Divide the mats by two

Anything worth having is worth fighting for.

Arcellana uses these two totally different short stories to convey one theme. I believe that theme is loss, the loss of a loved one.

In “The Mats” Arcellana depicts the tragic loss of a father’s loved ones, his three daughters. Though at first the tragedy is hidden through the story as Arcellana tells a story of a loving family, their small joys and excitement for their father to return home with pasalubong. A traditional Filipino trait, we always expect that when a relative returns from a trip, however far or near it maybe, that they will come home bearing gifts. I guess its part of how we want to experience what that person experienced when he was there, the same way the kids wanted the mats and the same, though tragic, the father wanted his family to experience how bad he felt by bringing home mats that didn’t belong to anyone anymore. It really is sad that the father experienced that, knowing how excited and happy his family would be when he comes home with the mats, which his family treasures (though now it may be trivial), but saddened that he won’t be able to see his three daughters smile and say thank you once he unwraps the mats bearing their names. Mats that they could have used for college, that they could have used when they got married and that they could have used for their own children. I guess this is where the feeling sayang comes in.

It does happen with Filipino families, where even though that person has passed on, we still try to live normally as if the person were still there. I remember a time when my grandmother passed away, my father would keep her cane in the same place she kept it. And the few days after she passed, when we would have dinner in her place, there was still a set plate and utensils placed for her on the table.

“Divide by 2” is a story of a slowly decaying relationship. Though it is not explicitly said but rather it is felt throughout the story. I believe this is because it is a collective experience when we talk about loss of a loved one, especially a partner. We may not know it or see it immediately but we definitely feel it. That is how Arcellana relates his story to us. A complex stage in a relationship weaved into a simple argument, an argument over a few inches of lot.

I guess this is the point where most, even the most passive person, would lose it, lose their temper, take on a beastly form. The persona had stated that he was against violence, and it is also seen through out the story. He did not like confrontation; he preferred to write a letter instead of saying it in person. But at the thought that he might lose his partner to his neighbor he loses it. As they say, anything worth having is worth fighting for. Unfortunately the sad part about this story, who or what was his wife fighting for?

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