I can recall thinking that the day would be mediocre. I was lagging that morning; two cups of coffee simply did not cut it. I was in a bad mood despite being able to see the beautiful countryside during our van ride to our destination. The road, like many others we had traveled, was mostly dirt; every dip in in the road made me hold on to the seat in front of me so that I would not crush the person sitting next to me. My back was starting to ache from all the bouncing, which brought back memories of a terrible head on-collision I was in when I was 20 years old. I thought about my body before the accident and how I could endure the most uncomfortable arrangements for long periods of time, but now I had become a complainer. I imagined all the accidents that happen to locals while they rode in packed Jeepneys, vans, and motorbikes and even when they walk on the sides of the road day or night. This napped me out of feeling sorry for myself. Eventually we arrived at our destination.
We were able to meet with an organization that promotes peace in a particular Tri community; Moros, Christians and Indigenous people. The person that provided an overview of their organization’s history and the approaches they use to create peace was amazing and truly inspiring. This was an awesome example of rural community’s ability to organize at the grassroots level and empower community members. We were fortunate enough to spend several hours in this community understanding what makes this peace zone special. Towards the end of the day I asked about trauma healing in regards to the discussion we were having specifically on the topic of Rido. For those who are unfamiliar of this phenomenon, they are essentially clan conflicts, which tend to be cyclical and result in various forms of retaliation including murder. The person’s response was shocking and emotional. Clearly this person had suffered vicarious trauma from working with families trying to resolve clan conflicts. I became teary eyed when I saw this person’s sadness, and the sense of futility when they shared personal accounts of progress made with families, only to have the process of healing crushed by the need for retribution. How does one break this cycle of violence? It looks so complicated and hopeless from an outsider’s perspective. Such challenging work. It is amazing to see community members continuing to try and resolve these incredibly complex issues.