Moonlight Pranks

Media

Part of The Young Citizen: The Magazine for Young People

Title: Moonlight Pranks
Year: 1936
Rights
Fulltext: 278 THE YoUNd CITIZEN November, i93iJ Dear Children: We are a happy group of barrio boys who live in a farming neighborhood. We often play together during the moonlight night~. Our ages are frnm seven to thirteen years. Do you like to hear some of our exciting and interesting expe·riences? Here they are! The Playe1·s NEW MOON WHAT a night! It was All Saints' Day. We decided to go around the neighborhood to sing the traditional songs. We started late in the evening when the new moon poured forth its light on the dark shadows of the nipa houses, fields and trees. From "Ba Teb~n." the grand old man of tht? village. Luis boirowed an old guitar. He bega;.1 playing it to rh.e _tune of a religious song. We sang the song many times from one house to another. The song was li)te thiS: . List to the song of spirits Our songs of agony and pain Spirits will be wandering The graveyard to see once again. If alms you should care to ·.give -us. Please do so as fast as You can. Lest before we reach the. heaven Its· door may no longer be open MOONLIGHT By LINA M. SANTIAGO Zamora Elementary School \English Translation of ryhmes by LULU DE LA PAZ) I We foun'd our neighbors to ·be very kind and good to us. . They offered us some centavos for our songs. Ot~ers .. iiivited us -to their houses ~o enjoy spoonfuls of "guinatan," pieces of "calamay," "tinumis at puto," and some "suman" which were purposely pre· pared for the hungry little souls who traveled in the cold black night. Then we rested awhile,· returned the guitar we borrowed. and . walked our way along the Muddy road to the cemetery. Stories of ghosts and goblins crept into our imagination. We were very much afraid, so we ran as fast as we could. We reached the cemetery perspiring and cold. Our fear was lessened when we saw bright light~ everywhere in ~he place. It was coming from the "sulo" or bamboo torches locally made by th~ farmers in their homes. We went iround the graves of the young and the old. We found out that they were decorated with flowering plants and vines which looked like small gardens with white fences. Midnight was near. We heard the call of the "tuko'' or gecko coming from the bamboo thickeu around. We remembered the evil spirits that ran after children at midnight. The more we became afraid. the more we could not start for home because our little feet would not carry us farther. In our hurry to go home, we jumped into an empty cart nearby, crowded ourselves together. and suddenly fell asleep . . To our surprise, th:? next morning we found ourselves still in the cart but in another place. We all rubbed our eyes and exclaimed· "Really, did the ghosts bring us here"? "Where are we"? "Why"? 2. FIRST QUARTER WHEN the moon. was on its first quarter, W:? were very anxious to sec a "moro-moro" play. We borrowed the cart. of Mario'.!. father and the carabao of Luis' father, and off we went to town. We sat inside the roofed cart while Luis who acted as o~r guide rode on the carabao'.i back. In . order to spend the time happily, we planned to sing some country songs. ,\'(11J('Jll.bCI", J!JJ(j THE YOUNG CITIZEN 279 PRANKS Luis said, "Each one of us shall sing the song he or she likes best." "Agreed," we all shouted. "I shall begin," interrupted Luis, and he sang the words of the "Paro-parong Bukid"-(Eng· lish translation). "Flutter all the daytime Little Pretty-\Ving Flutter alI the playtime Little merry thing: Flutter from the meadow Where the path lies, There's a bit of shadow For the gay butterflies." "Thar's fine:" and we clapped our hands with delight. "Let us hear another melody. Mario shalI be the next," said I. So Mario began with the tune of "Si Ali Kong Nena": (English translation).;Farewell, my friends, I say I am going far away To see my sugar cane If it is sweet again. It may be like the cheat That has a root of sweet But at the top no taste. Indeed, a bit of waste." "Well and good," we remarked jokingly. Then we requested the other children with us lo render their contributions. They gave folksongs too. They were very pleasant to hear. Maria sang this piece: Oh Big Sister, big sis, Of San Fernando Lake Beris and Bacolod Of Manila is a' piece. "Stop!", exclaimed Luis, and he continued, "Let us hear another piece." Putting aside my shyness, I stood up, an~ sang: Leron, Leron my love, Climbed a papaya treeA basket he did take To put the ripe ones in. Bur when he reached the top, He came down with a flopOh-what a bitter luck, Go hunt for another. "Fine! Let us have another one," said Pedro. But all eyes went to him. He was expected to give a better one. So he scratched his head and said: Once as I walked along an llaya road, What would I find bur a little piece of wood. I took it horn;: with me, a guitar I made of it It was Maria who danced while Pedro played. We did not know that we had reached the ~own until Luis said, "Hrrc we are'. To the moro-moro WC go~" We went to 1hc plaza and saw the play or "comcdia" as the town people called it. There were so many people who witnessed the show. The srory was interesting. It was about a prince, a princess, several attendants, and gallant soldiers in armor. The players were brave, 'good, and truthful. There ( Co11fin11ed 1•11 JJn.ge 297) Nvvembrr, l!JJ6 THE YOUNG CITIZEN ~;;;GIRLS! ;~OF OTHER LANDS f ~ i· ~ blf gilino baldov<no g .~ .. ~ .. ~">'!'~.-."'T"'"')"'.'.,.~,..,.;."',","'~<j'#:'.,.~""'.>'."'711"'~"'>~ SIAM ':: HA VE you ever seen a Siamese in the Philippines? Perhaps you have seen one but you really do not know if it was a Siamese or a Chinese. Most Siamese look like the Chinese: some look like Malayans. Siam is a small councry located south of China. Much of the country of chis nation is a greac riv~·r delta. Siam is a rice producing councry. There are so many rice fields chac if you stand in one end cf the fields you cannot see when! they end. They resemble a great ocean of green. In this country, boys and girls have brown or yellow skins. They h~ve flat faces with high cheek bones. Their eyes are dark while their hair is straighc and black. Siam is a hot country. People who do not live in cicies wear very little clothing. And because of chis hoc climate, in some parts of th'! country, children are left alone co play with no clothes ac all. The simplest and mosc popular way of clothing oneself in chir. country is to twist a strip of colored cloch around chc waisc. Most of the Siamese houses ar:? built of teak wood. As floods arc frequent in this country. the houses are conscrucced high up on stilu. The Siamese boys are hPlpful. They help their parents in plowing the fields. Most of them take care of the water buffaloes or carabaos. The Siamese are religious. Their cemples are among the wonders of the world. Their religious ceremonies are very differenc from ours. MOONLIGHT PRANKS (Continued from vagc 279.) were many interesting sword fights accompanied with merry music. The courageous soldiers were always given their due reward. Each characcer spoke very clearly in the dialect. funny portions of the play: Love me. oh love for bold and brave one I. When each corner gets dark sending me on errands don"c cry. But when I hear the clatter of our china plates, We were very much satisfied with lhe "moro-moro" that we even re- Like lightning I run lest no more peaced some of the selections on our food be lcfc. way home. We selected only the For I am Mr. Frog. 297 Incredible, But:-ey A. B. L. R. Proporcionall y, more Filipinos during the Spanish times marry than at present. Francisco Balagtas suffered financial IOsses in the publicacion of his immortal masterpiece .. "Florance at Laura.'· Few read his book and those who read it criticized it bitterly. It was only fifty years later. When he was already dead, that the public began to appreciate and realize the greatness of "Florante at Laura." In Benguet, Mountain Province, t..;ere are caves which contain mummies placed -there in a squatting position. Those caves were used bv the mountain people as burial pl.1ces and the mummies which could still be found there prove that several hundred years ago, they already knrw the science of embalming. During the Spanish regime. on big celebrations or "fiestas." along the street which is now called Escc.lta in Manila, the Governor General and the Archbishop were escorted by a procession. This gave the name Escoltil (escort) to Manila's most famous street. During the Spanis.h times, a foreign commercial house once offered to answer for all the expenses of the Philippine government provided ic was granted the tobacco monopoly in the Islands. Son of his highness, the Count Short ~'hen I fail to drink buri sapAftcr you I s~all run amuck. I am Sir Cucumber Who went hither and thither All I'm looking forIs Sir Onion who can'c be found here. We laughed heartily at the jokes cc.,ntained in the selections. Wt?. reached home very happy.