the cries of children... by gregorio brillantes

there is something creepy about this story, and the way it was told casually, as if the topic weren't thought-provoking. the future makes us think of a lot of things. is it really set? are things predestined? or are we given the power to orchestrate the forthcoming epoch? my personal stand on the matter is still rather vague. maybe we are bound to reach a certain place, but what we don't know is the way we would feel once we reach that final destination. will we be content or will we be full of regrets?

what struck me most here is that we never really know what the future holds. it doesn't matter if it's set or yet to be created. the thing is we don't really know. there are just a lot of possibilities in this world, all of which can unfold at any given time. it's amazing how time makes clueless fools of us all. that's what the story made me realize.

and with the regard to the story per se, i liked it. the way the author described the first scene was astonishing. it was like capturing the afternoon glow in its full glory. it gave a clear picture of a typical summer day in the province where one would dreamily lie down to do something relaxing, like read a book or stare into nature's pulchritude. the story started out as somewhat happy. one would think it was going to be about laughter and summer and dry leaves on the ground. but then it was about the future and our being oblivious to what it holds. it painted a beautiful picture of what's happening in the present, then zooms into the bloody things of the forthcoming days, and then we simply realize that there's a stark difference between the two periods of time. the present hardly spells what may happen in a few years' time. it's true that it's often deceptive, like in the story, everything was so carelessly serene, but then years passed and deaths, divorce, sickness plagued the people's lives. the story may be fictional, but the situation isn't. we never really know what will happen. it's scary, i know, but we have to live with it.