Pagsuyo: Courting the Indigenous Soul
The "Pagsuyo: Courting the Indigenous Soul" study circle brings together our Kapwa from across the diaspora for a monthly virtual gathering featuring teachings, presentations, and breakout discussions supported by peer facilitators…
In 2026, Pagsuyo will embark on a journey to re-membering Kapwa through the framework of "Ethnoautobiography."
Ate Leny writes: "Ethnoautobiography is a framework for getting to know our long body; this is a Haudenosaunee concept which is akin to the Filipino concept of kapwa."
The Ethnoautobiography book (developed by Jurgen W. Kremer and R Jackson-Paton) was “midwifed” by Ate Leny by lending her classes to pilot test the framework. Ate Leny, in recognizing that her own classroom pedagogy has been influenced by Filipino Indigenous Psychology, found in the Ethnoautobiography structure a useful tool that is capable of weaving the elements of our long bodies in a clear, gentle, and accessible way. She and Jurgen eventually team-taught an Ethnoautobiography course that became the basis for the published workbook suitable for both academic and non-academic community settings.
Registration for the 2026 Pagsuyo cohort is closed.
Jean Vengua Reviews Leny Mendoza Strobel's "Zen of Doodles" and "Glimpses"
A book review written by Jean Vengua of Glimpses and Zen of Doodles:
In 2016, Leny M. Strobel began using Zentangle to create drawings; some of these drawings went on the cover of her book, Glimpses: A Poetic Memoir (Through the MDR Generator) in 2019. Similar to how I’ve just been starting to focus on basic line and shape in my agimat drawings, she said she found it useful for “getting my mind out of my way.” Part of my own project is also to let the drawing tell me something, and to reduce my “plans” for any one drawing to a minimum.
North Fork Arts Project: LENY M. STROBEL—"THE ZEN OF DOODLES"
EILEEN (ET): Please share the background to these doodles or sketches. How did you come to start making them?
LENY (LS): I started these doodles in 2015 around the time that Zentangle was trending. I have a relative who was into it and she got me interested. I was also in recovery from a medical condition that required me to slow down and be quiet. These doodles were my way of getting my mind out of the way.