1.

ANG PAGONG AT ANG MATSING (THE TURTLE AND THE MONKEY)

*SUMMARY OF THE STORY
Once upon a time, in a forest, there lived a turtle and a monkey, and the two of
them are friends. After a typhoon struck their place, the two of them went out to find
some food until they reached the riverside wherein, they saw a banana tree floating on
the river. Now, since the monkey seems to be wise, or so he thought, took the part with
leaves, and the turtle was left with no choice but to have the bottom part of the banana
tree for himself. The monkey planted it in his backyard and the turtle did the same for
his part. But because the part the monkey got had no roots, it died, while the one that
the turtle planted grew and sprouted leaves because it has roots. After a few weeks, it
was finally bearing fruit.
When the fruits ripened, coincidentally, the monkey passed by, and when he saw
that the turtle's banana tree had bear fruits, he faked a cry and said that his plant died
and the animals in the forest would laugh at him and make fun of him. The monkey then
offered that he will be the one who will climb up the tree to get the fruit since the turtle
can't reach it. The turtle agreed and offered to give him half of the fruits as a sign of
gratitude. The monkey immediately climbed up the tree and when he reached the fruit,
he immediately peeled the bananas and began eating them while the turtle was clueless
because he couldn't see what was happening above. The turtle wondered because
banana peels have started to fall and warned the monkey about it because he might get
slipped when he gets down. When the turtle was able to look up and see what was
happening, there he saw that the monkey was already eating the fruits from his tree. He
begged to have some of the fruits but the monkey was selfish and insisted that he
should have it all because he is very hungry. The turtle ran out of patience and as he
looked around, he saw a plant that has thorns, he picked those thorns, nailed them on
the trunk of the banana tree, and went to hide under a coconut shell. Now, when the
monkey felt so full, he came down from the tree and got himself hurt by the thorns. He
sat down on the coconut shell to tend his wounds, and since the turtle was hiding under
the coconut shell, he had the opportunity to bite the monkey's tail, and so he did.
The monkey learned that the turtle was hiding under the coconut shell and he
wanted to take revenge. He told the turtle that he would grill him but the turtle told him
that his skin would just look more beautiful when heated. So, the monkey just told him
that he will chop the turtle finely, but the turtle laughed and told the monkey that if he
would do such a thing, the turtle would just multiply instead of die. So, the monkey
thought of other ways to seek revenge. He then told the turtle that he would throw him
into the river so that he will drown. The turtle told him that he doesn't want to be thrown
into the river because he will drown and die. So, the monkey held the turtle by his tail
and threw him into the river, but instead of drowning, the turtle floated swam happily and
played with the water. The monkey thought that he is wise, but in the end, it was proved
in the story that the turtle is wiser.
*MORAL LESSON OF THE STORY
This story entitled "Ang Pagong at ang Matsing" has been one of my favorite
stories since I was a kid, and this has been the very first story my grandma read to me
when I was young.
This story teaches us very important life lessons. First, it teaches us to use our
abilities to do good and help others instead of taking advantage of other people, we
have special skills that we could use to help our neighbors and respect them instead of
taking advantage of them. Second, this story teaches us that every wrong action has a
negative consequence. The quote "what comes around, goes around" could be applied
in this because the monkey did something bad, and in the end, he received
consequences for his actions. Lastly, this fable teaches us that we should not be greedy
and boastful, especially to our friends and even to those who need our help, we should
learn to share instead of being selfish, and we should think about other people too.

2. SI MARIANG MAKILING
*SUMMARY
Once upon a time, in Mt. Makiling (Bundok Makiling), there lived a beautiful fairy
named Mariang Makiling, who has brown skin, round eyes, and long black hair. She is
usually seen wandering around the forest or resting near the lake where the people
would usually hear her melodic and angelic voice. According to the elderly, Mariang
Makiling was the one who was tasked to guard the mountain that was named after her.
Even though she looks simple, she has many expensive clothes and diamonds. She
lets people borrow some of her things in exchange for a chicken, and that's how kind
the fairy of the mountain is.
One time, a hunter got lost in the forest while chasing a wild boar. He got
surprised when Mariang Makiling appeared right in front of him. She told him that she
owns the wild boar and that he should stop chasing it and that he should go with her
instead. The hunter followed Mariang Makiling and they went to her home. There he
had a meal and took some rest. When he was about to go home, Mariang Makiling
handed him some pieces of ginger which she said came from her garden. She told the
hunter to give it to his wife. When the hunter got home, he was surprised when his
salakot (native hat) became very heavy, and when he looked at it, the pieces of ginger
turned into gold. But according to rumors, not everyone gets rewarded by the fairy.
One day, there were two hunters carrying lots of meat from the deer and wild
boar that they captured in the forest. As they were on their way home, Mariang Makiling
disguised as an old woman and appeared in front of them. She begged for food from
the hunters to test their kindness to those in need, but the hunters didn't help her, but
instead, they just ignored her and went on their way. Later that night, while the hunters
were having their rest, they heard a scary voice like that of a howling monster, they saw
a scary creature with very sharp fangs, and then it ate the meat that they caught during
the day. According to the elderly, that was also Mariang Makiling who disguised as a
scary monster.
She is kind to those who are kind. Many people have been abusing the forest,
and this is the reason why Mariang Makiling no longer appears to human beings.
Others have said that there's another reason why Mariang Makiling no longer
appears in the forest. It was said that the guy whom Mariang Makiling loved was set to
marry another woman whom he doesn't love just because of an arranged marriage. The
two of them met for the last time, and after that, Mariang Makiling finally disappeared.
Though sometimes, according to some natives, they can still hear the voice of Mariang
Makiling, especially during the rainy season and it seems like she is weeping because
even though she is very powerful, she still can't have the man that she loves so dear.

*MORAL LESSON OF THE STORY

This story teaches us that we should do good at all times because if we do good,
then we will be rewarded with good things, on the other hand, if we do bad things, then
we will receive a punishment for it, so we must keep in mind that there will always be a
consequence of anything we do. The outcome will be determined by how excellent or
poor our actions and decisions are. I believe in the law of karma, which states that
anything you do will probably come back to you. We must first consider what motivates
our activities and how we interact with others. Another thing that we can learn from the
story is that we shouldn’t abuse the environment, and instead, we should take good
care of it.

3. ANG KUWENTO NG GAMU-GAMU

*SUMMARY
This story happened when Rizal was still a young boy. Doña Teodora, his
mother, was his first teacher. She was the one who read books to Rizal and taught him
how to read. One time, when Doña Teodora was reading something to the young Rizal,
she noticed that Rizal was not paying attention to what she is reading and got distracted
when he saw a moth flying around the lamp, so her mother began to tell him a story
about a young moth and its mother.
There was a young moth who is very fond of watching the light that is coming
from the lamp. The young moth always likes to draw near the lamp. He always gets
amazed by the light it produces but then the mother of the young moth warned him and
told him to stay away from the lamp because it produces a flame that could burn its
wings. His mother added that he shouldn't get dazzled by the light because it could put
him in danger and told the young moth to go home. But one night, while the mother was
not around, the young moth got tempted by the light that the lamp produces and so he
insisted to go near the lamp, forgetting what his mother warned him about the lamp. The
young moth draws nearer to the light from the lamp until one of its wings finally got
burned by the flame. The mother of the young moth arrived just when the young moth
fell into the table because he couldn't anymore fly.
Rizal's mother told him to listen to her and obey what she is saying so that he
wouldn't be burned just like what happened to the young moth.

*MORAL LESSON OF THE STORY

This story is one of the most popular stories about Jose Rizal’s childhood. This story
simply teaches us that we should obey our mothers because they know what’s best for
us and that our mothers are always after our safety and welfare. When I was a kid, my
mother also told me to refrain from doing certain things, and before, I didn’t understand
why I wasn’t allowed and why does my mother have so many rules for me to follow, but
now that I have already grown up, I have understood that our mothers want nothing but
our safety. Our mothers are considered the light on our path, they guide and lead us in
our lives, keep us safe, and help us stay on the right path. Just like how the mother of
the young moth wanted him to stay away from the lamp to avoid having him burned and
how Donya Teodora wanted Rizal to listen attentively to her so that he will learn, every
mother out there also wants what is good for their children, and I hope that children
would also listen and obey to what their mother is telling them, because as what my
mother would always tell me, “Inday, wala’y mama nga gusto nga naa’y kadaot
mahitabo sa ilang anak. Buhaton jud sa mama ang tanan nga makaayo sa ilang anak.
Mao na pamati mo namo.”

4. ANG PAG-AARAL NI RIZAL SA BIÑAN

*SUMMARY
Jose Rizal was eight years old when his older brother, Paciano, sent him to
Biñan, Laguna to study. While they were on their way, Paciano cheered Rizal and told
him that he could it even if he would be living far away from his family. He even told his
younger brother to do well in his studies.
The school wherein Paciano brought Rizal was one that was established by his
old teacher named Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz who is very skilled and competent
in speaking Spanish. Maestro was a great teacher but he is strict and is a severe
disciplinarian. There was a time wherein Maestro beat Rizal using a stick because when
asked if Rizal knew how to speak Spanish and Latin, his answers were all "a little, sir".
Rizal was also often bullied by his classmates, and one time, he fought back,
challenged a bully into a fight, and the bully readily accepted, thinking that he could
easily beat the young Jose who was way smaller and shorter than him. But since Jose
was trained by his Tio Manuel on how to wrestle, he was able to defeat the bully and
won the fight. Because of this, the young Jose Rizal became popular among his
classmates.
Many of Rizal's classmates envied him, that is why they make fabricated stories
about him which caused Maestro Justiniano to punish him because of a sin he didn't
commit. One student asked him why he doesn't get mad whenever he receives
punishments, and Rizal told him that even if he gets punished because of the mistakes
that he had never done, the important thing is that he faced the challenges that were set
before him. And instead of holding grudges, Rizal focused on his studies. He was also
given free lessons in painting and drawing. In the end, the young Jose beat all the Biñan
boys wherein he became the top student in his class.

*MORAL LESSON OF THE STORY

The first lesson that we can get from the story is that we should be humble, but
we should also learn to fight for ourselves especially when we know that we’re not doing
anything wrong. In the story, young Jose is being bullied but he eventually learns to fight
for himself, and something that we can learn from this is that it is okay for us to show up
humbly in front of other people but we shouldn’t let them abuse us, but instead, we
should fight for ourselves, the same way Jose Rizal fought for our country when he
grew up through his articles and novels. Another thing that we could learn from the story
is that we should learn to be resilient and to face whatever challenges that are set
before us no matter how difficult they might be and that the only thing that matters the
most is that we show up and take the challenge. Lastly, another important lesson that
we can from the story is that we can still succeed even if we start slow, because in the
story, Rizal only knows a little about the lessons in his class when he got asked by his
maestro, but in the end, Rizal topped his class and became the best student among his
classmates.
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I just want to share a thought :)
Among the four stories that were shown in the video, this story is the one which I
could relate to the most because when I was in kindergarten, I was bullied by some of
my classmates, they would laugh at me and make fun of me even if I haven’t done
anything wrong towards them. Most of my classmates who bullied me went to nursery,
meanwhile, I skipped kindergarten and my mother eventually enrolled me in
kindergarten because instead of going to nursery class, I was just taught by my
grandmother at home, who is also a retired elementary teacher. The same with young
Jose, I also started slow, wherein like him, I only knew very little about the lessons, but
despite starting slow and getting bullied by my classmates, I did well in my studies, and
I am proud to say that also the same Rizal, the school year ended with me being the top
student of our class. I graduated kindergarten being the class Valedictorian despite
starting slow and despite all the bullying that was done to me by my classmates. This
personal experience that I had made me somehow relate to the story of Rizal during the
time he studied in Biñan.