Haiku by II-Narra Students

Flowers are blooming

Way up to the mountain top

Life's full of beauty.

~Kim Beato

Falling leaves from trees

No one cares to catch any

The sadness of love.

~ Krestina Carla Mata

The leaves on the trees

Holding tightly to the branch

Faith in God, it seems.

~Carmille Joy Sallena

Rivers flow slowly

This time now, but tomorrow

It shall charge to sea.

Lips are for kissing

While ears are for hearing things

Both are abused.

~Al Joseph Planes

Hot star burning Earth

Other people burning, too

Oh, Global Warming.

 ~ Joseph Carl Barrameda

I looked up the sky

Saw the white clouds above me

Erasing anger.

~ Jan Michael Gonzales

Electronic mail

Thoughts fly in a blink of eye

A modern greeting.

~Mel Franciz Andes

Original outputs. Please do not copy.

The Last Goodbye

Anna Marie's Diary Entry
August 5, 2009

Today was a mournful, unforgettable, and historic day, not only for me but for the whole Philippines as well. It was the funeral of the Mother of Democracy, our beloved President Corazon "Cory" Aquino.

I am but one of the hundreds of thousands of people who joined the funeral procession from the Manila Cathedral to Manila Memorial Park. It was a long procession which took almost nine hours.

What I have witnessed was a great scenario, a scene which made me proud to be a Filipino. It is because I really saw how much our people love Tita Cory, how much they thank her for the democracy we're enjoying today.

Many people patiently followed the long procession despite the downpour of rain and the heat of the sun. They did not mind the dreaded A(H1N1) virus. Yellow ribbons and flowers filled the streets. Many people - rich or poor, folks, children, students, professionals, missionaries - most of them wearing yellow shirts, shouted "Cory! Cory!" whenever the convoy passed. Banners and placards expressing gratitude to President Cory could be seen everywhere. Where the funeral cortege passed, the world stopped. People would stop all the things that they were doing only to see and thank Tita Cory. Some folks even cried upon seeing the funeral convoy. It was a cry of sadness for the loss of a special one who restored our country's democracy. It was for someone who led a peaceful revolution which is now being copied by other countries. It was for someone who accepted the presidency not to fulfill an ambition but a mission.

I don't know President Cory much, but for me, she was a good leader, a good mother, and a good child of God. For many Filipinos her deeds and she herself is unforgettable. We know she got a place there in heaven and also in our hearts.

Thank you, President Cory!

* from the homework of Anna Marie S. Lomenario, II-Acacia. The students were asked to imagine being at Mrs. Aquino's funeral and write their observations, thoughts, emotions about what they have witnessed.

Letters to the Future

(Please take note that these letters are in block style since the semi-block style is difficult to use in these posts.)


Barriada, Legazpi City
July 26, 2009

Dear 53 year-old me,

I think you already know what happened when we were 13. Let me ask about you then. What is our work? Are we successful? You know that I must be successful. You know what reasons we have in secret. What did I become, an engineer, a lawyer, a doctor, or a nobody? I know that I won't let myself be a nobody. I'll be studying hard and am going to work hard to be able to be successful.

Do I have kids? How many? Do I have twins? How many boys, how many girls? Who is my wife? My wife has to be beautiful not just from the outside but also from the inside. I need someone who understands me in different ways.

These are all the questions I want to ask you, my 53 year-old self. I hope you remember this night when I wrote this letter.


Truly yours,
13-year-old Aljo
(II-Narra)

***

Purok 5 Alcala
Daraga, Albay
July 28, 2009


Dear Pauline,

You know what? I am experiencing so many problems. I thought it is because I was born to be the unlucky girl, but I am learning that these problems are meant for me to learn and have enough wisdom when I grow up.

This thought helps me so much in remembering that I should not lose hope and do my best to have what I want to have. We have to be strong in every step of our life because in everything we experience, we learn. Our learning will make us successful in everything we do.

I hope you apply what I am learning and do what is right and that you are contented with what you have.


Yours,
Pauline
(II-Narra)

***

1643 Lakandula Drive
Daraga, Albay
July 27, 2009


Dear 53-year-old me,

I want you to know that I am having fun as a teenager. I have great experiences as a 13 year-old. Yes, I am growing older, but I am having fun. After all, the older I get, the wiser I get.

I wish I could see you but that is too impossible. I wish you have a great life and a better future ahead of you.

God bless and may God be with you.


Truly yours,
June Martin as a 13 year-old teenager
(II-Molave)

***

Dearest Me,

Hello! I guess you are a little bit old now. I wrote this letter from the past for you to read in the future. I am 14 years old when I wrote this. See the difference?

I will share and make you remember all the pieces of wisdom, experiences and moments that you've done during this time. High school... it is here you shared your laughs with your friends and loved ones. Right now I am funny, a good friend. I also shared my tears with my parents. I have learned many things. Remember what Mom said? "You aren't going to be a leader if you're lazy and don't use your initiative.

I hope you followed my dream of being head chef in a restaurant or a successful businessman. Don't forget your health, and Mom, Dad, and our brothers. Say "I love you." from me. I hope you are still with your family and your best friends, Ella and Jan Marie. Are you still single? It's okay. Don't forget: life is too short so make the most out of it. Bye!

Lovingly,
Leo
(II-Acacia)

Summer Reading

What books are you reading this summer break?

3 Hindu Love Stories

Savitri (performed by II-Molave)

Ramayana (performed by II-Acacia)

Sakoontala (performed by II-Narra)

(Please click here for more pictures.)

Personification Exercise: The City

by I-Mars

This is a class poem focusing on personification as a literary device. Each I-Mars student was asked to write one line about the city and what it does.

The city wakes up early to give us a brand-new day
It starts the day anew with a yawn at dawn
It is awakened by the rising sun,
It is awakened by the rumbling of the cars.

The city feels these sounds crawl past as rays of light touch the paths
It gets busier and busier as seconds and minutes pass
It moves with hurrying people - old or young
It moves through the overpass into the students' class.

The city is always in a hurry like a father going to the office
It rushes to its job after taking a bath, when it looks neat and smells good
It smiles like a baby searching for its mom
It smiles after surviving a powerful storm.


The city plays with the children on the streets
It dances with the music that surrounds it
It sings with the people on the road
It sings with the jeepneys and the radios.

The city finds difficulty in breathing polluted air,
But it eats everything it wants from the fastfood chains
It follows the fashion of the time
The city is a lot of fun.

The city grows from its small state
It is changed by good leaders who care
Sometimes it stays up late to celebrate
But tonight it sleeps early, tired from all the day's work.

Nothing But the Truth: A Note from AVI

Here's a note from AVI (Edward Irving Wortis) about his novel "Nothing But the Truth."

When detectives and lawyers work on a case, they try to gather together all the evidence so as to get to the truth. That collection of evidence is called "Discovery." Discovery, was the title of this book when I was first working on it. For what I set out to do is put the reader in charge--like a detective--by presenting all the evidence pertaining to an event that happened--or did not happen--in a school. It's all fiction of course, but it reads very realistically. What's more, it asks the reader to decide what really happened in the story. You have to decide for yourself. You have to read very carefully to decide what actually happened. After all, when you're asked to swear that you will "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," every body says they will. And yet they do not agree about what happened. That's what this book is all about, the complexities of truth.

Who is AVI?

from wikipedia

Edward Irving Wortis (born December 23, 1937), better known by the pen name Avi, is a prominent American author of young adult and children's literature. He is a winner of both the Newbery Honor and Newbery Medal.

Avi and his twin sister Emily Wortis Leider (also a writer) were born in New York City to Joseph Wortis, a psychiatrist, and Helen Zunser Wortis, a social worker. In the year after Avi's birth, his family moved to San Antonio, Texas. When he was young his sister gave him the nickname "Avi," which he adopted as his pseudonym. Two of Avi's grandfathers were writers, and one grandmother was a playwright. In interviews, he recalled his mother reading to him and his sister every night, and going to the public library on Fridays. He is also the first cousin of the Academy Award-winning actor Alan Arkin.

After he failed Stuyvesant High School, Avi's parents transferred him to Elisabeth Irwin High School, a smaller private school. There he studied with a tutor, Ella Ratner (whom he credits for his writing success), and found that he had dysgraphia, a condition causing him to reverse or misspell words.

Avi is a prolific author, having written over 60 books for young readers. He has written books for different age groups and in many different genres. Perhaps his most famous books fall under the category of historical fiction, but he has also written fantasies, comedies, mysteries, ghost stories, adventure tales, realistic fiction, and picture books. Avi has won many prestigious awards for his books, including a Newbery Honor for The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle in 1991 and another for Nothing But the Truth in 1992. His fiftieth book, Crispin: The Cross of Lead, was awarded the Newbery Medal in 2003. As of the end of 2005, Avi has published 58 books, all written for children/young adults. In 2006 Avi wrote a sequel to Crispin: The Cross of Lead titled Crispin: At the Edge of the World. After living in Providence, Rhode Island, in the 1980s and 1990s, Avi now lives in Denver, Colorado, with his wife, Linda Cruise Wortis.

On-Line Quiz 10: Verb Forms

Substitute the past or past participle form of the verb inside the parentheses, whichever the sentence requires.

1. The fishermen (cast) the net early this morning.
2. Kriss and Kathy (begin) answering the quiz.
3. We had (creep) out of the door before they noticed us.
4. The boys (dress) their best for the dance.
5. Have you (forgive) us?
6. Kissin' Kate Barlow (hide) her loot.
7. Stanley Yelnats (dig) several holes under the scorching sun.
8. Finally, the sun has (rise).
9. His feet (swell) to an incredible size.
10. As children, we were (teach) to be respectful.

Metaphor Exercise

These are from the September 17 Demo Fest lesson on the use of metaphors in writing prose. They were given ten minutes to write their paragraphs.

An older sister is a book of tips. She's gone through everything you're going through as of the moment, from peer pressure to catfights. She'll give you tips and how-to's on every teenage girl's problem you could possibly think of. She will be your guide when it comes to identity crisis. She'll help you escape when you're stuck in a sticky predicament. Sure, she could be pretty annoying sometimes, especially when she starts tattling to your parents, but remember, she's only doing that so you could be taught a lesson. So thank God for older sisters.

~ Joanne Paulette F. Miraflor


The storm was a blitzkrieg raging toward our barracks and ruining others. All the people were locked in their houses, all scared to be bombed by the flying roofs, branches, etc. They were hopelessly waiting for a hero who will save them from the disaster.

~ Benedict Rey M. Serrano


Life is the running water. It is something that is continuously moving. Sometimes there are also stones that obstruct the flow. They are the struggles we encounter in our journey. But we can also see the running water as a lesson. It teaches us to go on, to move on, that after encountering these stones, we get delayed but we do not stop. We continue again, flowing.

~ Maria Sushmita L. De Leon