BABA MARSO AND HIS SACK

In the small town of Sulat, in the time where a few number of stubborn children were raised and left
astray in the streets to play and chase themselves, one young boy was known to his neighbors for
starting any game he can think of even at the middle of the night. His name is Beboy but was baptised as
Fernando. Even if his parents reprimanded him from going out in the streets to play, Beboy seemed to
be living in his own little world full of play, magic, and adventure. After each meal, he would gather his
playmates to start another set of adventures until their dirty little feet would soar and one child will
start wailing to the top of his voice because he felt he was cheated.

Yet nothing can drag Beboy out of his world to obey his parents. He would play endlessly from sunrise to
sundown, stopping only to eat his meal. Even if his friends have already left to take a bath and rest, he
would remain playing with anything.

His mother, Cresing, worries that his son will again receive a handful of spank from his father for not
following his orders. It had occurred several times before. One afternoon, arriving exhausted from farm
works, Silvano found the coconut leaves still scattered at the back of their hut. He asked Beboy to keep
them in a corner before he left in the morning so that it will not be sundried. But the child has been
preoccupied with his plays that he forgot what his father had told him.

“Beboy... Beboy… Will you stop playing and look at what you’ve done?” shouted his father.

But Beboy has not heard his father calling. Silvano, arriving with a huge midrib approached his son with
a loud spank that even his friends could feel the pain.

“Make sure to rush to the house when your parents are calling you. We were not shouting your
name for nothing. What have I told you this morning?”

Beboy could not answer. He was terribly crying from the pain.

“I told you to keep the leaves this morning. I will be making midribs out of them. But have you
done? You left in the ground and now they are too dry. How can I be able to sell them?”

But Beboy only answered in silent whispers and continued wiping his eyes with his dirty sando.

Being a child that he is, Beboy has not yet learned his lessons. So this incident has happened a few times
more. Cresing have nothing against his son playing since he wants him to enjoy his childhood. All he
wanted was for the child to take a nap in the afternoon so that he may grow taller and wiser as what her
kumadre told her. Also she feared that his son will be abducted by Baba Marso, a filthy, long bearded
old man with long curly hair who has been travelling around the town carrying a soiled sack where he
places stubborn children. A few other children from nearby towns have been captured by the old man
and were made to learn their lesson by living for days without their parents. Because of this story, other
children became afraid to play in the afternoon.
Not wanting to be away from her only child for long, Cresing tried to keep her child at home after lunch
by promising him some rewards like his favourite candies. Beboy would pretend to be asleep after
receiving his candies. But when he sees that his mother has fallen asleep, he would run to the streets
and play alone because his playmates refused to play with him in fear of the old man. Beboy did not
believe such stories and continued playing. Unfortunately, Baba Marso was walking along the streets
that afternoon. He saw Beboy playing with bricks of stones and throwing mud to topple the “palaces”
down.

“What are you doing in the streets? Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping now?” asked the old
man.

Because he did not recognize the figure, Beboy continued playing with his “war”. Irritated from being
ignored, he grabbed Beboy’s legs and turned him upside down.

“Your parents should have told you how to respect the elders.”

“Who are you? What are you doing to me?”

“Now you will learn your lesson”.

Baba Marso hid him inside his sack while no one else was seeing. He walked through the streets
innocently and proceeded to his hut. There he will teach Beboy how to respect people and following his
parents’ orders.

Cresing woke up without the sight of his son. She immediately rushed to the streets to find his son but
Beboy was nowhere to be found. She went to her neighbor’s houses but no one can tell her where the
boy was. When Silvano arrived, Cresing hysterically told her husband about their missing child and her
suspicion. Along with their neighbors, they searched for Beboy but the child was nowhere to be found.
They also can’t find Baba Marso’s house. The couple were left crying for days.

Weeks, months, years have passed but Beboy has not yet returned. Silvano doubted that they can still
find their son. But Cresing has always been hopeful that one day they will. The two remained helpless
for years for losing their son.

No trace of Beboy has been found even after the death of his parents. Their fellow townsfolk doubted
that the child will arrive. This incident has served as a lesson for the children not to play during the
afternoons and to always obey their parents because they don’t want experience what happened to
their friend.