It was a sunny day on April 15, 1969 when I reported to the Community Development Centre (CDC) at College, Laguna for the 6-month pre-service training. The course was a pre-requisite for eventual appointment as Barrio Development Worker (BDW) with the Presidential Arm on Community Development (PACD).
The training was designed to prepare us to the nitty-gritty of working in the villages. In addition to the in-campus courses, we had four off-campus training modules, namely, 2-week course on rice culture, 1–week barrio exposure, 2-week field laboratory and 6-week supervised field practice
I was sent to Camaysa, Tayabas, Quezon for my barrio exposure and field laboratory. My host barrio officials were accommodating and cooperative. I was accorded the typical Filipino hospitality by the village folks. There were few diversions in the barrio. People go to the Poblacion (town proper) to see movies.
Adults, both men and women, had drinking sessions after working hours, usually late in the afternoon and in the evening. The main drink was lambanog, a kind of rum locally distilled from palm wine.
My first encounter with lambanog was an education on local customs and idiosyncrasies. I was offered a small glass of the clear liquor and when I declined somebody told me just to taste it and return the glass. It was considered impolite to decline forthwith.
I learned to drink lambanog and drank the local liquor at night in my boarding room.
It was during my short stay in Camaysa that I finally rid myself of my addiction to cigarettes. Bouts of sore throats strengthened my resolve to stop smoking. The absence of buddies of drinkers and smokers prevented me from sliding back as what happened in the past.
