (soursop), saging (banana) and, of course, mangga (mango). There’s something I can pick, wipe and eat when I crave sour or salty food. Mangoes, my favourite, are turned into ice cream or jam whenever mama’s insatiable sweet tooth gets triggered.
What began as a backyard garden has become a market that sustains us, feeds our farm animals, and provides fresh produce to neighbors at the palengke (wet market). “At least alam mong walang pesticide yung kinakain mo (At least you know that what you’re eating doesn’t have pesticide.),” Mama says with pride glistening in her eyes. It’s not a surprise to anyone who knows me and my family when I say pinakbet is my favourite Filipino dish and that I eat fruits everyday to this day.
I only need to look at what my family is doing to keep hoping for a brighter future for food.
As a student of sociology, I am amazed at how my parents use organic farming methods and embody the slow food movement in caring for our farm and everyone who lives in it. Instead of using fertilizers, they use carabao and cow manure and fruit peels to improve soil health. We have goats to keep our lawn manicured and mulberry trees papa planted to draw pollinators like birds and bees. Thanks to YouTube, my mom learned how to bag mangoes with newspaper and create fruit fly traps using plastic bottles. The farm recently welcomed chickens, adding fresh eggs and meat to our menu. And for everything else, there’s the farmer’s market nearby. We teach each other cooking skills and bond over food we prepared ourselves. My parents are getting older yet stronger; tending their farm has kept them busy and active.
Though I have learned how complex the food system is by reading Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food and reporting on food insecurity as a journalist, I only need to look at what my family is doing to keep hoping for a brighter future for food. We’ve minimized our reliance on Big Food corporations and the influence of westernization in our diets and health conditions while maximizing the joy of eating.
Yes was mama’s short and sweet answer when I asked her if she’s happy with the farm. “Nakakawala ng stress. Nakakatuwa kapag nakikita mo yung mga sisiw na tumatakbo, na may mga itlog na, na yung mangga puwede na pitasin. (It takes away my stress. It makes me happy when I see the chicks running, that there are eggs already, and mangoes are ripe for picking).”
Mama dreams of raising tilapia next. But for now, she finds joy in knowing she’s passed on another lesson: to eat and live healthy.
The slideshow features images and audio clips taken by Annicca Albano and Arlene Albano (mother) at their family’s mango farm in Pangasinan, Philippines.
