What Makes Us “Pinoy”?

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In reading more of Gel blogs, I came across this article “What Makes Us Pinoy? – in reading it, I found myself laughing and smiling all the way thru, as it brought back many memories of family gatherings when I was just a child growing up in California. Even though we were living in the US, we still had the value of “family” and my parents friends were “Tita” or “Tito” and their children were “cousins”!! Now, I do have a large family (from both sides)  that has expanded thru the years!

I miss those days and I realized that as we get older we either move away to other places where there is no family around and make new friends. But, you still hope to make similar connections that you had when you were growing up and take them with you wherever you live.

As family grows, we live father apart and we try to re-connect either via phone, emails, texting, or FB (Facebook).  I have re-connected with many of my family members thru FB and some that I have never met! It’s exciting to be re-connected with families and reminisce of memories growing up!

I’ve extracted some of Gel’s article and you can read all the comments that were inputted and she encourages you to add your own so that we can all remember Thanks to Gel for letting me share this with you all and hope that you leave her (or me) some comments of times past! (Picture courtesy of Gel Santos Relos)

By Gel Santos Relos

What makes us “Filipino”?  What is it about how we look, or speak or move, or about our mannerisms that make us different from other people? Read on and be surprised to find your self or someone you know in the scenarios illustrated below! Be amused by the comments of our kababayans as well, and then share your own recollections and insights by posting your comments at the footnote of this article. Feel free to come back anytime when you remember something that you want to share! Ano yung mga kilos at gawi ng isang tao na kapag nakita mo, masasabi mo sa sarili mo na, “Pinoy yun!”?

I remember the popular award-winning Philippine arts and culture  television show that I co-hosted with APO Jim Paredes for  ABS-CBN in the 90s entitled “Tatak Pilipino”— one of the most popular segments in the show was our collection of features, bumpers and trivias of the things that make us “Pinoy na Pinoy”. I found a similar compilation in a book given to me as a present by my cousin when we visited the Philippines. The title of the book is “You Know You’re Filipino If…A Pinoy Primer” beautifully selected and edited by Neni Sta. Romana -Cruz, with funny illustration by Dindo Llana for Tahanan Books.

I wish to share a few of such recollections here just to keep us thinking, remembering, and laughing about our collective re-discovery of those special characteristics, behavior, and everything else that make us uniquely Pinoy!  We, Filipinos, who are now based in the United States, Canada, Europe, or anywhere else in the world may have let go of some of these but when you read on, you will surely remember your past with amusement, hopefully laughing out loud! Hahahaha! Please feel free to share your own recollection about “What Makes Us Pinoy”—the lighter side !  This is going to be fun!

You know you are “Pinoy” if you have “tabo” in your bathroom (hahaha! kahit sa hotel, naghahanap tayo niyan!). You decorate your living room wall with your family’s framed diplomas, plaques, pictures (family pride!). Your dining room has the picture or framed art of “The Last Supper” as well as the giant wooden kutsara at tinidor from Baguio (oh yes, kahit dito sa America, nakikita ko pa rin ito!).

You know you are Filipino if your middle name is your mother’s surname! (dito sa US, yung second name ang middle name!). Almost all the baby boomers have “Maria” as their first name plus the name they go by, while the men are baptized with either “Jose” or “Jesus”, or for both, sunod sa kalendaryo! You have uncles, aunts, lolos, lolas named “Boy”, “Baby”, “Girlie”…(kahit senior citizens na sila!). You call the parents of your friends and your own parents’ friends “Tito” or “Tita”(pati sa parents ng girlfriend o boyfriend) .

You are truly “Pinoy” if you eat with your hands while propping up you knee and having one foot is on the chair or bench where you are seated (lalo na kung sa dahon ng saging kumakain, o naghihimay ng isda o alimango!) , or if you eat  your  meal with large spoon with a fork and  hardly uses knife! (akala tuloy ng ibang lahi, para tayong gutom na gutom o parang “pig” kumain) ; when you feel compelled to greet anyone who sees you eating and offer to share your food– “Kain na” (kahit pang -isa lang yung pagkain mo)!; if you think a meal is not a meal–“bitin“—if there is no rice! (bagay ba naman ang tinapay sa kare kare o sa paksiw?–hello!!!)…..Read More!