with permission granted by M. T. Bayan, i share this letter via email with honor, in honor of our ancestors, in honor of the sacred waters, healing waters ~ balik sa dagat ~ building dream bridges with rainbows across the oceans
–——— Forwarded message ———-
Date: Sunday, August 25, 2013
Hi ‘Balik sa Dagat bangka journey’
Great to hear from you and great to connect with you right now.
I have read moments of your journey on your blog, it has been enjoyable to read your experiences and learnings. Thank you for sharing your insights, adventures, growth and your vision to unfold oneself.
It has come to mind the last year that I have an urge to know more about the filipino indigenous culture as my sense of the filipino culture in general is very limited. I was born in Australia and took on the ‘australian way’ and so my ability to understand tagalog and let alone speak tagalog is very limited.
The question about ‘getting to know my roots’ continues to come up more and more this year and so I have decided to go to the philippines next year to do just that. The last time I was in the philippines was 7 years ago and the experience was very much a ‘westernised’ view, resorts, clubs, shopping etc.
And now I feel that I am open to explore the native and indigenous way of living… For most of my life I have not had much interest, until recently.
When I expressed my desire to explore the philippines my dad mentioned your name earlier this year. Looking at your journey and your involvement it is inspiring to see how you have immersed yourself in the culture and community through your bangka journey, one that I am sure has been fulfilling for yourself.
What has lead me to this point right now is that I have stepped into the field of lomi lomi massage (hawaiian massage) in the last 3 years and it has been an area of exploration and connection in getting to know myself and all. I know there is more that I can open up to and I am now ready to explore more. This is why I am glad to have connected with you as you have carved a path for me to follow in. And I would love to hear more from you and any advice and connections that you have made along your way.
I have definite plans of being in the philippines … and these plans are open as to how long I will be there whether it is 1 or 4 months. During this time I am hoping to also meet with my cousins (which are also your cousin) from America who currently live in California and one of them in Oakland to be exact.
My plans are quite open next year that I may even find my way to America and if so would love to meet up with you.
I see that you are in the midst of your journey to quinault, many blessings on your journey. May it be abundant, full of joy and happiness.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Love,
M. Tes Bayan
xx
~~~~~~~
Coming full circle: a surprise message from down under. i was savoring the delight and joy in my heart of receiving this wonderful email especially from family down under. Thankful for M.T.Bayan, her mom and dad’s connections. It is my honor to have persevered just like how our ancestors have to keep our traditions to pass on to future generations. This is a glorious feeling for this auntie! Daghang mabuhay dancing with happy feet here! Our ‘world’ bangka may not be fully complete at this time, little to no funds in the bank but the roots are deeply connected to mother earth and her children, relations worldwide. As my elder/friend shl vendiola shared: “roots culture is so important to connect with…happy that you are finding your way…traditions = survival
