Palagsing: A Local Delicacy from Butuan (Descriptive)

Unaw is a palm tree

Palagsing

Palagsing is a delightful delicacy from Northern Mindanao that shouldn't be missed. Palagsing is made from the combination of brown sugar, coconut and  unaw (the rich starch obtained from the bark of this palm) as the main ingredient. After mixing coconut milk with unaw, it is then rolled using banana leaves as wrapper. The rolled unaw is arranged in a big cauldron to be boiled for about an hour. 

Palagsing is usually eaten with sugar over coffee. Palagsing making is very popular in Brgy. Banza, Butuan , one of the oldest communities in the area. To have a taste of authentic palagsing, you need to take a habal habal to reach the place. The rich starch obtained from the bark of this palm has become the staple food of the indigenous people. With its unique yet mouth-watering flavor, Palagsing  truly is a pride of Butuan.

First Impressions Last: Agree or Disagree? (Argumentative)

            I disagree with lasting first impressions. I think that what you see at first can be very deceiving. A lot of people say that first impressions act as barriers to the true personality of a person, but, what really is a first impression? A first impression is the event when one person first encounters another person and forms a mental image of that person. So the definition asserts that a first impression is a mental image formed upon a first encounter with a person. One would often view someone as kind and gentle with having a bright expression and creates images of the personality of a person, but what if those impressions that we perceive are the complete opposite of what we see at first and it changes over time? This just proves that first impressions should be tested rather than already considering it as a truth. Attitudes and personalities can be easily changed and manipulated so it is a necessity to always get to know a person first before surmising.

State of Grace (Narrative)

‘’We fall in love till it hurts or bleeds.’’

Those were the last words my mother said before she died, today’s the 14^th of October and I can still feel the chill on my spine whenever I reminisce the saddest moment of my existence. I remember her long fingers, stretched into mine; almost too thin I must say that I can feel her blood flowing. She was beautiful even though she was as thin as a stick and youth have left her several decades ago. “Be strong!” I thought to myself but it seems that all strength I can summon is already drained from all those sleepless nights I spent with my mother. ‘’I know you hate me.’’ She would always say, with guilt coming across her face but I simply shake my head and turn away. She knew the reason why I stayed, why nobody else did and why it was hard for me. It was leukemia who slowly took her soul from living and though she was fighting hard, it always was not enough.

I grew without a father since my parents divorced two years after their wedding. I would often ask my mother for the reason of their separation but mother would simply say that father was just “irresponsible”. I felt sorry for myself but I knew there was no need to.  I never met him once and all of his pictures were burned mysteriously, but I figured out eventually that it was mom who did it.

..... 

As I try to regain my composure once again, I made up my mind and left the place. I knew my mother will be taken care of once I leave since I have prepared for it. I walk across downtown to a familiar place. It was the park that I always visit whenever I feel lonely. As people pass by and the wind starts to blow heavily, I think of all the faults I have done against my mother. I was not a rebel at all but I have failed to grow a healthy relationship with my mom. I felt that her death was God’s punishment that everything that happened is bad karma and I deserved it all. I found fault at my father for the failure of our family but in the end, I was the loser, with no pity at myself.  I realized that it was love all along that kept her going even if it hurts and bleeds.

I walked away to the nearby church and knelt down in front of the altar, head down, and spirits up. I was almost too sure that I felt mom was beside me that time and at the same moment, I felt God’s blinding presence above me. Then I muttered to myself, “This is my state of grace.”