Notes - Under the Santol Tree

Thanks to Imma Licayan can never be enough. She is the constant reader - the eager Muse. For that, I am eternally grateful. "Under the Santol Tree" was the first in the Culture Kids series - collections of stories told from a nine-year-old's unique point of view: Not quite an adult, but not still a child. It allowed me to bridge the gap and tell the story of both young adults and juvenile children in a variety of settings.

Under the Santol Tree was also a bit of a travelogue, expounding on my brief experiences in Mindanao and the Visayas. I found the Philippines truly rewarding, like an uncut diamond, waiting to be skillfully crafted into millions of tiny keepsakes.

Unfortunately, the Philippines suffers from this yet-to-be-recognized greatness. In that, I find the unique point of view of a tourist-child - always romanticizing the most obscure and most mundate of items, whether it be stories by firelight or home-made songs.

Still, I find myself lingering on the Islands in my daydreams, remembering the short amount of time I spent in Mya's version of Paradise...and mine, too.