The art of going native

With the news that the country’s economy is improving  that the horizon is brightening for most Filipinos  I shall delve into the culture and art of “going native.”  We laymen, in our own modest way, can sustain the momentum and even help the economy grow by patronizing our own native products.

With June fast approaching, young women who will soon be brides can use jusi or piña fabric  for their wedding  gowns. The bridal entourage can be clothed quite elegantly by our local designers who need not buy imported apparel. Incidentally, UK Ambassador Stephen Lillie is almost  always in barong tagalog.

Matrons belonging to elite organizations can hold their annual fashion shows with local designers using only indigenous materials and textiles, promoting friendly competition, employing  beaders, weavers and thus helping the economy. Gowns created can be auctioned off to the highest bidder! These fundraisers can even contribute more to their projects or causes they are espousing.

In this regard, Tesoro’s and its branches offer native clothing materials or ready-made attire; Dita Sandico Ong  creates very stylish and innovative wraps and attire made from banana tree fiber, distinctly Filipino.  Marikina makes fashionable leather  shoes and bags for women, men and children.

I have often heard foreigners say that Filipino women generally over-dress for any occasion.  See this for yourself at cocktail parties, even at CCP!

It  might be relevant to quote the famed French couturier-designer Chanel who once said: “Jewelry is not meant to make us look rich; it’s meant to adorn. ”  The wise designer also said: “Simplicity is the keynote to all true elegance.”

Likewise, kitchens should be stacked with native ingredients and seasonings such as Mama Sita’s.  At this point, allow me to allude to the nationalistic and patriotic Maria Y. Orosa who has a street named in her honor for the immensely valuable lessons she taught housewives and for more than 700 recipes she kitchen-tested herself.   

Rice bran and corn barn were the main ingredients she used in making biscuits.  The protein-laden powdered soybean was turned into “magic food” which, among other of her inventions sustained prisoners of war, guerrilla fighters, American internees at the UST and hundreds of Manila residents during the Japanese Occupation.

Maria utilized native fruits in wine-making, such as duhat wine; made jellies from guava, soy sauce from soy bean.  Cassava flour and powdered green banana replaced imported wheat flour.

A chemist and food nutritionist, she pioneered in the preparation of calamansi concentrate, agar (gelatin) from seaweeds to equal or excel its foreign counterpart.

Maria, ever the innovator, experimented in canning, jam-making and utilized even its by-products like nata de pi_a and nata de coco.  She discovered vinegar-making from fermented coconut water.  And concocted so many other countless recipes the Filipino now enjoys.

She invented the Palayok Oven (earthen pot oven), still widely used nowadays even by bibingka (rice cake) kiosks. I cannot help but wonder, what else Maria could have founded and invented.

Sadly, Maria died from friendly fire, having refused to evacuate to the province despite her family’s insistence.

Cooking is indeed an art as it involves creativity and innovation.  In our own kitchen balayan fish sauce  is a substitute for anchovies,  kangkong for spinach,  caldereta seasoning for Mexican flavors, etc.

We have so many young talented Filipinos who may certainly be inspired and forge ahead in using our own native materials like Kenneth Cobonpue, furniture designer from Cebu, renowned worldwide.  The Go-Negosyo concept of Joey Concepcion of starting off small entrepreneurs can be an incentive  to our young generation.

Hopefully, by minimizing our use of imported products in our closets, even in our kitchen; we can in our dedicated manner, help sustain the impetus of our thriving economy.

Joint ballet concert tonite

Ballet Manila featuring Kirov ballerina Lisa Macuja-Elizalde and the Korean Dance Ensemble  starring Bolshoi ballerina Choi So Bin will perform jointly tonight, 7:30 pm, at Star Theater.  Don’t miss it!