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Grassroots Art Stories
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Selected Visual Arts
ABOUT THE magazine
The Grassroots Art Stories is a collection of selected narratives and stories written and painted by young tri-people from Iligan, North Cotabato, and Maguindanao that reveals a peculiar and different set of stories of predicaments and struggles, but they all shared common aspirations and convictions to build JustPeace, solidarity, and dialogues among TriPeople communities in Mindanao
I am Oplay Hildalgo Sisayan, 39, of Higaonon tribe. I was born and raised in Barangay Kalilangan, Iligan City a place where birds are free to fly and cattles and buffalos have the luxury to roam around. I have always been accustomed to a simple life, being a hardcore farmer myself Despite living in a place situated in the heaps of the mountains, we were not really isolated from the happenings in the urban scene
My daily routine as a farmer would not bother my sanity ---- from planting to harvesting, and I would do it time and again as it is really the core of my daily life as a farmer. The seeds that I would accumulate from harvesting would be the ones I’d use for another planting season The plants that I farm were mostly legumes and root crops: red beans, potato and cassava These crops do not necessarily need fertilizer so I’d just let them as they are until they are ready to be gathered for harvest. Once harvesting is done, especially when it is plenty, I would deliver them to the nearby city to sell for a profit I also sell them around the barrio: to my neighbors, fellow farmers or friends.
Life was great until a conflict ravaged my place It was 2019 and before the encounter between the armed forces and the NPA we were living in Midsamid, Upper Kalilangan We were forcedly evacuated to a school near a police camp (BPAT) and a barangay office We were told that If we want a peaceful life then it is better for us to stay around the place (BPAT). We did stay.
