Variations of Love

With subtle literary artistry, Yvette Tan’s “Waking the Dead and other horror

stories” is an urbanized folklore where fear is seen as not the main intention of the

writer but rather merely a product of gore realities as she transforms Philippine

horrific mythical characters to dwell in modernized times, coping with timeless

issues of losing a loved one, societal and individual greedy machinations, and

“acting in the name of love”. Contextualized in the Filipino mixture of food and

love, she created vivid descriptions of every scene and picturesque settings and

characters.

The pain of losing a loved one can be so intense that we would want to take

our own life and be with the one we loved. It is indeed difficult to go through each

day knowing that the person we have become accustomed to be with is no longer

there. For some, the bond is so deep that a void of despair consumes them or an

illusion of reliving past times becomes an escape from painful reality. In Tan’s book,

“Daddy” tells of the three telephone calls a father makes to his daughter, Achie,

after his demise. The first call happens during work in the office, the second time

occurs while she is in a meeting, and the last time was after a conversation with her

mommy. Even if the call was not long and they did not talk at all, it is supposed that

the purpose of the calls was to remind his daughter and the family he left behind

that they are loved and not to forget that he had been a part of their lives.

For a country whose population is largely Christian, marriage is a ceremony

that binds two people into one in the eyes of God and the people. When the spouse

dies, it feels like losing your other half. Maybe it is harder for those who loved their

partner but whether there is affection or not in the relationship, a bond has been

built in the course of time of being together. “Waking the dead” is about Manong

Gorio, an old man who lost his wife first. They have been together for decades and

his loneliness led him to chant a ritual which caused zombies to appear and his

beloved wife to come for him. She offered him her hand and he walked with her to

eternity.

Today, Achie and Manong Gorio would be deemed absurd for their

experiences but it is not unusual for us to hear of the unnatural as we have a history

of ancestors whose traditions and superstitions are ingrained in every generation.

We tell tales of haunted houses, schools and buildings by people who have died

from terrible fates in the place. For example, a rape victim dies in the comfort room

of a school or a house member hangs himself in the stairwell. Then aside from the

teaching of resurrection at the end of time by the church, beliefs that there are

means of communicating with people on the other side of the living spectrum or

even bringing them back to life are still very alive in the present. Some consult

psychics and other paranormal individuals to deliver messages from the dead

relation to those he/she left behind and vice versa.

Exploring issues brought by greedy societal and individual machinations with

dramatic imagery, Tan has defined a reason why greed is a capital sin. Whether it is

a hunger for power, love or wealth, its growth in the heart of a person or in a society

is a scary thing for it tampers rational limitations and control over one’s desires. To

illustrate, “Delivering the goods” brings you to a room with an operating table

whereupon a child is cut and the vital organs are replaced with bags of drugs. For

millions of money, people at hand in these dreadful deeds take away the dignity of

a human being and overlook the impact of the illegal drugs they sell. By delivering

these drugs, they destroy individuals and families and futures.

“The Bridge” tells of a woman whose desperate vanity brings to mind the

persona of Imelda Marcos which is supplied to her by devils. We all have the need

for happiness, acceptance and prosperity. When one yearns for more than enough

he/she is able to afford at the moment, one could think of rash risky measures to

get one’s desires. Though it is not apparent at first, this impulsivity is troublesome

for one will soon realize that it is as if he/she is filling a pail with air. Not discerning

the value of the object one wants will leave a pile of empty treasures. Also if these

wants are provided by people who ask for something in return, one is putting

him/herself into their power. As Ralph Waldo Emerson wisely put it, “a man in debt

is so far a slave.” The debtor is obliged to abide with the wishes of the person

leasing money. So when the leaser demands for something bigger than the debtor

is capable of, he/she would immediately regret for wanting in the first place

because what he/she has already is in danger of being taken away.

“Boss, Ex?” is a story of a man named Bien who is about to settle down into

marriage with Shiela. Set in a futuristic era, he buys chips that contain encounters

of the girls of his past: Anna (his first crush), Karen (his first girlfriend), Alice (his

first experience in sex) and Pia (his first illicit affair). Their journey prepares him to

set his mind about the vocation he has chosen, to become a married man.

Nowadays, perhaps Bien’s circumstances might help lessen the cases of infidelity

and divorce. In these changing times of modernity, when the couple does not get

along or fall out of love, it is better to choose to separate than force to stay together

and work out the relationship. This opportunity to reflect on one’s past relationships

will enlighten him/her on weighing commitments.

In “Child Abandoned”, Teresa symbolizes the Ilog Pasig where she is

portrayed as a smelly, dirty, ugly girl like the river once was. The water comes alive

as she speaks to it every day of her misfortunes from her abusive alcoholic father

and neglectful mother. With eight other siblings, it is her sister who takes care for

their well-being. She is bequeathed healing powers and she helps many people,

telling them to “drink and your eyes will be opened”. But a storm comes and she is

offered as a sacrifice to save the rest of the people. In the same way, the Ilog Pasig

had been abused and neglected by the communities that lived around it. As its

deterioration is simply allowed, it has taken endless warnings and occurrences of

dire consequences to move people to act in saving it.

Another story entitled “Sidhi” tells us of Noah, a charming celebrity, who

escapes from the troubles of being popular. In real life, there are two sides to fame.

It can be high life because you get VIP access to all the good stuff and you get

acknowledgement but it can also be a difficult life because you are always in the

public’s eye for scrutiny and mobbed for autographs and pictures. Your family might

be well-known and looked up to but they also become targets for gossip and

jealousy.

Standing by the Bible’s definition of love, it is perfect. Though in worldly

perspective, love is a complicated emotion that ranges from admiration to

obsession. Its temperament can be sweet and mellow at first then demanding and

domineering next. It is a driving force that can make one do great good things like

withstanding odds and also crazy things like being blinded of a one’s or the loved

one’s faults to the point of ignoring whether this fault hurts self or others.

“Stella for Stars” is a story of a gay couple, Paco, a university professor, and

Dorian, a beauty pageant candidate before. One day, upon their doorstep, they

found a box with a baby in it. They adopted her and called her Stella. Dorian is

depicted as the caring motherly figure to Stella. They are seen to be constantly in

each other’s company. He yearns for an ideal family as he is insecure of Paco’s love.

To him, the child is a secure bind to their relationship. Their attachment deepens

that Stella is wary of all other people except for Dorian. When Stella arrived, there

was amiss in their neighborhood but Dorian does not want to delve into the issue

even if he has suspicions on Stella’s real form after seeing her feed on animal’s

blood, a stray cat and children’s organs. A time came when Paco was left alone

with the infant and when Dorian returned, he found Stella eating the insides of

Paco. He does not get angry but sits beside her and strokes her back. After awhile,

he smiles, stands up, pours gasoline all over their home and burns it down. The next

day, when their neighbors looked over the ashes of the house, in a darkened corner,

yellow eyes still watch. Was it selfish of Dorian for not turning over Stella to the

authorities? Maybe, however, let us consider that all he wanted was Paco’s love and

a family with him. He was given Stella. Plus, the fact that their relationship as gays

is not openly accepted in society is more of a cause for keeping the small happiness

he has finally found even if he knew that it was wrong.

“Kulog” tells of a friendship that blossomed between a Capri named Kulog

and a little girl, Angela, who moved into their town. A Capri is believed to be a

creature that is very tall and lives on trees. Before Angela and her family came,

Kulog’s neighbors were very noisy and he doesn’t like loud sounds so he takes their

things and plays pranks on them. When they got fed up and left, Kulog was

pleasantly surprised to find that the new family living beside his tree was quiet

people. He liked Angela and befriended her. Their neighbors became alarmed as

they observed the little girl talking and playing to an invisible friend. So they cut off

the tree. When Kulog’s house got destroyed, he left the place. In children’s eyes,

they do not have any reason to mistrust anyone who wants to befriend them but I

guess it is adult instinct to be cautious of people especially those different from

their own as they are taught by experience that no one can really be trusted in this

life. At present, we are raised in the notion that there are only two people in this

world, those who fool others and those that get fooled. So you must be clever in

dealing out your resources, feelings and finances alike.

“Fade to Nothing” is about Felicia who is implied in the story to have Bolemia

disorder and her best friend, David, who loves her very much. Felicia is a

promiscuous girl and does not want commitments to any guy. She engages in one

night stands and has two affairs with Robert and Owen. She does not care about

David’s feelings. The disorder makes Felicia think that she is too fat, even when she

is not, so she skips on meals and has extreme diets. David feels like her knight in

shining armor whenever he is beside her as she vomits her food. It is only when

Jason opens David’s eyes to the truth that all of his efforts are not actually helping

Felicia to be healthier but rather to die as he encourages her to vomit her food. In

love, we become blinded to the blatant truth before us. We refuse to see that our

actions are already hurting, choking, and demanding as long as we are with the one

we love.

These characters and their situations are still encountered in the present. We

lose our loved ones and the pain forces us to choose whether to give in or continue

living. Some are unable to let go of the people they loved and look for the

embodiment of their memories. Our tendency to seek happiness, acceptance, and

prosperity make us strive hard in this world. Reality speaking, people in the higher

ranks of society uses all of their power and authority to attain and maintain the

luxuries they are afforded to their position while some of the poor resort to terrible

means like robbing, cheating and murdering for meager survival. Our understanding

of the love emotion defines our corresponding actions towards the people we give it

to. Indeed, even when we know that it is the wrong choice we still do it for the

simple reason that we want to be happy and we want to stay together with the one

we love.

In this life, we are taught that when we fall in love, never give your 100% but

keep some for yourself so that when your partner changes his/her mind about you,

you will not totally lose it but have something to lean back on.

“Waking the Dead and other horror stories” does not incite fear by means of

scary characterization or suspenseful plots but rather it produces an enlightening

sense of wonder on real issues that evolve on losing a loved one, the crazy things

we do for love and the imagined deeds we would do at times when we are seized

with our raging desires. It is a matter of standing by one’s principles and doing what

is right always.