my tanaga....

Through our lips, rainbow arch flow;

Above the cheeks, two pearls glow

Like shooting stars tommorow

Radiating from your shadow.

laughter :-)

LAUGHTER
by: Maningning Miclat

He left me
when he could
no longer stand the laughter

that I gave him
while he begged me not
to keep memories

alive in poems
to hurt myself
and make those
who read

sad. I laughed
when he shared
his life with me
while holding him

to make it easier
and maybe
less painful
to live on.

Laugh! I told
him, but
could not get
his attention.

Laugh! I asked
him, but
he left in
anger.

And left
before he understood
the courage
that held my laughter.

This poem is some what ironic. By merely looking at the title itself, I can say that the poem is all about a laughter. But if I'm going to take time reading this, I can say that it has another meaning. The speaker is within the poem, she's the one talking. The laughter here can mean pain base from the tone of the voice of the speaker, the tone is not happy, it is not laughing. A guy, left her (if the speaker is a girl). The setting is all about breaking up her heart. The girl always write poems to record their memories but the guy avoided her. Because he doesn't want her to be hurt more by what she is doing. When he was breaking up with her, she tried to hide her feelings through her laughter. But the guy didn't understand the meaning of her laughter, that she is just pretending because she cannot stand the pain. That is why the guy left her laughing without knowing the real feelings inside her. Until he understand her courage to laugh, he understand the reason of her laughter.

p00r gIRL,,, AsSumiNg '',)

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The story, "The Servant Girl", is about an ordinary girl, a servant girl, whose only wish is to have a different life because she was being abused by her mistress.

I was really touched by this story. It shows the usual treatment of the master to their servants. This poor little girl creates an imaginary world that might save her. She envisions and dreamed for a hero, a knight that will take her away and bring her to a place she dreamed for a long time. Fo she believed that with him, she will experience happiness and start to fulfill her dream.

That is why I want to sympathize to this poor girl whose only hope is to escape from the world she used to live in, to have a full retirement on her unjustice life. What she wanted is a real world that will introduce her the the true happiness she didn't experience.

Expecting for someone and something good to come are not bad. I can't blame her. She was a helpless girl who longed for many things she didn't possess, specially for a love that will embrace her being, an inspiration that will cheer her up. And that was Angel who was the fulfillment of her long-waiting. She assumed that this Angel is the angel that will offer her a path leading to the wold she dreamed off. But unfortunately, Angel was also made by her wide imaginations. That is why in the end, this Angel (Pedro) is the one who will bring her back pala to the world she tried to escape in.

w0mEN bEiNg sUpEri0R in NICK JOAQUIN's pen...

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The created mind of Nick Joaquin came up to the issue between to sexes. Considering the first few paragraphs of the story, Dona Lupeng is a very submissive wife while Don Paeng is dominant.

But when Guido was introduced in the story, it seemed that Dona Lupeng change her mood. Her husband also observed that sudden change. Guido is a male character that acknowledges the purpose of a women, how they must be treated, that women is capable of dominating men. According to Guido, women are meant not only to be cared, respected and loved, bust most importantly, they must be ADORED. From this, Dona Lupeng was beginning to transform her aura when she argued with her husband. She resisted to sit down when she was instructed to. She was able to deny her husband's decision of not going to the Tadtarin. This argument shows that feminity is as powerful as masulinity.

Because of the spirit of the Tadtarin that captured Dona Lupeng's being, she joined dancing with the crowd . Don Paeng tried to stop her but he can't do anything because his wife is determined to joined them.

In the end, Don Paeng surrenderd himself to his wife.
His pride was nothing when he crawl like a lizard to kiss Dona Lupeng's feet.
WOMEN IS SUPERIOR!

But honestly, I don't encourage that kind of attitude. Adoration is meant only for God. As a woman, I'm conted being loved, cared, and respected by my future partner. As long as he is loyal to me, resposible and God-fearing, it is more than enough.

I'm so sorry for Don Paeng, he became the victim of the cult. And even his wife was totally captured by the evil spirit.

simPLe w0Rds wiTh gREat tHOUghtS....

Wooh.... Great writer. That is how I admire him. I was so impressed,, really, by the short story written by Carlos Bulosan.. I never imagine that simple tale-like story has a deeper meaning.






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"My Father Goes To Court" was the first story we were about to analyze in class. Doing our group's analysis is just like having a simple analysis like we did in high school English class, we just viewed it in an ordinary way without even considering the setting and Bulosan, himself, placed in the story. I was so disappointed by my analysis, what my group did is, we disregard Bulosan in the story and anlyze it in a way we understand it. Although it is okey, I'm not contented in what we have done. Haizt.


Anyways, my mistake thought me an unforgetable lesson. Why unforgetable? Because this simple mistake drove me to loving more the books I read. From the moment I read Nick Joaquin's work, "Summer Solstice" , I really made a research, not only to have a contribution in our class discussion but also to learn more and appreciate this masterpiece.

I'm deeply hooked by the stories I'm reading now. Not only because I was able to relate on the story but because I'm trying to view them in a larger context. When I have the first reading during high school years, I really choose the book I'm reading; the title, the author and even the front cover of the book. But now, I realize that it is not good because I can also relate pala to the stories even though they seem hard to understand. I realize that I have to give my full attention in order to appreciate and understand the text I'm reading. That is what I learned from the course I'm taking now, Philippine Literature. I finally having great time reading the works of our native Filipino authors.

To those who are not able to read Bulosan's short story, please try. At first, you will feel that it is an ordinary piece to read, a waste of time, but later on, you'll discover the story behind. That Filipino and Americans are involved. You'll see why,, . The theme of the story, wow!