It is well before daybreak in Bibiclat, a village in the northern Philippines surrounded by rice fields. Using only light from their cellphones to cut through the darkness, devout Catholics venture into the fields. If they’re fortunate, they will find an area where carabaos bathe, since the mud is softer there.
They smear mud over their bodies and then soak dried banana leaves in the mud. After dressing themselves with the leaves, they walk to the church of St. John the Baptist.
