Kinablangan Fiesta | Subtle Cancellation

This past weekend was rough for most residents of Baganga in Davao Oriental, following the recent earthquake that shook the town of Manay (pronounced as Man-Ay) with a 7.6 magnitude. Throughout these past few days, morale has been low, and the silence screams in Kinablangan, which had been planning to celebrate 122 years of its founding with scheduled events and activities. There have been no scheduled basketball or volleyball games, and those who still have a home to go to are mostly indoors. There have been several aftershocks since Friday, and they vary, with the strongest one the same day the earthquake happened, that one during nighttime with a magnitude of 6.5, taking more than a minute.

By the time Monday rolled in, there had been some signs of life, with most people now trying to get on with their daily lives. Personally, it’s not the same since that Friday happened. It’s really tough, and the majority of the people in Kinablangan were shaken by this tragedy. Though there’s no human casualty, the mental health anxiety is there, and for those who lean too much in their beliefs, that’s not going to calm some nerves.

Walking around town, I decided to check on the surroundings of the village to “get a feel” for the situation. I haven’t had this usual walk for the past few days, even prior to the quake happening. When I reached the other side of Kinablangan, I saw that they were taking down the fiesta ribbons, and I also got word that the event had been canceled. But they never really had an official announcement. But the word of mouth really travels faster than a dial-up link to the internet.

But the ones who set up their tents and tables to sell things from clothes to home improvement products will continue to be present up to October 18th. It’s a matter of time until everyone warms up again and tries to keep the fiesta event a small-scale celebration, minus the activities and games.

The tarpaulin where the schedule of activities has been set will no longer be followed, and word came out that the expected prizes for the competition and games will now be diverted as a donation drive for those who lost their homes. It doesn’t make the event more celebratory if the town council is still encouraging despite these challenges that have given the village something to look forward to.

At the end of the day, when things are down, the town council should be encouraging and optimistic about the current situation, despite the fiesta is no longer going to be as celebratory as it was indeed to be. It would have been great if they had been accepting and enthusiastic, which would have inspired the village. But to be blunt, when you have a limited and narrow perspective about things, there is no future to improve on, even if you think positively with that tiny view of the situation.