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Legend of Maria Makiling

According to legend, there was a time when the gods could live like ordinary mortals do. Although these gods were enchanted, they could speak, love, and even go to the market like what people do in our time. This story tells what happened to the daughter of two such deities. This is the story of Mariang Makiling. Two deities, Dayang Makiling and Gat Panahon, had an only daughter name Maria. Because of her beauty and charm, she was the delight of her parents. The source of their joy and strength, Maria was, to them, a jewel, a treasure that made life full of light and laughter. At that time people could talk with the deities face to face, and even sit with them side by side underneath a tree. People could also ask for help when they were in need, provided that they asked in a solemn manner. It was the custom of Maria to go to a small market, sometimes called talipapa, on weekdays. Just like other women, she would on such occasions wear clothes made of silk and embroidered with flowers and wide stripes for this was the fashion at that time. Maria had long, black abundant hair which she usually decorated with pomelo flowers. When she went to the market, her flowing hair would touch her ankles. As she passed along, gallant men would bow their heads to signify their respect. When Maria went to the market, she was always accompanied by two Aetas1, who served as her servants. These two servants stayed close behind Maria, and they both carried a basket each that was full of golden ginger. These golden ginger Maria would barter for such items needed for the home. There was no money at that time, and instead of buying, people bartered and exchanged their goods for the things that they needed. On a market day, the residents of the area are not the only ones who would go to the talipapa. Merchants and people from neighboring towns would also go to the market. One day, Gat2 Dula, the ruler of the kingdom of Bay, came to the talipapa to while away the hours. A piece of animal skin with fine hair caught Gat Dula's eye and he reached out to touch the fur. At the same moment, Maria was also reaching towards the same piece of animal skin and their shoulders accidentally touched. Their eyes met and Gat Dula bowed his head as a sign of respect and apology. And Maria responded with a shy smile as they parted from each other's company. Since that first encounter, Gat Dula often visited the talipapa but he was not able to see Maria during these visits. One day, he saw Maria at the very place where they first met. He approached Maria and greeted her and Maria responded with a very sweet smile. That was the beginning of their friendship which blossomed into love as the months passed. As time passed, the love affair between Gat Dula and Maria came to be known to Gat Panahon, Maria's father.

Gat Panahon was angry. Even Dayang Makiling, Maria's mother, was distresssed that her only daughter was in love with a mortal. Maria was then forbidden to go down to the earth. Her parents even took away from Maria the power of enchantment which enabled a deity to look and act like an ordinary mortal. But even though Maria and Gat Dula could no longer meet physically, their love endured. Maria continued to watch over Gat Dula. During a battle with the army of Lakan3 Bunto, the ruler of a neighboring kingdom who invaded the kingdom of Bay, Gat Dula did not suffer a single wound due to the support of Maria's enchantment. Unfortunately, Gat Dula's inability to see Maria caused him to fall ill and die. Maria asked the gods to give her the soul of Gat Dula and her request was granted.

Wakantanka The Breath Giver

Many, many seasons ago, Wakantanka, the Breath Giver, the Holy one, walked in the trees of the Paha Sapa, the Black Hills. The trees were cool and the music of the streams made him happy. Over the high hard rock the Eagle soared on great wings. Deer looked at Wakantanka, and their delicate feet were full of beauty and grace. Moose and Elk dipped their great heads into the water to pull the sweet lake grasses. The great Black Bears, afraid of nothing, padded toward the honey trees. Antelope stood deep in the meadow grasses. But with all this beauty around Him, Wakantanka was uneasy. He was happy and loved the Hills He had made, but there was no one He could talk to. There was no one He could love. No one who could return His love. To all his creatures He had given something of Himself: Strength to the Bear - Swiftness to the Hawk - Grace to the Deer - Perseverance to the Turtle - Majesty to the Eagle. But there was something still in Him that He must share -- it was love. And this was His greatest gift of all. This part of Himself would make His work perfect. So He must take care with giving it. Mother, the Earth, lay off toward the Rising Sun. She, too, stirred with life and stretched out her body trying to give birth to love. She crooned in her yearning: "My body is yours, Life Giver. You made me a mother of many children. I nurse them. I feed them. They grow and multiply everywhere. But I see you are still lonesome, my husband. I have been faithful to you and have slept with no other. But my children do not have all of you in them. They are like me, and hide in me. Now take my red flesh. Dig deep in it. Tear it. I give it all to you. I care not if afterwards I am called a Dead Land. It is myself and all the love I can give you. When your son is born you will look at him at first rising and at evening. You will know he is your son. He will look like you. He will turn his face to you and love you." Mother, the Earth, sang her song day after day, and her love never grew less. The wind heard her words and carried them to the Holy Hills where Wakantanka listened, and He looked out over the prairies, wishing. The wind knew the heaviness in His heart and gently it spoke in the night to the Mother. "Mother, I will help you offer yourself. I would never touch you, but I know there is no other way to satisfy your prayer. In the morning I will call my strong brother from the South. He will bleach the grass that covers you and tear it away from you. He will lift it

up like a cloud, and your body will bleed. It will be red like the sun and then you can say, "Breath Giver, take this part of me; from me make children like yourself and they will love you as I do. Sleeping Mother, are you ready for this hurt?" "Yes, Yes," the Mother sang. "Do it to me. And do not wait for the dawn. Call the south wind now and let him begin. I will sing with him. There will be no tears or pain. I am close to the Holy Hills and will always see how happy the Father is, and how loving are our children." The south wind was not cruel. It worked gently and warmly. A new sound began to whisper in the valleys of the hills. The deer lifted their heads to catch a new scent. The eagle whirled farther from his high home. Wakantanka turned His eyes here and there. All His creatures were alert. Stars blazed at night, and a stillness came. The great red sun lifted itself to see what was new....... and there on a high bare red hill stood upright a new thing. Head thrown back, fingers and arms outstretched, red as the sun, swift as the deer, wise as the owl, loving as the Mother, stood Man, the Son of God, the one being who could say A-te , Father.

Lion and the Mouse

A Lion was sleeping peacefully when he was woken by something running up and down his back and over his face. Pretending to be still asleep, the Lion slowly opened one eye and saw that it was a little mouse. With lightening speed the Lion reached out and caught the little mouse in one of his large paws. He dangled it by its tail and roared, Im the King of Beasts! Youll pay with your life for showing me such disrespect. The Lion held the little mouse over his huge open jaws and prepared to swallow it. Please, please dont eat me, Mr King of Beasts, Sir, squeaked the mouse. If you forgive me this time and let me go Ill never, never forget it. I may be able to do you a good turn in the future to repay your kindness, it squeaked. You, do me a favour! roared the Lion with laughter. That is the funniest thing Ive ever heard. Still laughing, the Lion put the mouse down on the ground and said; Youve made me laugh so much I cant eat you now. Go on, off you go before I change my mind. The little mouse scurried away as fast as its little legs could go. Not long after this the Lion was caught in a trap by some hunters. They tied him to a tree with rope while they went to get their wagon. The little mouse was nearby and came when he heard the mighty Lions roar for help. The mouse gnawed the rope with his sharp teeth and set the Lion free. I know you didnt believe me, but I told you I could help you one day, squeaked the little mouse. Even a little mouse like me can help some one as big and strong as you. Thank you my little friend. I wont forget that lesson, said the Lion as he ran away before the hunters returned.

Biag ni Lam-ang (Life of Lam-ang)

The story datesits origin during the pre-Spanish periodof thePhilipines. It is one of the greatest Ilocano epic of the pre-colonial literature of thecountry. It is originallywritten in the Ilocanolanguage but as time goesit has been translated todifferent languages. Thestory is set in theNorthernProvinces of thePhilippines .The story is a mix ofadventure and romancewith exciting andunpredictableoutcomes. The storyrevolves around Lamangwho is a veryextraordinary guy. Hestarted to talk ata very young age and wasthe one who choose hisown name. His adventurebeganwhen his father, Don Juan,went to a battle butnever came back. At theage ofbarely nine months hewent to search for hisfather in the highlandswhere hisfather was said to go.Knowing that he is blessedwith extraordinary wellbeing, her mother,Namongan, allowed her togo. Lam-ang then went ofto search for his father leaving hisgrieving mother.When Lam-ang reachedthe place, he was enragedupon seeing his fatherhead on top of a bamboopolethat was stuck in theground which was a scenethat he had dreamedbeforereaching the place. Lam-ang then demanded toknow the reason why didthathappen to his father buthe did not receive ananswer, instead he wasdemandedby the chieftain of thevillage to go or else he would receive the samefaithlike his father. Instead ofrunning Lam-ang bravelyfought with the chieftainand its tribesmen. Lam-ang won the fight withless effort that serves ashisrevenge for his father.The epic poemalso presented somehumorous points. As Lam-ang was on his way homehe passedby a river and thendecided to have a dip. Thedirt from his body causedthedeath of fishes, crabs,shrimps in the river. Shewas gladly attended bysomeof the women who sawhim.Lam-ang uponreaching home decided tocourt his love interest,Ines. Despite his motherdisapproval he followed hisheart and set againanother journey for herlove. Hisadventures had neverbeen that easy. He facedone of Ines suitor andmonsters.But he won the battleswith ease.Upon reachingthe place, Lam-ang drewthe attention of manyand impressed Ines. Hewas helpedby his magical pets: arooster, a hen and a dog.Lam-angs roosterflapped itswings and a house toppled.This amazed everybody,especially Ines. Then,Lam-angs dog barked andthe house aroused. Beinginvited in the lunch of thefamily of Ines, Lamangimpressed Inesparentswith his wealth and uponreturning he gave to thefamily two golden ships.Their wedding was heldwith alot of feastings.However Lam-ang sstory never ended there.He was sent to catch agigantic shell butunfortunately she wasswallowed by a shark,which he had earlierpreconditioned.Her bones were recoveredand Lam-ang wasresurrected with the helpof hismagical pet. Ines wasordered by the rooster towrap the bones with hertapiswhile the hen flaps itswings and the doggrowling. In an instantLam-anghappily rejoined his wife.The epic poem showedsome of the earliercustoms, culture,tradition and belief ofthe Ilocanopeople of the PhilippinesThe story presented someof the qualities of thepeople of the Ilocosregion- adventurous,hardy, and brave asstrongly portrayedby Lam-ang. The epic poempresented the fact thatlife is full of trials andproblems. One must bestrong and just acceptthe reality that it isalreadypart of life.

The Wooden Bowl

A frail old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and a four-year old grandson. The old man's hands trembled, his eyesight was blurred, and his step faltered. The family ate together nightly at the dinner table. But the elderly grandfather's shaky hands and failing sight made eating rather difficult. Peas rolled off his spoon onto the floor. When he grasped the glass often milk spilled on the tablecloth. The son and daughterin-law became irritated with the mess. "We must do something about grandfather," said the son. I've had enough of his spilled milk, noisy eating, and food on the floor. So the husband and wife set a small table in the corner. There, grandfather ate alone while the rest of the family enjoyed dinner at the dinner table. Since grandfather had broken a dish or two, his food was served in a wooden bowl. Sometimes when the family glanced in grandfather's direction, he had a tear in his eye as he ate alone. Still, the only words the couple had for him were sharp admonitions when he dropped a fork or spilled food. The four-year-old watched it all in silence. One evening before supper, the father noticed his son playing with wood scraps on the floor. He asked the child sweetly, "What are you making?" Just as sweetly, the boy responded, "Oh, I am making a little bowl for you and mama to eat your food from when I grow up." The four-year-old smiled and went back to work. The words so struck the parents that they were speechless. Then tears started to stream down their cheeks. Though no word was spoken, both knew what must be done. That evening the husband took grandfather's hand and gently led him back to the family table. For the remainder of his days he ate every meal with the family. And for some reason, neither husband nor wife seemed to care any longer when a fork was dropped, milk spilled, or the tablecloth soiled. Children are remarkably perceptive. Their eyes ever observe, their ears ever listen, and their minds ever process the messages they absorb. If they see us patiently provide a happy home atmosphere for family members, they will imitate that attitude for the rest of their lives. The wise parent realizes that every day those building blocks are being laid for the child's future. Let us all be wise builders and role models. Take care of yourself, and those you love, today, and everyday!

The Story of the Creation

In the very beginning there lived a being so large that he can not be compared with any known thing. His name was Melu,[2] and when he sat on the clouds, which were his home, he occupied all the space above. His teeth were pure gold, and because he was very cleanly and continually rubbbed himself with his hands, his skin became pure white. The dead skin which he rubbed off his body[3] was placed on one side in a pile, and by and by this pile became so large that he was annoyed and set himself to consider what he could do with it. Finally Melu decided to make the earth; so he worked very hard in putting the dead skin into shape, and when it was finished he was so pleased with it that he determined to make two beings like himself, though smaller, to live on it. Making the remnants of the material left after making the earth he fashioned two men, but just as they were all finished except their noses, Tau Tana from below the earth appeared and wanted to help him. Melu did not wish any assistance, and a great argument ensued Tau Tana finally won his point and made the noses which he placed on the people upside down. When all was finished, Melu and Tau Tana whipped the forms until they moved. Then Melu went to his home above the clouds, and Tau Tana returned to his place below the earth. All went well until one day a great rain came, and the people on the earth nearly drowned from the water which ran off their heads into their noses. Melu, from his place on the clouds, saw their danger, and he came quickly to earth and saved their lives by turning their noses the other side up. The people were very grateful to him, and promised to do anything he should ask of them. Before he left for the sky, they told him that they were very unhappy living on the great earth all alone, so he told them to save all the hair from their heads and the dry skin from their bodies and the next time he came he would make them some companions. And in this way there came to be a great many people on the earth.

Anecdote
Yes, dollinks, it's still a strange old world out there since I last wrote and weird shit does happen... So here're some strange Fluffy stories...In one, I'm a kidnap victim, in another, I touch God and in the last one, I meet a guru. New anecdote 03/15/2007. Anecdote #1: My aunt Ann Mari is Estonian/German. She escaped during WWII from Estonia into what was to become East Germany at age 12. It was a dramatic and harrowing escape and a border guard tore a necklace from her neck. She then crossed from East Germany into West Germany several years later, then on to the US at age 20. She, and I and my cousin, were in Victoria, BC, doing the tourist thing a few years ago. Victoria has a lot more buskers, junkies and pan handlers than it used to have. This one girl, looked fairly well kept in a cute little sun suit and all that, came up to us and asked us for money. My cousin and I just shook our heads and kept walking. The girl unwisely started to follow us whining about how tough her life was. She came up to my Aunt and started in with this crap. My Aunt turned to her and said: " you think you had it rough? I came to zis countered mit VUN suitcase." (Aunt Ann has a very light pleasant accent generally but this girl was really pissing her off so the accent got stronger) "Vun suitcase!!" The girl kept whining and Aunt Ann kept making the point again and again so it sounded like this. whine whine whine I come to zis countreee... whine whine! Mit VUN suitcase but...whi...me me me me VUN! VUN SUITCASE! AND YOU DARE TO TELL ME HOW TOUGH YOUR LIFE IS? Eventually this dipshit druggie took off. By then my cousin and I were about rolling on the ground laughing. I hope the druggie learned a valuable lesson. I can't think of a better person to teach her than Aunt Ann Marie. Anecdote #2) When I was in grade school, maybe about 7or 8 years old, I used to walk to and from school and sometimes go home for lunch. (This was handy because nuns who wanted to scream at and beat little kids ran the lunch room. So canned soup and wonder bread sandwiches at home were infinitely preferable...) We had this crossing guard named Mrs. L who I never really liked. She smelled like medicine and talked to me in a way I didn't much care for. One day I was leaving to walk home and she came staggering up (and since my Mommy and Daddy rarely drank, I did not recognize the behavior) to me and said I shouldn't be allowed to walk home by myself so she took me to her house. Since she was an authority figure and not a stranger, I obeyed her. We sat in this icy parlor on rock hard sofas and chairs with doilies on them. There was a big dish of candy on the coffee table which I eyed hungrily, but I wasn't invited to take any of it. She told me to call my Dad to come get me. He didn't have a car but we only were just down the

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street from this lunatic souse, so shouldn't have taken too long. He worked odd jobs and nights at the time, plus resented any time away from napping or other expressions of his own personal comfort. So he grunted something that vaguely sounded like hed be there. So time passed...and passed...and passed. The clock went tick, tock, tick, tock, and I sat there in my little Catholic school uniform with my scrawny little legs and knobby scabby knees crossed. Mr. and Mrs. L stared at me. I stared at the candy. Then Mr. and Mrs. L stared at me some more. I longingly gazed at the candy. Nobody said anything but there was a whole lot of staring going on, so that was interesting- you know- in an uninteresting sort of way. A couple times during the stare-fest (this was excellent preparatory training for my later lifestyle choice as a Scientologist!) Mrs. L would drunkenly tell me to call my Daddy again. And I would do so and he'd snap at me for calling him again. It was really cool being a pawn between two stupid and selfish authority figures, boyz'n'galz!! You know- in an uncool sort of way. So finally Daddy came and grudgingly collected me from Mrs. L's place. Then that night, he and Mom and I all went out to a diner to eat and on the way home, I remember him saying to my mother in that knowing way that clueless adults like to effect "I'm telling you, Denise, you could just about smell the alcohol over the phone!" whereupon I chirped, "could you really, Daddy? People can do that?", thinking I was learning some new and exciting science. I was then hushed, my parents now realizing that Little Pitchers Have Big Ears. Anecdote #3) I had my First Communion around the same time. The nuns told us that this was God we were ingesting and that we should never ever touch Him. They also said that if we bit down on the Host that our mouths would fill with blood. I never had the courage to test this... Anyway, being a devout little kid, (a few years earlier at being told that God was in the tabernacle, I ran shrieking "HI GOD!!" down the church aisle.)I wanted to touch God. Just once. I was sure He'd understand. So I came back to the pew where Daddy was- he and I were at Mass together- and I stuck my finger in my mouth, swished it around and got a big ol' wad o' God on my finger. Immediately I was aghast. What had I done! God was going to be really really mad! So I put it back, swallowed it, and, in utter terror and urgency, pulled at my Daddy's sleeve. "Dad! Dad! I touched it!! Oh no, I touched it!" "Touched what? hissed my Dad back irritably. "It! It! I touched it!! I touched the host! I touched God!! He's gonna be mad!" My Dad made a sort of strangled snickering noise and said that he'd take me to confession after Mass andmmph, mmph- just don't do it again! So I went to confession. "Bless me father, etc" So the priest asked me my sin and I said "Father! Father! I touched it!! I touched it!! God's gonna be really mad!" and he said "Touched what?" And I told him the same thing I told my Dad. Once he figured out what I was talking about, he also made the same muffled strangled snickering noise that my Dad had made, (there was a lot of that going around) and said "mmmph mmmph...just don't do it again!" Anecdote #4) I went to a gathering, invited by my Dad, and it was at this man's house on the Hudson. My Dad told met that an Indian Guru was going to be there and people could talk to him. So I went there, and the guru (who I later found out was Sri Prahlad Chandra Brahmachari) was there, as was the noted actor Alan Arkin, who was giving off "don't come bug me just because I'm a world famous actor, I'm here for the guru, dammit." vibes - and I did oblige him in that and did not come up to Mr. Arkin. So this teeny tiny Indian man was seated at the base of a big tree. He did not speak English, or

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at least, not too much. So someone translated. He kept going into samadhi and his heart would stop or get close to that point, so his acolytes had to keep jostling him to keep him from dying. (he died maybe a year later). He spoke about seeing his first American movie because he wanted to see what his friend did for a living. He said he saw Star Wars III- the Empire Strikes Back. People in the crowd were very excited and said "ask him what he thinks of Yoda!" which was totally cute. So at one point, probably before the talk, everyone present kind of marched around in a circle chanting "Jai Guru, Jai Guru", which means "hail, Teacher." So then each of us came up to him, offered him a vegetable or piece of fruit as a symbolic exchange for the wisdom wewere about to receive and we each received a benediction. Children under, say, 12, (and there were some very serious looking young preteens there who obviously thought of themselves and were treated as adults) got hard candies and a big smile, adults got a blessing, he'd lay his hand upon the person's head. I was an adult and a newlywed at the time. I was slightly built but no way would anyone have taken me for ten years old or less. So when it came my turn, he opened his hand and there were quite a few candies in it, and he gave me the biggest and sweetest smile. So I took just one candy. (Mom raised me right, ya know.) and he gestured that I should take all of them. So not only was I the only adult to get candy and the child's blessing, but I got waaay more candy than the other kids!