PHILIPPINE FOLKTALES

THE DIAMOND BALL AND THE SERPENT Submitted by: Lucille Anne Rentuma, Sitti  Tara Mae Remoticado, Junissa Cabrera, Ramonito Villanobar (II- Garcia)

A serpent looks like a giant snake that blows fire from its mouth. A hunter named Japet is a stupid but curious boy.       Every full moon, the serpent comes out of the cave which is located in the middle of the forest, to play with a diamond ball. Japet who knew the story planned to get the diamond ball. He dressed himself in black so he could not be seen and went to the forest. There, he saw the glittering diamond ball and grabbed it. Unluckily, the serpent saw and ate him.       Until now, rumors have it that the serpent is still in the forest and plays with the diamond ball every full moon.

WHY THE FISH HAS SCALES Submitted by: Victor Jhonn Giducos, Apple Claire Estrada, Rizalyn Espinas, Ethel Plarisan (II- Lasola)

A farmer and his wife were blessed with a beautiful baby girl. They pampered and showered her with too much affection. She grew into a beautiful lady. She knew this for she would often go to the clear stream to admire her own beauty.           One day, the king of crabs saw her and wanted to be her friend. She found the crab ugly and refused his offer of friendship. This angered the crab and scratched the lady's face. The lady splashed water on her wounds but these hardened and turned into scales. The crab casted a spell on her and turned her into a fish filled with scales.           These days, when one happens to look into clear streams, one will surely find scaly fishes swimming and moving in strange manners. They will jerk away upon seeing their reflections which remind them of the "beauty" they lost long ago.

WHY DO GUAVAS HAVE CROWNS Submitted by: Adelle D. Atillo, Joanna Mae D. Barba, Cliff Kieth Baligasa (II- Mercado)

Once there lived a greedy king in a palace with a big orchard with many fruit trees. Every time the fruit trees bore fruits the king never shared them with anybody even with the birds.           One day, while the king was in his orchard, a coconut fell on his head killing him instantly. It was too late when the servants found the body whose flesh were feasted upon by many birds. The remains of the king was buried in his orchard.           A year had passed and a strange plant grew where the king had been buried. The plant bore fruits that have crowns at the top. Birds came to peck on these fruits. These were the first guavas.

THE TALE OF THE WHITE SQUASH Submitted by: Cherrie Mae A. Manrique, Jamaica D. Gomez, Happie Val B. Peroy (II- Yang)

There once lived a childless couple who had a squash plant that gave them fruit to eat everyday. Although they had no children, the couple were happy and contented especially with the boiled squash they have for dinner time.           One day, the plant did not bear anymore squash. The couple prayed very hard and waited patiently. Soon, a fruit appeared. The couple were surprised for the fruit was white. It was their first time to see such a squash. When it became big and riped, the wife harvested it. When she was about to open it, the squash started talking. It told her not to hurt it. She called her husband who was as astonished as she was. The husband opened the squash carefully and a beautiful baby stood up and smiled.           Because the couple showed kindness, they were rewarded. Every time they bathed the baby, the droplets of water turned into gold. Since then, they became very rich but were never satisfied with their fortune. They became very greedy and wanted some more.           The enchanted baby got sad and together with the couple's fortune vanished forever. The couple were left as poor as before and childless as they had always been.