CONTRARY to what it denotes, “Father and Daughter” is not a book between a father and his daughter. Rather, it is just a father and a daughter writing a book together.
A literary first, “Father and Daughter” (Anvil, 1996) is a collection of poems, essays, and stories by Gemino Abad and his daughter, Cyan.
The book, divided into two sections, reflects the writers’ different personalities as father and daughter. There are very few selections about family, especially on the “Father” section. If there were any story about Gemino’s family, it would rarely be about his daughter but about his twin boys.
The only work that Gemino has done which included his daughter is the introduction of the book. In the form of a letter, the introduction tells how he has neglected his children for writing because almost always he is in “Cumulus.” In this letter, he briefly tells about his family life and how the death of his son caused Cyan’s first sorrow which the latter expresses in a poem written at age 9: “I was a little girl/When a sick baby boy was born./He did not have much time on earth,/He did not even say goodbye.”
Other selections on the “Father” half of the book deals with fiction and the nature of language. These selections are almost always written in poetic form and for the ordinary reader, almost difficult to understand. Most of his poetry question the ability of language to successfully convey human ideas and feelings. His frustration on language is felt when he claims that words are not enough to describe how he feels and yet he uses these same words to express his dismay.
His essays also express many writing concepts, especially poetry. In his essay “What does one look for in Poetry?” he explains the steps he uses in writing and states that poetry is about new ideas or feelings. Everyday life is also an inspiration for writing in “Any Day in One’s Life” as he recounts his day from the morning he wakes up while waking his twins along. He then describes his day at work to the time he left to fetch his twins. His essay, which aims to teach the reader to write about everyday life, becomes an example.
His stories, meanwhile, are a fresh version of the many shepherds’ story during Christmas. These are the more “human” of his works for the rest are scholarly.
“The Blind Shepherd” is a story of the shepherd Joshua and his Abel. Joshua does not see the angels who announced Christ’s arrival in the world but instead hears their beautiful song. His brother describes the angels but later Joshua sees the star of Bethlehem. But it was not only that he saw but Christ’s entire life as well. And he tells his brother: “But for the human heart, there is no heavier terror than the need both to give and receive forgiveness.”
Reading Abad, the reader cannot help but feel his frustration with the limitations of language. One can relate to the difficulty of describing feelings and ideas with the words that the English language offers. The reader also feels his confusion of what language to use, whether be it English or the native language of our ancestors.
On the other hand, the “Daughter” section of the book revolves more around the subject of family and friends. The poem “Stairs” which is written for Cyan’s twin brothers states: “Frowning/and scolding/don’t stop my brothers/from preferring stairs over their playroom plain.”
Her poetry is a reflection of her life and they are a good way of determining how old she was when she wrote them. Her poetry deals with ordinary things and expresses her emotions rather than her beliefs.
Her essays, on the other hand, delve into her many idiosyncrasies during her adolescence. The piece, “I Hate” is written in bullet form with explanations for each. The selection starts with her hating summer vacations planned by her mother and how she hates traveling on a plane to Palawan. She also adds how she hates being told by her sister “I told you so” when she finds out how great scuba diving is after saying she hated it. In the end, she forms a crush on her scuba instructor and says she hates going back home after a vacation.
The book ends with an epilogue, also in letter form, written this time by the daughter. It is about her relationship with her father, writing that he was her “greatest superhero” and despite his faults, he is still the best dad. She also adds that although they live in different addresses, he in “Cumulus” and she in “Catatonia”, love is their connection to each other.
Cyan’s light tone of voice makes the reader feel the emotions that she invokes in her creations. Each story brings to mind the reader’s own experiences during childhood and adolescence, making him reminisce with the writer.
“Father and Daughter” is a good way of comparing the two writers because they obviously have individual styles. The older Abad writes with an ease brought about by years of experience. His poetry is formal in style and text-heavy. Words employed in everyday language are not to be expected in his poetry. His essays, meanwhile, have more or less a light tone to it. They are essentially an easy read.
The younger Abad writes with a style unlike her father’s. Her poems are about life and the forms they take are more experimental, reflecting the writer’s age. She writes simply and tends to use fewer words to get her meaning across. Her essays and stories are lighthearted and refreshing compared to the first section of the book.
“Father and Daughter” caters to different tastes. Both serious and light readers will enjoy themselves for the two sections provide different tones of voice and styles of writing.
There is no common theme about family or relationships in the book. What can be noticed though is how the two writers vary from each other, signifying that age and experience is a major influence in writing. Ma. Nicole Pauline C. Cruz
