#up diliman tales | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

polyamarhousgarden · 7 months

Text

🌷SELF-INSERT & OC LIST🌷

TOLKIEN

THE HOBBIT

Anoriel Fereniel | Self-Insert

Feren Aurelion | OC

A weaver by trade but is also the Vice-General of the Woodland Realm

Married Elvenking Former Oropher who proposed to him so they could hide Anoriel’s peredhel status

Melmerondir Ferenion | OC

An artist by trade but volunteered to be a scout slash soldier of the Woodland Realm

MO DAO ZU SHI | THE GRANDMASTER OF DEMONIC CULTIVATION

Dayang-Dayang Pagmaya | Self-Insert

Was engaged to Nie Mingjue when she was born

The first young maiden of the Huangshan Gong Sect.

LES MISERABLES

Doña Socorro Chelidonia de Castro de Oro y Moreno | Self-Insert

From a well to do family with progressive views.

Is genderfluid but doesn't know the term yet for it. Their parents allow them to wear masculine and nonbinary attire when the mood strikes them. (They tuck their hair up in their hats)

Despises the Spaniards and ardently believes in a day when the Philippines is freed from the Spaniards' grasp.

Meets Courfeyrac after getting lost in Paris while on a trip with their family. Not wanting them to worry, Socorro proceeds to stay in Cafe Musain in case any of their servants find the cafe.

On the way to Café Musain, they got lost and caught among rioters. Gavroche noticed them getting swept up in the riot and helped them escape, even hailing a cab for them after escaping. As thanks, they invite Gavroche to eat with them. When Gavroche brought Hugues and Bressole with him, they also welcomed the two boys.

DRAGON AGE

DRAGON AGE: ORIGINS

Paraluman Surana | Self-Insert

Knight-Lieutenant Joseph Terrell | OC

DRAGON AGE 2 | DRAGON AGE: EXODUS

Benedicta Alejandra Hawke y Amell | Self-Insert

DRAGON AGE: INQUISITION

Dalisay Kato Bagwisan | Self-Insert

Atubang Mahalina Kato Bagwisan | Self-Insert

MASS EFFECT

Commander Dari Shepard | Self-Insert

Doctor Dominic Shepard | OC

MASS EFFECT:ANDROMEDA

Hiraya Angelica Ryder | Self-Insert

Nimuel Angelo Ryder | OC

Older twin brother

DIVINITY II

Sima | Self-Insert

BALDUR'S GATE 3

Gumamela | Mula | Self-Insert

High Councillor of the Blooming Fey Court

Skilled painter but doesn't try to become the court painter.

Murdered their father as vengeance for the murder of their grandmother

Has a bloodline curse dooming them to a love that ends in tragedy

OVERWATCH

Kapunuan | Gregoria Silang | Self-Insert

ARCANA

Kahidlaw | Self-Insert

MYSTIC MESSENGER

Urielle | Self-Insert

Stage actress with Shakespearean roots

Was on a short acting break when they visited Korea and got mixed up in the Mystic Messenger plot

Zen recognised them the moment they posted their profile pic

Hiyas | Self-Insert

Novelist who focuses on children's fairytales

Was on their book tour when they got tangled with Mint Eye

ACE ATTORNEY

HARVEST MOON

HARVEST MOON: DS CUTE

Agustina | Tinang | Self-Insert

HARVEST MOON: GRAND BAZAAR

Asuncion | Siyon | Self-Insert

HARVEST MOON: ISLAND OF HAPPINESS

Antonia | Toyang | Self-Insert

HARVEST MOON: THE TALE OF TWO TOWNS

Eusebia | Sebya | Self-Insert

HARVEST MOON: ANIMAL PARADE

Angelina | Angge | Self-Insert

Jin's childhood friend

Visited the farm during the summers as a child. That's where they met Jin.

FIRE EMBLEM

FIRE EMBLEM: THREE HOUSES

Kallisto | Self-Insert

Has a resting blank face

Tends to dock points very liberally from the Golden Deer House

Hates Leonie

FIRE EMBLEM: FATES

Ariadne | Self-Insert

Was sickly and was often indulged by their siblings as a result

Jacob is their bestie

CHOICES

ROYAL ROMANCE

Evangeline Marie Lakandula | Self-Insert

NIGHTBOUND

Diwa Kalangitan | Self-Insert

OPEN HEART

Dra. Inocencia Valenciano | Self-Insert

Stupidly non competitive

ROMANCE CLUB

HEAVEN'S SECRET

Amparo Socorro Santos-Walker | Self-Insert

Studied Fine Arts at UP Diliman

Takes inspiration from the older paintings because of the depths of meaning and emotion in them.

The sort of student who joins protests and rallies and sends out foods and necessities to strikers' families

Ends up having insecurities about their relationship with Dino after ten years of their relationship

HEART OF TRESPIA

Queen Saerwen Gwenhevare Methildis Ymeri | Self-Insert

PATH OF THE VALKYRIE

Mirasol | Self-Insert

Studied archaeology to try and discover more pre-colonial Filipino artefacts

Atheist but finds religion to be fascinating

Very open-minded about a lot of things but finds gods to be where she draws the line.

DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN

Alma | Self-Insert

DISLYTE

Gelli | Self-Insert

Was given Apolaki's powers

BEING HUMAN UK

Filomena "Mena" Dimayuga | Self-Insert

SUPERNATURAL

Maria Josefina Christina dela Cruz | Self-Insert

Power Yeiazel | Self-Insert (Divine AU)

LEVERAGE

Clara Marie Dayanghirang | Self-Insert

Does not reveal their real name like Sophie

Nate figures out their alias is a reference to Maria Clara from Jose Rizal's works Noli me Tangere and El Filibusterismo but their false surname meant Chosen Lady

ADVENTURE TIME

Dream Witch | Self-Insert

Found a magic wand in an antique shop and bought it to complete the look of their costume for a costume party

Wand turns out to have magic tied to dreams and dream-walking

Met Simon and Marcy during their travels after the mushroom war

Became another parental figure to Marcy

JUSTICE LEAGUE

Dealá Sanchta Ieyozael | Self-Insert

JUSTICE LEAGUE: GODS AND MONSTERS

Celeste Manlangit | Self-Insert

LACKADAISY

Patricia Beatrice M. Dalit | Self-Insert

BLEACH

Tala | Self-Insert

Aspiring ballet dancer

Died during the 1920s

Was sent to the wrong soul society after Sasakibe performed the konso on them when he saw their soul scared and lost under a bridge during his travel in the Philippines.

When they died they lost their memory of how they died as well as their name, when they looked up at the sky they saw the stars and chose Tala due to how the stars continued to shine amid darkness

KIMETSU NO YAIBA

Abe Chiyoko | OC

Storm Hashira

Adopted daughter of the previous Storm Hashira and her husband, an inn proprietor who welcomes demon slayers into his establishment without charging them

Body is unsuited to the Breath of Storm due to the taxing sword forms and movements

Became the new Storm Hashira after she killed an entire goup of demons in one night. She proceeded to become bedridden afterwards

Only takes on select missions to be cautious and mindful of their less than steller health

Quiet most of the time and prefers to observe the events unfolding to get a better grasp of the situation

Has had a crush on Gyomei for forever but refuses to confess to him out of fear of rejection

ORIGINAL WORKS (PERSONAL)

A GOOD MAN'S MAKNG

Narcisa Bonifacio | Sisa | Self-Insert

#self insert #s/i #self insert list #tw murder

1 note · View note

etherealtobio · 3 years

Text

𝐤𝐲𝐮𝐬𝐢.

— suna rintarō x reader

— summary: right person, wrong timing. how do two ex-lovers react when they cross paths in reminiscent sceneries?

— contains: gn!reader, angst (with happy ending), college AU, post-college AU

— word count: 1k

— a/n: this fic is based on Zild’s song “Kyusi”, and this fic is a part of @xybi’s ating istorya collaboration event in celebration of Buwan ng Wika! i hope you take the time to read the wonderful works featured there. also, give the song a listen if you’d like :) <3 enjoy!

[5:30 PM]

“be real with me.”

suna stares as you look at the distance in front of you.

it’s half past five, and you’re both sitting on a bench at the sunken garden, biding time, looking at the falling leaves and passing jeepneys.

college is hard. it hit you harder as you moved to Quezon City a year ago to study in Diliman.

you weren’t expecting to cross paths with a varsity player in the volleyball team during the process. although you appreciate the company, you didn’t expect things to go by faster.

the thing is, suna thinks that love is rushed.

it’s the adrenaline that keeps him going; the sound of dashing trains, honking cars in traffic, hurrying people headed to their own directions.

life is in a hurry in Manila. it’s what he grew accustomed to ever since he was young; and life hits harder at him, because he doesn't know what it feels like to be patient.

it’s evident in his words and actions.

“why won't you tell me the truth?” he speaks again.

“what do you mean?” you finally said, shifting your gaze on your fidgeting feet on the grass.

“what you’re feeling,” he sighs, running a hand through his hair. “you don't have to pretend. i just want you to tell me what’s wrong.”

the thing is, you want to. you want to tell him that everything is overwhelming. the time, the surroundings,

him.

his love felt too good to be true. it’s only been half a year since you’ve been together, and you feel that he doesn’t deserve to witness the facade you've set high up ever since you left the province.

it felt too real and unreal at the same time.

“i’m too scared,” you lift your head, looking at him.

a moment passes.

“of what?” suna sees the tears in your eyes.

“everything’s too fast.”

[6:00 AM]

rrring!

suna groans at the sound of his alarm.

it’s been a year since the breakup. everything's a blur. the only thing he remembered was you saying “it was good while it lasted.”

today’s a saturday, and he usually gets up early to have a morning jog, but he figured he wanted to stay in bed for a little while.

staring at the ceiling, he can’t help but reminisce about the time he first asked you out on a date.

he told you there was this new cinema downtown that he’d like to take you. he remembers how you couldn’t seem to finish the popcorn by the time the movie ended, and he remembers how cold your hands were when he asked to hold it on the way to the train station.

he always tried to make you feel comfortable, to make you feel a lot more loose around him. but your own ministrations prevented you from having a good time with him.

you felt like he didn’t deserve you at your worst state of mind.

change is difficult for you to handle. the life of being away from home, the mindset of being alone and independent in this big city mixed with the conflicting feelings you have was something you dreaded. not being able to express your true self to suna was something you tried working on, but you figured it's too early for everything.

for you, love is calm.

it's the quiet murmurs of people at the library. the gentle breeze of the night touching your skin. the pretty, soothing smell of kamuning flowers seen in the neighborhood’s front yards.

so when you’re with him, absurdly so, the pacing never felt right.

a city boy ready to chase his dreams mixed with you who’s still quite unsure of the hustle and bustle of the city is met with heartbreak and worry and everything in-between.

“meet me at Kamuning.”

suna reminisces again.

it’s supposed to be that simple. he was planning to take you to nearby places where he remembers his childhood.

the famous bakery known for their mouth-watering pastries, Bernardo Park where he repeatedly tripped on the bridges when he was a kid, and the classic neighborhood selling antique furniture and decorations back from the 90s.

he wonders if he ever did something wrong. if he was ever enough. and he can’t quite find the answers to his questions.

he wanted to relive those memories with you, yet everything went wrong when you broke your promise.

you never met him there.

[4:17 PM]

years passed, and suna thinks he’s rather careful.

just like how he precisely blocks and spikes the ball in games, he’s a lot wiser in handling different situations, and more meticulous in understanding tell-tale signs.

the subsiding adrenaline of his state of mind pushed him to become certain of everything, and it’s in you that he witnessed true patience.

after years of waiting for you, for the right time, for the right things to do, he thinks that everything feels right.

love doesn't have to be as loud and blaring as the city filled with time-chasers. love doesn't have to be pretentious. love doesn't have to hurt.

love is seeing you again, crossing paths at the train station after trying to finally meet you at Kamuning, and it feels as though everything went quiet.

he sees you, older and wiser, the you back in college much more different than the you today.

then you see him, facial features growing softer and subtler. he smiles at you, and suddenly it felt like the crowded transit was left with only you and him.

suna can’t seem to pinpoint the atmosphere at this very moment. the uncertain feelings once felt before changed into unfaltering contentment.

and you seeing him once again felt like home.

you walk towards him, unsure what to do. he walks towards you, too, almost closing the gap between you.

“hi,” suna smiles at you, cheeks almost reddening.

“hello,” you smile back, hands quite shaking, more delicately than before.

“let’s go to Kamuning.”

together are the both of you, and after he holds your hand, a lot warmer than before, he knows.

you're the one he’d want to be with in Kyusi.

— another a/n: for those of you who are confused, ‘Kyusi’ means ‘QC’, or Quezon City, a city in Manila, Philippines! UP Diliman is a university located in QC, and Kamuning is an area in QC where Bernardo Park is located (where suna was about to bring you to), which is also a fragrant, white flower! it’s named after the place :) <3

©️ ETHEREALTOBIO - do not copy, translate, or repost

#im so sorry this isnt the best ive written #this would be better for a long fic with all the chapters and stuff #which is why the timelines are too sticked together yk but i tried LOL <3 #mab.writes #haikyuu angst #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu x you #haikyuu one shots #haikyuu fic #suna #suna rintarou #suna rintarō #suna x reader #suna x you #suna angst #suna fic

274 notes · View notes

carinajavierartap · 4 years

Text

Title: Pasan

Artist: Mark Justiniani

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Year: 2000

Provenance: Gift from Dawn Justiniani-Atienza

April 25, 1966, St. Mark’s Day, renowned artist-activist Mark Justiniani was born in Bacolod, Negros Occidental. His love of art began so early on in life - before he had even reached the age to go to school - that he had to ask his parents for a notebook to fill with scribbles and sketches. By the time he was of age to attend school and able to receive his first communion, he was awestruck by the way Adelaide "Ade" de Bethune's "Angry Christ" in St. Joseph the Worker Chapel in Victoria, Negros Occidental instilled fear to the eyes of everyone who viewed it, yet retained a beauty that left much to admire. It was then, Justiniani realized that he had just encountered art. By the age of 16 he had entered the University of the Philippines, Diliman majoring in Arts Education, later on joining protest art movements associated with socio-political issues of the time. By the 1980’s and 1990’s he had established himself as an artist-activist and had identified with the lineage of Social Realism through his experience in being a part of the artist initiatives or collectives Artista ng Bayan (1987-1990), Grupong Salingpusa (1985-1992), and Sanggawa Collective (1994-1998). Through the years he had been awarded a total of 9 times, one of them being the highly-respected triennial award Thirteen Artists Awards, Most Outstanding Achievement of Young Artists in the Philippines by the Cultural Center of the Philippines in the year 1994 at the age of 28.

Justiniani’s works have embodied and documented early on in his career, the lives of the ordinary people who live in a society of hypocrisy, contradiction, and futility. He has used his art to show a story of the Filipino people and those who had oppressed them. In his work entitled Pasan, which was created in the year 2000, the work tells a multifaceted story about Philippine history with the depiction of a man, almost camouflaged against the background, carrying a naked white man, whose bright fair skin contrasts with the dark green background which takes the viewer’s attention immediately, whose body is attached to a large dark reddish-brown wooden cross.

Pasan is a Filipino word that means “to ride on one’s back” or “to carry on one’s back or shoulder”. Burden, when translated to English, means “something that is carried” or “something oppressive or worrisome.” Pasan, the title of the work, is in itself what encapsulates the whole meaning of the oil on canvas artwork, a burden, an oppressive weight. But the oppressive weight of what? The simple weight of the man attached to the cross? Is that the burden that Justiniani referenced to in his work? Simply put, no. The weight of the man is not the full embodiment of the weight that is burdened upon the shoulders of the man hidden behind him who is carrying the weight of both the cross and his obese body. For clarity’s sake, the weight can be categorized into two factors, namely: the weight of the man and the weight of the cross. The first topic to be tackled is the weight of the man. The centerpiece of the whole work. The naked man who symbolizes the United States of America. Afterwards, the weight of the cross, a representation on how the Spanish had colonized the Philippine islands through the use of religion, specifically Catholicism. These two factors weigh heavily on the distinction that can be made throughout the entirety of the oil on canvas. Which is to say, a work filled with symbolism.

Screaming, roaring in pain, in agony. Mouth wide as if to let the viewer know of the pain that has befallen him. His cheeks tinged in pink, angered at his predicament. His hands and feet bound to the cross. Unlike the story of Jesus Christ, however, whose hands and feet were nailed to the cross, a closer look at the white man’s palms and feet show no nails that have been hammered into them. The means by which this man hangs upon the cross is unknown. Yet, his face shows pain, as if screaming in agony and suffering. The man is a physical representation of the United States of America – a country known for their population’s obesity which, from the years 1999-2000, surged to 30.5% of the population; up from the 22.9% from 1988-1994. Justiniani portrays the man as a large figure, taking up almost the entire center of the canvas. His shapely body, organic and life-like as if soft and supple to the touch, is witness to gravity pulling on its weight downwards that the stomach almost touches the floor. The softly shaded contours of his body show lumps in the fat of his arms, the fold of his large belly, and the cellulite in his thighs. Every movement and proportion hide meaning. Every line and detail, purpose. Its creation was a story, a tale of America told to every eye that bears witness to it. Note clearly, the contrast between the man and background, the former emphasized clearly as the largest of burdens. The warmth of the brightly colored skin tinged with warm yellow and pink undertones clashes with the coldness of the dark chromatic green of the background and the hidden figure. It emphasizes his importance – the life he brings out in the work. We should ask then: Why is he important? The answer is simply, of how it may be a reference to the poem of Rudyard Kipling titled The White Man’s Burden: The United States and the Philippine Islands, published in the February 1899 issue of McClure’s Magazine. Through the poem, Kipling had urged the United States to take up the “burden” of empire, to as quoted “Send forth the best ye breed—go send your sons to exile to serve your captives’ needs” as what was previously done by the nations of Spain, Britain, and other European powers. To add, the publication of the poem coincided with the Philippine-American War and the U.S. Senate ratification of the treaty that placed Puerto Rico, Guam, Cuba, and the Philippines under American control. The poem classifies the people under U.S. rule as “Half devil and half child” and expounds on how the years of imperialism will not be thanked, that the “help” that they will give will not be gratified. Yet in the end, the white man’s burden was not his to bear. The white man’s burden is the burden of those subjugated in pursuit of their noble goal of civilization. That the arrogance and misguided nobility in the white man’s burden transfers its weight to those it seemingly wants to help, in this case, the Filipino people. At present times, the usage of the “White Man’s burden” became a euphemism for imperialism.

Moving forward, the second weight that will be tackled is the weight of the cross. The cross is known to be a symbolism for the Christian religion. The story of how Jesus Christ was crucified and had died on the cross is known by all of those who practice Chistianity. Yet, the cross further signifies Spanish colonialism in the Philippines. As it is known that through the use of religion, specifically the conversion of the native Filipino people, who were pagans, i.e. they believed in gods such as Bathala and Kaptan, to the Catholic religion. Spanish colonization in the Philippines is known as a time of oppression for the Filipino people. A racist hierarchy was even set in the archipelago that would state that those on top are the Peninsulares, Spaniards born in the Spanish Peninsula, and those at the bottom were the Negritos, the natives of the land they had occupied. The cross symbolizes that, that the Filipino people are still being oppressed due to past actions. That it is still a weight that the everyday Filipino carries with them on their shoulders. How the Filipino people still depict beauty as someone who has fair white skin, someone who has European or Western ancestry.

It is noticeable that both the cross and the man’s coloring is that of a warm shade. Shades of pink and yellow and a deep shade of red respectively. The use of warm tones to depict them as being in the same category, a category that greatly contrasts with what is behind them. However, they are both different at the same time. The white man’s shape is organic, a round body with soft edges, yet, the cross is geometric in shape, straight with sharp edges. This in short can be analyzed as, yet they are similar, they are different. They are similar in a way that they both oppressed the carrier, yet what form they did it in is completely different, i.e. the oppression through colonization and imperialism. Two ways which affected the Filipino culture and people greatly and its effects still greatly lasting.

Finally, the hidden man. The one burdened, by the weight of everything. The regular Filipino man who wears the salakot to protect him from the harsh rays of the sun during the day and the fall of raindrops when there is a storm. He who carries the weight of the aftershock of hundreds of years of colonization and rape of his country by international superpowers. His whole body almost meshes into the background, his skin only a few shades darker than the background itself, the illusion that if touched, his body would feel cold, as if like that of a corpse. His presence is barely seen compared to that of the warmth radiated by the white man and the cross. The muscles and rigidness of his arms and the stretch of his feet, specifically the one behind, shows how much strength and will the man is forcing his body to take in order to not let the white man and the cross fall onto the ground. His arms bent to a straight ninety-degree angle to support the weight above him. And unlike the white man, whose face is shown directly to the viewer, the hidden man looks onward towards his destination, his face hidden by the shadows, with his nose and mouth hardly seen if not looked at closely. His body lean, with muscles that show his laborious toil and the effects of the oppression done to him. What they’ve done to him, the horrors of the weight that can be clearly seen, is hidden away by shadows. Viewer’s are not able to even take a glimpse of his facial expression, how he feels, what is going on in his head. Viewers are only able to see the labor he is doing and the effort he is showing through the ripples of his muscles and the rigidness of his body. It shows how unnoticed the problem has become in the Filipino society. How the nation has lost so much and is still reeling from it. Yet, the problem can not be faced, so the only solution is to hold it up until it cannot be held up any longer. A weight that can never be put down unless directly confronted.

The oil on canvas in its entirety uses the space of the canvas so beautifully to express the mood and story behind everything in it. The use of the negative space to insight the toxicity of it all with the dark green clouds, as if looming over a wasteland, the destroyed beauty that it once was. The imagery that is captured through the positive space and the meaning behind the three subjects.

To conclude, this art truly resonates to me as a Filipino. The hardships that had been previously faced may be over, yet the aftershock of it has yet to diminish from the Filipino people. Filipinos, since grade school, have learned and have been taught about the effects of Spanish colonization and U.S. imperialism in the country’s culture and way of living. Yet, what was taught was merely what good they had given us, i.e. religion and education. Never was it taught that through “educating” the native Filipinos, the native languages and religion were wiped out in exchange for what is currently taught in school. So many Philippine citizens view colonialism as something wonderful, the colonial mentality of many are strong and they view that without the Spaniards and the Americans the country wouldn’t have advanced this far into the future. Those who think that way do not understand that the so-called “good things'' that came with colonization and imperialism came with a cost. The Filipino people have lost so much and have adopted so much from foreign powers that they have forgotten the true essence of what it is to be a Filipino. Filipino’s today applaud those who are devout Catholics and are fluent in the English language. Yet, they look down on the Aeta’s, they look down on people for their choices in religion, and most importantly, they look down on those who are only able to speak in Filipino. This says a lot about the Filipino society. As they lift up the ideals of those who have oppressed them, they never took into consideration their own ideals, the ideals that have been with them since before Magellan reached the Philippine shores. As the Philippines dig deeper into idolizing foreign powers, the nation has come to bury the native cultures and languages that had once flourished the lands and are now endangered to extinction.

As someone who is not fluent in Filipino, who can’t even speak the language well enough to keep a conversation with others, I know I am also at fault. I had never seen the need of being fluent in Tagalog, that if I can simply do well in my Filipino classes it was good enough for me. This mentality has been a great regret of mine. How stupid of me to think that way. How entitled I was to have viewed others, who were not fluent in English, below me due to what I believed was superior. However, as I grow as an individual, as I grow as a Filipino, I now understand the importance of our native cultures and languages. And through this work of art, I have further realized my complacency and will further take action to improve myself and be better. Not only as a student of Ateneo, but as a Filipino national.

Sources:

(1) Justiniani, M. (2000). Pasan [Oil on Canvas]. Ateneo Art Gallery. Retrieved July 09, 2020, from https://ateneoartgallery.com/collections/pasan

(2) About Mark. (2018, October 26). Retrieved July 09, 2020, from http://markjustiniani.com/about-mark/

(3) National Gallery Singapore. (2018, August 6). Artist Interview with Mark Justiniani [Video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/FPDuCuVWYfE

(4) Mark Justiniani. (n.d.). Retrieved July 09, 2020, from http://www.pintoart.org/mark-justiniani

(5) Thirteen Artists Awards (1970-2012). (n.d.). Retrieved July 09, 2020, from https://aaa.org.hk/en/collection/search/library/thirteen-artists-awards-1970-2012

(6) Alfaro, M. (2020). Reading Material Analysis [Word Document]. Retrieved from Ateneo de Manila University Histo 12 Readings in Philippine History.

(7) Lachenicht, S. (2019). Religion and Colonization. 10.1093/obo/9780199730414-0311.

2 notes · View notes

paperbackriot · 5 years

Text

Let’s remember Martial Law for Imee Marcos

In a time where fiction is being turned into reality and we are being trained to forget our bloody past, remembering is an act of defiance.

When I think of Imee Marcos, I always remember the 21-year-old student-activist Archimedes Trajano. He was a student of Mapúa Institute of Technology.

Archimedes—or “Archie” as he was known to his classmates—is remembered by history as the student who questioned Imee’s appointment as director of the Kabataang Baranggay in a forum on August 31, 1977.

Hours later, Archie’s body was found lifeless- beaten black and blue along a street in Manila. His parents were told he got into a fight with dorm mates. But it was easy to connect the dots.

While Archie is just one of the thousands who disappeared, imprisoned, tortured, even killed under the Marcos dictatorship, his murder remains a gruesome reminder of what the dictator and his family—including Imee—are capable of doing.

I remember talking about Archie when I was asked to speak in a protest September 21 last year, the 45th anniversary of the declaration of martial law. But Archie was not the only one in my mind. I also remembered 17-year-old Kian Loyd Delos Santos, who was brutally murdered by the police just a month before.

Had Archie been killed today, it would be much easier for the government to make an excuse. His body would probably be found somewhere with the cardboard placard “pusher ako, ‘wag tularan” and no one would bat an eye.

One way or another, the events that marked martial law—rampant corruption, human rights violations, state violence—are making a comeback, and so are members of the Marcos family.

After she asked people to “move on” from the atrocities of her father’s dictatorship, our worst fears have been confirmed: Imee is running for the Senate in 2019. I am no longer shocked. With her “move on” statement, her brother’s electoral protest against Vice President Leni Robredo and the Kabataang Baranggay reunion at UP Diliman just days before Archie’s death anniversary, the Senate run announcement is just a blatant insult.

These are actions that spit on the memory of a young student who spoke against the Marcos dictatorship and whose bravery cost him his life. All this as the rest of us are already forgetting and repeating the same mistakes.

George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984 is the oft-used warning against the dangers of propaganda, forgetting and the manipulation of thought. Its continuing relevance speaks volumes about where we are heading as a society. It’s alarming: news reports mixed with disinformation and accusations of undue bias against legitimate media, all while the government leads the blatant effort to distort facts and revise history. The agenda is to make us forget how things were more than 40 years ago. So they can be reprised without scruples or hesitation.

We have a President who is a self-professed fanboy of the dictator. It was not a surprise that he gave Marcos a surprise hero’s burial and is even keen on following his footsteps.

We may not have been alive during that dark and turbulent period in our history, but thousands of families and activists who lived through it would tell you how they lost family members, friends, and comrades simply for upholding their principles and beliefs.

Many survived to tell the harrowing tales of torture and abuse but some, like Archie, returned to their families as corpses. Some remain missing even to this day. Imee could make up a lie about how millennials have seemingly moved on from the past (or that she was “too young” to know of her father’s abuses). But I was a witness to how students quickly took to the streets to protest Marcos’s burial at the Libingan ng mga Bayani when the news broke out he was smuggled in.

Thousands also marched to Luneta a few days later to insist that “Marcos, hindi bayani!” and remind everyone why the Marcoses should not be allowed to return to power. Even in social media, users and artists used hashtags and artwork during Marcos’s 100th birthday to post reminders of the dictator’s atrocities. We have not moved on. We refuse to forget.

In a time where fiction is being turned into reality and we are being trained to forget our bloody past, remembering is an act of defiance. We may be young, but we remember the bravery of Archie, of Liliosa Hilao, of other young writers, students and activists who dared to defy tyranny and dictatorship. Their sacrifices should be examples for us to bravely fight the dictator rising in our midst.

Jose Rizal would say “Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan,” but more than that, it is high time for us to stand and say: “Kabataang makabayan, ngayon ay lumalaban!” We fight. We refuse to forget. We would not let history repeat itself.

***

This essay appeared at Scout Magazine on August 30, 2018. Art by Lianne Fondevilla.

#imee marcos #martial law #never again #archimedes trajano #fight tyranny #essay

2 notes · View notes

y-thoughts · 2 years

Text

Escape to Korea

Watching Korean dramas or “K-Dramas'' can be considered as a way of relaxation or an escape to reality nowadays. There are a lot of streaming platforms that can be accessed by everyone and search the latest episodes of the most trending K-Drama or binge watch some old ones. There are people who prefer to wait for a drama to finish before watching it because they don’t want to feel ‘hunged up’ after watching an episode. But some are willing to wait for another week so they can keep up with the latest happenings. Korean dramas are not actually new in our leisure culture; these have already been on our television for two decades.

The first ever Korean drama that was aired in the country was Successful Story of a Bright Girl. It was aired on GMA Network, but has not really reached an audience. The first Korean drama that became popular was the Endless Love series: Autumn in My Heart and Winter Sonata. The melodrama gave the Filipino audience something to look forward to and gave a breath of fresh air to noontime dramas. These two were proclaimed the Pioneer of KDramas in the Philippines and were widely known and watched by KDrama lovers ever since.

But why do Filipinos love Korean Dramas?

Professor Erik Paolo Capistrano from the University of the Philippines Diliman told ABS CBN in an interview that the success of these dramas is due to the ingenuity of Korean entertainment and also due to the large fan base of the actors. When it comes to Korean dramas, the production is more concentrated on the chemistry of the characters. They don't base the drama on a loveteam, which is a bit different when it comes to Filipino dramas. They are also not afraid to produce a storyline based on taboos. It has a refreshing take on different genres and knows how to deliver it to the audience.

One difference between Korean dramas and our local dramas is the length of the show. The most common number of episodes are 16; sometimes it can go up to 20. In our case, it's infinite, as long as the ratings are high. This is not the case with KDramas. Whether or not the show received high ratings, it will end on the 16th episode. The drama can perfectly execute the plot, including some twists, in a manner of 16 episodes.

The storyline depends on the different genres KDramas are known for, romantic comedy, melodrama and even thrillers. Nowadays, most of the dramas have a lot of plot twists, unlike before in the early 2000s, wherein there's this usual boy meets girl, where the girl is poor while the boy is the son of the president of the company. The writers are also not afraid of tackling social issues such as bullying, mental health, gender inequality, racism, etc. One KDrama element that Filipinos love is the OST. A KDrama can be remembered when its OST is played and vice versa. These songs not only add beauty in the drama, but it can help the actors in portraying the emotions in a scene.

The rise of KDrama contributed to the exposure of Korean culture in the country. The experts call this the Hallyu wave; not only in the Philippines but in the whole world. Fashion, beauty, skin care, music and food are widely known by everyone and it's now looked forward to in malls and restaurants. Before, only specific places had Korean imports, but now, there’s a lot of Korean restaurants and groceries in the metro. This only shows that Korean products have their own market here in the country.

Even though KDramas are very much enjoyed, critics will always have something to say. Direk Erik Matti stated that these dramas are just like modern day fairy tales and the actors are “bellofied”. However, Direk Joey Reyes states otherwise. Filipino dramas trail behind the other because of its predictable plots and usual conflicts in the storyline.

Dramas are made to entertain its audience. The production team works more than 12 hours a day to make sure that everyone will enjoy the show and the story will be executed properly. Korean entertainment only aims to provide its audience quality dramas that help them to escape reality for even just an hour.

#korean #korean drama #kdrama #philippines

0 notes

trendingph · 3 years

Photo

5 Historic University Landmarks In The Philippines: Oblation, Arch of the Centuries, And More The Oblation statue in UP Diliman | Photo: Visual Tales Blog ... https://trendingph.net/5-historic-university-landmarks-in-the-philippines-oblation-arch-of-the-centuries-and-more/?feed_id=231276&_unique_id=60a2334ad3193 #arch #centuries #historic #landmarks #oblation #philippinenews #philippines #philippinesnews #trendingph #university

0 notes

germainetrittle86 · 4 years

Text

Of Buses, Pasalubongs, and Fiestas: My Laguna Years

So while I have been writing much about my childhood memories of Ilocos, a big portion of my youth I have been meaning to write about were my college years in UP Los Banos.

I was only 15 years old when I went to the “distant” campus of UP Los Banos in College, Laguna. When I applied for the UPCAT, we only put Los Banos as an alternative campus upon the advise of my older brother, Manong Snokum, himself a graduate of BS Architecture from UP Diliman. He said at least we had a good back-up plan should I not get accepted for my first choice of Diliman campus. In fact, it was only our eldest brother Manong Butch who was able to get in immediately because he was an NSDB (now NSTA) scholar in BS Mathematics. Manong Snokum had to transfer from UST on his second semester, while both Ate Marie and Ate Annette ended up trying out and qualifying for UP Baguio and UP Manila, respectively.

Like the rest of NCR students, majority of my batchmates in high school tried out for UP. But when the UPCAT results came out, only 12 of us qualified or were wait-listed. I remember my classmates saying, “May isang Leonin na nakapasa e…d lang namin sure which one”, referring to me and my cousin, Edlyn. Meanwhile, like the rest of them, I also covered my bases and applied for other universities and colleges. By that time, I had already passed the entrance tests for CEU, Miriam College, UST, Ateneo and was in the process of applying for St. Paul. But of course, UP IS UP, and I quickly jumped at the chance to go the State University be it in a “faraway” campus.

Fortunately, my Mom soon realized that a second cousin of hers was married to a UPLB professor and was living in Los Banos. She reconnected with Tita Cora Pe Benito and made arrangements for me to stay with them. Later would I find out that Tita Cora’s husband, Tito Ruben Villareal was actually the Dean of the College of Agriculture and was pretty well-known and respected in the UPLB community. My affiliation with them would eventually influence my future in UP Los Banos.

* * * *

Our first visit to Los Banos became one of many regular treks to Laguna. Once I began studying in UP Los Banos, this routine became a cherished day trip for my parents and younger siblings, and a sort of bonding activity too. They would drive me over for the next schooldays after I spent the weekend with them in Manila.

Back then, it would be an easy 2 hour drive from Quezon City, traversing EDSA and SLEX to Los Banos. Still not much heavy traffic after Magallanes through Taguig-Bicutan-Paranaque area. As you leave Alabang, the long stretch of SLEX would still be lined by rice fields, and after some time, Maria Makiling’s outline would already be visible. That Southern Tagalog mountain range really looked like a giantess lying in repose; from the soft curve of her breasts to her forehead sloping into her long hair. Mt. Makiling with her accompanying Mt. Banahaw and Cristobal was truly majestic.

As we turn into Calamba, the only other slightly “urbanized” area besides Los Banos, we pass by a few fast food restaurants before the hot spring resorts begin to sprout from all sides. Since Mt. Makiling is a dormant volcano, they say those hot springs served as useful vents to let her steam out. Without those hot springs, some scientists claim Makiling could just wake up and become an active volcano again.

Entering Pansol before Los Banos Bayan area, all you can see are hot and cold spring resorts, and that ubiquitous red-brown quarry at the distance. Through the years, I would observe that natural tower-like feature get eroded both by man and by nature’s forces. We pass Camp Eldridge and PCARRD, which now has that shortcut mountain pass into the UPLB campus, I wonder if this is the same shortcut used by incarcerated Los Banos townsfolk when they were evacuating in World War II and needed to cross over to the other side of Laguna de Bay.

Before long, you reach Brgy. Anos where most buko pie, fresh milk and other pasalubong outlets are, and then comes the famous “Crossing”, that landmark intersection which passes as UP Los Banos’ commercial area. Turning right at the corner Mercury Drug at Crossing, you enter into College and the gateway to UP Los Banos.

Unlike the wide, awe-inspiring University Avenue at Diliman, UPLB’s main gate is narrow and simple. The first thing you see upon entering is not the statue commonly known as the “UP Oblation”, but the carabao heads, the symbol of the UP College of Agriculture first established here prior to World War II. Oh, we do have our own Oblation, albeit much smaller in stature, and it’s located at the center of the campus, in front of our Humanities building. But like Diliman, it would please you to know that scattered around the UPLB campus are some artful sculptures too – like the Mariang Makiling which now stands at the bottom of the road going to Forestry, or the “flying” carabao at the Main Library, the Pinay lass with her banga at the Palma bridge pavilion, or the notorious “the Graduate” at the Social Garden (these last two having some weird tales surrounding them, but that’s another story.)

Tito Ruben and Tita Cora’s house was actually off-campus, in a subdivision near the International Rice Research Institute (IRR). Getting to their place, you can take either the long route via Ipil Drive and IRRI, or the steep hill at the back of the Animal Husbandry side which takes you directly to their village after coming downhill. Due to the distance, we had to coordinate rides to and from campus. But with two of my cousins still in high school and my other cousin busy with his fraternity activities, it was quite difficult scheduling rides, especially since I started having my own extra-curricular activities. A few times I had to get rides from friends – the very popular Luistro brothers, Kim and Gianni, of the UPLB soccer fame, or my sweet and very kind kabatch, Noel Cuyno ‘86.

There were days I caught the free shuttle to IRRI then took that wooden trolley contraption locals ride along the train tracks, and walked the rest of the way to Pleasantville. You go from the long line of trees along Ipil Drive to IRRI, then get a very good panoramic view of the experimental rice fields backdropped by the mountains of Mt. Makiling and Mt. Banahaw, and even Mt. Cristobal. The trolley ride was truly an experience – novel and innovative as it is, it was quite fun to have the wind in your hair. That is, until a train comes along and you all have to get off the tracks to let it pass since the train does have the right-of-way. The real challenge is managing not to get sucked in by the train rushing by. You have to cling to the tall grasses at the sides for dear life until then.

Either way, whether I take the Animal Science route or the long IRRI road, those walks usually treated me to the wonder of flying exotic birds, a rabbit crossing the road, or an occasional snake during rainy season. It was also there I learned to navigate by the weather…watching out for the dark clouds hovering above to decide which route I would be taking so I won’t be soaked by the sudden rain. Until now, I still watch out for cloudy days and time my trips accordingly because I hate getting caught in the rains.

Those days you could still hitch a ride from the vehicles going to and from IRRI, when we used hand-signals to indicate to jeepneys where we want to go, when UPLB was a close-knit community where most people are connected and know each other from somewhere, somehow. We were safe and secure, and the worst that could happen was getting recruited to become NPA rebels…that, or experiencing those notorious paranormal incidents UPLB is so famous for. Yes, those were the times when there wasn’t any Mayor Sanchez and his goons, or drug-related rape cases.

After my first year, deciding that I had adjusted well enough, I opted to move to an on-campus dormitory. I managed to get a slot at the foremost Co-Ed dorm, then-called “Men’s Dorm” because it used to be solely for male students. Of course, there were all-girls dorms on campus, like the neighboring Women’s Dorm and St. Therese dorm run by the local parish nuns. But I really wanted to experience the whole Hollywood teeny-bopper college campus life for real and luckily when a sorority sister graduated, I got her token space in the so-called Sigma Deltan room at Men’s.

When I was at my relatives, all I had to worry about was budgeting my weekly allowance and getting home after classes. But at the dorm, I had to budget my allowance for food, my transportation back to Manila, getting to my classes on time, and managing my extra-curricular hours responsibly. I was really on my own, and had to act like a mature adult. During the 1987 and 1989 coup d’etats, we got stranded in UPLB because Metro Manila was in chaos. We had to do our own laundry, scrounge enough extra cash to feed ourselves, and manage to home to Quezon City.

Prior to UP Los Banos, I didn’t know how to commute using public transport. Now, I had to learn to take the bus to and from Laguna. Back then, the premier busline was BLTB (Batangas, Laguna, Tayabas Buslines) of the Potenciano family. Eventually the company folded, and my alternatives were Kapalaran and Superlines plying the whole Laguna and Quezon route. While there were a few aircon buses, mostly it was ordinary, open-window commuters that you catch from Crossing. In summer, it was either you suffocate in the heat inside the bus or keep the windows open and let your face take all the G-Force of SLEX.

If not for the BLTB Pasay route, I sometimes had to take the Lawton trip and get off at the Metropolitan Theater in Manila for a Project 2-3 jeepney. Otherwise, I get off at Alabang for an EDSA bus transfer to Quezon City, usually a Monumento or Fairview-bound trip. Once in QC, I either get off in Cubao or at the corner of Kamias-EDSA. I had to learn these routes and transfers the hard way, because I made a few wrong rides too.

But I remember the Dairy Training and Research Institute (DTRI) milk I used to drink on those long bus trips. The shing-a-ling (local fried noodles) being peddled by vendors hopping on and off the buses, along with an assortment of commercial buko pies, espasol, banana or kamote fritters, etc. My sister, Giselle soon learned about kwek-kwek, those orange-covered eggs that you dip into vinegar, deep-friend day-old chicks, and pansit habhab at those bus terminals too.

Getting around the CALABARZON area with our friends, my sister, Giselle and I were soon introduced to the tradition of fiestas in these parts. Besides parish-led activities, most towns have other festivities that include feeding majority of visitors to their place. As s guest, you are invited to most homes even if they don’t know you and you are obliged to sample their dishes. One thing we noticed during these “culinary rounds” was that most houses served the classic pansit bihon, menudong Tagalog, and fruit salad.

These local delicacies and simple fare soon grew on me, and without the fast food cuisine we got so used to in the city, these were welcome changes. I learned to exchange my favorite Coca-cola for fresh milk, began to like buko pie and local breads from the bakery instead of burgers and pizza, and those long, necessary walks actually did wonders for my legs and gluteus maximus.

But the thing I really loved the most about my Laguna days, was the clean, fresh air, the amazing greenery surrounding you, a closeness to nature that I will always have an affinity for. Nowadays, I take the opportunity to drop by UP Diliman for a regular dose of nature. Sometimes, I get lucky enough to have the time to visit La Mesa Ecopark or the Parks and Wildlife Park of QC.

Every so often, I still trek to Los Banos to reconnect with my past, commune with nature, and to simply ground myself. For it was there I did a lot of growing up. It was there I found, and keep finding myself, when I feel lost and in need of some peace. Most of all, in that valley by Mt. Makiling, I keep finding focus and direction.

0 notes

chocopurplemint · 5 years

Text

0 notes

krrw2020 · 6 years

Text

Teacher Reycel: Tale of a multigrade educator

FULFILLING FEAT. Multi-grade teacher Reycel R. Jugo poses with her students. Teacher Reycel strongly believes that a public school teacher can transform a whole nation by focusing more on what the Filipino learners can achieve, less on issues that hound the public education system. (Photo by DepEd Region 2)

MANILA -- A multigrade classroom, where learners of various ages and grade levels are combined, especially in geographically challenged areas and where enrollment rates are low, is not exactly the ideal nor familiar set-up for learning and teaching.

For 40-year-old Reycel R. Jugo, however, multigrade teaching is not only the greatest challenge in her career as a teacher; it is also her most fulfilling and significant accomplishment.

In 2011, Teacher Reycel started as a multigrade teacher in a far-flung area in the municipality of Tanay, Rizal. As a novice educator handling multi-level pupils combined in one class, she had to cope with the daunting challenges of teaching in a diverse classroom, and nurturing learners of different ages, behavior, and learning abilities.

Teacher Reycel did her homework and so much more. She read a lot of books for her to understand how multigrade teaching works. After voluminous readings and consultations with other teachers who handled multigrade classes, she was able to fine-tune her teaching style.

As she immersed herself in the community where transportation is not favorable, she became even more determined to master her craft so she can make a difference in the lives of her learners.

“Being a multigrade teacher is like having special powers,” Teacher Reycel shared. “You target several competencies in one execution.”

Because of her hard work and dedication, Teacher Reycel has been recommended for a scholarship program intended for multigrade teachers at the University of the Philippines Diliman, where she acquired various pedagogical approaches and strategies. After completing the program, she was transferred to a monograde school. Her heart remained in multigrade so she opted to be reassigned in Aguho Elementary School in Tanay.

She became a national curriculum writer and designer of teaching-learning materials for monograde, multigrade, and Indigenous People’s Education program (IPEd). She juggles teaching, facilitating, planning, evaluating, researching, networking with the community and other stakeholders, and even training 43 multigrade and IPEd teachers in Rizal.

Among her innovations are research-based localization and contextualization of educational materials, which integrate government thrusts, such as climate change, financial literacy, culture and the arts, and conservation of natural resources. Her Self-Learning Kit in Science was published by Prudence Foundation under Plan International, and is widely used in their province.

Being a full-time classroom teacher with several ancillary tasks, she still devotes time to integrate the latest technology in her multigrade classroom despite the remoteness of their school, which relies on solar panels.

Teacher Reycel is an educator who wears so many hats, wielding knowledge and skills with her big heart at the forefront of her battle against illiteracy. She is a fixed presence in demonstration teachings in the national, regional, division, and district levels, and known for her knowledge-oriented yet compassionate approach.

She reaped numerous distinctions with barely seven years in service. The year 2017 proved to be the peak of her success when she was recognized as the Most Outstanding Multigrade Teacher, the Gurunasyon Outstanding Elementary School Teacher in the Province of Rizal, and the Gawad Kampilan Most Outstanding Teacher (Elementary Level).

She also received the Gawad Pagkilala in Edukasyong Multigrade, and was a finalist in the Regional Search for Gawad Patnugot Most Outstanding Elementary Teacher in DepEd Region IV-A. This year, she was also a regional awardee in the 2018 Civil Service Commission (CSC) Pag-Asa Award Category.

“Teaching, for me, is a blessing because I can help so many souls, who hunger for knowledge and wisdom. It is an amazing and rewarding feeling to see my pupils learn and improve. It is priceless--knowing that I’ve made a positive difference in their lives,” she enthused.

She strongly believes that a public school teacher can transform a whole nation by focusing more on what the Filipino learners can achieve, and less on issues that hound the public education system. (DepEd Region 2/Romel B. Costales, Education Program Supervisor)

#philippines #pilipinas #pinoy #filipino #phnews #pinas #noypi #pilipino

0 notes

dotharmonica · 7 years

Text

On Tuos

We watched Tuos last thursday. I didn’t finish my time at work so we could reach Diliman on time, but the film was not very good in terms of content, though the visual work was impressive enough.

The content told of the story of a Binukot Princess Pina-Ilog who was to be succeeded by a young girl, Dowokan. I did not like this move because it was too obvious, that the values of today would win over the values of yesterday, and in the form of premarital sex. Why does premarital sex have to be the key to the break away from tradition? Couldn’t it be any other form? I have nothing against premarital sex but then I thought this was too obvious as a choice. They had to give it away to make and a lighted scene of the sex scene, with the upper bodies of the character in full light, I thought what was different from the conventional sex scenes done in the dark, but then this brilliantly staged scene did not work for the content of the story. The Binukot would end up killing their ancestral spirit in the hospital, the spirit being portrayed as a demon, no less. … The demon is part of the mythlogical explanation for why there was a Binukot, who was apparently the sacrificial lamb for the angered spirit living in a bamboo that was destrayed by the human ancestors of the Panayon, if I am not mistaken. He split open a bamboo (buriraw) filled with gold, but then this bamboo was the home of the spirit, with seven long finger nails, who was ready to kill the ancestor for the offense. The ancestor promised to offer his daughter to the spirit to appease it but then he offered other women, the spirit knew this of course, they couldn’t hide anything from the spirit, and so from then on, the whole community had to sacrifice virginal women for the spirits, the women also had the role of telling such stories during important occasions and ceremonies, such as weddings, to which they are not allowed to be part of as the bride, but only as the Binukot, who was the most stunning dancer in such occasions and who would also tell these tales to the people. The Binukot is also a healer. She shouldn’t be seen or touched by others except her women assistants. There are many hanging details in this film such as the assistant of the Binukot, who killed an animal, a bird or a cat at the start of the film, but did not get past this violent streak of an image, except when she was just crying all the time that the Binukot was sick, and when that Binukot was being sent to the hospital due to the will of Dowokan, this assistant lady was nowhere to be found. The mother of Dowokan was also missing in the story as well as the reason why she was not chosen and why if she was not chosen by the spirits, she did not live with the Binukot and her own daughter. Who was the father of Dowokan. The Binukot acts like a conflicted old grandmother. Enacting her role as guardian and agent of tradition, refusing to allow Dowokan to read magazines, but also very calmly, silently being understanding of Dowokan’s refusal of this tradition, such as when she quietly walks away from the forest where she saw her grand daughter choose to defy tradition and make love to a young man, despite expectations of society and propriety. So, this Binukot gets”raped” also by the spirits and as punishment for this encroachment, she gets wounds on inner thighs, as if the spirit monster lashed her, wish it seemingly did by making the doggy style with her. By the end of this film, Dowokan carried the Binukot to the town with the new hospital, they cross the mountains as they carry in a big woven sling the binukot… the sling of course gets broken somewhere in the forest and the binukot had to be attached to a karabao… and just when they were about to deliver her to the hospital untouched as per tradition, they suddently forget about this rule, and the young man to which Dowokan has had premarital sex with, carries her onto a wheelchair. In the middle of the night, the Binukot wakes up in her hospital bed, the spirit visits her, showing her a visual presentation of their tradition and moving as if to “get” or “kill” Dowokan, we don’t know because Binukot gets up, fights him, and kills him for good, saying “damn you!”

In the morning, she is well, they go to the beach and for the first time, she steps to feel the sand of the beach, walks towards the water, turns around for the camera, and smiles her mona lisa smile…

What is this film trying to tell to us?

For the young people, do what your “heart” tells you to do. And for tradition, go fuck yourself?

Obviously it leaves many details out of the Panay narrative, that is for sure, Dr. Magos has written volumes of their recorded oral tradition… and that’s just the oral part, which isn’t even finished yet. So such a short film cannot be said to represent the heart of the Binukot culture, or maybe even anything about it, since the film is intently trying to break away from tradition, without learning what it really is, what it was for… it was as if the Binukot tradition is one of those nonsense activities did in the past which was obviously too out of place in today’s modernity and premarital sexual rites and etc. that it had to be dismantled through youthful acts of angst and lack of understanding….

I may be harsh on this, but I think I may read the mythology and make a more coherent critique of this film.

13.02.2017.

#EatingFilms

0 notes

iskoolblues-blog · 9 years

Text

Kwentong UP

By Kimberly C. Villegas

UP people, no matter how diverse its population is, are bound by the inherent characteristics of Filipinos with which we pride ourselves with. Some of those are creativity, humor, and belief in superstitions and spirits, the result of which are UP Diliman tales that a typical Filipino would more often than not believe or confuse as facts.

Freshies are the most innocent and gullible when it comes to such stories, and knowing them before a naughty senior student tells them to you exaggeratedly would somehow help you manage to brush them off and just laugh at them.

But how true are they?

1. FPJ, Sr. is Oble.

Everybody kept spreading it, but no one barely even knows why or when exactly was Fernando Poe Sr. "chosen" as model for The Oblation. Or, the proper phrasing is, why or when exactly was the name of Poe Sr. dragged into the creation story of The Oblation. Even up to this day, no one could really explain how the rumor started. The only sure thing is that Poe Sr. was a student in UP during the time that National Artist Guillermo Tolentino, who was then a professor at the UP School of Fine Arts, was creating Oble.

Yes, you read it right. Poe's clan might be a family of good body genes, but the credit for Oble's physical features should not be given to Poe.

(left to right) Virgilio Raymundo, Guillermo Tolentino, Anastacio Caedo

photo courtesy of up.edu.ph

According to a book written and designed by the late UP Diliman College of Fine Arts Prof. Rodolfo Paras-Perez entitled Tolentino, Oble is a product of the combination of two not-so-popular men: Prof. Anastacio Caedo, who was then Tolentino’s student assistant, and Virgilio Raymundo, brother of Tolentino's wife Paz Raymundo-Tolentino. Oble's physique was modeled after Prof. Caedo; the proportion, from Raymundo.

Even the other Oblation statues, especially their facial features, were patterned after Prof. Caedo's. UP Open University (UPOU) Chancellor Grace Javier Alfonso, who was a graduate of UPD College of Fine Arts, created the Oblation statues located at the UPOU Headquarters in Los Baños, Laguna; the UP Manila (UPM)-Philippine General Hospital compound; the UPM School of Health Sciences in Palo, Leyte; and the UPM School of Health Sciences in Koronadal, South Cotabato. In her message to UP Newsletter, Alfonso recalled her then professor Caedo telling her to remember that he was the model for the Oblation. As she created the other Obles, she kept on checking and re-checking the facial features, and told the UP Newsletter, “it really looks like him.”

2. The Sunken Garden is really sinking.

Photo courtesy of KoolBeep

Before you panic and pack your bags away from UPD, let me tell you this: IT IS NOT SINKING. So for the incoming freshies out there who are planning to join a tour for freshies, you now have an immunity from the wrongly-informed senior students who would say that the Sunken Garden is sinking at a rate of 1-10cm a year.

The rumor is due to another rumor: a fault line, which many believes as the West Marikina Valley Fault, runs through the campus' Academic Oval, hitting the Sunken Garden. In an interview with the UP Newsletter, Prof. Alfredo Mahar Francisco A. Lagmay of UPD National Insititute of Geological Sciences shares the story that sparked the myth.

Geology students under Prof. Ernesto P. Sonido’s class were tasked to survey the Diliman campus. One or more of the students, while studying the shape of the Sunken Garden, came up with the idea that its shape could be explained by a fault line running under it. As to why the idea was passed on from generation to generation, no one could explain.

Prof. Lagmay begs to disagree, as the Marikina Valley Fault is actually 2 1/2 to 3 km away from UP. And although there are faults running across the campus, none of them directly hit the Academic Oval.

photo courtesy of up.edu.ph

There are also no studies that show that the Sunken Garden and the library are really sinking. The reason why the Sunken Garden is sunken, Prof. Lagmay theorizes, is the campus waterway system. In an interview with the UP Newsletter, Lagmay pointed out a creek from Philcoa, which goes into the UP campus, passes through the lagoon, is split into two around the area of the Main Library, and cuts through the sides of the Sunken Garden. That creek, as Prof. Lagmay suspects, was filled with soil, forcing the water to divert from its original flow.

3. Pose with Oblation, postpone your graduation.

Photo courtesy of halboor.com

"Wala namang mawawala kung maniniwala ako, hindi ba?"

If you, however, did not believe that a photo with Oble will cast a curse upon your supposedly 4 or 6 years in UP, you will lose one important thing: on-time graduation.

People in UP are intellectual beings, yet their Filipino blood with a tint of mapamahiin trait make them ignore the fact that this belief has no scientific basis. No one knows how or when this myth started spreading around but its popularity is so high that the tale has reached the other UP campuses.

"Mahirap makapasok, pero mas mahirap makalabas," is a saying that most of the UP students could conclude and relate to. But don't blame it on Oble, because if there is someone who could affect the length of your stay in UP, it is you and how you strive to meet the high academic standards of your beloved State University.

4. An Ikot ride at midnight.

If the previous tales have a touch of humor and creativity, this one has horror and goosebumps-inducing possibility.

An iska was on her way to her dorm one late night and found herself alone in an Ikot jeep. Nearing the dormitory, the iska shouted "para po!", but the driver only glanced at her in the rearview mirror and continued driving. They wheeled through the dark and silent streets of the campus--a route that the iska could not recognize. Finally, they made a turn and the driver dropped her off directly in front of her dorm. Mildly shaken, the iska hurriedly left the jeep, but the driver called after her and instructed her to burn her clothes as soon as she gets home. It turned out that the driver took a different route to ward off the evil spirits that could be following her. Why?

"Pagtingin ko kasi kanina sa salamin, wala kang ulo."

#tips #urban legends #myths #up diliman tales #ghost stories #FPJ Sr #oble #oblation #sunken garden #marikina valley fault #west marikina valley fault #graduation #ikot #feature

0 notes