7/25/2019 Sayonara by Edilberto Tiempo

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SAYONARAbyEDILBERTO TIEMPO

The lives of great people and the events that led togreat changes in civilizations around the world areenshrined in the pages of history. Members of anysociety are taught at an early age that the mistakesof the past should never be repeated while thevictories of old should be celebrated. However

history often creates glossed over images of thepast. Often times, the people mentioned in theaccounts of a nations history become merecaricatures. Men and women who achievedgreatness or infamy are simplified into heroes andvillains, forgetting that they were once daughters,son, wives, husbands, or friends.

orld ar !! is described as one of the darkesthours of humanity. !n the "hilippines alone, about#$ million lost their lives. The %all of &orregidor on

May $, #'() marked the total domination of!mperial *apan of the "hilippines and the rest of+sia and though many of the +llied %orcessurrendered, some %ilipinos escaped andcontinued fighting as guerillas.

dilberto Tiempos -ayonara/ is a short storydescribing the capture and eventual e0ecution ofthree %ilipino guerillas. Tiempo portrays +mando,1adisloa, and "ascual as -real/ people havingdistinct personalities. !n the opening, we see thethree characters commit mistakes, revealing them

as members of the guerilla movement to the*apanese soldiers.

The *apanese officer suddenly bellowed him,-Tenshun2/"ascual stood at attention, and immediately sawhis mistake.. . .-+ll right, we are guerillas,/ said +mando."ascual and 1adislao looked at him. hat inatans name did he do that for3 !n the ne0t instant,however, "ascual realized his automatic response

to the -+ttention/ command was an open betrayal,too.

The heroes in history do not make trivial slipups orsurrender so easily information to the enemy.4either do they spit on the faces of their enemies.*ose 5izal, the national hero of the "hilippines isplaced on a very high pedestal that in some areasof the country, he is worshipped as a god. Many%ilipinos would have a hard time imagining *ose5izal as a human being capable of doing

foolishness. Tiempo, with his story, reminds thereaders that the brave heroes mentioned in historybooks who have fought for the countrys freedomare humans, having their own flaws and fears.

The character of the *apanese corporal also hadthe same function. The corporal sharing his story to"ascual reveals the human face of the enemy.

-That rock,/ the *apanese was mumbling to himself-!t has a different use. o very sorry. !ts a sinker. Topull you down to the sea bottom./

There was no cruelty in the voice, indeed isounded like an apology.

The *apanese corporal has some une0pectedconnections with the "hilippines. His grandfathewas a &hristian and his uncle had a wonderful lifein the "hilippines before the war broke out. Thecorporal was able to detach himself from what was

happening around him and see the war from abigger perspective. +lthough a war can only endwhen one side is defeated and other onevictorious6 everyone is a victim.

-7o you thing he was happy 8oining the *apanese+rmy3/

-Maybe not. 4o. 9ut he has his duty./ The corporabecame :uiet. -;ou asked me why ! am giving youa chance. My uncle is one reason. The othereason is my grandfather. That is all./

!t appears that if the corporal had met "ascauunder different circumstances, then they wouldhave become friends. !n the closing, as "ascuawas thrown into the sea, the *apanese corporabids his farewell.

-ayonara,/ the corporal said, as he carefullydropped the rock with the fall of "ascuals body. !tseemed that the parting word spoken deliberatelywithin the hearing of all was a defiance flungagainst his own kind.

The corporals subtle act of defiance teachesreaders that there are things people cannot control6nonetheless, people are not completely powerless.