The Giantess and the Three Children

Cordillera Tale:
Retold by Ma. Luisa B. Aguilar-Carino

Once there were three orphans who lived in a small house that had a garden, because
they had no rice fields and no one to hunt for them, each night they would lay sharp
shells and sticks across their garden path. In this way, they would catch an occasional
wild boar for food.

But though they would manage to trap a wily animal in their front yard from time to
time, it would always be eaten by the vultures or other wild animals because they had
no fire on which to roast themeat. Only the giantess, Bekat, had fire.

The children were thin and hungry. One day they could stand it no longer. They had
just caught a large boar in their garden, and now they decided to ask Bekat for fire.

―Bekat, Bekat,” the children called in giantess’ garden.

The giantess came out of her house. She was larger than a house, and the children
trembled but tried not to show it. ―What do you want?” asked the giantess. When she
spoke, the children could see her sharp teeth.

―We have come to ask for fire,‖ replied the children.

―That is easy to have,” said the giantess wickedly. ―But you must give me a hog in
exchange for it.”

The children looked at each other in dismay. One whispered, ―How is

that? If we get the fire and give her the boar, we will be as hungry we
were before!”
―I have a plan,” whispered his sister.” Let us pretend to leave.”
―Yes,” said the third child, ―then let us follow her into her house and
steal fire when she is not looking.

So the children pretended to look sad. ―We have no hog,‖ they told the
giantess.

―Then you cannot have fire!‖ bellowed Bekat.

The giantess stomped back into her house. The children crept along its walls and
peered into the house of Bekat. There she was in the corner, taking the tangles out of
her matted hair. In the middle of the room was a small fire. The children tiptoed in,
walking in the shadows. Then they grabbed a burning twig and ran home as fast
as they could, taking care not to put out the fire.

The children joyfully cut up the wild boar’s meat and roasted it over
their fire. However, Bekat smelled their cooking and followed the
smoke to the children’s house.
―Ah ha!” she exclaimed. ―You took fire from me! You must give me part of what
you have to eat, or I shall roast you on my fire!”

The children let her sit with them. Bekat took their food baskets and took charge of
dividing the meat. The bones and tough parts she
dropped into the children’s baskets, and the fat and slices she kept
for herself.

The children looked at each other. Then, one of them said, ―Let us
swim in the river before we eat. Can you dive well?” he asked Bekat.―We can dive
very well,” he continued boastfully.

Bekat followed them to the river. The children dived into the water
first; then they surfaced and said, ―Your turn, Bekat. Do you know how?”
Bekat dived; she had a difficult time coming up because she was so heavy. While she
was still in the water, the children raced back to the
house. They emptied Bekat’s food basket and put the meat into theirs. They poured
large stones into Bekat’s basket and then they h
id on a branch of a tree growing near the river.

Bekat came out of the water and called the children. There was no answer, so she
resumed to their house. She did not see them there either, so she picked up her food
basket and went home. When she opened it to eat the boar meat, she set up aa great
howl. The children had tricked her! She stomped through the forest, breaking
young trees and kicking up bushes in her fury.

Coming to the river, she saw the children’s reflections in the water;
they had not moved from their hiding place on the tree. Bekat thought the children
were hiding in the water. She dived but could not find them there. when she came out,
she looked up and saw where they
were. The children screamed. ―Oh, Kabunian,” they prayed, ―Save usnow!”

The giantess laughed an evil laugh. She took an axe out of her pocket
and began to hack at the tree. ―Oh, Kabunian,” prayed the children again, ―Let her
not hit the tree; Let her hit her knee instead.” The
giantess suddenly gave a great yelp. She had cut off her leg at the knee so she fell
over backward and died. That was the end of the giantess Bekat.