by Telly G. Ocampo

When sleep becomes elusive because of . . . !

My sleeping pattern changed from the time the kapamilya network came back to “life” on the tv screen. I and a lot of my friends, are rejoicing over the return of the kapamilya programs. Thanks to cignal.

The kapailya telenobelas – Probinsyano, Huwag Kang Mangamba, and Init sa Magdamag are productions that are very captivating especially during this pandemic.  Dili gyud mahimo ug mopalta ko ug tan-aw.  I do not want to miss any of the episodes. 

Probinsyano has been there for years.  Pero dili gyud ko apul-an ug tan-aw. The edpisodes are true mirroring of today’s economic, social, and political realities.  The cast is superb.  Maayo gyud si idol nga si Ricardo Dalisay.  Naa pa si Susan Roces nga akong laing idol.  I am a Susanian, not an Amalian.  Mao nay idol namo niadtong mga batan-on pa mi nga ang salida sa sinehan among gitawag ug “double program”.  And for every movie,  the initial show was “the news of the world”. Out of this “news of the world” format in the moviehouse,  a song became popular among the young, then.  The song is entitled, “Sad Movies Make Cry”. The first stanza of the song runs this way: 

He said he had to work so I went to the show alone
They turned down the lights and turned the projector on
And just as the news of the world started to begin
I saw my darlin’ and my best friend walk in.

Now that we are in this digital age,  we can’t anymore view the “news of the world” before the movie proper.  What’s happening around could be controlled by the click of a finger.  Attached to all these are both real news and fake news. 

During our era, there were two foreign movie productions:  Metro Goldwyn Meyer with a lion; and paramount pictures with the framed lady. And right now all of these are already in digital platform.

Let us go back to “Huwag Kang Mangamba”, the telenobela.  Dili na gyud ka motindog after “Probinsyano” kay derecho na ko sa “Huwag Kan Mangamba”.  Lahi pud ang ka thrilling ani.  The story here is a reflection of the socio political, economic and religious events in our country. “Huwag Kang Mangamba”,  reminds me of “Santino”  a few years back. His story was another teleserye  that glued us to the television – both young and old. Some of the hashtags “Huwag Kang Mangamba” are:

# Magka-inunsa man ning kalibutan, ka-usa ra kang witik sa Ginoo. 

# Two girls longing for the presence of a mother.  

In this story, I think Mira and Joy are sisters from the same mother but different fathers. The father of Myra is a rebel and Joy’s is a military man assigned to fight the rebels.  Ani nga teleserye mapungot ko kaaju ug mo “twinkle twinkle” na ang mata sa stepmother ni Joy nga si Agatha (Mercedes Cabral).   Kahibawo gyud siya kaayo modala sa iyang paper oy. I forgot her real name but I learned that this actress also starred in the movie “Biktima” – produced and directed by RD Alba of Bohol and starring Cesar Montano, Sunshine Cruz and our very own editor, my bff Ardy Araneta – Batoy. In this movie, “Biktima”, Bff Ardy played the role of the psychiatrist in the facility where Angel Aquino stayed. During the premier showing of “Biktima”, bff Ardy emceed the event at the SM Mega Mall where Boholanos and non-Boholanos alike gathered to support the movie.

Sa “Huwag Kang Mangamba” naa pud si Ate B – Barang for short. She is fit to a T in her role.  

“Init sa Magdamag” is a different genre but the acting is superb.  Yam Concepcion’s acting is a pro.  She is very innocent looking but with fire.  The male – Gerard Anderson,  Jm de Guzman and Yam  belong to a perfect trio. 

Is it only abs-cbn who can do this?  Asa ra kaha si Marcoleta and company?.  Ambot na lang.  What would my life be today without these teledramas? 

All these are the reasons for the change of my sleeping pattern.

I don’t know if you would agree with me but I have noticed that if you stay awake beyond your sleeping time, you can’t anymore sleep. But i have found a solution.  Switch to RJ channel.  Remember RJ and the riots: the boogie, twist, bye-bye,  and rock ‘n roll of our youth? Mao kini ang huni ug sayaw sa atong kabatan-onan.  Congratulations, Ramon Jacinto 

Memories are like bridges in our minds that connect the yesterdays and the todays and that keep us going even in the sunset years of our lives.  It is always a kind of joy to go back to memory lane every now and then!