The Distant Glow

As an autobiography, “The Distant Glow” traces the story of my life to the rough and rigorous way of life in Corella, Bohol, my birthplace. Descending from generations of very poor and illiterate ancestors, I exceeded my parents' grade three education by finishing grade six and graduating as elementary school valedictorian. Because my parents could not afford to send me to high school in the city, I stayed out of school for six years, helping my father on the farm and my mother in household chores.

One of several backbreaking works I used to do was climbing several coconut trees, about fity feet in height, to tap the trees (sanggutan) for "tuba," a coconut juice that yields a mildly alcoholic drink. I used to climb twenty coconut trees every morning, noon, and evening, mount over the top, sit on one of the palms, and tap the juice. One evening after sunset, while atop the sanggutan, I saw a glow, a distant glow. I muttered to myself, "Someday, I'll find out what causes that glow." I equated that statement to my goals in life. I did find out what caused the distant glow. Other distant glows appeared, and I reached most of them with hard work and by having a dream.

When the owners of a private school offered me an opportunity to go to their school free of tuition, provided that I maintained the first place standing in the class honor roll, I went to high school, starting at age twenty. To help shoulder the other costs of going to high school in the city, I paid my room and board with service—scrubbing and polishing the floor, fetching water from an artesian well, and gathering firewood every weekend for the landlord’s family. With all the hardship, I maintained the tuition-free deal and graduated from high school as class valedictorian.