Ginsulat ni Leanne Hinojales • April 13, 2026

Fiction/Literary • Short Stories

It was a common day for the Negrenses in Silay as they started to harvest one of their primary  sources of living, the sugarcanes. 

The wind carried the sweet scent of another successful harvest. It traveled across every corner of quadricula till it finally reached the olfactory system of every haciendero present in the  sumsuman. 

“Rosalinda, tell your sister Sampaguita to buy an aceite from Farmacia Locsin. Bring 500 pesos  with you,” Mr. Miguel Manzanilla ordered his eldest daughter. 

“Yes, father,” Rosalinda obediently replied. 

Yet, contrary to what looks like a usual command from the head of the family, actually lies a patriotic mission that can end a life with just one mistake: supporting the  Filipino armed men in revolting against the Spaniards. 

And the way that the hacienderos and their family can support these heroic people is by  pretending to purchase an aceite from Farmacia Locsin, who in return will list their family name at  the end of the aceite they purchased, then afterwards put the amount of the donated money as the  grams that they bought.

This scene might be life-threatening for a lot of people, but for people like the Manzanilla family, losing one’s life meant one step towards freedom. And they were not afraid to risk it for  the sake of independence. 

“Sampaguita, our father asked you to buy an aceite from Farmacia Locsin. Bring this money with you,” Rosalinda told Sampaguita, giving her a meaningful look.

Her sister nodded her head meekly as she prepared her way to fulfill her mission for the day. 

Upon arriving, Sampaguita joyfully smiled towards her friend Josefina as she eagerly  awaited her to hear another rumour that had been circling the town. Chisme was a common pastime for the two young ladies, especially if it was all about new visitors to their town.

“Sampaguita, dali-a!” Josefina called Sampaguita, as if she couldn’t wait to talk to her. Josefina’s exuberant expression meant one thing: she had big news for her friend.

As soon as the two women’s hands met with each other, they squealed together. Josefina was  about to relay the message to Sampaguita when, out of nowhere, a soothing baritone interrupted their conversation. 

“May I get your order, Binibi?” the voice inquired. 

The moment Sampaguita saw who it was, her hand slowly dropped, as if she just seen a ghost.

“A-Alejandro?” she stammered.

Josefina suppressed her giggle as she felt the romantic tension that was going on between the  two people close to her heart: Alejandro, her brother, and her smitten friend.

Sampaguita was about to speak when Alejandro flashed a little confusion on his face. 

“Pardon, are we, by any chance, close to each other?” the young gentleman asked, as if the face he just saw came from nothing but a random stranger. 

Josefina’s eyes widened as if she couldn’t believe what her brother had just said. Meanwhile, Sampaguita remained calm and composed even though in reality, her heart was slowly being torn apart. 

Alejandro chose to get Sampaguita’s order and ensure that the transaction between them was safe from any spies or the Spanish army surrounding them. 

Upon coming back, Alejandro gently handed over the Aceite to Sampaguita, which she gladly  received. Yet, upon handing it over, the tips of their hands met. Something inside both of  them, like a flower slowly blooming in summer, suddenly embraced their systems. 

“Walang anuman,” Alejandro plainly replied, as his face remained composed. Yet what others did not know was that deep inside of him, there was already an ongoing fiesta that the whole townspeople would surely gossip about. 

August 4, 1898 

Beautifully crafted with intricacy, the golden heart locket that was gifted to Sampaguita by her  great-grandmother shone bright through the light that passed from the Capiz shell window. She was busy appreciating the said jewelry when someone caught her attention. 

“Binibining Sampaguita, you have a visitor,” Neneng, a servant, informed her lady. 

“I’ll come by. Thank you, Neneng.” Sampaguita softly replied and immediately put her locket inside the drawer of her vanity table. Afterwards, she decided to go to the salas where her visitor was patiently waiting for her. 

“My apologies for letting you…” Sampaguita stopped midway when she saw who her visitor was. It was none other than her childhood crush, Alejandro. 

Before she was able to ask what he needed, the young man handed her a leather jewelry box that seemed to contain high-quality jewelry passed down through generations. Yet the box had a mini lock that no key could easily open. 

“Please hold on to this. I’ll give you the key to it by November,” Alejandro mysteriously said.  

Sampaguita was too stunned to speak. Even after Alejandro had already bid his  goodbye and was already out of her sight, she kept thinking about what he said. 

What’s inside the box that it is locked? And why do I need to wait for a couple of months to  just open it? 

And the train of thought started to cloud her mind. 

November 4, 1898 

The humid weather cause by habagat was felt across the whole Negros Occidental region. The Manzanilla family were no exception in experiencing the atmospheric condition. 

“Ga, can you open the ventanilla, please?” Doña Consolacion kindly asked her youngest  son, Alfredo, who at that time was busy playing sungka with her older sisters and brothers. 

As the last among his seven siblings, and as a tradition in respecting one’s elders, Alfredo immediately attended to his mother’s request. He was about to open the ventanilla when he saw the family Lacson crossing the street, walking towards their humble home. 

Rapidly, but with care, he opened the ventanilla, then hurriedly went towards the salas to  excitedly informed his family that the Lacson Family was just in gwa.

“Ina, the Lacson Family is here!” he enthusiastically exclaimed.

“Alfredo, kalma lang gid,” Juanita, one of the eldest among them, softly replied.

“Tsakto man ang aking ginapaminsar. You will only see Corazon, that’s why you are so  excited,” their brother, Leandro, teased. And this caused Alfredo’s face to turn red as a  rambutan. 

“Hipos,” Alfredo mumbled so that his older brother would not clearly hear what he just  said. Because honestly speaking, even at the age of six years old, he already had a huge liking for  the youngest child of the Lacson family, Corazon. 

“Enough with that. Stop teasing your brother, Leandro,” their mother said, as she gently scolded one of her eldest sons. 

Leandro just shrugged while still having the mocking smile across his face. 

This scene made Sampaguita happy. Nothing in the world filled her heart with joy more than watching her family safe, at peace, and secured. Yet her smile turned into an agitation as she heard the gossip through their maids that Alejandro was  also present at the said visitation.  

“But Ina, there’s no occasion for them to visit us. Why would they be here, then?” Flordeliza, a middle child, sincerely inquired of their mother. 

“We would leave the answer to your ama. After all, he is the head of our family. He surely has a business with his compadre that we don’t know. Let’s just trust him and follow him, do you  understand?” Their mother was calm, yet authoritative.

Upon knowing that the Lacson family was already at their doorstep, Doña Consolacion, along  with her children, warmly welcomed the visitors to their humble home and gently asked them if  they can wait for the arrival of her husband. Her comadre just softly smiled and nodded  towards her, together with her husband. 

“Pacita, bring out some Barquillos and bread, along with some coconut water for our visitors,” Doña Consolacion ordered their Head Housemaid. Pacita hurriedly obeyed. After almost fifteen minutes of waiting, Don Miguel finally arrived.

“Humayo tayo sa hapag. I think it’s better to talk things out there,” Don Miguel enthusiastically  said, as if there was big news that he and his compadre would surely share with everyone.  

While walking towards the dining area, Sampaguita couldn’t help but feel nervous knowing that Alejandro was nearby. This nervousness increased when someone beside her said, “Kasing gwapa ng umaga ang iyong mukha, Binibini.” 

It was Alejandro. And even if she still couldn’t move on from what their previous encounter in the Farmacia, she couldn’t help blushing at the thought that Alejandro finally noticed her. 

“Where is the key that you told me you would give me this November?” It sounded like a joke, but she was genuinely asking.

“Be patient, please,” Alejandro solemnly replied. 

“Then when exactly…?”

Their conversation was interrupted when Josefina called them. 

“Huy, kamong duha! We are waiting for you both. What are you two talking about that it  took you so long to be in the dining room?” Josefina teased. 

“Waay man!” Alejandro and Sampaguita said at the same time. But their lovestruck glances couldn’t hide their true feelings. Josefina already knew what the two were trying to keep hiding.

“Gen. Aniceto Lacson received a message from Roque Lopez that Iloilo is already  being sieged. According to General Lacson, tomorrow would be the day that we would proceed to our revolution against Spain,” Lacson said as he and Miguel Manzanilla took a toast. 

“To our freedom!” the other family members exclaimed. 

This revolution was yet unsure to truly give freedom, but for them, they would rather take the small chance than continue to be second-class citizens in their own land.

November 5, 1898 

The Negros Revolution against Spain was in full force. The other family members were inside the  church, praying to the Almighty that their misery may finally end. And truly, the Lord was not deaf to those who love Him genuinely.  

November 6, 1898 

By November 6, 1898, one of the shortest, most bloodless revolutions finally concluded. There was  a signing of the Act of Capitulation by the Spanish forces, which officially ended Spanish rule in the province.

After all that happened, Alejandro finally gave Sampaguita the key to the leather box. Inside it were letters that Alejandro penned since the first time he’d met her in their  childhood days. 

Sampaguita cried as she read each letter, until she reached the last one. Alejandro wrote, “And the moment  our country is freed, I promise to marry you, my langga.” 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Leanne Angedel A. Hinojales, also known by the pen name Avie Elysian, is a licensed teacher in Bacolod. Currently, she is working as an ECCD Head, Nursery Adviser, and Librarian at Evangelical Christian Montessori School, located in Alijis, Bacolod City. She is also the head founder and President of the Writer and Artist group, The Ellipsis. In her free time, she loves visiting Museums, doing paintings, playing the violin, and advocating for certain causes such as Mental Health, Education, and Literature. For Avie, the main reason she writes is to make people seen, loved, valued, and understood. And by writing this piece, she wanted to share and celebrate the beauty of her home island, the Negros Occidental region.