SUNDAY evening last, there was an unusual flurry of news feeds in Facebook. This friend and that friend posted in Dabawenyo ka kung... commented on a post in Dabawenyo ka kung… and many more like that. There was something going on.
It was a Facebook account, newly opened but already had more than 1,500 members. By Monday morning, membership was already tipping the 3,000 mark and posts have reached just as many.
Along with it, many more accounts were opened, obviously initiated by other people from other places. Suddenly, Facebook was a place to reminisce and to share old memories, while the younger ones gaped and gawked and went jejejeje.
Suddenly, in just a matter of hours that extended to days, everyone wanted to share memories of Me-Hang Grocery along Claveria Street (where the old Gaisano Claveria now Avon building is), the urban legend about the “sawa” (big snake) inside NCCC, all written and spelled in Dabawenyo Bisaya.
Posts like, “Dabawenyo ka kung nakakaon na ka ug soup #5 ila Sana hahaha (You’re a Dabawenyo if you have eaten Sana’s Soup No. 5” immediately places the person at a certain age.
A post like this, “Taga davao ka kung mangita kag non aircon na taxi ug hulaton gyud nimo to the last centavo na kambyo gikan sa drayber (You’re from Davao if you will wait for a non-aircon taxi and demand the last centavo change from the driver)” is but a recent memory that many can still associate with.
While a post about common quirks or characters can transcend generations, like, “Kung di ka laug og prutas kay permi ka kakaon ana.. pwede ra gani ka mangayo sa silingan (If you are not greedy about fruits because you always have them and can even ask them for free from your neighbor)...”
There were jingles too that mark each generation, like those of Integral Business Machines and UTC Binokbok Tungog. While the younger ones would jeer at the one posting, the older ones would just laugh out loud and contribute the lyrics (Ang UTC, ang UTC, ang UTC Binokbok Tungog…)
Most precious, however, are old photos shared that give every member a walk through Davao’s colorful and black and white past.
The Facebook account that went viral, it turns out, was started by a Dabawenya who now resides in Cebu, April Dy.
When contacted to ask for some details, Dy said she just created the group last Saturday, (August 6), after seeing a group “You know you’re Cebuano if”.
“It was originally intended for my friends, like, to reminisce about our childhood in Davao City, its history and the old places and things about
Davao City,” she said.
She never imagined it would grow that big, that fast.
“A friend added his friend and they added more people and it all went crazy,” she said.
As of 2:25 p.m. Saturday, there were already 20,656 members and 47,369 posts. The number of posts do not include the comments to specific posts. One, by Rocky Cabarroguis, could hold the record for number of comments so far with 1,052 comments and 621 likes as of 2 p.m. yesterday.
His comment? “VEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENA Araneta. Nagapatrol.”
Asked how many more pending requests the Facebook account has, she said, she has stopped looking at it and that she and her other friends who are administrators of the page are taking turns clicking the “Add” button.
To check out how the account from which Dy got her idea, as of 2:30 p.m. yesterday, the group “ You know you’re Cebuano if” had 48,647 members with 18,115 posts. It seems Dabawenyos have a lot more to say at a shorter time.
Now everyone wants to reminisce… groups now include schools, organizations, and other provinces and towns. Each account bringing together people from different ages and places but are bound by something in common… their memories and fondness of where they came from.