This classic of Filipino literature by Bienvenido Santos is about an aging expatriate who feels cut off from his culture. After years of menial work in the United States, the protagonist has no remaining Filipino family and only one local, possibly terminally ill, Filipino friend. Rather naïvely, he decides to approach and offer to host to a group of visiting tinikling dancers. He is ignored, but makes an audio recording of their performance to remember them by. In the depressing denouement, he faces the grim reality of losing them all. Themes: nostalgia, connection with one’s roots, aging and death. More…

Bienvenido Santos’s Immigration Blues deals with the plight of a Filipino woman wanting to make a future in the United States. Without a permanent visa, her only hope is to gain residence through marriage. Her sister learns of a retired Filipino widower with U.S. Citizenship. In a humorous visit laced with dramatic irony, the two women are initially too embarrassed to raise the topic of marriage. When the old man finally understands their purpose, he thanks God for allowing lightning to strike the same person twice. Themes: immigration, cultural isolation, hope, fear, pride, and the emptiness of growing old alone. More…