Life is a series of images.
Get to know me through these photographs.
I was born on the archipelago of what is commonly called The Philippines. I was raised in a valley where the waters of Mt. Banahaw and Mt. Makiling flow through. My childhood was full of memories of running around a forest, swimming from sunrise to sunset, and reading books while listening to the serene sound of the water falls.
Photo: My mother carrying me in a hot spring swimming pool
From eating corn smothered with butter and sprinkled in salt for an afternoon snack to consuming adobo with a side of mayo, to dipping freshly made pan de sal stuffed with corned beef in coffee, my fondest memories often involved food and being in the kitchen with my mother, my grandmother, or the rest of the family.
Photo: My siblings and I with our grandmother eating shrimp and rice with our hands
In my teenage years, I moved from the Philippines to Chicago, IL, where I completed high school, college, and more college.
After college and a big identity crisis, I sought out community. A Filipino community. I started getting involved in community organizing for social justice, managed a few Fil-Am bands, helped with various events, marched the streets and protested. I was able to learn about Filipino American history and found people who truly understood me at that point of my life. I am so grateful for that experience.
Photo: At a protest march
Photo: Helping package relief goods to be sent in the Philippines on a cold November evening. It was an experience of seeing our community come together and truly lend a helping hand to those in need.
Time passed and life happened, signaling that it was time for a change, so I took a break from community work.
During that period, I got involved into working in the food industry, primarily in farmers markets, events, music festivals.
Photo: Lollapalooza, working for Milk Bar with Graham Elliott visiting our booth
Inspired by my previous community work and my new experiences in food, Filipino Kitchen was born, bringing with it many delicious adventures including: pop-up dinner events all over the country, speaking engagements, culinary collaborations and the creation of Kultura: A Filipino Food and Arts Festival in Chicago.
Filipino Kitchen allowed me to explore our culture, our gastronomy and cook for our community.
Photo: Kultura Festival in Chicago along with the founders of Dill Magazine
Filipino Kitchen was the conduit to meeting Manong Lane Wilcken and learning about the precolonial practices of the Philippines with a focus on tattooing.
Photo: TV guest spot to promote Kultura Festival
October 4, 2016 - I received my first batok.
Photo: My first batok ceremony in Chicago, IL
You can read about my journey into being an apprentice here
Then my unexpected journey of becoming an apprentice began.
I travelled with Manong Lane full time.
I attended his lectures.
I assisted in numerous batok ceremonies around the world.
Through those experiences, I learned how to fully accept and love myself.
I met a lot of beautiful people.
I was steadily traveling down this new life path, and I was so grateful for it.
Suddenly the world changed when the pandemic hit.
I ended up living with Manong Lane and his family.
We converted his garage into our school.
The pace of my education and training quickened.
I made tools.
Then, it was already time to start tapping. With the guidance, assistance, and utmost patience from Manong Lane, my work began.
Photo: Doing some work on my fellow apprentice/chosen brother, Kristian Kabuay
Almost two years after the pandemic began, I landed on the shores of Oʻahu, Kingdom of Hawaiʻi.
Due to a series of beautiful events and a year later, I live here now, and with the blessing of Manong Lane, I have started establishing my practice. I have been tapping and serving our community in this way since April of 2022.
I am grateful to those who have supported, helped, and guided me on this journey.
I humbly acknowledge and give thanks to the land that has welcomed me in her arms.
To the mother ocean who connects all of us.
To the thousands of ancestors whose lives contributed to my existence.
Above all, my deepest gratitude to my teacher, Manong Lane Wilcken.
My story doesn’t end here and I greet this next chapter with as much excitement and gratitude as the last.
My intention is to be a servant to the community that reconnects descendants to ancestral knowledge, practice and traditions.
I do this with reverence and in deep ritual as passed down to me by my teachers.
If my work resonates with you, may our paths lead us to one another.
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"Culture makes people understand each other better. And if they understand each other better in their soul, it is easier to overcome the economic and political barriers. But first they have to understand that their neighbour is, in the end, just like them, with the same problems, the same questions. " - Paulo Coelho
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