THE BLIND GIRL

A group of students were chatting and laughing excitedly near the

sidewalk. They seemed to be talking at the same time when suddenly they
became silent. They stared spellbound to a blind girl groping along the wall,
and feel her way about. Though her eyes were open, they could tell that she
could not see. In her right hand was a bunch of flowers which she smelled
now and then. She continued walking till the end of the street. When she was
out of sight the students gave a sigh of relief. Were they not lucky to have
two eyes?

FEEDING TIME AT THE ZOO

It was time for the zookeeper to feed the animals. Judging from the
noise, the beasts were hungry. The lions open their mouths and gave the
people in the zoo a frightful sample of the howl of the king of beasts. The
little monkey squeaked as they tumbled over each other to reach the cage
bars. The monkeys shook the iron bars till they rattled, and parrots jumped
up and down shrieking excitedly.

AN AIRPLANE RIDE
The strangest thing about my airplane ride was that I seemed not to be
moving at all since the plane assumed a certain attitude. As I looked down,
the earth below seemed like a wonderful map in lovely colors. Everything
was a miniature. The houses, the trees, the buildings appeared like
playthings. The vast rice fields were restful to the eyes to look at. The ocean
was but a shallow stream of clear, blue water.
Indeed, anybody’s first plane ride is a pleasant experience.

PLANT PESTS
In addition to different kinds of plants diseases, there are great
numbers of plant pests that can destroy or stop the growth of plants. Insects
carry fungi and bacterial diseases from plant to plant. The potato beetle
carries the potato rot. Some insects even eat plants. Certain grasshoppers
and biting insects strip a plant of its leaves, thus killing the plant. The most
destructive kinds of insects are the scale insects, mealy bugs, plant lice and
leaf hoppers. They consume the sap of plant tissues thus causing the
withering of the plant itself.
 THE ATOMIC ENERGY

With the establishment of a Nuclear Center, we will engage in the

production of radio isotopes for use in agriculture, industry and medicine.
This is a landmark in our scientific progress as it opens up for our youth the
field of nuclear science and ultimately harness the mightiest industrial power
known to man. It will greatly help fight poverty. With the use of the atomic
energy, we will have the power to run more industries.

THE DUTCH
The Dutch are the people from Holland. They are considered serious
and hardworking. They are the cleanest people in the world. The Dutch are
fond of eating, drinking and attending parties. Have you seen a picture of a
Dutch girl? She wears big wooden shoes called klompers. Men wear baggy
trousers while women wear flowing skirts, white apron and starched cloth
caps. Dutch children are healthy for they drink plenty of milk and take big
amounts of butter. Boys are trained to steer the boat and take charge of the
windmill. Water sports are popular with the Dutch children.

JOSE RIZAL’S MOTHER

God’s best gift to Jose Rizal was his mother, Dona Teodora Alonzo.
Teodora was brought up by her mother in a home full of love and
understanding. She was educated at Santa Rosa College. Her excellent
education, her goodness of heart and her other virtues prepared her to be
the mother of our national hero. To Jose Rizal, next to God, a mother means
every- thing to a man. Dona Teodora was a devout Catholic. It was her
teaching that made her son, Jose, love the Christian way of life. He was still a
baby when his mother began teaching him the alphabet and the simple
prayers as was the custom of the Filipino Family.
Dona Teodora was fond of telling a stories of her little son, Jose. The
word “story” meant something new and wonderful to Jose. He would sit
down to listen, full of interest and wonder, when his mother called him for
the regular story time.
He loved the stories his mother told him. He remembered the
moral lesson each story conveyed and made it a part of his education and
training.
 PLANT FOR LIFE

Nestor looked happily at his rows of vegetable plants with their green,
fresh and healthy leaves. There were rows of lettuce, tomatoes, eggplants
and pechay. On one side of the yard were trellises of patola, squash and
amorgoso. Nestor remembered that their backyard was once a dumping
place of garbage, empty cans and trash. Then the government launched the
“Plant for Life” project. With the help of his father, they cleaned the backyard
and dug the stumps and roots of old trees. They cultivated the soil, got
vegetable seeds from the Bureau of Plants and planted them in their
backyard. Now all are ready for harvest. The vegetables are more than what
they need so Nestor will take some to the market. That will be extra money
for the family.

THE RAT
The rat belongs to the mouse family although it is larger than a mouse.
It has also more scales on its tail than a mouse. There are rats of different
sizes and colors. The brown Norway rat is the most destructive and powerful.
Black rat can still be found and in cities with warm climate.
Rats travel aboard ships and eat almost anything. If they are hungry
they attach animals, even men. Rats breed rapidly, producing 20 to 50
offsprings a year. A rat can start breeding at six months old. Wild rats are
special problem to man because they spread bubonic plague, rat fever and
they destroy crops.

THE SCHOOL LUNCH COUNTER

A school canteen or lunch counter is established in every school to
improve children’s eating habits and preferences. Native, nutritious dishes
such as goto, pancit and lumpia are prepared by a teacher with the help of
some children. Sandwiches are sold for those who prefer a light merienda. A
good lunch counter as milk as a regular item for sale. Teachers encourage
their pupils to include milk in their daily food intake.
The canteen is part of a school. It protects from sickness by
discouraging them to buy from food peddlers and unsanitary, nearby stores.
Pupils are asked to patronize the canteen for their own health. The low
prices of food serve as an encouragement for the children to buy the from
the school canteen.
 HOME FOR THE AGED

“It will not be long from now and Tandang Sela will not go begging
anymore, Mel told his sister Shiela.
“Why did you say that?” asked Shiela.
“Didn’t you know?” Mel asked. “The government has decided to help
the beggars, young and old.”
“But how?” asked Shiela, still puzzled.
“There are hundreds of beggars around.
“How can the government help them all?”
“It is like this,” explained Mel. “The young ones will be placed in the
care of their relatives if they have any. The others will be sent to the
provinces where they came from. The children who do not have anybody to
look after they will be placed in orphanages. The old ones who have will be
housed in the Home for the Aged. They will be taken care of by the
government.
“How nice,” Sheila said. “It is really a pity to see these beggars,
especially the old ones.”

LUNETA AND MANILA BAY

Do you know that Manila Bay is the finest harbor in the Philippines? It
is also famous for its beautiful sunset. Tourists observe that
Manila Bay has one of the most glowing sunsets in the world. Roxas
Boulevard, formerly Dewey Boulevard, runs along the shores of Manila Bay.
There are many beautiful buildings along the street, mostly hotels and
restaurants. Luneta, a big park with fountains and ornamental plants, faces
the bay. People can be seen strolling daily and enjoying the cool breeze from
the bay. On Sundays, people go to the Luneta to listen to band concerts and
to view performances at the open theater.
 BEAUTY
Beauty is seen
In the sunlight
The trees, the birds
Corn growing, people working
Or praying for a good harvest.
Beauty is heard all around
Wind sighing,
Rain falling or a singing humming
An old folk song.
Beauty is in yourself
Good deeds, happy thoughts reflected
In your dreams
In your work,
During peaceful rest.

BEING ON TIME
Arturo was the president of the Grade Six class organization. They
agreed to celebrate Arbor Day with a program and mass planting of fruit
trees.
“At what time will the program start?” asked Miss Diaz, their teacher.
“It will start at 7:00 o’clock in the morning, Miss Diaz.” answered
Arturo.
“That’s good,” observed Miss Diaz. “It will not be too hot for planting of
trees. I only hope it will begin on schedule.”
“That’s sure, Miss Diaz,” Arturo said. “It will be a new Filipino time
concept.”
 “I admire you, Arturo, for saying ‘Filipino time’, which means on time,”
Said Miss Diaz laughing.
“It is really time for us to observed punctuality,” explained Arturo. “So
instead of saying being on time is ‘American time’, we shall call it ‘Filipino
time’”
THE ANIMAL’S WISH
We beg no fancy garb
To keep us cozily warm
Nor softer bed to rest
Though it should be less hard.

We wish not our liberty

For to serve is our fate
We live as servants forever
To work early and late

To talk is a silly dream

For us doomed mute to remain
But we hear, see and feel
Please to us be a bit kinder.

Be kind a little bit more

And be unkind ten times less
We are poor dump creatures
And we have but few needs.

THE TRUE FILIPINO

President Quezon’s counsel to the Filipino was: “Make the Filipinos true
citizens of the Philippines. They should be made aware of things connected
with their country and people including their culture and civilizations.”
 What did President Quezon want to convey to his countrymen? In his
opinion, we deserved to be called a true Filipino if we have our country’s
welfare at heart. Knowledge and appreciation of our country’s history,
civilization and culture are to be required from each individual. Every citizen
must be concerned with the progress of the nation, in making the country
known to other parts of the world and in achieving peace for the land of his
birth.
OUR MALAYAN BROTHERS
In some ways we, Filipinos, are similar to our Malayan brothers. This is
so because our ancestors include the Malays and the Indonesians. the
Malays and the Filipinos are similar in height, in complexion and in looks.
Philippines aborigines such as the Ifugaos, Subanuns and Tagbanuas live in
much the same way as the Malaysians and Indonesians. The clothes, the
houses, weapons and art of the Filipino Muslims are similar to those of the
Malaysians and Indonesians. The Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia have
the same industries and products. The languages used in the Philippines
include many Malayan words. Like the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia
were former territories of western countries. Like the Filipinos, the people of
Malaysia and Indonesia struggled hard also for independence. The former
MAPHILINDO composed of Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia was
organized for mutual protection against belligerent countries.
TWO PAINTERS
When Jose Rizal and Juan Luna studying in Madrid, they live together in
boarding house. They used to play jokes on one another. Juan Luna woke up
early one morning and saw Rizal was still asleep. He hid one of Rizal’s
slippers and drew exactly one like it on a card, board. When Jose woke up, he
tried to put on his slippers but he found out that one was made out of
cardboard. “I know who painted this. It is nicely done,” he said.
One day, Juan Luna went out with his friends. Jose decided to draw the
contents of Juan’s room on the closed door with the permission of their
landlady. When Luna arrived, he went directly to his room. He bumped his
head on the closed door. “You are a good painter,” Juan Luna told Rizal.

THE FLOWER OF LOVE

Once there lived a chieftain who had a beautiful daughter named
Liwayway. One day Liwayway went into the woods to gather fruits and
flowers but unfortunately lost her way. She became unconscious when a wild
beast ran after her. He was the son of another chieftain. When they parted,
each one knew they were in love with each other. One day the young man
was going away to fight the white men who had invaded their land. The
lovers promised never to forget each other saying “Sumpa kita.” but the
warrior never came back. In sorrow, the maiden killed herself. Sometime
later, shrubs with fragrant flowers grew on her grave. People believed that
Liwayway’s love grew and bloomed. It became a custom for young lovers
taken of their faithful love. They whispered “I promise” (Sumpa kita) to each
other. In time, the flowers became known as sampaguita. It is adopted as our
national flower because of its fragrance and simplicity.