Cadena de Amor

Title

Cadena de Amor

Creator

Reyes, Ligaya V.

Language

English

Subject

Tales -- Philippines

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

[The wind does little things like that for the little ones he loves. He fans their hot brows. He lifts up their kites. He sings them songs of streams and mountains and of the wide, wide sea. He brings them tales of little foreign children: of the little African and the fair-haired Norwegian and the snugly bundled Eskimo. And one time, he planted a Cadena de Amor for a little sick boy. ]

Fulltext

254 THE YOUNG CITIZEN October, 19/16 CADENA DE AMOR By L. .. V. R. Do you hear that? The wind is singing a lullaPy. Somewhere, there must be a little fretful baby for whom the wind is singing so sweetly. Th~ wind does little things like that for the little ones he loves. He fans their hot broWs. He lifts up thei[ kites. He sings them songs of streams and mountains and of the wide, wide sea. He brings Lhem tales of little foreign children: of the linle African and the fairhaired Norwegian and the snugly bundled Eskimo. And one time, he planted a plant for a little sick boy. The wind was roaming one evening when he saw this little sick boy. The little boy lived with his family in a poor room in a house which stood beside a di.rty street. There was a wire fence between the street and the house, but the little boy .:ould not .help seeing the dirt and the mud for th~ fence was so bare. He had been sick for such a long time that he was tired of lying in bed, and seeing the dirt and the mud did not make him feel cheerful. So that evening. as the wind was passing. the little boy cried softly. The wind stopped when he heard the weak sobs of the child. He touched the hot brow and fanned the wan cheeks, but the little boy went on sobbing. "He is so unhappy," thought the wind, "and crying is bad for sick children." The wind thought about the little boy as he shook the trees around him. He tried to blow the fragrance of the dama de noche towards the little boy's bed, but even this sweetness could not cheer him. The wind entered a rich man·s flower garden and rested there while the moon touched every flower with light. Then an idea came to him. Flowers are what the little boy need," he said to himself. "How happy he would be if I could plant some for him." So the wind went around begging the flowers for some seeds. He approached the red rose first. for the wind thought this the loveliest of flowers. "I am sorry," said the rose sweetly, "but my seeds are so carefully guarded. If you take them, I will die.'' The wind, of course, could not kill such a beautiful flo_wer, so he went to the dair..ty camia. He found out that the whole camia plant must be pulled if new flowers were to grow, and looking: at the tears upon the camia petals, the wind sighed .and left it alone. All the flowers were willing to help, but they could think. of no way to do this. At last. tired and discouraged, the wind came to thi: Cadena de Amor which grew abundantly by the back fence. Clusters of tiny flowers st~red up at the moon. whilt" the heart-shaped leaves moved to and fro, inviting the breeze. The wind gaz(!d long at the vine and said softly. "I shall not ask the Cadena de Amor. It is so big and tall that moving it and growing it will be very diff.cul t." The wind heard low laughter. He turned roun<l and round, but he could find nobody who could have laughed. Then he noticed the heavy vine shaking. and a voice, swecc and clear, drifted from it. "Silly wind," it said, "I a!11 Che plane who can help you. Do you notice the litde seeds that hang dry and brown from my sides? These little seeds can one day become great plants which will C<!VCr Lhe biggest wall and conquer the largest fence. Shake some of these little seeds and take them away. Thev will grow with little care and make your litclc friend happy and well." Octoba, J!IJ6 TI-IE YOUNG CITIZEN 255 The wind wondered at all this, but he did whilt the vine had asked. and with the tiny seeds, he blew himself off to the little sick boy's home. The littl<? sick child was asleep, buc tears still stood beneath his eyelids. The wind dropped the little seeds along the fence, and left them there. Several days !Jt('r, a row of little green things peeped out of the ground beside the fence. Thcv clung to the sunbeams which had strayed there and pulled themselves up to the first line of the wire fence. Later. they drunk in the dew of the night and put up their heads for some more. Day by day they did this, till their weak stalks grew and grew into a pretty, healthy grctn. The first leaves smiled up at the window and seemi:d to call to the little sick boy who lay on his bed, sad and tired. ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS on page 248 GRADE ONE I. 1. market 2. mango 3. a can of milk II. 1. market 2. some mangoes 3. milk GRADE TWO 1. woods 2. different 3. big 4. beautiful 5. happy GRADE THREE 1. lost 2. mother 3. policeman 4. afraid 5. kind GRADE FOUR 1. country 2. lonely 3. shady 4. no o'ne morning, the little boy looked out of hio; window. He looked first at the mud and the dirt of the street and sighed. Then he saw the row _:,f vine plants creeping up the fence. "How nice they look~ .. said the littl~ boy. and for the first time since he got sick, he smikd happily. Every morning, he watched the little vines grow. 'He saw them grow and grow until very little of th~ dirty street could be seen from the window. They grew and grew till they reached the top of the fern.:~ and covered the dirty ~trect entirely. Then one lovely morning, the boy looked out of his window to sec lhe first pink blossoms lying like jewels against the deep green of the beautiful leaves. "Mother~" he called happily. "my pla.nts have pretty flowers. They arc pink and tiny. Come and sec them." The wind heard the boy's happy cry, and he hummed to himself with pleasure. "Thz little one will soon be well," he said, "he has become so happy agam. Ye'i, the little boy grew well. He became very strong and very tall. He was. able to build a fine house. Along the fence and close to his own room. he planted se~ds from his old plant of Cadena u'<! Amor. Will you look over there? Do you sec those little flowers which smile so gayly up at th.: sun~ Those arc the great grandchildren of the first little blossoms which covered the dirr-v stw.•t anJ cheered a lirrk sick lad as he lay in bis ro"Jm, wairin~ for death.

pages

254-255

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