FOOD AND DRINKS OF THE ANCIENT FILIPINOS

Rice was the staple food of the ancient Filipinos. They cooked it in pots
and in bamboos. Our forefathers diet included also various species of fish
caught in rivers and lakes; meat from carabaos, deer, hogs, chickens and edible
birds; vegetables, tubers like sweet potato, spices like pepper and garlic; and
fruits like bananas, oranges, guavas and mangoes.
There were also many kinds of wine and drinks on the islands. The tuba
which was taken from the coconut palms was the champagne of the early
Filipinos. Among the popular wines were the Visayan pangasi, fermented from
rice; the Visayan gauilang distilled from sugar cane and the igorot tapuy, taken
from rice.
Although the early Filipinos were heavy drinkers, they seldom lost their
senses when drunk. They only became lively, talkative and witty when
intoxicated. Even after a heavy drink, their hands never trembled and they
could manage to weigh their gold correct!

SUPERSTITIONS
Please tell us about some of our superstitious beliefs, Grandmother,
pleaded Elvi as she saw the old woman sitting by the window.We will discuss
them in the class tomorrow.
Listen and I will tell you about mans three friends. These are three
superstitious beliefs about animals, Grandma answered, putting down the
shorts she was mending.
Tell us about them, said Elvi excitedly.
One of them is the rooster who is up before dawn and crows on the
rooftops, said Grandmother. It is the biddings its master to get up and go
forth to earn his living.
The second one is the cat who announces the coming of visitor by
washing its face so it may look presentable to its masters guests.
And the third is the dog that can smell danger and death. It barks to
warn its master of the presence of any stranger who might do him harm. When
a dog howls with sorrow it is said that it smells death coming its masters way.

TELL THE TRUTH

Dont be afraid, Little Johnny, my boy,
Open the door and go in;
The longer you wait before telling your fault
The harder it is to begin.

No wonder you stand with a pitiful face

And fear the confession to make;
For you know when youre naughty the worst of it all
Is making your mothers heart ache.

Have courage, dear boy, never mind if your shoes

Are muddy and wet, and all that;
Never mind if your clothes have been terribly torn
And you have ruined your pretty new hat.

Go in like man, and tell Mother the truth

Like a brave little lad, and youll see
How happy a boy who confesses his fault,
And is truthful and honest as can be.

THE LEGEND OF LAKE BUHI

Grandmother was relating the story of Lake Buhi to her grandchildren.
According to her, Buhi was a town at bottom of the lake.
Once upon a time the people of this enchanted town lived in abundance.
But as the people became wealthy they forgot all the about God and so God
punished them. Their town sank beneath the earth overnight and in its place
there rose a beautiful lake.
When the weather was warm and clear as a mirror, it is said that one
can look down into the bottom of the lake. The people can be seen doing their
everyday tasks. Some are cultivating their lands, others are building houses
and smoke can be seen coming from the kitchen as woman cook the family
meals.
It is also said that the tiniest fish in the world, found in Lake Buhi, are
trimmings of abaca fiber as the people in the Lake continue to make hats out of
abaca for which the town was once famous.

DAY OF FREEDOM
For more than three hundred years, Spain ruled our land. The Spanish
flag flew in our and to show that the Philippines was Spains territory. Then,
the Americans came. They freed us from Spanish rule. For fifty years we were
governed by the Americans. Our flag was allowed to fly side by side with the
American flag. We were permitted to establish our own government but under
the control and supervision of the Americans.
In 1941, the Japanese invaded the Philippines. Under the Japanese, we
suffered three years of hunger, fear and misery. With the help of the
Americans, our country was freed from the Japanese invaders.
Once more, peace came to our country. The fourth of July, now known as
the Fil-American Friendship Day, marked the completion of Philippine
Independence from foreign rule. It was on the fourth of July that we were
granted total freedom.

AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN

An American soldier called Gregorio del Pilar was an officer and a
gentleman. Del Pilar was the youngest general of the Philippine revolution.
When the revolution broke out he was only seventeen. He was brave and gallant
soldier. He was only twenty four years old when he died fighting at Tirad Pass.
Gregorio del Pilar was born in Bulacan, Bulacan. He was a nephew of
Marcelo H. del Pilar. He became the favorite of General Emilio Aguinaldo who
took the very young soldier with him wherever he went. When the fighting
between the Americans and the Filipinos became intense, General Emilio
Aguinaldo had to retreat to the mountains. General del Pilar and his sixty men
stood at Tirad Pass to cover the retreat. The narrow pass was in Palanan,
Isabela. Three hundred American soldiers fought against del Pilars sixty men.
But del Pilar and his men fought bravely until a bullet stuck him dead.

ABELENS, A NEW MOUNTAIN TRIBE

The Abelens are small people, almost of pygmy size. The average height of
a grown up girls four feet and a young man about four feet and eight inches.
They are entirely different from the Negritoes among whom they have lived for a
thousands of years. Abelens have long straight hair, not curly like that of the
Negritoes. Their complexion is light brown much lighter than the dark distinct
red tint on their hair. Their eyes are brown. Their features are fine. They are
quite a savage people. they used to make drinking cups from skulls of their
enemies. Although they know the Negrito language, the Abelens have a
language of their own.

THE HOMING PIGEONS

During the first World War, both the army and the navy felt a great need
for some way to send messages back to their headquarters. Sometimes a
tornadoed ship needed to send wireless message to land. Men in a sinking ship
were lost unless a passing ship chanced upon them. Batallions sent out on
scouting trips were sometimes gunned down by enemies. A soldier sent with a
message for help was oftentimes caught. Even messengers in airplanes were
not safe. The enemy usually shot the planes and kept the messengers as
prisoners. So, pigeons were trained as messengers. They have strong love for
their homes. Most of the birds move from one home to another but the pigeons
have one home to which they always return. Pigeons even when taken away far
from home, always fly swiftly back to their habitations.

THE LOBSTER AND THE CRAB

One day Lobster and Crab met.

I have ten claws, boasted Crab. I am the great Crab which the land people
like best to eat. We, crabs are covered with head shield.
We are knight belonging to the Order of the Crustacea, cried lobster.
What does that mean? asked Crab.
Crustacea means covered with a crust or shell, explained Lobster.
It is the same with us said Crab. Our claws and bodies are made of
rings of shell joined together by sockets. We use our claws for walking and for
tearing our food.
Land people like to eat us, said Lobster. When we are cooked, we turn
into a bright red color but in the water, we are green.

A LETTER OF INVITATION

26 del Pilar Street

Sampaloc, Manila
March 15, 2004
Dear Nina,
My parents are going to give a party on the evening of my graduation,
March 29. It will be held in our house on del Pilar Street. Please come and
bring along your brother, Milo, and your sister, Ester. My father has prepared
some very exciting parlor games which I am sure you and your sister and
brother will enjoy. There will be also a program prepared by my elder sister,
Nora. The party starts at six oclock. You can go home at nine so you will have
plenty of time to enjoy the party. We are hoping to see you all.

Your friend,
Gina