Atty Santiago "Tata Ago" Robinol, advocate of the sixth sense of the law

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Atty Santiago "Tata Ago" Robinol

- Advocate of the sixth sense of the law

"He excelled in the interpretation of the law on the grassroots."

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

To his kababayan (townmates) and his numerous clients, he was known as Tata Ago, with emphasis on his nickname, contracted Santiago who, many people may not know as James - St James or Santiago, preacher and martyr of the church.*

But Tata Ago was not the religious we know, that's too assuming and doctrinaire if justice is to be fought for and in behalf of the faithful - the grassroots who quite settle into penitence and asceticism - or silence - in lieu of fundamental human right - the right for justice. Social justice. 

Graduation photo on finishing law and passing the bar soon after, from Manuel L Quezon University then the primer law school in the country.  He was only 28, idealistic and full of dreams.  He run for mayor in his hometown although he knew well the fate of a neophyte in traditional politics. After recovering from defeat he furthered his studies at the University of Southern California for a masteral degree. He returned and landed as a public servant in Comelec, a job he did not find excitement and challenge.  He went into private law practice and became an institution in his own right. 

The arena is no longer the amphitheater or the cathedral, or some fortress, but a room called the hall of justice where the search for truth is governed by  proper conduct and inspired by  principles of human society - liberty, brotherhood  and equality. Which means that the law must uphold these principles.

But these are beyond the comprehension of common people. And this is where Tata Ago excelled: the interpretation of the law on the grassroots, particularly criminal and civil law. Tata Ago is a kind and considerate man, with a Solomonic psychology as in the case of two mothers claiming for the same baby.  When the king threatened to cut the baby in half, the impostor said, go ahead.  But the real mother said, no, let the baby live, give it to her.  

Or Lincolnian compassion. When a boy soldier was presented for deserting the union army and was condemned to hanging, the kind president said, give him some spanking and send him home.  Breaking the law may be resolved by the letter, but the future of the young man was more important. 

On one occasion Tata Ago was relating the life of the hero of Les Miserables by Victor Hugo who was thrown into the dungeon for stealing bread. I thought that was one of the casual stories on a Saturday afternoon. But he continued.  There was this boy who also committed the same crime and was brought to justice. Upon pleading guilty and showing remorse, the judge said, Society can't just coolly take cognizance of the law in the face of extreme poverty.  He took his hat put a dollar and passed on to everyone in the court. The collection was given to the boy. Of course this is just an anecdote, but Tata Ago could have been a good judge.   

And would Sherlock Holmes be impressed with investigative cases Tata Ago handled? There's one thing that can't pass through his scrutiny - the evasion of justice however "perfect the crime may look." Face it, the law is not intended to shield a crime.  Tata Ago's jaw tightened and the suspect submitted to a plea. 

What greater role does a lawyer play but the prevention of crime? There on his front yard in San Vicente or in Providence Village in Marikina, he was a teacher not so much on the fundamentals of law but the sixth sense of the law.  That is, the potential of crime must be removed to prevent its commission. Like medicine, prevention has no substitute. Which means only one thing practical for everybody: be a good citizen.  Strive to be one always.

Young people, aspiring to pursue their career used to consult Tata Ago.  For he was a model in town particularly San Vicente a small community where looking for a model may not take one to the likes of legal luminaries in the books.  But the local model is not without the qualities of a Recto, Marcos, Saguisag, Roco, Rojas (another model of the town, regional director of NBI), and the vision of those non-lawyers who even surpassed those in the profession.

There is always a disturbing question raised to those people who rose to fame.  And that is, Have you changed the world?  Of course it is a gross, unkind expectation, but this leads one to examine his contribution to the betterment of life.  Victor Frankl in his book, A Search for Meaning, confirmed that those who held on to their hopes and dreams mostly survived the concentration camp. We are in a kind of concentration camp, not to merely escape but help others, too.  Tata Ago was like that, no doubt.

And when he was about to take the armchair to spend more time with his family - a loving wife and four beautiful children all raring to pursue their careers, tragedy struck.

I would like to stop here.  As a chronicler I find it difficult to shift from a happy story to a sad one, from the ideal to the cruel reality of life, the momentum set for a lifetime to end abruptly, inconsolable, irreparable, tragedy beyond any definition of the word. Beyond any explanation.  Beyond any answer.  How we wish heaven has an answer to our tragedies. 

Two of the children died in a fire that razed their house in Marikina, with the eldest son braving the fire to save his sister. It’s a dead end, Tata Ago, Nana Carolina and the surviving children faced.  Silence in gloom is perhaps the most difficult thing to bear. Time stood still, neither can it bring back the past nor pave a clear path and direction.

Tata Ago lived to 82.  On his wake my wife and I joined our townmates to pay tribute to the fallen old man, a relative both on Cecille's side and mine.  I played on the violin Meditation  during the blessing. Méditation is a symphonic intermezzo from the opera Thaïs by French composer Jules Massenet. The piece is written for solo violin and orchestra,1894.

The final melody of Meditation sounded like dirge, lament in the deepest sense for losing a man who stood up for the dignity of the legal profession, who remained a model of aspiring young men and women to take up law, and practice law in its finest, incorruptible and indelible in the annals of history and the hearts of men - and shining like the legendary compostela.~

    
* NOTE: The name Santiago goes back to the Apostle James (Saint James = Santiago) who went to this most north-western part of Spain, called by the Romans "Finis Terrae", "end of the world", to preach and convert people to Christianity.

After returning to Palestine in 44 a.C., he was taken prisoner by Herodes Agrippa and tortured to death. The king forbid to bury him, but in the night Jacob's disciples stole the body and brought him, in a sarcophagus of marble, on board of a small boat. The current of the sea drove the boat to the Spanish coast, into the port of the Roman province's capital, Iria Flavia. Here the Apostle was buried at a secret place in a wood.

Centuries later, in 813, the hermit Pelayo listened music in that wood and saw a shining. For this shining the place was called, in Latin, "Campus Stellae", field of the star, name that was later on turned into Compostela.

* Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio 738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class Monday to Friday 

Nicholas L. Rosal: "Beyond the Crossroad of Philosophy and Theology"

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Nicholas L. Rosal: "Beyond the Crossroad of Philosophy and Theology"*

Philosophy takes us to the highest plane of reason, whereas theology takes us to that of faith. Can a philosopher be a theologian, and vice versa? Can a learned person embrace both, their similarities and differences?

By Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

   

Two books written by Dr Nicholas L Rosal. "Understanding an Exotic Language: Ilokano" is the counterpart of "Balarila in Pilipino," a scholarly guide to technical Ilokano."Handbook of Miracles is a valuable guide on how to understand what true miracles are and how they relate to the ultimate purpose of our existence -- eternal life in heaven." (Msgr. Armando Perini, the author's former pastor, Edison, N.J.)

Two most important words in the house of learning are philosophy and theology, in either sequence. The science of man and the science of God.

Philosophy takes us to the highest plane of reason, whereas theology takes us to that of faith.

Can a philosopher be a theologian, and vice versa? Can a learned person embrace both, their similarities and differences?

When Albert Einstein, the greatest mind in modern times, was asked, “What more can you not understand, Mr. Einstein?”

The man behind the splitting of the atom, and adjudged Man of the Twentieth Century, answered in all humility, “I understand just a little about the atom; all things else, only God can understand.” It is manifestation of deep faith in Higher Principle, above that of science.

On the other side of the coin, so to speak, when Pope Francis was bombarded with questions on ethico-morals confronting our postmodern world, he answered calmly and hushed the audience, “Who am I to be your judge.” And he led the faithful to a prayerful meditation. It is deep philosophy, humbling everyone with the biblical lesson, “He who has no sin throws the first stone.”

And Mahatma Gandhi, Man of the Millennium brought not only man to his knees, but a whole proud nation that was once the biggest empire on earth – “The sun never sets on English soil,” through asceticism and non-violence – terms that cannot explain the force that liberated India from centuries of human bondage, undoubtedly the power of the of the Human Spirit.

To this day, no one can truly explain how one man – simple, frail, devoid of the tools of war – succeeded in leading India to independence, and preserving democracy in this subcontinent with more than a billion in population. Similarly, how Nelson Mandela liberated his country South Africa from British colonial rule. Lately too, the great achievement and sacrifice behind the canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and John Paul II.

Milton's query: If Paradise was lost because of man's disobedience, was it regained in his absence?

Our subject, a philosopher and theologian, Dr Nicholas "Charito" Llanes Rosal, must have reflected on the lives of these great men, the epitome of human values, the models the world looked up to, that produced equally great men and women, including our own, Dr Jose Rizal, and Jose P Burgos. He certainly found inspiration from the life and works of one of the most learned Doctors of the Church – San Vicente de Ferrer, patron saint of his hometown.

Dr Rosal (Fr. Charito) was a St. Thomas Aquinas scholar, having finished a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, and a doctoral degree in Sacred Theology (STD, Magna cum Laude) from the University of Santo Tomas

If there is more to add to his rich educational background it is a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Merrill School of Journalism in the US, where at the same time became a university professor. Dr Rosal taught Christology at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, moral theology at St John’s University, and contemporary moral problems at Loyola University in Chicago. He is the only Filipino preacher for the National Propagation of Faith under Bishop Fulton Sheen, and on many occasions he conducted recollections for priests, which we call spiritual retreat.

As a child I looked up to Uncle Charito, as I called him then, I will always remember one summer vacation when his family played quartet classical music in violin and piano, and I was there imagining of Vienna in its glorious days.

How time flies…

Years passed. On knowing that he was residing in New Jersey, I dropped at his place on my way back from Canada to the Philippines via the US. That was in July 1976, exactly 33 years since I saw him last in our hometown.

A span of thirty-three years is significant in the Christian world – it was the age of Christ when he died. So with great men like Alexander the Great, Amadeus Mozart, Chopin, Mendelssohn, Schubert, while others found themselves at a crossroad of life. I belong to the latter category, lost and perplexed.

I have been a disciple of the Three Wise Men, Magi or sages in their time, powerful and wealthy as kings, for which they are often referred as The Three Kings, and to whose honor we celebrate their feast day on January 6, and until lately, every first Sunday of January.

In one of my readings I came across the life of the great explorer and missionary Dr Albert Schweitzer. When Albert was young he asked his parents and teachers whatever happened to the three kings, after seeing the Baby Jesus, and presenting Him precious gifts.

Where were they during the years of His mission, when He was persecuted and condemned to die. What did they contribute to Christianity? Well, to humanity? The young Schweitzer was greatly bothered that he took upon himself the challenge to become a missionary. First he studied medicine and became a doctor, and humanities specializing in organ music. Thereafter he set foot on the largely unexplored interior of the Black Continent which is Africa. Another great man who followed his footsteps was Dr David Livingstone. He too, became one of the world's greatest explorers and missionaries.
There is a story related to the Three Wise Men - The Fourth Wise Man. It is a story about a man who lost his way to join the caravan of the three wise men mentioned in the bible. He never found the infant Jesus, neither the child Jesus, nor Jesus in his mission.

He had been helping people all along the way, living in a colony of lepers, healing them, helping them rise over ignorance and poverty. For 33 long years.

He lost all hope of finding Jesus. He became a very sick man. There was no news from the three wise men, who were said to have seen and given gifts to the Holy Child. He learned that his father had died, so he released his servant to be a free man.

A more detailed story goes like this.

“Artaban is a young Magus (Wise Man) who desires to follow the star to the birthplace of the coming King, against the counsel of his friends and family. Carrying three precious jewels to give to the baby Messiah, Artaban and his reluctant servant Orontes set off to join the caravan of the three other wise men. They miss the caravan, but Artaban continues the search for his King, always one step behind. Artaban spends much of his remaining wealth and all of his energy helping the poor and unfortunate people he meets, until at the end of his life he finally finds Jesus--at His trial! Has Artaban wasted his life in a foolish quest? Will he ever get the chance to present his gifts to the King? “

- Written by Yortsnave The Other Wise Man

The path beaten by Artaban leads to a philosophy of life - love for the least of our fellowmen. It is a way least trodden, lighted by a spirit that glows in the heart. It is this human spirit that elevates man to the highest level of philosophy and theology, beyond the crossroad of uncertainty. It leads to man's fulfillment in his long search for meaning.

Mother Teresa, Maximillan Kolbe, Lincoln, Rizal, Gandhi, Mandela at al all took this road. So with many others around the world unknown, unsung, perhaps with only God the only witness to their deeds. ~
----------------------------------------------
Nicholas L Rosal – linguist, author of Understanding an Exotic Language: Ilokano, a thesis that traces the roots and origin of an ethnic heritage distinctly Ilokano yet wholesomely Filipino, borrowing the words of Francisco Cruces, Archbishop of
Zamboanga.

Dr. Rosal taught Christology at St. Francis College in Brooklyn and moral theology at the former Brooklyn campus of St. John’s University. As an adjunct, he taught contemporary moral problems at Loyola University in Chicago while working toward his master’s degree at the Medill School of Journalism. A preacher for the National Propagation of Faith under Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, he gave retreats to nuns and recollection to priests.

Dr Rosal earned  his STD (Doctor in Sacred Theology) and PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) degrees at the Pontifical Seminary of the University of Santo Tomas (Magna cum laude). In addition to writing numerous articles about religious, educational, and government issues, he has published pamphlets on comparative religion and written books, including The Jerusalem Journal (2009), a continuous life story of Jesus (Claretian Publishing House, Manila), Learning an Exotic Language: Ilokano (1980), a linguistic analysis of one of the major Philippine native languages (Paragon Press, Manila) and The Unjust Position of the Church in the Philippine Constitution (1960), study of the state relations in the predominantly Catholic country in Asia (University of Santo Tomas Press, Manila).

He has translated from English into Ilokano the Catechism of the Catholic Church (822 pp), now being reviewed by the Archbishop of Nueva Segovia (Vigan).

Before going to the United States, he taught Religion, Latin, and music at the Archdiocesan Minor Seminary in Vigan, worked in parishes, and held briefly the position of chancellor of the Nueva Segovia Archdiocese. After receiving permission to leave the ministry, he went to work for Bell Labs in Murray Hill, N.J., and the Perth Amboy Board of Education, N.J., as education advocate and, later, as principal of the Adult High School.

Dr. Rosal was born in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur to devout parents (Alfonso, a lawyer, and Matilde, a school teacher). He has two brothers (Elias and Antonio), and a sister (Natividad). He has three sons (Anthony Nicholas, Patrick, and Mark) from his marriage to Mimi (deceased) and a step daughter (Christine) by his marriage to Thelma.

Nicholas Llanes Rosal Shares Biblical Miracles
in New Book (Excerpt)
by Christina Mancuso Dec. 12, 2013

Through author Nicholas Llanes Rosal's life's experiences, guided by his philosophical, theological, and spiritual studies comes "Handbook of Miracles", a book that showcases God's awesome power that makes extraordinary events possible and defines the happenings in the world that cannot be explained by mere principles of science or the potency of nature. Those events, explainable only by divine intervention, are considered as miracles. xxx "Handbook of Miracles" explores the nature of miracles, reason behind them, and cites numerous miracles from biblical beginnings, to Christ's days, the apostolic era, and the centuries of saints to the modern times. One way or another, miracles happen and will happen to everybody. Miracles strike instantaneous fear, awe, wonder, and admiration, which is all part of divine psychology. God attracts man's attention and then reveals His message. He uses miracles as a medium to gain man's attention before He delivers His message. ~
-----------------------
NOTE: Antonio Vivaldi great composer and violinist known best for his "Four Seasons" was a former priest. A book by Richard Bennet, Far from Rome, Near to God: Testimonies of 50 Converted Roman Catholic Priests, 1997 cited the following ex-priests of outstanding accomplishments in their later careers: Henry Gregory Adams, Joseph Tremblay, Bartholomew F. Brewer, Hugh Farrell, Alexander Carson, Charles Berry and Bob Bush. And among them walks Charito trying in his own way to live up to his name. ~

MISA DE GALLO Maestro Selmo Pelayre - Great Ilocano Music Teacher and Composer

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Remembering on Misa de Gallo 

Maestro Selmo Pelayre

Great Ilocano Music Teacher and Composer 

In memory of the late Mr Anselmo Pelayre, foremost Ilocano music composer and arranger, teacher and conductor.

 Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

Before the break of dawn people of all walks of life - even from the farthest barrio - trek to attend the traditional misa de gallo.*  There on the elevated choir of the old church stands a calmly gentleman, posed before a group of local singers.  Below, the parish priest and a pair of sacristan, visibly await at the altar's entrance. In the muffled air of a old church overflowing with faithful, the clock strikes four. And the angelic celebration begins. 

One can imagine the ambiance of the Sistine chapel in Rome.  Or Sophia in Russia.  Or the Dome in Jerusalem. But in reality it is not.  These places are too far out to deeply feel the essence of Christendom with the birth of Christ. Instead, the setting is in a relatively unknown town - San Vicente, just west of Vigan. 

There is a Bach in the music, in fact a lot of it because of the richness of the organ.  There is Beethoven in it as well, because of the fullness and variety of the music, There is Mozart because of the therapeutic effect on the tired and lonely.  There is Handel, yes, the creator of Hallelujah, the  greatest religious composition of all times. There is a Nicanor Abelardo, for the unmistakable Filipino touch typical in his kundiman. There is Santiago for the neatness of composition combining western and local flavor. 

And finally, there is Maestro Selmo Pelayre, the musical genius, an artisan who could translate auditory perception into skillful performance.  And if an artist can put together ingredients of masterpieces into a faithful yet distinct version of his, albeit the movement or school to which it is attributed, he must be a genius. And he is.

He is to us his pupils, neophytes we were then - and maybe until now - after the maestro is long gone. Yet in the very core of our childhood which surfaces now and then, his music tingles when there is fun, peals when there is lament, pops out to meet the young and restless new generation, lulls among the elderly and infirmed, dirges in times of calamitous events, and resurrects with the universal belief of eternity. 

How I loved to play the violin during the misa de gallo. Maestro Selmo made it so.  

All of a sudden you feel confident.  Because you do not only play the music, you feel the music.  You play in unity and harmony. You are the artist and the audience at the same time, your heart pouring out and theirs receiving. You may miss a note or two, but you don't lose the composition.  You ride with the crescendo and decrescendo, swing with the cantabile, quicken with the allegro.  And rise to the heavens with the Hallelujah.

How many young musicians Maestro Selmo made?  I can only guess, and lose track. For music, the universal language is a language of peace and contentment, of brotherhood and true ecumenism. It is the language of the soul, and of the spirit that humanity commonly shares. Such is the measure of a maestro - in any field for that matter, illumined by the Great Teacher.

17th century church of San Vicente, Ilocos Sur 

One composition can make or shake a nation, like the Star Spangled Banner, or any song that brings the hand close to the heart, and join others' hands. Or one that brings out the spirit of the Yuletide Season. Then there is a signature song for a birthday, a wedding, a graduation -  having established their respective places for such occasions through time and generations, and across continents.  

In Maestro Selmo's time it was a Phoenix bird coming out of the ashes of war, so to speak, a transition of war to peace.  Childhood in my generation was short-lived.  You have to mature fast and eager on behalf of the lost generation. it is responsibility, resolution to take over. And therefore, what we needed most was a guiding hand. 

Maestro Selmo was my teacher in the grade school, as well as my tutor in violin. I would go to his place on a weekend, a couple of blocks away from our house, and there I would enjoy the musical company of his family - Carmen, Cecille, Salvador, and other two brothers.  They were invariably members of a choir or a band that played during funeral, parade, procession,  sarzuela (public stage play), comedia (moro-moro), and fiesta, numerous school and church activities, notwithstanding. Music is a signature of our town, together with sculpture, painting and carpentry. To us it is a mark of time and living, from birth to death - and after.  It is important to our values.  

Imagine if there were no lullaby, no dance, no song.  Mother-and-child would just be a symbol, the dance floor empty, poetry prosaic and dull, serenade lacking romance. Listen to the lullaby (Ugoy ng Duyan) of Lucio San Pedro, dance the dallot (Ilk) patterned after the dalliance of eagles for which it is performed in weddings.  Sing Pamulinawen (stone-hearted Lady), Manang Biday (cheerful Ilocana lass), O, Naraniag a Bulan (Oh, Bright Moon), Diay Baybay (Over the Sea), or the hilarious Ti Ayat ti Maysa a Lakay (An old man's love for a lass), and enjoy the art of living.  Be part of the element of art's gaily and timeless gifts, be part of the culture that built and preserve it.  What make it truly Ilocano. And what makes a holistic life tuned with the ways of nature.  

If a breeze passing through the leaves is music, so with the lapping of waves on the shore, chirping piping through a bird's nest up in a tree, bleating or mooing on the meadow, the rush of river, raindrops falling - or simply, lilting of children flying kites - you are blessed. If these are perceived as music, and you are aware that the origin of music is Nature, like Beethoven's Pastoral - you are blessed.  Listen to the rowing song, planting song, humming on a lonely path. You may have been among the pupils of Maestro Selmo.  You must have heard his plaintive country songs and happy folk music on tape or CD.  You too, must have been among the faithful attending the misa de gallo in his time.    

The compositions of Maestro Selmo may have lived with the misa de gallo until church music either became impromptu or electronic; it may have lived with the sarzuela until the stage was replaced by cinema, the orchestra by rock band, treasured masterpieces commercialized, live performance abridged and gimmicked, and the harana (serenade) a Shakespearean past. 

And Maestro Selmo himself retired as a teacher and migrated to America. He was no longer heard by us - until time, sweet time - stilled his genius and loving heart. All in the name of change-and-progress-and-change, ad infinitum, acculturation
engulfing what is divisive and diverse, and globalization homogenizing cultures, so with art - old and new, classic and abstract, and anything that is perceived as no longer relevant and necessary or useful - and profitable.

And yet he carried his music to America, with his family, and kababayan, their friends and acquaintances, who, like him may not have left their homelands -  were life and living less demanding, more promising, more peaceful, more fulfilling, and brighter for the next and new generations. 

If his music has brought light to life to be shared with one and many, then he shall have earned his place a genius in the art of music. Because he elevated music to the level of philosophy. 

And so the vacuum became ours. Inevitably.  It became a greater challenge indeed.  But this is the whole essence of humanity.  Dissemination.  It is the binhi principle in action.  It is the work of the Sower. And Maestro Selmo did it - through music. ~

Thomas Gray may have "perfected" his masterpiece Elegy on a Country Churchyard, yet this particular stanza remains unsettling.  It is because life that is well earned, well shared, well devoted to the Creator is never wasted at all.  

Full many a gem of purest ray serene,

     The deep unfathomed caves the ocean bear;

Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,    

     And waste their sweetness in the desert air."

Thomas Gray, Elegy on the Country Churchyard

*Simbáng Gabi ("Night Mass"), is the Filipino version of the Misa de Aguinaldo. It traditionally begins on December 16 and ends on December 24. The celebration is held at around four o’clock in the morning since it was the harvest season, and the farmers needed to be in the fields right after the celebration.

Last actor-playwright of Ilocano Zarzuela - Hilarion Riotoc Lazo

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  Hilarion Riotoc Lazo - the last actor-playwright of Ilocano Zarzuela 

Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance.

Dr Abe V Rotor*

Living with Nature School on Blog 

 

Laring R Lazo and cast in one of the last zarzuela presentations. 

When I started to write about Laring, as he is fondly called on or off the stage, I thought of an all time famous line of Shakespeare.  

“All the world’s a stage, and all the people merely players…” 

It is true, all of us are actors in our own rights, and may I say, playwrights too, because we cannot truly be ourselves without the script we make from our own thoughts and ideas, our imaginations and experiences. And from our interactions with people and society.

But there are those whose talent brings to stage the drama people look up to, drama that makes us laugh and cry, enlightens us of our burden, rekindles hope, encourages us to meet the challenges of life.  Or merely keeps our faith alive and respects our personal values.  But the most important qualification a playwright has, I believe, is his ability to unite us as one humanity. 

Manong Laring (address as courtesy to one who is older) is a natural player on stage - actor, director, musician, setup artist, and all that a play needs on stage, that thinking loud of these many requirements would send an ordinary person to simply be part of the audience.  

He knew well the amphitheater of the Greeks which the Romans modified into public forum, and later simplified as entablado - a plaza stage which was brought to the Philippines during the Spanish conquest. 

Here on the entablado generations of Filipinos witnessed many and varied presentations from official functions of government to public entertainment. Two forms of stage drama became institutions during the 400-year of Spanish rule - extending to post American era.  They remained all-time favorites during fiestas: the zarzuela and the comedia (moro-moro).

I grew up near the entablado, a stone's throw from our house. Adjacent to it is the 17th century church, the municipio the seat of local government, and the palengke (Aztec term for market). The plaza was a wide open space for games like sipa, kite flying, procession and parade..

The entablado was integrated into the system and culture. It was designed for governance, through people's participation. Thus the zarzuela is a drama of, for and by the people. Themes like romance, triumph and tragedy, comical and musical, became part of people's lives so that even those from far flung barrios would come on foot or cart pulled by bullock not only to watch the plays but to celebrate with the occasion. It could be the Cenaculo or Passion of Christ, it could be comedia, a regular presentation on the feast day of San Vicente de Ferrer, the town's patron saint. The comedia reinforces Christianity (though not conducive to ecumenism). The theme of the musical farce revolves on the victory (always) of the Holy Crusade over the Moors during the Dark Ages in Europe. 

Manong Laring and I belong to the generation that still carried the influence of Renaissance Europe in spite of the 50-year American Commonwealth rule that followed, and four years of Japanese Occupation. The Philippines now independent, was as young as our generation. It was fragile. While fledgling as a new nation, the world entered into the so-called Cold War, polarizing nations into two opposing ideologies, we on the American side while China and other Asian neighbors joined communist USSR.  The war was to last until 1989, after nearly 45 years. .   

Whatever happened to the entablado at the crossroad of change?

Rapid change followed, steered by breakthroughs in science and technology with man landing on the moon, the arrival of computer age, and the breaking of the code of life?

We can only imagine what drama would be most appropriate to show on stage. The shrinking of the world, so to speak, became conducive to exodus to cities and migration from underdeveloped to industrialized countries. On the other hand, inequity of wealth distribution has created extreme economic conditions particularly on the grassroots.  

I am presenting these historical events in the light of the rise and fall of the zarzuela and other forms of art - and all fields of human endeavor, for that matter. A social scientist once said that periodicity is a phenomenon humanity has no control of time, space, and events. Change is gaining accelerated momentum. We are now living in postmodernism, literally living tomorrow today.

Manong Laring now lives in New York with his family. In his recent visit I requested for an interview and permission to play on my radio program one of his zarzuela recordings - Perlas II (photo). 

It is nostalgic to reminisce the good old days of the zarzuela, in its entire splendor on the last Tuesday of April, the town fiesta of San Vicente.  Maestro Selmo Pelayre would be conducting the orchestra, with Laring as the principal character on stage. Fredelito Lazo, a classmate of mine and a prominent Ilocano writer, would be on the assist, as well.  So with a host of local talents.  I am reminded of the young playwright Pierre Gringore of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, who tried to bring dignity to the art; and Severino Reyes' (Lola Basyang) Walang Sugat  designed to outwit American propaganda during the Commonwealth era.  So with Nick Joaquin's Portrait of the Filipino, with its nationalistic fervor. 

I did some research why the zarzuela is among the most loved and enduring forms of art, we classify today as performing art. All over the world the zarzuela and its variants dominated the stage for centuries.  Europe is the progenitor of the play, it raised it to the highest level of art, developing new movements with the opera, concert, dance and other choreographic presentations. Stage play was used as well in propaganda and campaign. The theater in America gave rise to Hollywood. Rural development through extension, adopts stage play as tool of extension. Laedza Batanini of Botswana is a world model in rural development.       

Singular indeed is the whole cast's greatest hour. There is a bit of Euripides, pioneer playwright of ancient Greco-Roman times' tales and legends, counterpart of Homer's epics - Iliad and the Odessey. There is a bit of Shakespeare the classicist and most influential dramatist, as much a myth as a man. His characters are timeless archetypes that influence us all to this day - Romeo, Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello are among his greatest works. His plays have become a part of the world’s collective consciousness.

There is a bit of the Russian Anton Chekhov, who epitomized the stream-of-consciousness style that inspired James Joyce and other modernists in the literary arts like Elia Kazan, and Ernest Hemingway. There is a bit of Eugene O'Neill, whose sense of despair could be likened to that of Edgar Allan Poe. There is a bit of Arthur Miler dubbed the last great practitioner of the American Stage, a carryover of American colonialism. 

And contemporarily, there is a bit of Tennessee Williams dramatizing his life and family, in relating tragic relationships, dysfunctional families, and brought us a world so real that reflects modern society. And there's a bit of Bertolt Brecht. When you see his play or movie, you leave the place wanting to change your life.

 animations. 

And with today's social media, “All the world’s a stage, and all the people merely players…” gives everyone the chance and opportunity to play his or her best.  But the world continues to search for an actor-playwright like Laring, whose drama doesn't only make Shakespeare smile, but the whole humanity proud. ~

*Article published in Philippine Literature by AV Rotor and KM Doria C and E Publishing 

The essence of the zarzuela is very much alive. Today it lives on the screen, more than on stage. It has found the home a stage through the television and computer. The essence of traditional drama is preserved in documentaries, and made popular through telenobela, and brought down to young audiences through cartoon characters and animations. 

And with today's social media, “All the world’s a stage, and all the people merely players…” gives everyone the chance and opportunity to play his or her best.  But the world continues to search for an actor-playwright like Manong Laring, whose drama doesn't only make Shakespeare smile, but the whole humanity proud. ~

    

Stage scenes of zarzuela performed in different places and of different genres.

 

Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air)  Dr Abe V Rotor and Ms Melly C Tenorio 738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class Monday to Friday.

* Philippine Literature Today by A V Rotor and K Molina-Doria  2015 C and E Publishing Inc., Chapter 7 p 155, under pen name Crisostomo "Jun" Rojas

The Old Stone House, and Acacia by Cid R Real Jr., Ilocano Poet Laureate

PUL-OY (Breeze)

San Vicente IIocos Sur to the World Series     

The Old Stone House, and Acacia*

by Cid R Real Jr., Ilocano Poet Laureate

"The old stone house is the haven of abiding mutual devotion, affection and filial bond."

"The death of the tree is the death of our world."

Dr Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature School on Blog

There are few poets we can find a bit of Robert Browning, the romanticist; Alexander Pope, the moralist; Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the idealist; and Walt Whitman, the realist, reflected in one person. One of them is Placido R Real Jr., whose untimely death left a great potential that could have earned more honors to his literary fame and helped preserve the quaintness of conventional literature in our fast changing time.

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A Poem Unborn, challenges the literary world to give deeper poetry, so with Glimpses of an Old Town, a historical retrospective in impressionism. Love Throbs in a Lifetime, is about the ephemeral nature yet indelible imprimatur of true love. A Pebble in the Sand, may reign but briefly, so with power and wealth - these and many more make Cid Real one of the great Ilocano writers.
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Greatness indeed is a spark, so ephemeral, so elusive - that greatness itself is in one's ability to capture those fleeting moments in a special language - the language of artists - that permeates through the mind and heart, and into the soul.

And it matters little, if at all, if the artist didn't finish the task he set in life. Often, greatness is discovered in unfinished works, like Beethoven's Unfinished Symphony and Mozart's Requiem, or just one work, that of Joyce Kilmer's Only God Can Make a Tree, an all time popular poem. Or that, posthumously, greatness is revealed like Mendel and Bach and Van Gogh.
  

I know Cid - I called him Manong Cid for respect and seniority - and I have high respect to his family. I grew up in the same town, San Vicente, west of Vigan, capital of Ilocos Sur, now a city.

How could I write in a capsule the richness of our town - not of its modest economic status - but the diversity of talents and achievements of its citizens? Perhaps, there's no need at all, if only I can cite models like Cid Real Jr.

Often, I ask, " Where have all the flowers gone?" symbolic of a song that is almost a dirge in times of war. When the able-bodied citizens leave the old ones and younger siblings behind. And they may never come back, a syndrome similarly affecting our town.

"Where have all the young men and women gone, the professionals, the adventurous, the family-loving, the dreamer?" I am one of them, and therefore I have sought to find the real answer from one more detached, more independent and more aspiring.

I find compliment in Cid's The Old Stone House. To wit:

An old stone house

continues to cradle

in the warmth

of this tender bosom

an unaging love

sown and nurtured

by a couple of almost

fifty golden years.

One I am of two sons,

and the oldest

of a brood

of two more girls

born to Love

in the old stone house

ever since the haven

of abiding mutual

devotion and affection

and filial bond.

It has been many years

since I left

the old stone house,

but my spirit

remains there

because it is to me

as one big attic

of the past

where I have kept

unwritten volumes

about youth

In moments

of sullen loneliness,

it i in this attic

where I seek refuge

and pick golden seeds

of happy memories.

The truth is, no one really leaves the place of his birth. Like a good seed nurtured by sun and rain - the seedling and the child - are challenged, he of his dreams, more afraid of mediocrity than setting for the unknown world, for adventure golden in the horizon in sunrise or sunset. Only then that he who conquers the inertia of good life can succeed. Cid undoubtedly did.

Cid's poem Acacia is re-born in this book written by AV Rotor as a sentinel, that by protecting nature we preserve humanity.    

And what does Cid say about man losing not only his identity but his rationality? One can find it in another work, Acacia.

One would think

it was a lonely tree.

It stood alone

by its massive self

in the navel of the lea.

But no other tree

could probably happier be,

It had a fresh green gait

as fresh and green

as the surrounding shrubbery.

It was center stage of a choir

of birds playing a concert

in a May morning sunlight.

It wore a crown of fireflies

to light a starless night.

Where has my tree gone?

Could it have possibly died

or dried up in the heat of the sun?

Or, chopped down

by the axe of an insane one?

My acacia tree, I'll never forget.

It was the silent witness

to my growing up into a man...

but for all of thirty summers,

it has kept that a secret.

Ahead of time Cid saw the ghost of Malthus, hovering on a dead acacia tree, foretelling of Armageddon, but how subtle and discreet he said it. He saw the degradation - in fact, desecration - of the environment, and with it thunders, though distant, the four horsemen of doom.

There is a tone of pathos, a stern word for the misdeed, with a message of advocacy. In the poem, no evil shall prevail over goodness, over the loss of a miniature ecosystem - the tree itself, host of happy birds and fireflies, chronicler, umbrella, continuum of the unspoiled landscape. The death of the tree is the death of our world - something dies in each and every one of us as members of humanity. And if there is an unamendable violation against human right, it is the intrusion into the secret of memories, by permanently destroying its living monument.

Bringing honors through the lips of his town mates, on the pages of Bannawag, in the halls of the corporate world, carry the multiplier effect of Cid's dedication to a life highly worthy to emulate. Yet, he was the least to notice, and this is what greatness is; it is barely perceived by the senses. And not at a time when that greatness - like an idea - has not come.

And as the world in postmodernism continues to fall freely, adrift in the sea of change, greatness is in looking back at that old stone house, on some strong foundations of faith and hope, in the exemplars of truth, simple truth about life. It is in reflecting upon the stump of a tree - the tree of one's childhood - trying to reconnect the past and the future.

Greatness after all is the smallness of man, yet deep is his humility and reverence, and all he can give in an abbreviated lifetime is just a single drop - and the sea will never be the same again. ~

  

Among Cid Real's books: Life and Works of Ilocana Poetess Leona Florentino (in Ilocano); Biography of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, also in Ilocano, and "Loving you much, much more and other poems."  

* Lesson on former Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School on Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio
738 DZRB 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday