Opinionteacher talk

editorialpage 4

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Featuresreviewer

editorialpage 6-7

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Culturesof rust and

scriptpage 9

page 10

my other demon

COEd Flames outplayed again in Intrams

SEC, ipinatupad sa high school Sa pagsisimula ng taong-panuruang 2010-2011, ipinatupad ng Department of Education (DepEd) ang panibagong curriculum sa high school. Alinsunod sa DepEd Order No. 76, s. 2010, ang dating Basic Education Curriculum (BEC) ay naging Secondary Education Curriculum (SEC). Sumailalim sa pilot testing sa mga nasa unang taon sa 22 pilot schools. Kaalinsabay ng pagpapatu-pad ng bagong curriculum ay ang bagong sistema ng pagtuturo—ang Un-derstanding by Design (UbD) teaching kung saan ang lesson plan at syllabus ay pag-iisahin at ituturo ng per-quarter lesson. Nangangahulugan na sa loob ng isang quarter ay gagamit lamang ng isang unit lesson. Ang ganitong sistema ay nauna ng ipinatupad at nagtagump-

ay sa Estados Unidos kaya naman sa pagnananis rin na magkaroon ng deka-lidad na sistema ng edukasyon ay hi-nango at ginamit ang ganitong sistema sa bansa.

Kahandaan ng mga Guro Noong nagdaang bakasyon ay nagsagawa ng mga malawakang pagsasanay ang DepEd sa mga guro sa pampublikong paaralan ukol sa pagpapatupad ng SEC. Nagpasim-ula ang Fund for Assistance to Private Education (FAPE) sa ilalim ng mga pro-grama ng Educational Service Contract-ing/Educational Voucher System (EVS) ng mga pagsasanay para sa mga guro sa pampribadong paaralan tungkol sa UbD at SEC simula pa noong 2009. Sa pagtutulungan ng Private Secondary

School Administrators Association of the Philippines (PRISAAP) at ng Department of Education-Bachelor of Secondary Education (DepEd-BSE) ay nakapag-sagawa ng mga training workshops para sa mga guro at administrators mula sa mga pribadong paaralan mula sa 17 rehiyon. Boluntaryo naman ang pagdalo ng mga guro sa mga pampub-likong paaralan. Ayon kay Mr. Angel Caparas, punongguro ng Laboratory High School, ang asignaturang Makabayan ay inalis sa bagong curriculum ngunit ang ilang asignatura at aralin ay kahawig pa rin. “We are just following the sug-gested subjects in the new curriculum with the content framework which is UbD framework which shall depend on teach-

Ika-112 anibersaryo ng Kongreso ng Malolos, ipinagdiwang

From being the overall champion last 2008, and placing se-cond just last year, the College of Education (COEd) Flames landed on third place in the Intramurals held last August 21-25.

Ruby Rose R. Cruz at Carlyd Mae C. De Jesus

(sundan sa p.2)

Bilang pagtatapos sa pag-diriwang ng Singkaban, ipinagdiwang ang ika-112 anibersaryo ng Kongreso ng Malolos, sa temang “Kongreso ng Malolos, Karangalang Di Matatapos”, noong ika-15 ng Setyembre sa simba-han ng Barasoain. Dinaluhan ang nasabing pag-diriwang nina Senador Jinggoy Es-trada, panauhing tagapagsalita, ang Sangguniang Panlalawigan ng Bula-

can, Sangguniang Panlungsod ng Ma-lolos at ang kinatawan ng Pambansang Komisyon ng Kasaysayan na si G. Jose David Lapus. Sinimulan ang pagdiriwang ng isang fun run mula sa Malolos Central School papuntang simbahan ng Bara-soain kung saan ginanap ang pagsa-sadula ng pormal na pagbubukas ng Kongreso ng Malolos na nilahukan ng mga kabataang Maloleño. “Itinuturing kong Bulakeño ang

aking sarili sapagkat ang mga Ejercito ng Bulacan at ng San Juan ay nagmula sa iisang pamilya,” batid ng senador tungkol sa pagiging malapit ng Bula-can sa kanya at sa kanyang pamilya. Nagkaroon din ng food ex-hibit na tinawag na “Hapag Bulakeño” (Pagkain ng mga Bayani) at isang one-man painting exhibit ni G. Reynal-do Salamat na ginanap sa museo ng Barasoain.

Khristine M. Balanay

(continued on p. 3)

JULY - OCTOBER 2010THE MENTORS’ JOURNALNEWS2College pubs recognized

TheOfficeoftheStudentPubli-cations (OSP) and Pacesetter conducted the 2nd Pandayang Plaridel, a seminar workshop for student journalists with the theme “Revisiting Commitment to Respon-sible Campus Journalism” last September 24 at BulSU Hostel. Mr. Romulo B. Mercado, OSP director, welcomed the participants from different college publications: Busy Bee

of the Laboratory High School, The Lau-rel of Sarmiento Campus, The Horizon of Meneses Campus, The Wizards of the College of Science, The Nurses’ Notes of the College of Nursing, The Engi-neers of the College of Engineering, The Communique of the College of Arts and Letters, The Cursor of College of Informa-tion and Communications Technology, Ang Tanglaw of College of Social Sciences

and Philosophy, The Mentors’ Journal of the College of Education. The resource speaker of the event, Ms. Tonette Orejas, chief correspondent of the Philippine Daily In-quirer in Central Luzon, lectured on me-dia transparency and accountability and the principles of journalism. Orejas also answered questions from the participants in the forum held right after the discus-sion. Dino Balabo, Philippine Star and Pilipino Star Ngayon correspon-dent discussed news and editorial writing while Dr. Reggie Gaboy from Central Lu-zon State University lectured about pho-tojournalism and layouting in concurrent sessions. “Maraming knowledge at guidelines kaming naacquire like last year,” said Angielee Ramos of The Hori-zon (Meneses Campus). “Keep reading and practice writing. Maraming opportunities in Jour-nalism. Be massively skilled. Try writing stories and columns, explore photojour-nalism, and others. Pag-aralan din ang

technology for adjustments,” Balabo said regarding the rapid innovation of tech-nology and how news writing goes with it. Certificates, meanwhile, weregiven to The Laurel (Sarmiento Cam-pus), The Nurses’ Notes, The Cursor, The Wizards, and The Mentors’ Journal for being duly recognized student publica-tions of BulSU. Thesaidcollegepublicationsfinallygotrecognized mainly because of the presi-dential memorandum released before the start of the academic year allowing them to collect involuntary fees for their operation. “Among the trainings and work-shops that we had, this one became very successful because we have met the objectives of the training and the students not just learned from it but they also enjoyed it. Journalists, be inspired everyday for your works and keep the fireburningforlookingforgoodstories,”said Mr. Mercado as he encouraged the young journalists to continue writing.

ers capability on how to handle the stu-dents’ learning acquisition,” ani Capa-ras. Dalawang miyembro ng fakulti ng Filipino at sa Araling Panlipunan ang nakadalo sa nasabing training na na-katuon sa UbD na tumagal ng tatlong araw “But still there was no clear explanation on what UbD is, also they [DepEd] told us [during the training] that the new curriculum is under the pilot test-ing,” dagdag ni Caparas.

Ang UbD Lingid sa kaalaman ng mara-mi ay naipatupad na ang UbD noong 2007 sa mga pampublikong paaralan sa lungsod ng Caloocan alinsunod sa kautusan ni Mayor Enrico Echiverri. Sinu-portahan ito ni Sen. Manny Villar noong 2009 sa pamamagitan ng Senate Reso-lution 1295 na sumusuporta sa imple-mentasyon ng UbD framework sa Basic Education Curriculum. Nakatuon ang UbD sa Back-ward Design na naglalayong maitama ang dalawa sa karaniwang pagka-kamali ng tradisyunal na paraan ng pagtuturo: ang pagtuturo na nakatuon lamang sa mga ibinigay na textbooks at ang pagtuturo na puro pagsasanay lamang ang ibinibigay sa mga mag-aaral nang hindi nila nauunawaan kung bakit nila iyon ginagawa. Layon ng UbD na ipaunawa sa mga mag-aaral kung bakit ito kailangang pag-aralan at

gawin. Hindi nalalayo ang kon-septo ng SEC sa pinalitan nitong kuri-kulum na BEC. Nananatili pa rin ang prinsipyong konstraktibismo at pag-tuturong integratibo na batayan ng bagong kurikulum. Sa pagbabagong ito ay hindi pa rin nawala ang ilan pang programang pang-sekondarya tulad ng Special Program for the Arts (SPA), Special Program for Sports (SPS), Engi-neering and Science Education Program (ESEP), Technical Vocational Program (TECH-VOCH), at Special Program for Foreign Languages (SPFL) na ipinapatu-pad sa ilang mataas na paaralan. Ilang pribadong paaralan na rin sa bansa ang gumagamit ng UbD framework sa kanilang curriculum gaya ng mga nasa ilalim ng De La Salle Philippines at Holy Name University.

Mga karagdagang asignatura Matatandaang binago na ng gobyerno ang kurikulum para sa asig-naturang Mathematics noong 1989. Mula sa basics, ipinatupad dito ang Compartmentalized to Spiral Intergra-ted Approach kung saan nilawakan ang pagtuturo ng Math na kinapalooban ng Algebra, Intermediate Algebra, Geo-metry, Advance Algebra, Trigonometry, at Statistics. Tulad nito, may mga karag-dagang aralin na ipinasok sa pagtu-turo alinsunod sa SEC. Kabilang na ang Consumer Education na isasama sa mga

aralin sa lahat ng asignatura na nagla-layong maituro ang 18 Fair Trade Laws. Ang Stock Market Topics naman ay ida-ragdag na aralin sa Economics ng mga nasa ikaapat na taon. Isinama rin ang mga probisyon para sa Madaris at Madrasah-based curriculum para sa mga mag-aaral na Muslim sa Mindanao at ang Indigenous Peoples’ Curriculum na ipatutupad rin sa mga rural na lugar. Mas pinalawak ang pagtu-turo ng Music at Arts sa pagsama ng

mga aralin sa musika at sining ng Af-rica, Australia at America. Idinagdag din ang asignaturang Information and Communications Technology (ICT) kung saan tinatalakay ang Environment and Market Process/Production and Deliv-ery of ICT Products at Personal Entre-preneurial Competencies bilang mga pangunahing aralin sa loob ng apat na kwarter.

SEC ipinatupad... (mula sa p.1)

Artwork by Ronnel B. Tafalla

Journalism seminar held

The correspondents. Dino Balabo (left) lectures on news and editorial writing while Tonette Orejas (right) discusses media transparency and accountability with the student journalists. (Photo by Marian Santos)

Adelaine J. Salvador

JULY - OCTOBER 2010 THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL NEWS 3

NEWSTRIPBulSUans watch Ang Guro

Seniors attend ESL seminar

The English Department of the College of Arts and Letters (CAL) with the graduating English major-ing students of the College of Educa-tion attended an English as a Second Language (ESL) seminar last October 15 at the BulSU Hostel. ESL specialist Mindy Visser from the Public Affairs section of U.S. Embassy lectured on the said semi-

nar bearing the theme “Responding to the Challenges of Teaching English as a Second Language.” Visser dis-cussed about multiple intelligences and scaffolding accompanied by diverse learning activities which the present and prospective teachers may use in class. An open forum ended the se-minar to answer the questions from both the faculty and students.

Pumangalawa ang KOEd sa Tuklas Talino sa Kasaysayan, isang quiz bee na isinagawa ng College of Social Sciences and Philosophy (CSSP) na gi-nanap sa Tanghalang Plaridel ng CSSP Building noong Setyembre 22. Naghati-hati ang kinatawan ng KOEd na sina Kenneth Santiago (BSED 4-F), Mhericon Jean L. Lorenzo (BSED 4-F) at Ian Karl Lacanlae (BSED

1-F) sa PhP2000 na premyo. Nakuha ng Laboratory High School ang unang parangal at tumanggap ng PhP3000 samantalang tumanggap naman ang CSSP ng PhP1000 na nagkamit ng ikat-long pwesto. Binubuo nina Christine Halili, Frederick Macale at Charles De Guz-man ang lupon ng mga hurado.

KOEd, pumangalawa sa Tuklas Talino

Curtain Call. The whole cast of Ang Guro takes their final bow. (Photo by Marian M. Santos)

Bulacan State University stu-dents watched a musical stage play “Ang Guro” last September 16 at Bulacan Capitol Gym, Malolos City. Singer-actress Karel Marquez played as a teacher who inspired her students but eventually died because of cancer. The play showed the usual kinds of high school teachers such as Mr. In-spection, Ms. Terror, Ms. Fashionista and

Mr. Business who lived up with their re-spective names. Paul Ballano, the producer and director of the musical, who played as one of the students, said that it was a tribute to his grade one teacher, Ms. Ce-cilia Resontoc who inspired him to pursue his goals in life. “Yes, I am poor but the love of my teacher is so rich,” Ballano said as he ended and thanked the audience.

Dr. Rolando Gaspar receives the certificate of apprceiation from Dean Luzviminda Tantoco for being the resource speaker in the seminar. (Photo from KAPIMAPA)

KAPIMAPA conducts Sex Ed seminar

Kapisanan ng mga Mag-aaral sa Araling Panlipunan (KAPIMAPA) con-ducted Ikalimang Sampaksaan, a semi-nar on sex education last September 17 at BulSU Hostel. Keynote speaker Dr. Rolando Gaspar from COEd discussed the impor-tance of sex education and how it will affect the present generation if inte-grated in the curriculum. He also gave his stand regarding Reproductive Health Bill (RH Bill) and how it will help the country’s problem with the fast growing popula-tion.

Father Joselin San Jose, an instructor in the Immaculate Concepcion Major Seminary in Guiguinto, Bulacan, meanwhile, gave the church’s reason of its disagreement on RH Bill and divorce. “It only makes the students more conscious on sex,” said Father San Jose when asked about his opinion about the government’s plan to give free contra-ceptives. He also added that teaching Human Anatomy is already included in the curriculum that is why there is no need to add sex education in it.

COEd outplayed... (from p.1) The college grabbed 37 gold , 10 silver and 29 bronze medals from different events. “Malungkot, syem-pre kasi champion tayo dati. Kulang kasi tayo sa boys di tulad ng ibang colleges. Galingan na lang natin next year,” Dean Luzviminda Tantoco said. The College of Infor-mation and Communications Technology (CICT) stood high as the overall champion while the College of Physical Education, Recreation and Sports (COPERS) situated in the second place. “Ang masasabi ko sa athletes ng COEd ku-lang sila sa training pero alam ko magagaling sila,” said Coach Melvin Villegas. “They deserved it syempre kasi nag-perform sila; wala silang pagkukulang, ta-lagang prepared lang yung other colleges. Kailangan may designated coaches na ha-hawak sa kanila, prepara-tion for next year and sup-port sa athletes lang,” said by Coach Mona Lisa Mendoza.

Mercy C. Morales

Ruth Gladyz B, De Guzman

Therence D. Talla

Official Medal Tally

Therence D. Talla

Source: COPERS

For years, I was not quite sure of what I really wanted to be. My child-hood dream is to be a teacher. I am also a frustrated chef, but I do not know anything about culinary so my outlet is to watch fa-mous cooking shows on TV. When I was in high school, I wanted to be a lawyer. Since I always openly contradict things which I don’t believe in, this would be the best way to go. I will earn big bucks and be famous. I dreamt of having my own law firmandnotarypublicoffice.Iwantedtobe a prosecutor, just because I was really amused with the architecture of the courts. I was already in college when I figuredout what I really wanted to be—a writer. Of course I had a hard time put-ting this to action. I was very reluctant to join the school organ thinking that it is only for the Engineering and Science Educa-tion Program (ESEP) students (I attended Marcelo). When I entered college, I en-countered TheMentors’ Journal, the offi-cial student publication of the college, be-cause one of my friends invited me to join in. I took the exams. Luckily, I passed and became a part of it. Still, I do not know how to start until someone motivated me. I could still vividly remember that very fateful day when I was still new in the university. I used to spend my free time hanging around and chatting with my high school friends at the Heroes’ Park. I was writing a thank you letter to my bene-factor when suddenly, someone saw my press I.D. and approached me. He was

not a complete stranger he used to sit-in in one of my major subjects. “Mentors’ ka? Nakapasa ka? Ano ba naman nangyari sa kanila at kinuha ka?” He asked right in front of my newly-acquired-friends and their friends too. Being two years younger than him, I did not know how to react to his dumbfounding rhetorical statements. Having nowhere to hide from shame and disgrace, I just continued what I wasdoing even if I was totally hurt deep inside. I tried not to mind him because I knew he has a good point for asking. Aside from my formal and informal themes in high school and my daily dose of journal entries, I do not have any experience in writing. I heard news about him, lit-tle did I know that he used to be a former editor of the pub. I started to read his works from the past issues of Mentors and from that, I learned that he is really far better than me. I became very irritated with his existence. It is as if he knows everything; as if he is perfect. He is very frank: if he does not like you he will immediately tell you without hesitation. At times, he can become disrespectful and hurt others’ feelings. His sharp attitude pushed me to be better so as to change his assumptions toward me. After a year of stay in the pub-lication, I was driven by my editors to take the Editorial Board (EB) exams. I was really hesitant and nervous that I might

not make it. I thought my experiences still would not suffice—I still lack practice.Hearing words of encouragement from the alumni of the publication lessened my anxiety. Being the last one to know the results, I passed. I thought maybe I was really destined to be here. The school year started; his treatment towards me changed—a bit—maybe because I was already a part of the EB. But there was an incident when he asked me, “Paano

yan e yung staff mo mas magagaling pa sayo?” He was awk-wardly right. How will I edit their works if they know more than I do? The thought did not stop me. Instead, I continued to explore my abilities and strive to be better, if not the best. Isacrificedalot.Igave

my time to the pub when I should be home early and lying flat in my bedwatchingTV; when I should be at the library studying my lessons. I lost some friends because my priorities partly changed, but I won a lot in exchange. Some got disappointed be-cause of my imperfections, but some felt proud because of my achievements. I never regretted any of those nor blamed Men-tors because it gave me the opportunity that I did not get from high school. I am grateful to Mentors and the people behind it for opening its door for someone like me, for the inspiration, for the encouragement, and most of all, for fulfilling my dream.

I do not know what legacy I will leave here. I did not let go of the thought that there is always someone better than me. What is good is that, at least, I try to excel. I barely have a semester left to spend in this publication. This publication that proved me that being the best is not achieved overnight, or a week, a month or even a year. It requires perseverance, pa-tience, and a lot of hard work. I know I am still not the best now after almost four years of being here, I know that I still have a lot to learn, I still have to listen to people better than me. It is not only about being the best. What matters is what you do to be the best. I realized writing can be the best out-let of our fears, frustrations, anger, happiness, and sorrow. Whatever it is that bothers us, just write it down. Most of all, we need to remember that the best writers are not born; they are made. I hope one day, I can prove to that person who belittled my abilities that I am not worthy of such. I will prove to him that I deserve to be where I am and that I am better now. I do not have anything against him now for I believe that those words became the best motivation for me to continue in striving hard and aiming for the best. I hope to extend my million thanks to him because I may not be here if he did not demean me. I may not be able to ex-plore myself and develop my abilities. I may not be able to come up with this one. Perhaps without Mentors, I may not know what I really wanted to be—a writer.

Redemption

I became a teacher for two reasons. One, because a teacher effect-ed change in me. Two, because I want to effect change to others the way my teach-er did. It is all skyrocketing. I love what I do. I am satisfied with how I teach. Mystudents are awesome. Their grades are good, except for a few bad apples. Ge-nerally, it is all good from Diego to the Bay. But as all stories go, the hero encounters a plethora of hellacious predicaments. The cliché is that the hero lives happily ever after. But what if he ends up alone and far from his leading lady who married some handsome idiot? What if he joins the evil minions of Baron Sengir, the Vampire who sucked the he-moglobin out of him, and you would have to wait for the sequel? And what if he just gets pricked by a rusted safety pin and dies of teta-nusforlackofsufficientmedicalrequirements? In this path, I will digress from the tradition that I so often hear from teachers. Allow me to tell you goat sto-ries about the downside of being a teach-er, the hero of their own lives, and the questions that come with the chivalric profession. If you do not want to be demotiva-ted, I adamantly command you to stop read-ing after this sentence. However, since I am the writer, you might as well sit down and read another article from this Journal. Whatever. A teacher is a model wherever

and whenever she goes. Ms. Bungcalan was always a well-dressed teacher in school and other school related-activities. You may say she had a thing for corporate attire. It might seem apt while she was at it. Suddenly, she wore short shorts and a tube-top on a Sa-turday to buy kangkong at the wet market. A mother of her student, who was a kangkong vendor, saw her. When the mother went home, she declared Ms. Bungcalan a whore and asked her daughter not to be like the teacher. Actually, Ms. Bungcalan appreciated that she was not a Hindu. She did not like the Hindus because of their Caste social stratificationwherein they place teachers in the highest rank—the Brahmans. If she were, she won’t be able to do what the normal people do—wear short shorts and a tube-top on a Sa-turday morning at the wet market. Ms. Bung-calan is now neither a model nor a teacher. A teacher must obey even the most absurd policies. He used to watch the left-wing gate of the old hallowed building and glare at the sheepish students who would ill-enter that left-wing gate. He is also being watched by the person who told him to watch the damn gate, checking if hewas fulfillingthe duty. He is Mr. Oksbrain. He was obeying the policy of the building. The policy that no one should enter the left-wing gate even if it would be more efficient for the pupils touse, the policy that the ugly building corridors mustbefloor-waxedbythepupils,thepolicy

that pupils must remove their shoes whenever they enter the classrooms thereby sweeping thefloorswiththeirsocks,thepolicythatthebuilding is far more important than the students’ welfare, the policy to defy logic itself. Odd. A teacher gets baptized with a new name. Now this may not seem so bad, right? “Sir Badingsky” because you are a ho-mosexual; “Ma’am Orocan” for being “plas-tic” (we can argue that everyone is plastic though); “Ernie Baron” because you know a lot of things; “Mr. Clean” because the moon is down on your head; “Baboy” because you are fat, overweight and obese; “Shadow/Anino” because your complexion is darker than a lamog na saging; “Robocop” because you are dead serious and strict; “Kuhol” because Mr. Shooli is your co-teacher and you are the sidekick; “Shaider” because you ride a motorbike to school; “Pong Pagong” because of your puffy cheeks; “Basura” because you are it; Pekto because your mug is a celebrity slap-stick victim; “Half-Man Half-Yakis” because you can not control your hands and eyes. I can go on if you want but; “Sa-tanas” because you asked to be called that. A teacher who seems to have erred ismagnifiedin infamy. Intheboringsuburbsof Humpbridges lived a friend, Dr. Loi Puma, the quiet and timid teacher who taught eu-genics and genetics in the nearby school. He never talked to anyone except during class-es and remains obscure and hidden in his laboratory. One day while working on sam-

ple bacteria in a test tube, a bottomless sexy neurotic female student barged into his lab and forcefully hugged and kissed him repeat-edly. He screamed for help with his Sponge-bob-like voice. When the principal arrived, she saw the position Dr. Puma and the student was in. Do not imagine. It was gratuitous. In an instant, Dr. Puma became a campus scan-dal personality. The quiet and timid teacher, who once taught eugenics and genetics in the nearby school, never again talked to anyone and remained obscure and hidden in his cave. A teacher is his own guinea pig. I am in favor of legalizing abortion. I am in favor of same-sex marriage. I advocate choice and the protection and promotion of human rights. I am a sexed-up atheist. I do not believe in Jesus or Yahweh, Allah or Mohammed, the Bible and the Qu’ran, any miracle or any religion. I am an anarchist. But most of all, I am a teacher.Now, imagine that these are not true. I may be invited to write here again.Now, know that these are true. I fi-gured this would be the first and lastpiece Mentors would ever get from me.

Sir Lem is a faculty member of the College of Social Sciences and Philoso-phy . He can still be seen walking around the campus pretending to be invisible. You can add him to your Facebook account.

Lemuel P. del Rosario

Essay Titles are forCowardsEven teachers have their own stories to tell. This space is open for

all teachers who wish to express thoughts, feelings and views about issues may they be related or not to their respective profession.

Teacher Talk

ÜbermenschRuby Rose R. Cruz

4 OPINION THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL JULY - OCTOBER 2010

I lost some friends because

my priorities partly changed, but I won a lot in exchange.

A darker challenge doomed the face of the teaching profes-sion last September 17. Little did we notice this alarming threat. The whole country was bom-barded with daily news about the usual PNoy criticisms, the recent hostage fiasco, the whole jueteng controversy,and the ever unrelenting word fightabout the RH Bill between the bishops and the government. Amidst these typi-cal issues that bannered in the news-papers and aired on news programs is an unusual and disturbing fact that should have been given more attention. A terrifying incident shook the knees of a few when a teacher in Caloo-can got killed by her own student. Just because she scolded her student for sporting a long hair, the teacher received a toll unworthy for her concern—a lite-ral stab in the back that ended her life. The saddening part is that many failed to notice this colossal epi-sode which is too big to disregard. What is worse is that after only few weeks, the issue just passed like any normal Philippine happening. What most people do not see is that this is not a normal Philippine happening. Teachers discipline and teachers die, but teachers do not de-serve to die because they discipline. They do not just teach, they also partake in an event that would change the country’s future. As part of their

grand duty, teachers mold their students to be what they should be. Part of their job is to impart, correct and reprimand. As second parents, they influence stu-dents to do more and to achieve more, so to reproach students when necessary is only right. We say that we want a better country, but how can we have what we desperately want if the kids of today who will be the leaders three years from now cannot even follow simple school policies about proper grooming like having a prim haircut? What kind of future will there be if this genera-tion of kids resort to instantly killing peo-ple, especially teachers who scold them? If not through natural death, teachers die because of their vocation. Threats are inches away from them every time they choose to render their services for the country and extend their hands ev-ery election period—threats, more than anything else, which they do not deserve. Teachers deserve more but they agree to have less. If those are not enough sacrifices, think oftheir countless overtimes that do not correspond to their underpaid work. True enough, the face of the so-called noble profession has changed. From a refuge, teaching has turned into a dangerous ground which leaves a nega-tive impact to the present educators. The possibility of brain drain may weaken the unstable education system of the Philippines. A fear of entering the

profession may also dawn in the minds and dampen the spirits of the prospective teachers and may to-tally discourage them to pursue. What could be more upset-ting than the fact that the rapidly de-creasing number of teachers who stay in the country was reduced by one? What could have been in the mind of that student who killed one of the few teachers who chose to endure the

poor situation in public high schools?Look for a nation who does not value its educators, and surely you will findone rotting in poverty and corruption. This is a call to the one who should hear to see, if not to focus, on the abandoned cries of teachers of today and the worries of educators of tomorrow. A darker challenge dooms the face of the teaching profession. Are you still willing to take the risk?

In jeopardy

COMPETENT (kŏm’pĭ-tәnt)

Adj.1. properly or well-qualified2. adequate for the purpose

Example: The Mentors’ Journal needs competent staff writers, graphic artists and layout artists this semester.

IF YOU THINK YOU ARE COMPETENT ENOUGH TO HAVE YOUR NAME INCLUDED IN THE

BOX BESIDE, JUST STORM ROOM 307 OF ROXAS HALL ONCE

YOU’VE READ THIS NOTE AND SHOW US YOUR

COMPETENT SELF.

The Mentors’ JournalThe Official Publication of the Students

of BulSU - College of EducationEditorial Staff 2010-2011

JULY - OCTOBER 2010 THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL EDITORIAL 5

Editor-in-ChiefJulie Ann O. RamosAssociate Editor

Ruth Gladyz B. De GuzmanManaging Editor for Administration

Carlyd Mae C. De JesusManaging Editor for Finance

Ruby Rose R. CruzFeatures Editor

Jay Christian M. RamosHulagpos Editor

Maria Jovy Ann C. ReyesGraphics EditorTherence D. Talla

Staff WriterKhristine M. BalanayMercy C. Morales

Adelaine J. Salvador

Layout ArtistsFernan O. Dealca

PhotojournalistsAngelique L. Fernando

Marian M. Santos

Graphic ArtistsJenna N. David

Sunshine D. GravadorRonnel B. Tafalla

ContributorsAljon D. Galang

Kenneth Caesar M. Javier

AdviserDr. Avelina M. Aquino

www.thementorsjournal.net

If you loathe how Bob Ong drives his readers to reminisce and laugh; if you despise the crazy arguments of Eros Atalia; if you findChrisMartinez’ LastOrder sa

Penguin too frank and bold; if you’re fed up with Severus Snape and Dumbledore’s magic; maybe you will like something intellectual and poetic. Maybe you will like something that will surely make you think but will open you a brighter window of ruminating what life really is, what happiness is, and what love (in every sense of the word) really has for you. Maybe you would want something real, something dead serious, yet flowery andliterary. Maybe you would want some Pulitzer and Pen/Faulkner. Then, take the novel The Hours. Written by award-winning novelist Michael Cunningham, it explores the life of three women from different periods inspired by a Virginia Woolf novel. One is Mrs. Laura Brown, an ordinary wife who is not contented with her routine-engrossed life. She hates preparing the house, baking a cake, caring for her son, and conceiving a child. Just like some people, she convinces herself that she is happy. Second is Clarissa Vaughan, Cunningham’s modern Mrs. Dalloway, who loves and cares for Richard: an old friend who will receive the Carrouther’s Award and is dying of AIDS. Third is Virginia Woolf herself, who then writes Mrs. Dalloway, and recuperates from her ‘headaches’, her layman’s term for her attacks of insanity. The novel begins and ends with a surprise. Virginia Woolf’s suicide shocks the readers in the prologue as she care-fully puts stones in her coat to drown herself in the river. The feminist astonishes herself with the different things she sees as the river pulls her down. Cunningham amazes the readers as he gives the deeply passionate ending, while making the readers catch their breaths, as the revelation happens. The author astounds the readers as the lives of two women, Laura and Clarissa, merged with Woolf’s as it approaches the end. “Why else do we struggle to go on living, no matter how compromised, no matter how harmed… even if we’re fleshless, blazing with lesions, shitting in the sheets; still, we want desperately to live.” The novel presents the idea of death in a manner that dazes readers. As Richard, Clarissa’s friend, decides to end his life (I will not tell you how he did it, I promise it is shocking), Cunningham’s words make dying so acceptable. It is as if people recognize that one time, no matter what circumstance, regardless of who you are, you will surely die. We may leave the world in different ways, some take pills, some hang themselves, some get hit by a car, some rot with sickness, some through a natural death. What matters are the things that we do when we are alive. What matters is how we lived life. “Here is the world and you live in it and are grateful. You try to be grateful.” Yet, in living life, there is discontentment, of course. There are writer-wannabes who end up with business; famous people who become infamous; stars who soon fade. People tend to regret the things that they could have done. It is implicitly shown in the novel when Woolf yearns for London because she believes that her life is there; Laura wants to enjoy her life by not being a mother and wife. Obviously, fanatics will say that the book’s title, The HoursisjustacopycatofWoolf’sMrs.Dalloway,foritwasitsfirsttitle. But Cunningham made it more life-like: presenting more lives and how each one tries to exercise prudence, and go on living. He gives more importance of the few hours that we may have. He emphasizes the worth of the hours that we have lived—the hours that really matter. This is not an easy-reading novel, not that summery-af-ternoon-sitting-on-the porch-with-a-glass-of-orange-juice-with-a-petty-little-book feel. Since it adopts the stream-of-conscious-ness technique initiated by Woolf and James Joyce, it requires the readers to think, as the author combines, carefully thought-of, poetic, yet meaningful words in forming his sentences. The manner Cunningham presents ideas will surprise a bookworm for it is highly moving, yet intellectual. Unlike the works of Ong, Atalia, or Martinez, The Hours will give you a serious butt as you reckon things and pieces of the joints of your life.

Much has been said about Francis “Master Rapper” Magalona. His life, patriotism, passion, craft and his untimely death are well-known to the Filipinos and his music fans. Much has been said about Ely Buendia. We are all witnesses of how this dude from UP started a little band called the Eraserheads and later on launched into OPM Rock n’ Roll stardom (no need to elaborate on this). Put these two titans together in one album and we have an all-star line up. Before Magalona’s death, he and Buendia conceptualized a collaborative album and even if he died halfwayduringthealbum’searlierrecordings,Buendiasoldieredontofinishit. “Higante” (the album’s carrier single featuring Hardware Syndrome—Magalona’s back up band) stands off the mayhem. Actually, this song has already been played on several radio stations (particularly NU 107) months even before the album’s actual release. It has that vintage Magalona vibe all over the song—his angst-ridden rap is mixed with politically and socially inclined lyrics: “sino kang makaasta/ isa kang kontrabida di ba?/ maliliit na tulad namin / sina-saktan at kinakain.” The next track “Bus Stop” has that nice rock and hiphop vibe while

its greed musical melodicism makes it very catchy. The guitar solo layered with the synthesizers provides a fresh kick to the song.

“Dreamdate”, with all its jazzy riffs and vibe, is a great song. It is actually a dark, stalker-type song emphasized

especially when Buendia sings the sick lines: “akin ka na/wag ka nang pumalag/ ako ang iyong dreamdate.” Agirlwoulddefinitely be spooked to death if aguydedicates this song to her. “Hands On” (one of the best songs in the album,

and my personal choice) opens up the second half of the CD. Buendia and the

rest of the punk-rock trio Hilera surely enjoyed the hell out of this collabora-tion. The hard driving guitar riffs and the loud back-to-basics instrumentation really

match the attitude of the song. It just sounds so stripped down,

raw, dirty, then it all gets sexed-up whenChrisPadilla(Hilera)firestheguitar

solo (you might want to do a little headbang, tap your hands and feet , or air guitar like a total ass-wipe). Buendia then pleads with the lines: “do whatever/ do whatever”. Meanwhile, the song “Bum Ticker” does not disappoint. It is actually quite a powerful and heavy song, not because the instrumentation plays heavy tunes or something, but the song dynamics is very agitating to listen to. What surprised me is that I found some ele-ments not frequently used by both Magalona and Buendia on their previous efforts. The distorted guitar sound mixed up with synthesizers is somewhat reminiscent of industrial rock (Marilyn Man-son, Nine Inch Nails), then it shifts gear into World Music (with all the percussions). “Wasak Waltz”, one of the best cuts of the CD, is all vintage Buendia doing what he does best as he displays his arsenal of musical wit: writing good, sensible lyrics and putting good melodic tunes to it, making an automatic earcandy. That formula right there has made him win the hearts of the fans and later made him one of the biggest icons of OPM. How can you say “no” to some poignant lyrics like: “Itaas and kamay at iwagayway/ masarap mabuhay, itaob na ang tagay (kampay!)/ Sa’n ka man magpunta, meron man o wala/ d’yan nagsisimula ang pagsasa-mahan”? I bet this song will be the listeners’ favorite anytime soon and will eventually go down as one of the all-time classics. The album eventually ends with the cut “Unstrung Heroes” (originally done by the Eheads). Buendia and Magalona did a fairly good job on their harmonizing vocal parts in the beginning of the song; just like the grand, arena–sized melodies Bono (of U2) loves to do (but in a different way of course). It has that punk rock groove, maybe a look back at both of the artists’ youthfuldays.It’sanicesongtoputthefinalnailonthecoffin(figurativelyandliterally).Attheendof the song, there is a recording of Magalona’s announcement about his leukemia, which I thought was unnecessary because the album is already great and that recording connotes a negative vibe into it (but hey, that’s just me). For the record, I am not a big fan of both Magalona and Buendia, but I have to say that In Love and War is a great material. First, it is not formulated in structure. Before listening to it, I thought all the songs will be something like: Buendia’s going to sing followed by Magalona’s rap over and over again. Most of all, I had a blast listening to the cuts without caring to know who sang what with whom, considering the fact that there are tons of artists in this album. Another good point about the album is its length. With 10 tracks in it, the whole CD runspastforonly30minutes(thelongestsongbeingBusStop,reachingthefive–minutemark)solisteners will not get tired of listening to the songs. Is this album worth all the hype and worth jamming into? If you’re the type of listener who is a purist to both Buendia’s and Magalona’s hey days and think that “Ligaya”, “El Bimbo”,

“With a Smile”, “Kaleidoscope World”, “Cold Summer Nights”, and “Mga Kababayan Ko” are the coolest things that both artists have ever written, then you might feel this material

alienating and somewhat irrelevant. However, if you have a broader perspective towards music,adiehardorsimplyarabidrockn’rollfaithful,thenyoudefinitelycan’tmissIn

Love and War.

Master Rapper Takes His Final ActA review of the album In Love and War by Ely Buendia and Francis Magalona (Sony BMG)

by Kenneth Caesar M. Javier

Screw Twilight for their vampire love affair clichés, dump Valentine’s Day for its usual happy ending, chuck Last Song and Dear John for their predictable plots. Forget about the cheesy moments you used to watch, forget about “once upon a time” and “they lived happily ever after.” Instead, imagine a low cost movie with great music, wonderfulcinematography,anaturalstyle,andafittingcastwith their quotable lines that you can text to your pals. Think of a mob of directors, writers, actors, and actresses who fell in and out of love after watching it and sprung for a standing ovation at the Sundance Film Festival for this movie. Think of its $60 M earnings, but do not ever forget: 500 Days of Sum-mer is not a love story. This independent production is brilliantly directed by MarcWebbandflawlesslywrittenbyScottNeustadterandMichael Weber who won multiple Best Screenplay Awards andBreakthroughScreenWritersAward.ItisthefirsttimeIencounter the names, I admit, but hey, they are much better than their dry names. This must-pick among the thousand commercialized movies of today sets pace on this unconventional romantic but touching comedy about Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levit), a would-be architect, who believes that true love, serendipity, and fate exist, and hopes to meet ‘the one’ whom he be-lieves to be Summer Finn (Zooey Deschanel), who reminds me so much of Katy Perry, a woman who sarcastically does not share the belief and brands love a ‘fantasy’. Events of their on-and-off relationship unfold out of sequence cued by yellow-numbered slides flashing inbetween scenes to indicate a day in Tom and Summer’s roller coaster love affair. The quirky film opens as an omniscientvoice describes how the two main characters totally differ. Episodes are creatively arranged to create an impact on the viewers and to be physically engaged with the twist of Tom’s experiences and feelings. Thisfilmmakestheviewersrealizethatloveismorethan what we see in movies or hear in pop songs; that love, no matter how great, will still be nothing if not shared mutually. Set aside your preconceived notions about love and its fancy andseehowthisfilmrudelyandhonestlyshedlightonwhatreally goes through in romances. In a nutshell, this is not for those who believe solely in fate. This is not for those who believe that love is a series of coincidences. This is for those who believe that both life and love are a matter of choices. This is for those who are brave

enough to see the truth in every relationship. This is for every-one who is ready to breathe both the aroma and stench of love. After all, there is always another season after every summer. If you still would not see this next season after you watch this film, I must say thatmaybe, “youmust not havebeen looking.” Look again. “It’s love, not Santa Claus.”

The Season AfterAreviewofthefilm500 Days of Summer(Directed by Marc Webb)

by Ruth Gladyz B. De Guzman

Surviving the HoursA review of Michael Cunningham’s novel The Hours

by Maria Jovy Ann C. Reyes

Much has been said about Francis “Master Rapper” Magalona. His life, patriotism, passion, craft and his untimely death are well-known to the Filipinos and his music fans. Much has been said about Ely Buendia. We are all witnesses of how this dude from UP started a little band called the Eraserheads and later on launched into OPM Rock n’ Roll stardom (no need to elaborate on this). Put these two titans together in one album and we have an all-star line up. Before Magalona’s death, he and Buendia conceptualized a collaborative album and even if he died halfwayduringthealbum’searlierrecordings,Buendiasoldieredontofinishit. “Higante” (the album’s carrier single featuring Hardware Syndrome—Magalona’s back up band) stands off the mayhem. Actually, this song has already been played on several radio stations (particularly NU 107) months even before the album’s actual release. It has that vintage Magalona vibe all over the song—his angst-ridden rap is mixed with politically and socially inclined lyrics: “sino kang makaasta/ isa kang kontrabida di ba?/ maliliit na tulad namin / sina-saktan at kinakain.” The next track “Bus Stop” has that nice rock and hiphop vibe while

its greed musical melodicism makes it very catchy. The guitar solo layered with the synthesizers provides a fresh kick to the song.

“Dreamdate”, with all its jazzy riffs and vibe, is a great song. It is actually a dark, stalker-type song emphasized

especially when Buendia sings the sick lines: “akin ka na/wag ka nang pumalag/ ako ang iyong dreamdate.” Agirlwoulddefinitely be spooked to death if aguydedicates this song to her. “Hands On” (one of the best songs in the album,

and my personal choice) opens up the second half of the CD. Buendia and the

rest of the punk-rock trio Hilera surely enjoyed the hell out of this collabora-tion. The hard driving guitar riffs and the loud back-to-basics instrumentation really

match the attitude of the song. It just sounds so stripped down,

raw, dirty, then it all gets sexed-up whenChrisPadilla(Hilera)firestheguitar

solo (you might want to do a little headbang, tap your hands and feet , or air guitar like a total ass-wipe). Buendia then pleads with the lines: “do whatever/ do whatever”. Meanwhile, the song “Bum Ticker” does not disappoint. It is actually quite a powerful and heavy song, not because the instrumentation plays heavy tunes or something, but the song dynamics is very agitating to listen to. What surprised me is that I found some ele-ments not frequently used by both Magalona and Buendia on their previous efforts. The distorted guitar sound mixed up with synthesizers is somewhat reminiscent of industrial rock (Marilyn Man-son, Nine Inch Nails), then it shifts gear into World Music (with all the percussions). “Wasak Waltz”, one of the best cuts of the CD, is all vintage Buendia doing what he does best as he displays his arsenal of musical wit: writing good, sensible lyrics and putting good melodic tunes to it, making an automatic earcandy. That formula right there has made him win the hearts of the fans and later made him one of the biggest icons of OPM. How can you say “no” to some poignant lyrics like: “Itaas and kamay at iwagayway/ masarap mabuhay, itaob na ang tagay (kampay!)/ Sa’n ka man magpunta, meron man o wala/ d’yan nagsisimula ang pagsasa-mahan”? I bet this song will be the listeners’ favorite anytime soon and will eventually go down as one of the all-time classics. The album eventually ends with the cut “Unstrung Heroes” (originally done by the Eheads). Buendia and Magalona did a fairly good job on their harmonizing vocal parts in the beginning of the song; just like the grand, arena–sized melodies Bono (of U2) loves to do (but in a different way of course). It has that punk rock groove, maybe a look back at both of the artists’ youthfuldays.It’sanicesongtoputthefinalnailonthecoffin(figurativelyandliterally).Attheendof the song, there is a recording of Magalona’s announcement about his leukemia, which I thought was unnecessary because the album is already great and that recording connotes a negative vibe into it (but hey, that’s just me). For the record, I am not a big fan of both Magalona and Buendia, but I have to say that In Love and War is a great material. First, it is not formulated in structure. Before listening to it, I thought all the songs will be something like: Buendia’s going to sing followed by Magalona’s rap over and over again. Most of all, I had a blast listening to the cuts without caring to know who sang what with whom, considering the fact that there are tons of artists in this album. Another good point about the album is its length. With 10 tracks in it, the whole CD runspastforonly30minutes(thelongestsongbeingBusStop,reachingthefive–minutemark)solisteners will not get tired of listening to the songs. Is this album worth all the hype and worth jamming into? If you’re the type of listener who is a purist to both Buendia’s and Magalona’s hey days and think that “Ligaya”, “El Bimbo”,

“With a Smile”, “Kaleidoscope World”, “Cold Summer Nights”, and “Mga Kababayan Ko” are the coolest things that both artists have ever written, then you might feel this material

alienating and somewhat irrelevant. However, if you have a broader perspective towards music,adiehardorsimplyarabidrockn’rollfaithful,thenyoudefinitelycan’tmissIn

Love and War.

Master Rapper Takes His Final ActA review of the album In Love and War by Ely Buendia and Francis Magalona (Sony BMG)

by Kenneth Caesar M. Javier Exemplary writer and director Chris Martinez made us laugh with his hilarious movies, Here Comes the BrideandKimmyDora;whatwedonotknowishefirstmade us cry with 100. One of the 10 full-length films in the 2008Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, this masterpiece of Chris Martinez (who is known for sev-eral Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature he achieved for his creations: Laugh Trip, Last Order sa Penguin, Welcome to Intelstar, and Our Lady of Arlegoi), bestowsfivemajorawardsincludingBestDirector,BestScreenplay, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress and Audience’s Choice Award. The chronicle starts when Joyce (Mylene Dizon) resigns from work at the brink of her achieve-ments. She starts to list 100 things in Post-It notes the things she wants to accomplish hastily. Her plan are odd as one can imagine to make her death, if not painless, subtle for the people who love her, since her family al-ready lost someone important. These involve paying for herowncoffin,choosingherdressandpickingsongsforher own wake. She arranges all these for she wants to have a prepared death. There is much value added in the mundane: Joyce, with her best friend Ruby (Eugene Domingo), remi-nisces their school days in their old classroom, visits Hong Kong and takes pictures with Mickey Mouse, Buddha andthewaxstatueofBradPitt.Forthefirsttime,Joycedowns gallons and gallons of ice ream and engages a stranger to a passionate kiss and manages her compli-cated love story. Thefilmoffersnoclimaxbutacrestofemo-tions up to the end. It jumps from one task to another in a near-clockwork fashion until all the Post-Its stuck on the wall are gone. Knowing that the activities are done out of making the most of her very limited life, there is melancholy and a thrilling desperation in these moments. Journeying in the wilderness, Joyce arrives at her destination—a tranquil lake in the middle of the crater of a volcano. A life after death or a prelude to

heaven? The sequence is drowned in silence. Mylene Dizoninallhergraceinthisfastidiousflickisasymbolof life’s preciousness no matter how short it seems to be. She sees the people she will leave behind laughing, interacting in bliss. She remains unseen. OnethingIrealizedattheendofthisfilmisthis: it is not a cliché about death but one that earns a solo standing ovation and a bow for Chris Martinez in all adulation for such an incredible and award-winning effort.

Before I encountered this winner of 2005 Don Carlos Palan-ca Memorial Awards for novel, Salamanca, all I knew about that single word was nothing but pure magic. It made me think of an image of a man wearing a long black tuxe-do holding a big black hat in which rabbits, doves, roses and butter-fliescomeoutofit—amagician’strick to trigger the illusion of the audience. Dean Francis Alfar’s style in this novel is not quite different for he takes the role of an author-magician but with no props except for his imagi-nation and artistry. He makes hisfirstnovelsomagical,fan-tastic and extraordinary that the impossible becomes a possibility before the read-ers. They are not forced to believe but instead encouraged to. Being a promoter of the literature of the fan-tasticandawriterofmostlyspeculativefiction,hisfirstnovel takesonthe influencesof themagical-realismfictionfromSouthAmerica.A bizarre tale of the fantastic love affair of Gaudencio Rivera—Dencio, an exceptional dissolute writer from Manila who came from America to beget a child; and the most beautiful woman in Tagba-oran, Palawan, Jacinta Cordova—Intang, whose astonishing and unearthly beauty has transformed the walls of her house into glass during the midnight of her 12th birthday. The story revolves around their long relationship that spans oceans and generations. It is also detailed with puzzling variety of characters, one of which is Cesar Abalos, the handsome and swarthy man with huge affection on Dencio whom he runs off with after tying the knot with Intang. The book is full of different plots, but the one that keeps the other composed is when Dencio discovers the island of Tagbaoran and during his cigarette break unexpectedly comes across the glasshouse ofJacintaCordova.HefallsinloveathisveryfirstsightofIntang’soutrageous beauty. By then, he starts to write his expressions of love in papers and pastes it in her glass walls hoping that she will be able to read those upon waking up in the morning. To their dismay, a natural obstruction occurs. Just when everybody assumed that Dencio is already dead, he surprisingly comes back after three days. He immediately asks Jacinta to marry him and, without hesitation, Jacinta agrees. After 11 days of their marriage, Dencio deserts Intang and runs off with Cesar Abalos to Manila. Since then, Intang’s unearthly beauty starts to diminish. But af-ter years of grief and sadness, since Dencio’s sudden disappearance, he now realizes how much he misses her wife and decides to go back in Tagbaoran and engender a child. Few more years passed and Jacinta gives her entire life for the welfare of her family. “Love was destined and would strike as true as unexpected lightning on a clear day or never come at all.”—Jacinta Cordova Love tends to change its mood suddenly. It keeps on changing one’s mind through inconstancy and passion, desire and ob-session,anticipationandmisery.JustlikehowDenciofindsloveinthemost unlikely places and in the time he least expects it. And this book proves that true love endures all catastrophes—earthquake, typhoon, flood,fire. One good thing about it is that after all the delight and the tumultuous plot and sequence of events, the novel cunningly concludes with the sweetest, most touching occurrence of all. Be astounded and be moved to tears by the last few pages, as the story picks up the swiftnessandsuperblyendswithIntang’sfirstandfinalpoignantletter to Dencio. Do not read it in public if you do not have at least two handy tissues in your pocket.

Of Leaving

and LivingAreviewofthefilm 100

(Directed by Chris Martinez)

by Khristine M. Balanay

Realms of the SurrealA review of Dean Francis Alfar’s novel Salamanca

by Ruby Rose R. Cruz

JULY - OCTOBER 2010THE MENTORS’ JOURNALFEATURES8

Mapapansin ang maraming naghihintay na upuan sa klase ni Prof. Juan, halos kalahati lamang ng silid ang na-gamit. Nasaan na kaya sila? Napapansin na ni Prof. ang mga madalas na pagliban ng mga mag-aaral niya. Dahil kaya ito sa mainit at maalikabok na silid na kanilang ginagamit o may mas maganda pang lugar na maaaring puntahan? Hindi na nga ba nila mats na magklase sa mainit at masikip na silid sa nakakaantok na tanghaling iyon? Dalawandaang metro mula sa kwartong iyon ay ang mga bagong bu-kas na establisyimento. Nagkalat ang mga nagkasundong lumiban sa klase para makagimik. Ang mga pasosyal ay nag-agahan at tumambay sa KFC. Ang mga walang badyet ay nag-McDo at nag-Mini Stop na lang. Ang mga lalake naman ay maingay na naglalaro ng kanilang kinaaa-dikang DOTA sa Sweetopia. Napakasaya nila maliban sa mga naiwan sa klase na wala talagang pera noong araw na iyon. Napakasaya na gusto pa nilang umu-lit. Isang araw na naman ang lumipas na walang natutunan ang mga mag-aaral. Nakatutuwa na sa araw-araw na pagpasok sa unibersidad ay unang mapapansin ang mga mapagmalaking mga establisyimento kaysa sa nakagilid na gate na minsan ay natatabingan pa ng nakaparadang dealer truck. Isang napakagandang pabalat para sa mga sira-sira at nabubulok na mga lamesa at upuan; para sa nagkukulang at na-luluma nang mga silid-aralan; at para sa marumi, mabaho at hindi mapaki-nabangang mga CR—mga anino na nag-tatago sa kabila ng matataas na gusali.

Ang ugat ng lahat Dahil na rin sa unti-unting pag-tapyas sa pondong inilalaan ng gobyerno para sa edukasyon, naipasa ang Republic Act 8292 o ang Higher Education Mod-ernization Act of 1997. Nakapaloob sa batas na ito ang paglalagay ng maayos

na komposisyon at kapangyarihan sa pa-munuan ng bawat State Universities at Colleges (SUC) sa pagpapanatili, pag-papaunlad at pagsuporta sa mabisang sistema ng edukasyon. Sa pamamagi-tan rin ng batas na ito ay napahintulu-tan ng Commission on Higher Education (CHED) ang pagpapatayo ng mga SUCs ng sariling Income-Generating Projects. Ito ang pagkakataon na nakita ng unibersidad upang mas mapakinaban-gan ang lupa sa bakuran nito na parte ng dating university oval at mas lalo pa raw mapakinabangan. Kaakibat nito ang tatlong mithiin kung bakit nga ba naipa-tayo ang mga establisyimento: upang magkaroon ng ibang pagkukunang pinan-syal ang BulSU; upang magkaroon ng bagong pananaw ang mga estudyante at maging ang mga tao sa labas nito; at upang makapagbigay ng magandang imahe ng paaralan. Sa kasalukuyan, ang Caltex, McDo at Graceland Mall ang mga umuupa sa lupain ng unibersidad na nagbibigay ng humigit kumulang P1M kada buwan.

Ang pamamalakad Ang matagumpay na pagpapa-tayo ng bawat establisyimento, ayon kay Pres. Mariano de Jesus, ay naisakatuparan ng unibersidad sa pamamagitan ng siste-mang Built-Own-Transfer (BOT). Dito ay magsasagawa ng bidding ang pamunuan upang makapamili ng investors. Makatapos makapili, sila ay hahayaang makapagtayo ng sariling gusali at pasilidad sa lugar na ibibigay ng pamunuan. Sa paraang ito, maiiwasang gumastos ng unibersidad. Lum-alabas na renta lamang ang maaaring makuhang porsyento ng ating paaralan na kung susumahin ay humigit kumulang P1M buwan-buwan. Bago naman magsimula ang transaksyon ay kinakailangang pu-masa at sumunod sa kasunduan ang mga investors sa kung ano lang ang dapat maipatayong negosyo. Ang kagandahan daw rito ay pagkatapos ng 20 taon ay

mapupunta na ang pamamahala nito sa pamunuan ng BulSU. Upang makasigu-rong susunod ay magtatalaga naman ng mga tagapagbantay ang pamunuan sa transaksyon ng mga establisyimentong ito. Kung may umiiral na sistema bakit kaya nakapagbukas ang Grace-land ng isang shot bar kung saan uma-ga pa lang ay umiinom na ang ilang mga estudyante? Nababantayan rin nga ba ang mga ginagawa ng mga es-tudyante partikular na sa paggamit ng computer sa mga computer shop dito?

Mga pagtataya Iba-iba ang pahayag ng mga tao tungkol sa transaksyon ng mga estab-lisyimentong ito, maaari itong positibo at negatibo depende kung saang anggulo titingnan. Ayon sa isang panayam kay Marc Lorence Samson, BSCE, “Maganda kasi, nagbibigay income sa school saka at the same time nagkakaroon ng trabaho ang mga estudyante.” Ayon naman kay Rhane Vince de Lara ng LHS, “Nakatutu-longdinkasimayOfficeDepotkasolangnagiging lugar ang Graceland para pag-tambayan ng mga estudyante.” Negatibo rin ang naging pananaw ni Melinda Iman, isang tindera, dahil sa tuwing dumaraan siya sa tapat ng mga establisyimentong ito ay laging mga estudyante lamang ang nasa loob. Maging ano pa man ito ay mas dapat mapahalagahan ang tunay na kalagayan ng bawat mag-aaral, ang pagkukulang sa mga silid-aralan at pasi-lidad para sa tuluyang pagkatuto.

Ang mabuting balita Magagawa ng linangin ng BulSU sa 2011 ang 25 ektaryang lupain na nasa dating pangangalaga ng Philippine Infor-mation Agency (PIA) dahil sa nilagdaang Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) para sa tuluyang pagkuha nito sa bahaging lu-pain. Hindi pa tiyak ang eksaktong gastusin sa pagsasaayos ng lupain na ito ngunit na-kakasigurado na bilyon ang kakailanganin para sa tuluyan nitong pagpapagawa ng mga proyekto. Kaya patuloy na nilalakad ng pamunuan ng BulSU ang mga pagku-kunang pondo nito na maaaring manggal-ing sa ilang prominenteng tao. Nakaplano itong pagtayuan ng dagdag na dalawang kolehiyo: ang College of Human Kinetics at College of Medicine, kasama na ang isang ospital. Isang magandang oportuni-dad ito para sa marami pang nagnanais pumasok sa unibersidad. Nakaplano rin

itong pagtayuan ng BulSU Sports Complex, sariling oval at dormitoryo para sa mga estudyante, guro at personnel ng unibersidad na makatutulong para sa pagpapaunlad ng sports ac-tivities at magandang matutuluyan.

Not 4 hire Gayunpaman, hindi kailanman magiging repleksyon ng edukasyon ang tumatakip sa esensyal na layunin nito. Isang reyalidad ang dapat harapin ng pamunuan—hindi lang ang tamang pag-sasaayos ng labas lalo’t higit sa loob ng unibersidad ang mahalaga upang lalong umunlad ang bawat indibidwal. Hindi kailanman maitatago ng magandang pabalat ang bulok at nagkukulang ng laman ng loob nito. Hindi rin ito dapat maging instrumento para lalong mailayo ang bawat mag-aaral sa pag-aaral. Kung susumahin ang lahat ng mga datos na ito, maaaring isa lamang paraan ng pa-munuan ang pagpapatayo ng mga establi-syementong ito upang makasunod ang ating unibersidad sa ibang matataas na paman-tasan tulad ng Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas at Unibersidad ng Pilipinas na napalilibutan ng iba’t ibang establisyimento ngunit hindi napababayaan ang pangunahing prayori-dad. Sa ganitong paraan mas madaling mapapansin ang ating unibersidad at mas maipagmamalaki ng bawat mag-aaral. Ngunit higit pa sa mga es-tablisyementong ito ang hinihingi upang maipakita ang pagkakakilan-lan at pag-unlad ng unibersidad. Mas magiging katanggap-tangap na makikila ito dahil sa mga dekalidad at produktibo na mga guro, estudyante at pati na pa-munuan, mataas man o mababang lupon. Tamang paglilimi at pagsu-suri ang kailangan ng mga namumuno. Wala mang bagong lupa para iparenta, ang kailangan lang ay maisip at ma-dama ang tunay na pangangailangan ng bawat estudyante. Isa man itong magan-dang pasimula sa kaisipang pampinan-syal ngunit pagkakataon naman na tutu-kan at muling ibaling ang tuon sa tunay na mithiin—ang dekalidad na edukasyon. Isang araw na naman ang magsi-simula. Magkaklase na naman si Prof. Juan sa masikip at mainit na silid-aralan. Ilan na naman kayang estudyante ang dapat matu-to ngunit nasa hilera ng mga establisyimen-tong tumatakip sa harapan ng unibersidad? May pwesto pa nga ba talaga ang deka-lidad na edukasyon sa dikit-dikit na estab-lisyementong umuokupa sa ating bakuran?

Jay Christian M. Ramos at Mercy C. Morales

Ok lang skin, kc moderately nman nilang i22ro. Hndi nman itu2ro s elem qng panu mgsex

0926-160-79**

Oo dapat ituro ang “sex education” sa elementarya sa mga antas n grade 4-6 dahil may mga kamalayan na sila sa ganoong mundo. Dapat na silang bigyan ng aral o kmalayan sa mundo ng sex. Kung mapapansin pabata na ng pabata ang mga nabubuntis ngayon dahil sa kakulangan ng kaalaman.

0906-120-47**

Pabor ako however we should set limitations. Sex is a very crucial topic. Au-thoritiesmustbeabletoapplyadefiniteandformalmeaningtoit.Pls.considerthatwhen we say sex we do not just refer to the ‘act’ but also to the state of being male or female. Kailangan lang maging open tayo and we should be able to identify the purpose of the subject.

0926-716-86**

Agree ako sa panukalang sex education for elementary students, kc pgcnabing sex education d ibg sbhn ipupush mong gawn ng mga bta eh, ders stl a limitation pdn naman, ang bta kc dumadaan s stage of curiousity kung san dpt npupuno m ung kata-nungan n nd nla mbgyang sagot, tska way n dn un para mguide cla at mamulat cla sa bgay n d nla dpt gwn at der young age. Tnx

0906-676-39**

Ou, pabor aq, para mging open na ang mga kabataan sa sex. Na ang sex ay hindi lang puro kamanyakan na eto ang pnagmumulan ng lahat.

0935-918-03**

Pabor ako syempre. Let’s be practical. Hindi naman talaga pinag-uusapan at tinuturo ng mga magulang ang sex. Leave it to the teachers.

0915-347-91**

Hindi ako pabor dahl ang mga bata, ang nxa kaisipan pa lng nla ay en-joyin ang buhay, sa highschool pwede pa.

0905-723-61**

Sa tngn q pu ndi dapat, ndi dpat ntn bsagin ang inosenteng icpan ng mga bta.. at imulat cla agad sa sex education..

092648265**

Hindi po ako pabor sa sex education sa mga elementarya sapagkat, hindi pa po naayon ang kanilang kaisipan, para sa mga bagay na ito, ngunit hindi ko sinasabing ipagbawal ito dahil hindi naman ibubukod ng subj. ang sex educ. Kundi ihahalo sa bawat subject. That is accidental learning

0905-723-61**

I, as future elem teacher, nd ako pabor na i2ro ang sex educ s mga elem students, spagkat hndi pa gnu develop ang kaicpan nla. Wat I mean is magka2roon lng ng mas mrming katanungan at kli2han… mas mabuti n cmulan ang pag22ro ng sex educ pag2ng2ng nla sa secondary level.

0926-591-99**

Hindi, kasi sabi nga ng simbahan, may iba pang mas mahalagang bagay na dapat ituro sa mga estudyante like making the youth close to Jesus. Tsaka, sabi nga nila, inaalisan na nila ng karapatan yung mga magulang na magturo ng private matters like that.

0906-245-43**

Hindi dahil responsibilidad ng mga magulang ang mga anak kahit hindi pa man sila nag-aaral sa eskwelahan. Mas malalaman ng mga magulang kung ano ang kinakailangang pagsubaybay sa kanilang mga anak. Mas mabibigyang atensyon ang mga bagay tungkol sa sex ed kung sila mismo ang magtuturo sa kanilang mga anak.

0917-334-88**

Kapag daw matagal mo nang hindi ginagawa ang isang bagay kung saan dati ay magaling ka, isang bagay ang sigurado: mangangalawang ka. High school pa ata ako nang huli akong magsulat ng lathalain na naipublish sa dyaryo. Noon, aktibo akong nagpapasa ng mga sanaysay at tula. Sabi ng mga kak-lase ko dati, magaling daw akong mag-

sulat. Nabansagan pa nga akong manu-

nula at manunulat ng klase. Sumasali ako

noon sa kahit anong patimpalak sa pagsu-

sulat, kahit pa tungkol sa mga poon at kung sinu-si-

nong santo (private school kasi kaya lahat ng pyesta

ng mga santo ay ipinagdiri-wang). Ang yabang ko noon

sa tuwing nakagagawa ako ng tula; mas nagiging maha-

ngin kapag naipublish yung gawa ko at kapag nasa harapan ang pangalan ko. Tuwang-tuwa ako sa munting pangalan ko. Humingi pa nga ako ng ekstrang kopya ng dyaryo at ginupit ang mga naipublish kong gawa at nilagay sa scrapbook. Nilagay ko roon para makikita ko pa rin pagdaan ng panahon, at pwede kong ipagyabang sa iba.

The breakdown Nang mag-college ako, hindi ko alam kung bakit hindi na ako makapag-sulat. Siguro dahil ibang mundo na ito. Nakita ko rin kasi na may mga taong mas

magaling sa akin. Napansin kong ang babaw pala ng mga

naiisip ko noon. N a -

laman kong malawak pa ang mundo ng pagsusulat. Sa lawak ng mundong iyon, ka-karampot pa lang ang nararating ko. Mula noon, nahiya na akong magsulat. Hinayaan kong lamunin ako ng pag-aaral. Naubos ang oras ko sa mga bagay bagay. Nagsimula akong magbasa ng kung anu-anong libro. Gumawa ako ng kung anu-anong visual aids at report. Nag-memorya ako ng kung anu-anong rules. Nang sinubukan ko ulit magsulat, wala na. Kinalawang na ako. Matagal na rin mula nang huli akong nagsulat. Hindi ko maisip kung paa-no ko naitago ang emosyon sa nagdaang panahon. Dati kasi, kapag masama ang pakiramdam ko, magsusulat lang ako at magiging ayos na ako. Kapag masaya ako, lalo akong sumasaya kapag may naisulat akong bago. Hindi ko maisip kung ano ang nangyari sa hilig kong magsulat. Baka ta-lagang wala na sa akin yung talento (kung talento nga ba talaga iyon). O baka hindi lang talaga ako talentedo.

Enlightenment Nitong simula ng taon, nabigyan ako ng pagkakataong makapagsulat muli. Naisip kong magandang pagkakataon iyon para subukang makipagsabayan sa mga kakilala kong nagsusulat din. Napag-tanto kong baka sila rin, nagsulat ng may rhyme at bilang noong high school; baka gumamit din sila ng dictionary, naghanap ng mga komplikadong salita at pinagsama para makabuo ng tula, o para masabing

intelektwal ang sinulat na sanay-say; baka nag-isip

din sila ng

mga hindi palasak na pamagat para ma-sabing tula ang isang tula; baka naranasan din nilang mabigla sa mga paulat ng isang mas malaking mundo. Bakit hindi sila kinalawang tulad ko? Sigu-ro dahil nagpatuloy sila. Habang ako ay nagpalugmok sa pagkagulat sa bagong mundo, hindi sila huminto. Nagpalulong ako sa posibilidad na maaaring hindi ko ka-yaning makipagsabayan. Naduwag akong magtaya para pasukin ang mundong tini-tingnan ko lang. Nabahag ang buntot ko na magsulat.

Emancipation Sa bandang huli, naisip kong walang mangyayari kung hindi ko susubu-kang muli. Ngayon, handa na ako. Handa na akong gamitin ang minsan kong nakali-mutan na kakayahan at sumubok muli. Heto ako muli, hawak ang pluma na ginaga-wang makatotohanan ang mga dam-daming mapusok, alam kong kaya ko na ngayon. Kaya ko na silang sabayan kahit sa mga mumunting nagagawa ko. Unti-unti ko nang babakbakin ang kalawang na minsa’y bumalot sa aking katauhan. Hindi ko hahayaang maging malamya ang panulat ko. Hindi ko na ha-hayaang maduwag ang puso ko sa pagla-lathala ng mga emosyon. Gagamitin kong muli ang pagsu-sulat para maipahayag ang lahat ng nasa isip ko. Nasa puso ko ang pagsusulat. Hindi ko na hahayaang kalawangin ako muli.

Pabor ka ba sa pagtuturo ng Sex Education sa Elementary?

JULY - OCTOBER 2010 THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL CULTURES/ OPINION 9

ni Maria Jovy Ann C. Reyes

Youareupearly.Youthinkofboxes.Youfindsome.Youdon’tcareifthey’rethecommonBalikbaya

nboxesorthosethatoncehousedyourfa-

vorite instant noodles. They are for the precious books you have left unpacked. You start to put them together—your English high school textbooks, a book

you have stolen from a library, the novels you bought from book fairs. You see J. D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. You remember him. He gave it to you.

You continue packing. You still have stacked papers and journals left. Will you dispose them or not? You see letters from friends you have collected over

the years. You see his letter. You continue. Now your DVDs. Another box. You just can’t leave Nicolas Cage and Brad Pitt. You see a disc that you have

watchedtogetherbutyoudidn’tfinish.Youwonderhowitended.Youletthethoughtflyaway.Youh

avehimnowinboxes.

It is an apartment somewhere in Malate. It better be a fun neighborhood, you whisper to your-self. You check the whole pad. It will be a tiring day. You start to unpack. F**k. These things again. You wish you could get some help. You think of him. You can’t think of him now. You have a lot to do.

Your desk is populated by papers you need to work on, a phone that is religiously used

fortalkingtoclientsandtheusualm

essfoundinausualdeskinausual

office.Youaretiredofthe

largeflatmonitorstaringatyouall

day.Youaretiredofthewholethi

ng.Youarerelieveditisal-

readytimetogohome.Yourofficem

atesaskyoutogowiththemFriday

night.Yousayyouwillthink

about it. You pack your things, put the papers back into a neat position, say goodbye to the people

left working. Hard-core promotion seekers, you think. You press the elevator button. You wait for a

while. You think of him. Who is he with? Where is he? It opens. Now you are inside the elevator. No

one else is. His day has just started. He’s probably so sick of answering calls too. You hail a cab. You

start to curse the drivers for being so picky. You decide to think of happy things instead. Someone

finallyagreesforMalate.Yougoi

nside.Theradioisplayingafamilia

rsong.Youthinkofhim.

Shower. You deliberately scrub every part of your malnourished

body. You remind yourself that you now live in Manila. Germs are every-

where, and much fatal. You pour an amount of the white thing you have

been using for your hair for the last four years. You gently massage your

head. Just like what you see in TV commercials—eyes closed, smiling.

Yourememberhowhewantsyoutofix

yourhair.DoIreallyneedahair

treatment? Is my hair so bad? You let go of the aching answer. You sing

a note. You try to be merry. It has been a while since you saw him. You’re

off to work. You wish you will meet again. You are late. F**king shampoo

commercial.

Thetrafficisjustkillingyou.Youwearyourearplugstoshutthenause-ating world of honking cars outside the cab. You browse your iPod and noticed that you have been playing the same playlist for a couple of months now. You need to hear new music. It is a reminder. For now, you go with Oasis. You wish Liam Gallagher is really beside you singing. You just can’t resist his near-to-drunken voice. You look at the meter. You look at the driver. You look out the window. Is it so impossible that he is sitting at one of the cabs across the lane, and listening to the same song? If so, what will you do? you ask yourself. You grinatthethought.Thevehiclehasfinallymovedon.I should too. You are back to the cluttered desk. You start to get rid of some of the stuff. You need to. Someone reminds you for tonight. You say you are sorry and will be doing something later. I wish I could go, you tell her with ardor. The truth is they are just not the people you want to go out with and be smashed with. You think of him.

He was running. After her. He was too far. You were running after him.

You wake up with a start. You suddenly want coffee, which is un-

likely. It seemed so real. You still make a cup. You turn the TV on and hoped

for something good to watch. You take a sip. There is none. You decide

to read Catcher in the Rye instead. He gave it to you. No. You stop. Sip.

Are you going to watch, read or sleep again? The last looks inviting. You

suddenly want to text your two close friends to ask them to come over. Sip.

You hesitate. That will be too messy. Should I text him? You ask yourself. You

almost forgot you no longer have his number. You memorized his number

before. Do you still know it? Why would I know it? You take your last sip.

You are relieved it is just a dream. You shut your eyes and wait for some

other dream.

You decide to do a DVD marathon. No. You want to eat. No, pig out.

You think of pizza delivered right at your doorstep—just what people do here

in Manila. You just don’t know the number to dial. You are sure it is just one num-

berrepeatedfiveorsixtimes.Butw

hichnumber?Somuchtrouble.Youd

ecide

to cook. You remember you can’t. He can. You realize how long it has been. How

long it has been that he lied. How much pain he left for you to bear. You are

sad because you are alone. But you are mad at him, you remember. You are in

tears. You are just like what you see in TV dramas. You can be an actress in a

movie. My life is a movie anyway. You sigh. You decide to go out. You think of

McDonald’s. You choose to have a cheeseburger and Coke. He was a bastard,

you try to remind yourself. You take a bite. Then, sip. You think of how long this

will take and consume you.

1. Meron akong magandang ________ na maipagyayabang ko sa inyo. a. tula b. maikling kwento c. sanaysay

2. Ano ang Haraya? a. dictionary b. cook book c. literary folio

Anong sagot mo? Dalhin mo rito sa Room 307 para magkaalaman na. Baka maisali pa natin yan sa Haraya.

JULY - OCTOBER 2010

ni Paulina

THE MENTORS’ JOURNALCULTURES10

JULY - OCTOBER 2010 THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL GRAPHICS 11

Aljon D. GalangBSEd 4G

Awash

Ronnel B. Tafalla

Therence D. TallaLEN

TE

Blue Ronnel B. Tafalla

para sa HuliAnastacia Gracia

Lipas na ang mga gabing iisipin kita.

tama ako.tama ang desisyon kong magpatianod sa agos ng hangin pakanluran kung saan lumulubog ang araw.

magduda man sa patutunguhan,maghari man ang poot sa bawat patak ng dugo sa pagal kong katawan, alam kong ito ang tama.ito ang dapat kong ginagawa.

paninidigan ko ito:

ang pagsayaw kapiling ang hanging may pait—o sa hatid nitong kumpas at galaw.

masasanay rin akosa pagkanta nang walang tigilupang ihele ang mulat na katotohanang nasa puso pa kita.

matatag ako, ang boses mong sintamis ng tubigay hindi na ako matitinag

kailanman.

makukuha mo akong muli.hindi na.

To The poet I know who sings good poetryFrom The one you’ve never written a poem for

Why don’t you write us a poem and use all your reserved craft which drove you to become a good poet to end up with one about us? Why don’t you write some-thing about happiness that, at some point, we had, or take your pick, midnight lamen-tations, unforgiveable leaving, our Switchfoot days (and daze), hours of busying your-self in front of a computer, swearing at the top of your lungs while pressing your phone to ask me once in a while if I already stuffed my intestines with anything or what I was doing at the moment, or our times when we failed to ignore each other. Or of you let-ting me read or listen to books and beats you liked, or of you bragging about some new praises you got from The Doctor, and me rolling my eyes, secretly admiring you—even more. Perhaps you could also write something about the nights we just sat on the benches in front of our shrine, and of you singing their songs in a manner I so despise. It’llbefineofyoutowriteaverseortwoaboutourdaysofhatredandmournfulweeks, and how we dwelt in hell for a year and a half now. But it doesn’t matter anymore whatever you write, does it? All I want is for you to write some poem or sort about what went between us or what had it stopped, in the impossible case I forget. Let’s not leave them what the hell happened between our doubts. Let’s not leave them wondering what this is all about.

BlockObi Reyes

Scribblingcirclesandunproportionalflowers,Tossing pens and crumpled papers, He sits and drinks his coffee darker than the day.He stares at the blank page of black lines.

Tonight, he waits for the poetry.For the night, his museWill whisper the details of this art.

But tonight is different:Fardifferentthanthenightshewritesfivepages and more.

For the muse is empty of songs to sing to him. It ran out

of rhythm.

There, he remains.Ruminating over circles that the coffee cup made;ponders on ideas he procrastinated,he remains there waiting,

waiting for the poem to come,waiting for the poem that might never come, that will not come.

He grows tired of just waiting.He stands, opens his blanket, and dreams.He dream dreams that tomorrow,

tomorrowhefindsthespark,that certain inspiration that maddens a poetenraging of passionate words to make tangiblean abstract feeling.

Di tulad ng mga nagdaangSabadosa akingpagtatangkang simulanang hile-hilerang gawainpilit ka namang nagsusumiksiksa isipan koparang langgam sa tag-ulan napinipilit pasukin lahatng butas

Tinangka kong umidlipnagbabakasakaling pagpikit aydalawin at laruin ako ng paglimotNgunit hindi

nabigo akong limutin ang bawat sandaling napasaya mo akonang hindi mo namamalayan;Hindi ko rin kayang limutin ang hindi mo pagpansin sa akinsa nagdaang linggo ang bawat sandalingnagmahal at nasaktan akoTulad ngayong araw ng Sabado— Araw ng hinagpis

Masyado akong umasasa kakahayan kokulang ang pagpupursigi kong malimot ka

Kahit ngayong araw langng Sabado

dahil kahit bagtasin ko paang matarik na tadhanaat ang milyang layo ng pangarapat ang dagat ng pighatina naghihiwalay sa atinat pilit tayong pinaghihiwalay—

Hindi pa rin kita maaabotat mahahawakanSapagkat ikaw ang puting-puti at matayog na ulapsa bughaw na kalangitanna kahit anongtingkayad at talon pa ang gawin ko’yhindi ko kayang abutin

Hindi ko kayahinding-hindi Sapagkat mahina ako

pagdating sa’yo.

JULY - OCTOBER 2010 THE MENTORS’ JOURNAL HULAGPOS 12

Pucca’s Funny LovePucca Hontas

Ibinulong ko sa dagat na kumustahin ka.ngunit walamg bumalik.

Bumulong akong muli kinabukasan Sa tagal ng paghihintay’y naidlip ako,Sa tabi ng mukha mong iginuhit ko

Wala pa rin.

…

Mali bang sa dagat ako bumulong?Dapat ba’y sa hangin o lupa o araw?Mali bang naidlip ako habang naghihintay?

Ibuka ang nakaumid na bibig Buksan ang pinid mong mata Tanggalin ang bara sa tainga.

Palubog na ang haring araw Ngunit wala pa ring sagot.Babalik pa ba ako?sana’y guhit na lang sa buhanging nabubura ng hampas ng mga alon. sa aking gunitaSana ay along bumabalik sa dalampasigan

…

Babalik ako. Babalik akong muli bukas At patuloy na mag-iintay.

Tatanaw sa kawalan,

magbabakasakali.Aasang sa pagbabalik ng mga alon, may dala na silang sagot.

ikaw, bukas, at ang mga alonGinny Wazlit