Spending Christmas with the farmers in Langin

I gave my children and grandchildren a choice between spending Christmas in the U.S. or celebrating the birth of Jesus in the far-flung mountain village in Langin, Ronda, Cebu.

- Atty. Josephus B. Jimenez

Ronda is 81 kilometers southwest of Cebu City and Langin is 17 kilometers into the hinterlands somewhere in the periphery of Argao, Dumanjug, and Alcantara. They all voted to enjoy Christmas with the farmers in Langin.

Langin is a small village with less than 2,000 people with houses far from each other. It’s a farming community with fertile soil and lush vegetation, with mountains preserved by the natives and fearlessly defended from attempts by mining explorers. The people live by growing corn, coconuts, and vegetables and tending carabaos, cows, goats and growing pigs and chickens. Life is simple and the folks are still unaffected by the secularization and commercialization of Christmas.

Most significant of all, Langin is the village where I grew up in the ‘50’s and ‘60’s as a barefoot goatherd who climbed coconuts trees and rode on the back of carabaos while carrying water from the spring in bamboo tubes.