The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.

"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."

"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?""It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." 

15 Books in 15 Minutes

I tried to recall some of the best books that I read in fifteen minutes.

1. Harry Potter 1 to 7
by JK Rowling

2. Lord of the Rings
by JRR Tolkien

3. The Little Prince
by Antoine de Saint Exupery

4. A Hundred Years of Solitude, Love in the Time of Cholera
by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

5. The Catcher in the Rye, Franny and Zooey
by JD Salinger

7. Skin, BFG, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
by Roald Dahl

8. Coraline, The Wolves in the Walls, I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, American Gods, Sandman
by Neil Gaiman

9. Eleven Minutes, Veronica Decides to Die, By the River of Piedra I Sat Down and Wept, The Pilgrimage
by Paulo Coelho

10. The Bluest Eye, The Beloved, The Song of Solomon
by Toni Morrison

11. Things Fall Apart
by Chinua Achebe

12. Eating Fire and Drinking Water
by Arlene Chai

13. Like Water for Chocolate
by Laura Esquivel

14. Dance, Dance, Dance; Sputnik Sweetheart, Hard boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
by Haruki Murakami

15. The Wizard of Earthsea
by Ursula LeGuin

The list goes on, but 15 isn't enough. Sigh.

Anyway, I got this from my student's blog:

Work like you don't need the money,

Love like you've never been hurt,

Dance like nobody's watching,

Sing like nobody's listening,

Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

Thanks Annie.

Bob Ong Says

"Huwag magmadali sa babae o lalaki. Tatlo, lima, sampung taon, mag-iiba ang pamantayan mo at maiisip mong hindi pala tamang pumili ng kapareha dahil lang maganda o nakakalibog ito. Totoong mas mahalaga ang kalooban ng tao higit sa anuman. Sa paglipas ng panahon, maging ang mga crush ng bayan nagmumukha ding pandesal, maniwala ka."

The Blower's Daughter

I always keep the same book in my bag. I always bring it with me wherever I go, and read it whenever I have time. The words leave traces in my head. The characters move, talk and act as if they were given life.

The book that I have with me is about two lives--one that can live with or without the other and the other one that cannot live alone. You see, everytime I flip through the pages of that book I remember all other stories of people who I have talked with and stories of those people who I have not even met. It was as if the author knew of what I have always yearned for in a story.

I remember the part where the main character decides to go against his people's norms to live with the girl he loves. I can picture it perfectly in my head. The way he whispers, "I'll take you wherever I go, and give you happiness until you choose to breathe my name and life." The girl smiles, turns and walks away from someone she never thought she would even desire.

I remember the part where she runs back right after him. She runs, and runs until she finally turns around and sees him standing behind her, smiling. Oh yes, I can see every scene. He leans and looks at her, she looks away for she knows she won't stand those eyes that seep through her. I can imagine those eyes. Copper. Fierce. Deep. I can sense the way he touches her. He lays his hands on a fancy figurine, as if it were something of excellent value. He breaks her with just a touch of his fingers. She closes her eyes and repays those ardent caresses one sultry afternoon in May. Everything seems so real.

I remember the part where he stands, yells at her and begs that she stays away, but she doesn't.

I remember the part where she storms out of a room, and he follows suit.

I remember the part where they want to buy happiness, but what they get is more pain.

I remember the part where they both wait at the opposite sides of the train station. She steps in and finds out that he stays and lets the other train go forth. She cries but decides to move along.

I remember the part where in a lane, at an intersection they see each other. She walks, closer...closer...and he walks...closer...closer...

I remember the part where they both smile and tell themselves, it's a good day.

I remember the part where he passes by her. She walks on and doesn't see anything but the street light that goes red.

Every scene seems so real, it's frightening.

As I close the book, I remember.

As I remember, I sigh.

As I sigh, I hope.

As I hope, I cry.