ALWAYS exuding calmness, youth and composure, one could only guess the stories, experiences and hardships behind every fleeting smile from Julita Aberin. At 73, Juling, as she is called by friends and relatives, claims to have already seen and lived through everything farm life has to offer.
She was born to a family of low-economic standing in Peñaranda, Nueva Ecija. She was literally birthed at a barn, where her nativity was witnessed only by his father, a midwife and the family’s livestock.
“Ganoon na ’yung nakamulatan ko, sa bukid. Mula pinanganak ako, sa bukid ako, hindi ko na ’yun maiaalis sa akin,” she said.
Since she was a little girl, Juling would walk around 3 to 4 kilometers from their home at the town proper to the farmlands in Barrio Sinesajan, where her family was working. She would walk with her siblings, entertaining themselves with games and practical jokes to distract them from the long walk.
She said that a normal bonding day for her family was every working day at the farm.
“Sa palagay ko nga, doon kami mas napamahal eh, kasi sabay-sabay kaming naghirap sa bukid. Wala akong sama ng loob, kasi ipinanganak kaming ganun, kailangan talaga namin magtrabaho para umahon,” she said.
Out of the seven siblings, only two of the Aberin children finished college. Unfortunately, Juling was among those who had to make the sacrifice. She only finished grade school at the Peñaranda Central School, and has since never thought of enrolling again.
Back then, she said, the mentality of people in the provinces was to immediately help their parents with work, providing additional manpower at the farm. She would feed and milk the cows, gather the chicken eggs, and even help to plow the land.
When she was 16 years old, one of her aunts offered her a caretaking job in Metro Manila, an opportunity she wholeheartedly took at once.
“Ayun na kasi ’yung pagkakataon kong makaluwas, para makasunod sa mga kapatid kong nag-aaral. Noon din kasi, parang sabik na akong makakita ng ibang lugar naman,” she said with a smile.
It was her first time to be away from her family. She said that the first three weeks of homesickness were the worst, but that consequently, her longing to be with her family gradually went away as her sisters who were in college visited her often.
After four years in Manila, Juling decided to go back to her hometown, as she got bored with her job as caretaker and missed farm life.
“Noong bumalik ako sa amin, nalaman kong ipinangalan na pala sa amin ’yung lupa. Nagulat ako na sa pamilya na namin siya, kaya gumaan na ’yung mga trabaho,” she said.
Their family made more than enough financially and they quickly rose from poverty.
She was married to her husband Fernando in 1962, and gave birth to her eldest the year after. They moved to Metro Manila months later, renting a house near the place she previously worked in. From that point on, she made sure that none of her children ever had to endure the hardships she had. A decision she regrets until now.
“Lumaki kasi sa layaw ’yung mga anak ko, eh. Lahat ng gusto, nasunod; hindi tuloy nasanay kahit sa konting hirap…mula nung napasa-amin ’yung bukirin, umangat na kami, kaya hindi na kami mismo ’yung lumulublob sa putikan,” she said, looking far out the window, as if once again remembering her childhood.
Their union produced seven children. Her husband passed away and the widowed Juling now has 23 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.
None of them has ever dropped a sweat working in the farm.
She said that all of her seven children are now living full lives with spouses and financial stability in Metro Manila. From time to time, she visits one of her children to stay for a couple of weeks when she misses them.
Juling, however, can never turn her back away from farm life.
When her youngest son got married, they decided to move back to their farmland after 32 years. She and her husband continued to work as if age was on their side, except fate had other plans when Fernando was bit by a poisonous snake in the field and fell right there and then.
“Nayamot ako sa sarili ko. Bakit ba kami bumalik? Pero nung aalis na sana uli ako, naisip kong lahat ng alaala ng buong pamilya ko, nasa bukid na ’yon, kaya hindi ko siya maiwan,” she gleefully said.
Juling now manages the farm and still finds time to get her hands dirty with manual work whenever she can. She now arranges every family reunion to be held at the farm where they all can cherish and be inspired by her experiences and memories that drove them from rags to riches.
“Ito na kasi ’yung bumuo sa pagkatao ko, eh. Kung baga dumating ako sa mundo dito sa bukirin, kaya gusto ko sana kung aalis ako, dito rin,” Juling said. Christian Ver A. Marcelo / Special to the BusinessMirror