The story opens with 13-year-old Alejandro Karangalan and his brother Roderick. They are walking in Manila heading for home after a long day of trying to sell cigarettes for food. Wanting to get home as soon as possible they cut through the city of Manila, which turns out to be a bad decision. They get captured by Japanese soldiers who question Alejandro as well as other innocent Filipinos. Alejandro is freed and heads for home after finding Roderick. Once they return home the two boys are taken care of. Papa and Mang Pedro decide to be the next one to go out and search for food the next day. The first myth is told about Esmeralda Cortez who is a faith healer. The story helps everyone forget about their hunger and about the war. They are short on food and must eat very little in order to share the f

ood equally amongst everyone. Then next story of Mang Minno is told who is a magical fisherman. Papa has not yet returned after looking for food and Mama is scared that Isabelle is dead for she hasn't returned since the time Alejandro and Roderick left. Isabelle narrates the story now. She is still alive and finds Domingo who is beaten and hurt by the Japanese soldier. They both try to head home since both stay in the home of Mama. Before heading home they stop by the hiding place of the guerillas, where Domingo is cleaned up before heading back home. On their way back home, Japanese soldiers capture them. Isabelle and Domingo are separated. Isabelle is taken to a military base along with the other young women who are raped by the Japanese soldiers. An old friend, Feliciano, helps Isabelle return home safely. When they return home, Domingo is all ready there. After talking about what has happened to Isabella, Aling Anna tells her story of being wealth but lonely.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Japanese Domingo, Alejandro Roderick, Karangalan Roderick, Mang Pedro, Isabelle Domingo, Esmeralda Cortez, Aling Anna, Mang Minno, Japanese Alejandro, Aling Anna's, japanese soldiers, return home, heading home, aling anna, home japanese soldiers, captured japanese, mang pedro, home japanese, tells story, alejandro karangalan,
Approximate Word count = 652
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)