CHILDHOOD DAYS

IN
CALAMBA

“ Ah,tender childhood, lovely town,

Rich fount of my felicities”
– Jose Rizal
 Jose Rizal, like many Filipino boys, had
many memories of childhood. A happy home,
filled with parental affection, impregnated with
family joys, and sanctified with prayers. In the
midst of such peaceful, refined God-loving family,
he spent the early years of his childhood.
The happiest period of his life was truly his
childhood days in his natal town.
Calamba, “Cradle of a Genius”

The town of Calamba is situated on a verdant plain by the

rippling Laguna de Bay. A few kilometers to the south looms the
legendary Mt. Makiling, and beyond this mountain lies the coffee-
producing Batangas.

Calamba with its lovely sunrises over lake and mountains,

and its charming panoramic views, is a fit place to nurture a
growing child. So it became the “cradle of a genius”.

Rizal loved Calamba with all his heart and soul. In 1876,
when he was 15 years old and was a student in the Ateneo, he
remembered his beloved town. Accordingly he wrote a poem Un
Recuerdo A Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town)
 The first memory of Rizal in his infancy, was his
happy days in the family garden when he was three years
old. Because he was frail, sickly and undersized child,he
was given the tenderest care by his parents.
With nostalgic feeling, he also remembered the
happy moonlit nights at the azotea after the nightly
rosary. Another memory of his infancy was the
nocturnal walk in the town, especially when there
was a moon.
FIRST SORROW

The Rizal children were boud together by ties of love and

companionship. They affectionately called their father Tatay and
their mother Nanay.

Jose was jokingly called Ute by his brothers and sisters. The
people in Calamba knew him as Pepe or Pepito. Jose was closest to
his older brother Paciano. Of his sisters, Jose loved most the little
Concha (Concepcion). He was one year older than Concha. He
played with her, and from her he learned the sweetness of brotherly
love. Unfortunately Concha died of sickness in 1865 when she was
only three years old. “When I was four years old”, he said, “I lost
my little sister Concha, and then for the first time I wept tears of
love and grief....”
Devoted Son of Church

Young Rizal was a religious boy. A scion of Catholic

clan, born and bred in a wholesome atmosphere of
Catholicism, and possessed of an inbornpious spirit, he
grew up as a good Catholic. He was called Manong Jose
by Hermanos and Hermanas Terceras.
At the age of three, he began to take part in the
family prayers. When he was five years old, he was able to
read haltingly the Spanish family Bible.
One of the men he esteemed and respected in
Calamba during his boyhood was the scholarly Father
Leoncio Lopez, the town priest.
Pilgrimage to Antipolo

On June 6, 1868, Jose and his father left Calamba to

go pilgrimage to Antipolo, in order to fulfill his mother’s
vow which was made when Jose was born.
It was the first trip of Jose across Laguna De Bay
and his first pilgrimage to Antipolo. He and his father rode
in a casco (barge). After praying at the shrine of the Virgin
of Antipolo, Jose and his father went to Manila. It was the
first time Jose visited Manila.
First Education from Manila
Jose’s first teacher was his mother. A woman of
good character and fine education Dona Teodora was a
splendid teacher. At the age of three Jose learned the
alphabet and the prayers from her. “My mother”, said
Rizal, “taught me how to read and to say haltingly the
humble prayers which I raised fervently to God”. She
was patient and loving, but strict as a tutor.
The Story of the Moth
Rizal’s Three Uncles

Uncle Manuel Uncle Jose Uncle Gregorio

Artistic Talents
Since early childhood Rizal revealed hs God-
given talents for the arts. He carved figures of animals
and persons out of wood. Even before he learned how
to read he could already sketch pictures of birds,
flowers, fruits, rivers, mountains, animals, and
persons. Jose had a soul of a genuine artist. He also
studied painting in the class of an art teacher named
Juancho.
Prodigy of the Pen
Lakeshore Reveries

During the twilight hours of summertime

Rizal, accompanied by his pet dog, used to
meditate at the shore of Laguna De Bay on the
sad conditions of the oppressed people.
Influences on Her’s Boyhood

1. Hereditary Influence – According to biological cience,

there are inheret traits or qualities which a person
inherits from his ancestors and parents.
2. Environmental Influence – According to
psychologists, environment affects the nature of a
person. Environmental influence includes places,
associates, and events.
3. Aid of Divine Providence – A person may have
everything in life but without the aid of Divine
Providence, he cannot attain greatness in the annals of
the nation.