01/04/2026
FEATURES: There’s a hearty harvest season held in the smallest of fields, one we did not make with synthetic supplements and massive machines, but with sleepless nights and tireless reminders.
It’s a plot of land that—although vulnerable to the flushing of floods and the draining of summers—has sustained itself time and time again—a feat only achieved through the tight bonds among ourselves, holding together the beauty within the fields.
But we didn’t start as experts; even now, we are far from it.
It was all our first time in our respective positions. Even so, that’s what made the strings of fate tighter. It was what made it easier to understand each other.
And now, after growing from our small beginnings, we reap the grains that our blood, sweat, and tears have nurtured. We know our journey wasn’t perfect. Still, we want to impart the things that let us stay strong and how encounters in our community helped us, in hopes that you, too, may have your own harvest season.
𝗖𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
One such thing was to stick together, bunched up like the grains on a rice stalk. It was needed when all of us were flooded with schoolwork and were in droughts of inspiration. We were there to help each other with missing tasks, and we worked together to share ideas and give input on articles.
𝗧𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 ‘𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗧𝗼𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗼𝘄
Then, schedules became misaligned seasons, communication became sparse rains, and academics became another mouth to feed. As such, we had to stay in the SPJ lab until the sun’s rays no longer shone on paddy fields. We even slept—although barely—in each other’s houses. But that’s what tending to a field is, working even until the latest hours.
𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀
However, working in the real world is important as well. We saw this with interviews in cafes, farms, markets, and especially at government offices, navigating conversations with people who held much more power than we did. But, like the mud of Sto. Domingo that clung to our socks, the realizations of who we were writing for stuck to our hearts. We saw the people we were uplifting and their stories that we needed to bring to light. It was this mutual passion that helped us look past our differences.
And through this, like how rice is present in every part of our culture, we have connected with a community beyond the newsroom. One that stretches far beyond our reach.
A farmer is satisfied even though he cannot see every plate that his grains have gone onto. A vendor is happy to provide resources for the city despite being in a new location. And like them, we greet this harvest season with a fulfilled heart, because we know we have reaped honor far greater than any medal or merit could show: we have given back to our community.
[E]
by Enoch Del Rosario
photos by Envirex Editorial Board
layout by Cyler Gutierrez
