Farming

Marla and Jun Rances, friends I inherited from a friend, have been reeling in domestic tourists to our part of the woods, their latest caper of which totaled 15, including themselves. They are active in a Catholic fellowship and members of their group often ask to be invited to Sorsogon, which probably has been making …

Of the many farmhands that ARGO Farms has hired since 2013, Tia has proven to be one of the most reliable and hardworking and she also happens to be the brightest. I’m proud to say this because she is the only woman on the farm, besides myself. If she had more education, I’d bet she’d …

You can feel it’s morning already even when the skies are still completely dark by the increasing frequency of sounds and the quality of silence in between: a little lighter, less compact. A cold breeze blows in from our garden, signaling the Christmas season which always begins with the ‘ber’ months. From the bedroom the …

Another calf was born to ARGO Farms on September 15 via Sutil, who is celebrating her first time as a mother. Sutil happens to be the eldest of Gurangan, our veteran carabao. The calf born to Sutil was named Cholo. So Cholo is Gurangan’s grandcalf. Gurangan has been in our farm for ages. She was …

My mother, Cha Sonia (Except otherwise explained, the characters in the story are farmhands in my grandparents’ Argo Farms in Bgy. San Isidro, Bacon, Sorsogon.) Last Thursday there was an incident at the farm which was triggered by Peter’s wife dropping by in the late afternoon. I asked Tia if she was a frequent visitor …

Peter enjoying the fact that his ride is better than mine It never fails to amaze me that people who have experienced hardship all their lives have the best sense of humor. Peter, for instance. A few years ago, when we took over the management of ARGO Farms after the death of my aunt we’ve …

Lucky is now a legitimate member of the ARGO Farms work force Lucky had an auspicious birth – hence, Lucky. But I’ve already written about it. Truth be told, I’m not sure who’s luckier, Lucky the carabao or ARGO Farms. Lucky was born in 2014. Of the many births in our farm after Tita Carina’s …

(Except otherwise explained, the characters in the story are farmhands in my grandparents’ Argo Farms in Bgy. San Isidro, Bacon, Sorsogon.) Last Thursday there was an incident at the farm which was triggered by Peter’s wife dropping by in the late afternoon. I asked Tia if she was a frequent visitor and she told me …

Four years ago when we started at ARGO Farms, there were only five carabaos. One is called Gurangan, the most senior caraballa (female carabao), who calves almost every year; the other caraballa had her nostrils ripped (because of irresponsible management) and was now unable to wear a ring where a rope could be inserted; one …

The expected but untimely calving of Pas-ing the carabao blindsided us at ARGO Farms. We were on our second week of coconut harvest having encountered a two-week delay due to successive deaths in the family of our parakanggot. When we finally commenced, Owet, our parakanggot, had a minor accident when a coconut fell on his …