Below are some excerpts from the phone interview I had with my father, Jose Guzman Lucas, about Hilot healing, how it is understood in the Philippines, and the ways in which he understood his mother and her gifts of healing

 

 

Mandy: "How did Lila become a hilot and a partera? When did she begin healing and where did she learn it from?"

Jose: " I actually don't know when she started doing it but she was the only one in our barrio who did that. By the time I was born I think she was already doing it. I don't think she was born with it but it was a gift she learned. I do remember when I was little, people would knock on the door at our house  at any time of the day or night and ask her to help them and she would. I think God gave her a gift to know how to do it. A higher being that influences her to be a healer."

 

Mandy: "What do you think about your mom and her gift of healing?"

Jose: "My mom was kind of weird, especially when she was drinking and especially after she delivered a baby. Sometimes when she was by herself I see her talking to somebody, but I didn't see anybody. When I would ask who she was talking to, she would tell me to mind my own business. Maybe she was praying or talking to the spirits. They thought my mom was a "bruja" or a "mancacola" (witch), but I think maybe it was because they were envious of her. But it was a gift that the God gave her."

 

Mandy: "How did the people find her?" 

Jose: "There's only one of them (hilot/partera) in the sitio (barrio or neighborhood). They know through word of mouth. Everyone knows. She knows that they were coming too. They pray to be sent to a healer and she prays because she knows they are coming."

 

Mandy: "And what happened when she left the Philippines to come to the U.S.?"

Jose: "When she came here, the people just went to the neighboring barrio and they could see that hilot or partera there. There is one in each sitio. And when she came here, she still helped a lot of people here too."

 

Mandy: "How did it work? How did she heal people?"

Jose: "When they would come, she would pray in her mind before she touches you - maybe she was praying to the spirits. No matter what the illness, she would massage you. Then she'd massage you, and if when she massages, something is hard in that part, that’s when she needs to make it soft. She uses baby oil or coconut oil. Back home (in the Philippines) the coconut oil would have some type of root in them, I don't what it was, but she would soak it in the oil before she massaged." 

 

Mandy: "What if she could not heal them?"

Jose: "She would try. They came to her for a reason but sometimes they would have to come back a second time if it didn't work, but she knew. Sometimes it didn't just work the first time and she would tell them they have to come back. She tells the people she helps, that they also have to believe that it works - she knows that if you came to her, you already believe in her - because if you didn’t, she’d know you don’t believe. She would say, “But if you don’t believe in it, you’re not going to get well, it’s not going to work." 

 

Mandy: "It sounds like she helped heal a lot of other people but who healed her when she was sick?"

Jose:  "My mom used to get sick a lot and I think it had to do with her helping people. One time she got sick for like 5 years and it was really hard. When she could not get better we found an "espiritista." An espiritista helps heal you. They use hypnosis to heal. She got better after that, she went to the church every Friday or Saturday after that. Her healing was mainly spiritual but she did also have her matrise (uterus) taken out after I was born."

 

Mandy: "What happened after Lila passed away?"

Jose: "When my mom passed away they say she transferred her "galing galing" (there is no direct translation, but he was referring to the gift his mom had) to my sister. But a lot of people feared my sister because of this, they thought it was like a voodoo. My sister would cry because people were scared to get close to her. But my sister didn't get my moms gift."

 

Mandy: "So do you think Lila passed it down to any of us? Do you think maybe she passed it down to me?"

Jose: "I don't know if she did. Maybe she did pass it down to you. I mean you are helping to heal other people. You have helped people at school to graduate and be successful, and now you are studying to be a counselor. So maybe..."