The word ‘Hilot‘ via [http://www.tagalog-dictionary.com/cgi-bin/search.pl?s=hilot] in Filipino means massage or to give a massage. ‘Hilot‘ to some of us means healing or to heal. On Saturday, April 5,2008 after the dinner with ‘Ben’ and “Minh”, ‘Maw’ was doing most of the talking while ‘Ben’ played some easy, sounding arpeggios of sad music, most of which I do not recognize because I was but a baby during the old timers’ days. I, of course, whipped out my digital camera, took some pictures and videos of him playing on my Kimball, upright piano. A good time was had listening to someone else play for me.
Story one: Frauds
During one of the conversation, we recalled an incident whereby ‘Maw’ had sustained a very painful neck. This occurred after ‘Razor’ had called ‘Maw’ on the phone one evening about being very ill (or something I cannot clearly recall). And she suddenly sprinted down the stairs in another one of her emotional state of fear and shock. And this was all about nothing really close to an emergency. Afterwards in a sigh of some blessed relief and probably a few days later, she felt something was wrong with her neck.
Her neck was out of place and she couldn’t turn, let alone move with the slightest bit and without lots of sharp pains. She went to those stupid medical doctors and all these poison-mongers did was prescribe to her some pain relief, which could have been easily purchased over the counter at some local grocery or drug store.
But nothing from those people in their white smocks could relieve ‘Maw’. They could have referred her to a chiropractor but we didn’t know about these ‘healers’ and those medical doctors (for whatever dumb reasons) are not allowed to disclose this bit of information to those patients with a simple tune up elsewhere.
So ‘Maw’ suffered many days without much recourse. She felt as if the end of the world was upon her. We sought outside help and went along with the healing frauds held in the house of my nemesis — ‘Glogre’ and ‘Macaroni’, the youngest brother of ‘Paw’. The couple had this woman by the name of ‘Evilyn’ and her darker female companion at their residence, which was the house immediately after the one bought (and sold last year) in Gemini Ct.
Both these Filipino women were doing healings by touching the patients with all sorts of physical ailments in the guise of spiritual salvation. In a prior visit, I remember accompanying ‘Maw’ in one of the bedroom upstairs with the darker female perform some ‘hilot‘ on her back. The simple placing of the woman’s thumb coated in this oil didn’t do much to convince ‘Maw’ who knew the woman didn’t know where the pain was located.
In another related story, I remember driving my parental units to visit ‘Evilyn’ and her equally fraudulent husband up in Livermore, CA. The nemesis (‘Glogre’ and ‘Macaroni’) were there along with ‘Gignast’ who was wearing a pretty dress above her knees. ‘Gignat’ was but a child and I remember how she screamed in another room behind the garage when the ‘hilot’ was taking place. My instinct was to bang at the closed door and rush in to save my youngest paternal first cousins from these fools. But after a couple of steps, I decided not to interfere with their reality.
Anyway, this second visit for the ‘hilot‘ was weird than the first one. There sat ‘Maw’ in agonizing pain and in front of ‘Maw’ sat the darker female. This ‘healing’ was taking place in one of the living rooms of the homeowners –my nemesis who was looking onward from the kitchen area as were other darker Filipinos who were standing around looking for answers to their unheard prayers to a deaf ‘God’.
So the darker female made all sorts of nonsense about a bad spirit of some sort residing inside ‘Maw’ to the people around her. Then I remember her placing her hands on the hands of ‘Maw’. The woman started shaking slowly and then faster but only for a few seconds. She paused and said something about the bad stuff being too strong. Then she did the same thing — shaking and shivering.
But after this second attempt of driving away this alleged ‘evil’, no good result was witnessed by me as I sat quickly in front of ‘Maw’ and asked if she was fine. ‘Maw’ said and shook her head, ‘No’. I glared at the frauds, the nemesis and the stupid people that night. We paid our dues to and on behalf of the ‘Mother’ of Christ and left.
So the point is: I really dislike my nemesis for putting us through those scare tactics of a making us believe in a ‘Kapre‘ (a giant hairy being) residing in one of trees next to our house, putting my aunt-in-law ‘Conceiving’ into hundreds of dollars to fill the mind of a vengeful divorced woman the answers of downfalls on my paternal uncle, Verling and telling ‘Spill-Low’ and ‘Conceiving’ as well not to shower for two days. ‘Macaroni’ even told his eldest bother, my ‘Paw’, not to carry the coffin of his deceased father!
Story two: Healers
Healers do not seek profit for their selfless services. They do not make themselves widely know and advertise like religious frauds you see on television or attend during assemblies, masses, gatherings or congregations but keep to themselves among small circles of family and friends.
This is one true story because ‘Pod’ (my paternal first cousin) had broken his wrist or hand and his mother, my aunt-in-law, ‘Babel’, brought him to a Filipino lady, who put the broken bones back together again.
Another one of our miracle was when ‘Babel’ brought us to see this same woman. I remember we sat quietly in this slightly darkened living room while she picked up and played with her grandchild from inside the crib or playpen in front of us. There was a wall to our left with the rest of the rooms to our right.
There appears to be little or no statues or figurines of Christianity typically found in the houses of Filipinos, except for ‘Glogre’ and ‘Macaroni’ who have life-sized statues of Buddha, Saints, Mother and Christ cluttering up their ‘sacred space’ (for showing off no doubt)! There was, however, a small picture showing the head of Jesus looking upward but I cannot recall clearly. It was located above the playpen area.
So after the woman finished her activity with her grandchild, I thought out loud to myself what was going on and why she was doing this and how long will she take to help ‘Maw’. But I also thought that perhaps she was recharging her batteries prior to doing her healing session with ‘Maw’ on her painful neck.
I remember the soft spoken woman approach ‘Maw’ from behind as she sat on a chair. ‘Maw’ tried to point to the general painful area but the woman gently but what appears to be somewhat forcefully nudged her hand away; so she could continue ‘scanning’ if you will the affected area and make her call. I may recall some sort of deep breathing prior or during the ‘hilot’.
After very lightly placing her fingers upon ‘Maw’, she said there is an ‘ipit‘, which in Tagalog means ‘stuck’. What I witnessed was true and I remember clearly how ‘Maw’ did not flinch from the slightest bit of pain when the women cradled her neck upward with both hands and gently back down upon its ‘proper’ place. I do not recall hearing anything. But the result was astounding: ‘Maw’ was able to move her neck pain free!
We tried to pay our dues but once again, the woman (this true healer) did not and does not accept payment whatsoever. Our thanks will never be forgotten as I enter this sample of ‘God’s grace into this — my weblogs. In the case of the healing frauds, ‘Ben’ told of some neighbors going in into another home and inquired if they had any license and if they profited from their services. Ben said they were caught. But true healers are always a blessing and, well, I’ll leave the opinions and beliefs to the readers of this weblog.
Copyright © 2008 by Fluffy von der Flynn. All rights reserved.