"Sarakat" Festival Town Fiesta – Sta. Praxedes, Cagayan Valley the Green Garden of the North

By: Fredolin Pagdilao Aguinaldo – Doha, State of Qatar

"Rimat" Ti Sta. Praxedes beauties at Portabaga Falls & Resorts

In the Philippines, Flores de Mayo – held nationwide during the month of May. Literally meaning the “flower of May”, the town “fiesta” or feast is a philippine tradition for centuries to commemorate the search for the Holy Cross by Reyna Elena and son, Emperor Constantine.

In this particular episode - I would like to take you back on how “fiesta” is being celebrated during my childhood days and give insight about the evolution of our town including those of modern town “fiesta” celebrations nowadays.

The town of Sta. Praxedes is a fifth class municipality in the province of Cagayan - is the smallest amongst the town and because of geographic way of life - town folks are classified into two (2) groups: the lowlander's who do farming, tending domestic animals, fishing, sleeping mat weaving commonly known as “banig” or “ikamen” making in “Ilocano” dialect using indigenous “sarakat” groove leaves fiber and “sinamay” weaving using indigenous “pinya” or banana-like stalk fiber while high-Lander commonly known as “Yapayao” tend their “kaingin” to plant high-altitude rice and vegetables, fishing, collect wild edible ferns and various fruits including that of red-berry fruits  and do wild animal hunting that freely roaming the woods and becomes their major sources of income in general.

The town also lacks high school education facilities - that higher educational pursuit is an obstacle to the younger generation of our town in those days. One has to endure living alone to seek higher education in some adjoining town or cities – the like of the municipality of Claveria and as far as Laoag city in the Ilocos the region where private education is being offered by catholic congregations and private institutions to choose from.

Population too is being compromised because of the lack of utilities and facilities - the like of electricity where everyone has to be home at 6:00PM – dark, cold and guessed what’s next?

Life in the province is not that easy at all – younger generations help parents till their land from dawn to dusk apart from those household chores after school or week-ends for those high school students who use to travel back-home from school via “lakay” Tante’s old Willy’s jeep.

A gown made of "Sarakat" groove fiber

But apart from this, the town becomes alive as the much-awaited town “fiesta” month arrives. This is where town hall personnel and all other inter-faith groups draw-out plans to celebrate Saint Isidore and his wife St. Maria Torribia with procession or “salubong”.

San Isidro de Labrador is the patron Saint of Sta. Praxedes.

To jump-start the town “fiesta” celebration, final basketball game will be friendly-fought at the Centro Uno’s open basketball court – usually between Centro Uno and Centro Dos, a rivalry between two teams as far as I can remember.

Since the “fiesta” is being celebrated for Saints, by sundown, religious followers in all walks of life - in all other directions, if not all, gathered in a town church wherein the town priest says mass. After the mass, the procession will start in two groups. One of which comprises the young image of the child Jesus Christ and the other group will bear the image of the Virgin Mary among others Saints into one flower-adorned carriages or “karrosa” that would have different theme and could tell a story by itself.

During the procession, the elderly women of the congregation - the choir or the “kantura” lead the singing of the hymn that everyone participates – that one could feel the serenity of the occasion yet an enjoyable experience to everyone especially to those first-timer participants coming from the city as well as Balik-bayan and their families all over the world.

The procession will converge to one purposely-built structure were in two young kids, a boy, and a girl; will be hoisted via a well-decorated safety-cage adorn with flower petals atop the structure simulating the “salubong” between Jesus Christ and his mother - the Virgin Mary.

Sta. Praxedes Municipal Hall

At nightfall, everyone is destined to go to the Coleman lit stage or “entablado” at the corner-end of the old municipal hall where a “zarzuela” or “komedya” is being performed by our very own stage actors of Sta. Praxedes. I can still remember the skills of “Ka Ibong” from Centro Uno as one good narrator and “Ka Inyong” of Centro Dos as one good actor of them all. None of those modern-day lighting effects and audio background system is being used but to the accompaniment of the then Castillo's band from Capacuan gives a twist to where the audience can still be enjoying the show as the same.

Street Dance Competition in-front of Sta. Praxedes Public Market

Now a day, I can see a lot of difference in my home town - the operational activities of the science-type high school building in Sta. Praxedes gives hope to those budding Engineers, sea-going sailors and scientist of the town as those students from other municipalities as a whole.

Utilities too – the like of Cagelco electric cooperative brings night-life to abash and gives hope to that small scale fish-farm folks as to that small-scale hog grower of the town by providing electricity to where their products will be temporarily frozen for longer storage. 

  

The high-end telecommunication system of some of the biggest and well-respected companies in the Philippines – the like of SMART and Globe telecommunication companies have their own repeater tower stations in Sta. Praxedes that gives a lot of revenues trough taxable use of space, right of way, and airwaves.

Live entertainment medium from Manila too is not left behind via the Municipal Halls own analog microwave Teevee (TV) receivers and distribution network that caters to the need of the local audience from Sta. Praxedes – gives the town another source of revenue.

As evident - the well-refurbished ground topography and the brightly painted municipal town hall building gives the impression that this once sleepy farming town gives its fair share in the overall development of Region II or Cagayan Valley in particular.

The town’s covered multi-purpose gymnasium compares to those of well-developed city structures give impetus to all other activities at any given time or weather. It is where the post-basketball game that highlights every “fiesta” was being held and won by Centro Uno with the expense of an unknown basketball team from Cadungdongan this year.

The enhancement of the town’s Health Center, the town’s security forces and the newly commissioned a potable water system and networks will be contributed to the well-being of the town.

The operations of Sta. Praxedes Multi-Purpose Cooperative and the newly built public market bring back commerce activities in particular that will greatly help in the marketing of farm products locally.

The renowned Portabaga Falls that caters various activities and host of various international tourist clientele from all over the world as for local tourist gives the impression that Sta. Praxedes is indeed into its highest peak and the residence continually reaps the benefits of these developments.

The highlight of the town “fiesta” is the adaptation of Internationally recognized beauty pageant - the like of Miss World and Miss Universe, is the crowning of the town’s most bachelor and bachelorette - apart showcasing the production of “Sarakat” products made of “Sarakat” leaves grown locally to produce hats, mats, bags in an agro-industrial trade fair with street dancing and other events that entail the participation of visitors and local residents alike.

With the continued leadership of Hon. Esterlina Ancheta Aguinaldo – Mayor, the town continues development and prosperity will be realized and the Gems of Sta. Praxedes will be enhanced to its highest potentials but environmentally protected as well in order to attract more visitors to flocking Sta. Praxedes, the Green Garden of the North.

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