Adopting buro

By Glaiza Bernadeth Pinto

It was April 1997… I still remember that month as if it was only yesterday. We arrived in the town of Alcala from Mambusao, Roxas City in the Visayas.

It was summertime then but it seemed to be the beginning of the season of rains, when water from the heaven brings forth nourishment upon the earth, removing the thirst of the soil.  But my ten-year old heart remained dry; the rains failed to bring new life into my heart for I was a stranger in a strange, new land.

Our family — my mother, two brothers and myself — tried to accustom ourselves to this new place, to fulfill my father’s wish that we also learn to love the place that holds his roots.

My soldier father was posted here in part because of his Alcala background. And since he still has relatives in the town, he obligingly accepted the offer.

It  has been more than a decade since my family left  Mambusao, but we still observe the practices we have been used to there like arranged marriages, some superstitious beliefs  (pamahiin), using  po and opo, kissing the hands of elders (pagmamano), curfew hours, and going to church every Sunday.

I took it for granted that some of these are foreign to the people in Alcala but back in high school, these practices used to amuse my friends. “Ah uso pa pala ‘yan!” was one of the common remarks.

I too was amazed actually, because I simply thought that our ways were but normal.

But what really amazed me most was the local Alcala cuisine.

Locals eat rats found in farms (dagang bukid) after cooking them like adobong manok. People tell me that this dish is even more delicious than chicken, but I haven’t found the nerve yet to try it out.

Some non-poisonous frogs are also either fried or cooked adobo-style.  Snake, meanwhile, is cooked like litson or adobo. Also, I was quite shocked when one time I saw children digging the soil to get mole crickets, which they said they were going to eat as a viand.

But of all the rather exotic food in Alcala, I consider buro as the most unique.

The Alcala version of Buro is fish soaked in rice and spices for about a week and once the rice looks spoilt and the fish has turned very soft, then it is ready for a quick fry before serving.

And this one has become a family favorite. We not only eat it, we have also learned how to make it.

Learning to love buro was but one way of adapting to our new home. Our last 10 years here have proven to be among the happiest for our family.

Right from the beginning, my parents told me we must learn to socialize and respect other people’s practices rather than compare them with ours.

They also always reminded us to appreciate things that surround us, for with the new customs and traditions that we encounter everyday, we become more enlightened by the beauty and understanding of the difficulties found in variety.

(Readers may reach columnist at marifijara@gmail.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/roots/
For reactions to this column, click “Send MESSAGES, OPINIONS, COMMENTS” on default page.)

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments