TITLE: MONINA’S MANY MOLES

THE PHILIPPINE BOARD ON BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

SALANGA PRIZE 2024 ENTRY

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 SYNOPSIS

Monina is keeping a secret underneath her hooded jacket: she doesn’t have a mole. Her

lola once told her that the Mole Fairy gifts babies moles at birth to give them talents. And

since Monina doesn’t have one, she has long called herself the Luckless, Talentless,

Hopeless, and Moleless Monina. This has made her so insecure and shy. She’s so shy,

she can’t speak in front of other people, let alone dance, sing, or act. And so, when her

teacher tells their class about their upcoming Talent Show, all Monina could do is go

home, cry to her nanay, and wish to the Mole Fairy. The next day, Monina wakes up and

finds black dots all over her body. “The Mole Fairy granted my wish!” she screams

excitedly. Monina goes to school without her jacket, greets everyone with a smile, does

an awesome performance on Talent Show Day, and eventually joins and wins San

Marcelino’s Got Talent at their town fiesta. Monina is finally confident and happy, thanks

to the black dots gifted not by the Mole Fairy and the Mole Fairy’s magic wand, but by her

nanay and Nanay’s trusty marker.

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MONINA’S MANY MOLES

Meet Monina, the shyest nine-year-old in all of San Marcelino.

Monina is so shy and meek, in front of other people, she couldn’t dance, she

couldn’t sing, she couldn’t smile, and—hay naku!—she couldn’t even speak.

Not in front of the kind owner of the sari-sari store.

“Good morning, Monina! What would you like to buy today?” the sari-sari store

owner in her flowery day dress asks.

Monina’s heartbeats double, her kayumanggi face turns pale, her tiny hands sweat

and her thin lips tremble. She opens her mouth, but no words come out. She pulls down

her jacket’s hood over her face, drops her coins in the sari-sari store owner’s palm, grabs

the pack of pan de coco, squeals, “EEEEEEHHHH!!!” and runs.

Not in front of her gossiping neighbors outside their santan hedge.

“Is your nanay home, Monina? We got some news to tell her about our baranggay

captain and his eleven wives,” one of the three ladies enthusiastically whispers, the one

with pink plastic curlers in her hair, a walis tambo in her hand, and an annoying smirk on

her face.

Monina bites her lips, squeals, “EEEEEEHHHH!!!” and races inside their bahay na

bato.

Not in front of Manong Tindero yodeling, “TAHOOOOOO!!!”.

Manong Tindero stops outside Monina’s house and opens his metal drums

brimming with sweet steamy soft tofu, arnibal and sago drink.

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 Monina peeks from their second-floor window. Her mouth waters and her stomach

grumbles.

Manong looks up at Monina and asks, “Want some taho, suki?”

Monina shakes her head, squeals, “EEEEEEHHHH!!!” and slams their bahay na

bato’s broken capiz windows shut.

Not in front of the driver calling passengers to his jeepney.

“Need a ride to school, little girl?” the driver with the mustache and the Good

Morning towel around his neck pokes his head out of his colorful honking vehicle and

asks. “Students get discount.”

Monina hastens her walk, squeals, “EEEEEEHHHH!!!” and doesn’t look back.

And most definitely not in front of her teachers and classmates in school… No way!

‘Why is Monina so shy?’ you ask? Well, blame it on her Lola Pacita.

Many years ago, after Lola Pacita lost big again on an afternoon game of bingo against

the other lolas of their baranggay, she told a young Monina, “You know why I keep losing

at bingo?”

“Why po?” Monina asked.

Lola Pacita quit chewing her nganga, rocking her rocking chair, and fanning her

abaniko. She showed Monina her wrinkled but clean and spotless hand. “It’s because the

Mole Fairy didn’t gift me a mole on my bingo hand.”

Monina stopped playing with her paper doll and asked with wonder in her cute little

brown eyes, “Mole Fairy, Lola?”

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 Lola Pacita grumbled, “Don’t tell me your Nanay didn’t tell you about the Mole Fairy

too?”

Monina shook her head.

Lola Pacita pulled Monina closer, “Listen, Apo. My lola’s lola told my lola that her

lola told her that when a baby is born, the Mole Fairy visits and gifts the baby a mole. And

wherever body part the Mole Fairy decides to put the mole, that’s where the baby’s talent

will come from. And since the Mole Fairy gifted me a mole on my behind instead of my

bingo hand, I’m bad at playing bingo but excellent at sitting for looooong hours and rocking

my rocking chair.” She groaned and massaged her sides. “And I would’ve shown you that

mole already if not for these bad hips.”

“Is the Mole Fairy true, Lola?”

Lola Pacita puckered her lips and nodded. “Mm-hmm. As true as the white hair on

my head, Apo.”

Monina stared at the moleless hands of her paper doll. “But what if a baby wasn’t

gifted any mole by the Mole Fairy?”

“Tsk tsk. Then, that little one’s one luckless, talentless, hopeless and moleless

baby.”

Later that night, a curious Monina took off her clothes and faced her nanay’s

cabinet mirror. She spun around once, twice, thrice, over and over until she got dizzy,

trying to find the mole the Mole Fairy gifted her. But sadly, she found none. Zero. Nothing.

Wala. She cried and cried, and called herself the Moleless Monina… The Luckless,

Talentless, Hopeless, and Moleless Monina.

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 And from that time on, she started walking with her head down and wearing a

hooded jacket and a frown.

“A TALENT SHOW NEXT WEEK!” Monina’s teacher announces in class.

Everyone cheers except for Monina who is left frozen and speechless at the back

of the room in her armchair and hooded jacket.

A talent show? Monina thought, Oh no.

“Oh, yes. I’m gonna belly dance for everybody,” announces Bella with a huge smile

on her face. She stands up, lifts her blouse to showcase her talent. “Call me the Belly-

dancing Bella.”

While everyone focuses on Bella’s rolling stomach, Monina narrows her eyes and

zooms in on the black dot on top of Bella’s navel. “Is that a…?” Monina asks and exhales,

“Yup, just as I thought, a mole.”

Rap Rap goes on top of his seat and holds his chipped pencil like a mic. He bobs

his head and waves his hand. “Mic test. Mic test. Yes. Yes. Yow. Isa. Dalawa. Tatlow.

Nanay, Tatay, gusto kong tinapay. Ate, Kuya, gusto kong kape. Lahat ng gusto ko ay

susundin n’yo. Ang magkamali ay pipingutin ko. Break it down. And I’m Rapping Rap

Rap, y’all.”

Rap Rap got a big fat hairy mole on the edge of his upper lip.

“What a surprise,” Monina groans.

“Pakinggan mo, Irog, ang kundiman ng puso. Aaaaanggggg kuuuundiiimaaaan ng

puuuusssoooooo.” Ofelia spreads her hands gracefully and sings. “And I’m Operatic

Ofeliaaaaaahhh,” she belts out.

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 Ofelia has a star-shaped mole on her lower lip.

Monina frowns. “Just perfect.”

Jolina stretches a garter above her head and jumps very high—so high the top of

her head almost bumps the ceiling. “And I’m gonna do a Chinese Garter Game Exhibition.

I’m Jumping Jolina.”

Jolina got two moles: one on her left leg, the other on her right.

“And zero moles for me. Yehey,” Monina murmured sarcastically.

“What about you, Monina?” Monina’s teacher asks.

The entire class gasps and turns around. They hold their breaths, waiting for their

shy classmate to speak. It would be the first time in forever.

“Mm-mm-me?” Monina mouths as she gets to her feet.

“Yes, you, Monina,” Monina’s teacher says. “Would you like to belly dance like

Bella? Maybe rap like Rap Rap? Perhaps sing opera like Ofelia? Or jump like Jolina?

Anything?”

Then, it happens. Monina’s heart beats faster. Her palms start to sweat. Her

kayumanggi face turns white. She opens her lips, but not a single word comes out. She

tries again. And again. And again. And a last time. But only gets a cough and a,

“EEEEEEHHHH!!!”, an embarrassing high-pitched squeal.

Everyone giggles and whispers, “Why is Monina so shy?”

Monina sighs, pulls down her jacket’s hood, and sinks back down to her armchair.

Monina goes home later that day, feeling more luckless, talentless, hopeless, and

moleless as ever.

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 At bedtime, with her nanay on her side, Monina squeezes her eyes shot and clasps

her hands together. She prays, “Dear Mole Fairy, are you there? It’s me Monina! Mole

Fairy, I would like to ask you a favor. I hope it’s okay. Can you, please, give me a mole?

Just any mole. It can be big or small, flat or round, hairy or smooth, black or brown. Just

one would do. But if you’re feeling extra generous, you can also put two on my lips, one

on my toe, one under my eye, one on my nose, and many more all over my body. That’s

all. Thank you.”

Nanay giggles. “Mole Fairy?”

“Opo,” Monina answers.

“You want… moles? But why?”

Monina buries her face into her nanay’s lap and cries, “Because I don’t wanna be

the Luckless, Talentless, Hopeless and Moleless Monina anymore.”

“Oh.” Nanay embraces Monina and caresses her hair. “Tahan na, Anak. I’m sure

the Mole Fairy heard your wish… loud and clear.”

The next day, Monina wakes up. She springs up from her banig and crawls out of

her kulambo. She takes off her pantulog and hurries in front of the mirror.

Then…

She sees them! Black dots! Everywhere! All over her body! On her cheeks! On

her nose! On her neck! On her belly! On her arms! On her legs, knees, and feet! Moles!

Many moles! Just like what she prayed for last night.

“Yehey! Yehey! Yehey!” Monina jumps up and down and runs to her nanay. “The

Mole Fairy granted my wish! The Mole Fairy granted my wish!” she screams. “Look,

Nanay. I’m not Moleless Monina anymore. I have moles... many moles.”

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 Monina goes out of their house, without her hooded jacket this time. She talks to

the kind owner of the sari-sari store, waves to her gossiping neighbors in front of their

santan hedge, buys taho from Manong Tindero, and rides the driver’s jeepney all the way

to school.

At school, Monina greets everyone with “Good Morning!”, “Kamusta?”, “Hello!”,

“Hi!” and “Happy Tuesday, mga kaibigan!”.

“Who’s that girl?” one of the school kids asks.

“Is that Shy Girl Monina?” another says. “But where’s her hooded jacket?”

“And are those moles all over her body?” a third one adds. “Wow, they’re beautiful!”

Before the flag ceremony, Monina approaches the Belly-dancing Bella and says,

“Hello, Bella. It’s me Monina.”

The Belly-dancing Bella’s jaw drops, and her eyes get big. “Is it really you, Monina?

You look nice without your jacket. And your moles? I love them.”

“Thanks. Can you teach me how to belly dance for the Talent Show?”

“Absolutely.”

Monina and Bella wave and swing their bellies.

The next day, Wednesday, Monina talks to the Rapping Rap Rap after their English

class.

“Hey, Rap Rap. Can you teach me how to rap for the Talent Show?”

“Absolutely.”

Monina and Rap Rap bob their heads and exchange beats and rhymes.

Then, in Music class, Monina asks the Operatic Ofelia, “Can you teach me how to

sing for the Talent Show, Ofelia?”

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 “Absolutely.”

Monina and Ofelia’s pitch-perfect beautiful voices fill the room.

The day after next, Thursday, she comes to Jolina. “Can you teach me how to jump

high for the Talent Show, Jolina?”

“Absolutely.”

Monina and Jolina spend their P.E. class jumping, leaping, laughing, and having a

blast.

Then comes Friday, Talent Show Day.

Bella performs first. Rap Rap, Ofelia, Jolina and the others follow, until…

“Monina, it’s your turn,” Monina’s teacher says.

But Monina stays quiet, slumped in her armchair and her old, hooded jacket.

“EEEEEEHHHH!!!” she squeals just like before.

The teacher smiles Monina’s way, her eyes filled with concern. She says, “You

don’t have to perform if you’re feeling a little…”

“EEEEEEExcited?” Monina looks up and answers with the biggest grin. She took

off her jacket, throws it away, pumps her fists in the air and shouts, “Yes, I am!”

Monina skips to the front of the class and dances, raps, sings, jumps, and performs

the most fabulous talent act her classmates and teacher have ever seen. Monina’s

performance goes on for a few more minutes until she puts her head down, not because

she’s shy again, but to give her audience a final bow.

The entire class explodes in whistles, cheers, and claps.

Monina ends the day with new friends and fans in class. After a week, everyone in

school asks for her autograph. Then after a month, she becomes the talk of the town—

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an instant local celebrity. She even joins San Marcelino’s Got Talent at their town fiesta

and wins first place. Yehey!

And instead of “Why is Monina so shy?”, everyone now asks, “Why is Monina so

full of life?”

Monina is finally confident and happy, so happy she doesn’t even notice her many

moles had already disappeared. And it isn’t because the Mole Fairy’s wand had lost its

magic. In fact, there isn’t a Mole Fairy at all! It’s because her Nanay has become too

sleepy and too tired of sneaking inside Monina’s kulambo at midnight and Nanay’s trusty

marker has finally run out of ink.

THE END

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