A Halloween Adventure

by Rosario Charie Albar

The night was dark and dreary
I was tired and weary
The air was far from cheery
I felt a little leery.

I heard a faint knock, knock
Like the tick tock of a clock
Not the pounding of a rock
But the turning of a lock.

I went to open the door
And beheld not one but four
And in the distance many more
Ghosts so scary I fainted on the floor.

"Come with us for a jaunt"
"To places we will haunt"
I cowered and said "please don't"
But they dragged me as was their wont.

Our first stop was at a bar
Where men were drinking by the jar
Ghosts appeared and it was war
But the drunks merely laughed har, har, har.

To a parked car we went
Where love was heavenly sent
The ghosts screeched and gave full vent
But the lovers were to each only intent.

Then we crashed into a party
Kids in costumes how teenie boppy
The ghosts in unison howled eerily
"Cool" said the kids and danced merrily.

The night was being pared
Yet not one victim had been scared
The ghosts frustrated but dared
One more trip before light bared.

We swooped into a house
Found two old folks half drowsed
The ghosts in full regalia ready to joust
Noises of the night they doused.

Grandma and grandpa didn't stir
Neither had their vision gear
Nor wore their hearing aid to hear
They sat content and had no fear.

All too soon came dawn
I found myself on my lawn
Chilled and tired I heard a moan
A cold body beneath my bone.

Happy Halloween!

The Art of Carlos Botong Francisco - Progress of Medicine in the Philippines

Pre-colonial period Pag-unlad ng Panggagamot sa Pilipinas (The Progress of Medicine in the Philippines) is a group of four large-scale paintings depicting healing practices in the Philippines from pre-colonial times to the modern period. Carlos Botong Francisco was commissioned in 1953 by Dr. Agerico Sison who was then the director of Philippine General Hospital (PGH) together with Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing of the National Museum, Dr. Florentino Herrera, Jr. and Dr. Constantino Manahan. These oil on canvas paintings measure 2.92 meters in height and 2.76 meters in width (9.71 ft x 8.92 ft) and were displayed at the main entrance hall of PGH for over five decades. Owing to its location, the artworks were in a state of "severe deterioration" at the beginning of the 21st century from exposure to heat, humidity, dirt, dust, smoke, insect stains, grime, termites and an oxidized synthetic resin used in an earlier restoration. These canvases were restored three times, the last was...

Filipino Struggles in History - Carlos Botong Francisco

In 1968, Antonio Villegas (then Mayor of Manila), commissioned Carlos "Botong" Francisco to paint the history of Manila for Manila City Hall. The series of large scale paintings was called Kasaysayan ng Maynila (History of Manila). The paintings deteriorated over time and no attempt was made to preserve these historical canvases until 2013 when Mayor Amado Lim sent them to the National Museum for extensive restoration. Four years later, in 2017, Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada and the Manila City Council signed an agreement with the National Museum to leave the paintings at the museum so they may reach a larger audience in exchange for museum grade reproductions to replace the originals. Kasaysayan ng Maynila was later renamed Filipino Struggles in History and is now on display at the Senate Hall of the National Museum . Carlos "Botong" Francisco died in March 1969, a few months after completing the paintings. He is one of the first Filipino modernists and...

8 Heritage Houses of Iloilo

Lizares Mansion The province of Iloilo on the island of Panay has a rich trove of heritage houses, left over from the sugar industry boom in the 19th century. Iloilo also had the largest port in the Philippines at that time which facilitated the export of sugar to foreign shores and deposited money in the hands of the sugar barons. The barons dropped their earnings into the acquisition of properties in Negros and the construction of beautiful homes in Iloilo, many of which are located in the vicinity of the Jaro Cathedral. The Lizares Mansion was built in 1937 by Don Emiliano Lizares for his wife, Concepcion Gamboa and five children. The family fled to safety when World War II broke out and the house was occupied by the Japanese military. The family returned to the house after the war but left once again after the demise of Don Emiliano. It was sold to the Dominican order in the 1960s and was converted in 1978 to a private school, Angelicum School. The mansion now houses the ...

TravelswithCharie

Search This Blog