Title Activity: Narrative - Applying Strategic Reading

Technique
Timeline Week 2
Objectives
Apply the SRT on your own.
Gain awareness of the narrative writing style.
notebook, pen, and dictionary
Tools

1. Before you start with this, access and review your WIKI: The Reading Process and look for
Strategic Reading Technique.

2. Read carefully the steps on how to apply SRT.

3. Make sure to read the sample text in the WIKI and how Strategic Technique was applied using
the given template. You may also read the part about Reading Circles to guide your reading
process.

4. After these, apply SRT on the sample narrative text “Love in the Time of Instant Noodles”by
using the provided template below.

5. Copy the template provided in applying the SRT.

6. Now that you are done with SRT, determine which portions of the sample text directly
contribute to the narrative writing style by answering the questions below:
a. As read the narrative sample i get that the gist of this story is that don’t rush when it
comes to love because best thing in life comes unexpected. When you love someone
you need to go through commitments and condition be patience and remain faithful.

b. Friends that turn into lover,obeying their parents condition.

c. For me is no,because i ‘m not really into a love story.
d. What would you change about the way the story was told? (Answer using your 3-5
sentences.)
e. 1/.At that moment, I said “yes” in an instant, but it was a ‘yes’ built and
cemented by so many years of love, patience, hard work, and commitment.
2/.That day, I knew that something beautiful was beginning, and it was too
beautiful that I didn’t want it to end, so I willed it to be very slow, to savor every
precious minute of it.
3/Our friendship, little by little, bloomed into love
7. You may use Google Docs when you do the SRT and answer the questions.

Love in the Time of Instant Noodles

By Jeniffer Rio Alagar

We were not friends in an instant. I can’t bear his smell after a typical
play day, and how he finds much happiness in torturing grasshoppers and
dragonflies. The feeling was mutual, though. He would later confess how he
despised my messy ponytail, crooked teeth, and geeky glasses. That was when
we were 7. Puberty came and made things much worse. We found new friends
in our new schools and barely talked with each other.

But one day, just like how Harry Potter got his letter from Hogwarts, just this one
ordinary day, things turned magical. We were together in our yard. He brought
some bread for merienda. “Masarap diyan, pancit canton,” I said, so I went to
the kitchen to showcase my three-minute expert cooking skills. We ate and
talked until it was time for dinner.

As I write this, my brain is being a hard drive, retrieving all the tiny details
about that day: the white-collared T-shirt he wore; the metal ring that was on his
thumb and not on his ring finger; and the highlight, our raucous laughter as we
read a love letter that was too grammatically incorrect, even MS Word would
give up spell-checking it.

The best things in life are indeed unexpected. That day, I knew that
something beautiful was beginning, and it was too beautiful that I didn’t want it
to end, so I willed it to be very slow, to savor every precious minute of it. To cut
everything short, after that day came many other days where we just felt so
comfortable and happy being with each other.

Our friendship, little by little, bloomed into love. But there were also
some setbacks. Our parents firmly ordered that we should graduate first. We
were that generation that could choose only whether to a) argue with parents
and leave the house permanently or b) shut up and follow orders. A was not
really an option, by the way.

So, at the time when our college friends were drinking their first tequila and
exchanging animated stories of their latest carnal adventures, we read our
textbooks and studied for our exams. I wrote essays and became anemic
shooting short films, while he tinkered with his calculator and cursed Calculus.

We did not totally understand our parents at the time, but looking back
now, I am glad we listened to them. 2010, we finally marched with our black
togas and got our diplomas, which were the passports so we could finally be
“legalized as a couple.” After graduating, we shared the stress of job hunting
and acing interviews until we landed our first jobs. It was a great period of
adjustment, but we managed.

Then came the joys of giving back to our parents, exploring new
restaurants to dine in, being able to buy stuff we wanted, lazy afternoons spent
at home playing scrabble or learning guitar together. All those years, we allowed
things to unfold on their own and learned to appreciate every moment. We “just
chilled,” as how kids of today put it. And how very beautiful it turned out to be.

Ours is a love that patiently waited. We upheld our values although

people considered them ultraconservative bordering on Jurassic. In the midst of
shocked looks, raised eyebrows, and “imposible naman ’yan!” remarks, we
remained faithful to each other and to our values. It was a mutual choice, albeit
a hard one.

Years later, pressure came from people who couldn’t contain themselves from
meddling in other people’s affairs. “Hindi pa ba kayo magpapakasal? Tagal niyo
na!” were the words we often heard toward our eighth year of being together.
We did not give in though, because we had already carefully laid out our future
plans.
And then, when the time was right, or so he thought, he kneeled and gave me a
ring. At that moment, I said “yes” in an instant, but it was a ‘yes’ built and
cemented by so many years of love, patience, hard work, and commitment. It
was not a spur-of-the-moment “yes” to be posted on Twitter, but a yes shared by
two people, a yes to a love to be kept alive.

Now that we are married, you guessed it, people are still rushing us, this time,
to have kids. But we still believe in living our lives one step at a time. There is
something unexplainably beautiful, even magical, in taking things slowly.

About the Author:

Jeniffer Rio Alagar is a freelance writer who finds it hard to write about herself. She is now
married to her childhood enemy, Chrisnell Alagar, who still claims until today that there was
‘gayuma’ placed in the pancit canton mentioned in this article.

This is an excerpt from: Alagar, Jeniffer Rio. “Love in the time of instant noodles.” Editorial.
Inquirer.net. 27 Jan. 2016. Web. 7 Sep. 2016. <http://opinion.inquirer.net/92382/love-in-the-
time-of-instant-noodles>.
 Strategic Reading Technique

LOVE IN THE TIME OF INSTANT NOODLES

Title of the Story
JENIFFER RIO ALAGAR
Name of the
Author
Preview Love can patiently wait,stop rushing it and remain faithful

Clun
ks
Paragraph 1-all sentences
Paragraph 2-all sentences
Paragraph 3-all sentences
Paragraph 4-all sentences
Paragraph 5-all sentences
Paragraph 6-all sentences
Paragraph 7-all sentences
Paragraph 8-all sentences
Paragraph 9-all sentences
Paragraph 10-all sentences
Paragraph 11-all sentences

Gist

Paragraph 1- The narrator stated that the boy is having fun

torturing insects,and later on confessed how he despised her
messy hair,crooked teeth and geeky glasses then at puberty they
found new friends.
Paragraph 2-The narrator said that one day the were together at her yard,the boy cook some
merienda they eat and talk together until time for dinner.
Paragraph 3-They were remembering details about that particular ,and having raucous laugher
as they read a love letter.
Paragraph 4- she knew something beautiful was beginning that she don’t want to be ended and
after that day many other days they finally felt comfortable and happy with each other.
Paragraph 5-the narrator satted that that their started with just friendship little by little turned
into love but there’s a condition that they need to graduate first.
Paragraph 6- the narrator said that they were having fun drinking with college friends,
exchanging animated stories,read textbooks and studies for their exam the she state that she wrote
essays.
Paragraph 7-the narrator stated that they could’t understan their parents but they’re glad that
they listen as she says that they were legalized as a couple because they graduated then finally
landed at their first job.
Paragraph 8- they giving back to their parents and treating them buy stuff,go to a new
restaurant,playing games and appreciate every moment.
Paragraph 9-she stated that they remains faithful althou they’re a lot of people saying it’s
impossible.
Paragraph 10-she said that the pressure come,people saying that they need to get married but
they don’t rush because they already have future plans.
Paragraph 11-the man finally proposed to her and get an instant answer of yes a yes that
come from a patience,hardwork and commitment.

Wrap Up