Love in the Time of Oranges
lost and found
by Jeneen R. Garcia
to be published on 23 February 2008
Rolling in with the Chinese New Year this month were boxes and boxes of Mandarin oranges, popularly called ponkan, from China
And no wonder: oranges don’t just possess that round shape evocative of money, the Chinese word for “orange” sounds similar to their word for “gold”. Displaying ponkan in your house as you welcome the New Year is supposed to bring good fortune. Traditional Chinese hosts inviting you into their homes will send you off with more oranges as a blessing.
New Year or not, I always make sure I get a good dose of oranges for natural Vitamin C. I’m not Chinese, but I certainly agree that being healthy is my good fortune. On my way to Malaysia
When I got back, this little tidbit proved to be the most interesting to my girl friends. Long past 25 but not yet 30 and still single, we’re at that stage where we’re desperate-but-not-quite and already quite exasperated by all the people who ask us, in varying degrees of politeness (or rudeness), how we could possibly not be married. I’ve had just-met acquaintances ask me unbelievingly why I don’t have a boyfriend, as if finding someone to fall in love with were an everyday phenomenon, a matter of hooking up with some random guy off the street.
It’s not that we’re hard-core feminists declaring that we don’t need men in our lives. Nor are we the type bent on building our careers at the expense of romance and marriage. It just happens that we haven’t yet picked--or been picked off the tree, so to speak--by the person we’d love to share our kids’ genes with. These things are a matter of right timing, and the time obviously isn’t ripe. Or have we indeed been remiss in not throwing any oranges into the sea the past 25 years of our lives?
It is hilarious--if not frightening--to think that the appearance or non-appearance of our future husbands depends on a couple of ponkan drifting at sea. Throughout history, humanity has not tired of believing in signs or creating rituals in a desperate attempt to control fate. It’s probably to make ourselves feel better about things that we know in reality we’re at the mercy of. But I’m sorry to say that when it comes to love, ponkans definitely don’t cut it for me.
I’ve recently taken to buying dalandan for my Vitamin C, to support the local economy. They cost one-third the price of ponkan, have no toxic chemicals sprayed on them, and can taste just as sweet. We have way too many cheap products coming in from China
So next Valentine’s, if you catch me standing by the sea, you can be sure there won’t be any ponkan bobbing in the waves. You just might see green oranges instead.
For Iris and Kahlou, whose oranges will be sweet in time ;)
Always a good post Jen. : ) You always make good posts.
ReplyDelete=) mr right is sure to come... can't wait to see u in W-gown na Neen!
ReplyDeleteFor I love dalandan,calamansi and yes, i miss your posts, Jeneen !!
ReplyDeleteCalamansi lang pud akong ilabay sa dagat..hahahah!
awww... you dedicated an essay to us. how sweeter than ponkan, or should i say dalandan *toink* i will definitely share this with friends who got puzzled by my giving them ponkan last v-day.
ReplyDeleteponkan na ponkan :)
ReplyDeleteCaridad and I hope to see you in Duma soon.
thanks jan, for being the constant reader :)
ReplyDeletehope so...but honestly, i can't imagine myself in one :P maybe that's why i'm in this situation...i lack imagination. but i was truly inspired by you and tony :)
ReplyDeletesige, angie, for a greater kick haha! hey did you hear about JereMia's engagement? :D the engagement party's this friday. naunhan na gyud ta haha.
ReplyDeletesayang lang nga walang citation haha. iniisip ko nga baka napanaginipan ko lang 'to ;P
ReplyDeletehey rv! yes, larry told me you were moving! was there last weekend but i'm back in manila now. i've really missed that place, especially the boulevard. see you in april!
ReplyDeletehi, neen. you're online!
ReplyDeleteabout oranges. something i learned from a mexican which is still turning into a poem...
media naranja
- lit. half an orange
- fig. soulmate
isn't life strange?
HUGS,
m.j.
hi jeneen! an added info from the land of mostly chinese..."CHAP GOH MEH or Chinese Valentines day, referring to the traditional practice of maidens throwing mandarin oranges into the river in hopes of attracting a good husband" (citation: Where Magazine Singapore, Feb 2008). ...here's another: "Bathing oneself in pomelo leaves the night before New Year ensures health for the rest of the year." If only pomelo leaves where that accessible!... missing u guys!
ReplyDeletewow! parallel lives, no matter what country ;)
ReplyDeletehaha! thanks kahlou! miss ka na rin namin :( pero i feel better that i didn't just dream it up after all haha. at river pa sa kanila! oo nga, kahit naman sa davao hindi namin naisip maligo sa dahon ng pomelo. kawawa naman yung puno haha! musta na ang first few days?
ReplyDeleteI hear you on this, Neen. I can so much relate...people ask me that, even my students. It's tiring to answer sometimes (if not all the time). ;)
ReplyDeleteI love this one. Hi, 'neen! =)
ReplyDeleteOh, hahaha! I've no excuses for that, anymore. I am SO exasperated of that question that I now glare daggers at anyone who asks. (Maybe I should just throw them a ponkan or two.)
ReplyDeleteI've thrown a few oranges; I've thrown a lot of myself along with the oranges. They never got thrown back.
Jeneen, were you implying that you prefer pinoy over chinese in that last sentence of yours? I ask because I wonder if throwing dalandan would have the same effect as throwing ponkan into the sea. And, would throwing oranges work also for men to catch a good wife?
ReplyDeletewell, on a positive note, here's what a friend said through a personal message in reply to this post: "When people(especially men) comment or wonder why a girl is still single or loveless, don't take it negatively. Speaking for myself, it's because I find the girl so fascinating/wonderful that I can't believe she is unattached."
ReplyDeleteso let's just give them the benefit of the doubt ;)
hahaha, you go girl! yes, maybe when the ponkan hits them they'll start minding their own business (maybe they ask because they have no love life to speak of, either :P).
ReplyDeleteand don't you worry, one of these days, someone will catch one of those oranges and savor every pulp and sweetness ;) it's just that there are so many guys out there with poor taste. or if they do have excellent taste, few of them have the balls to throw any oranges back at you. goddess status man gud ka ;)
mmm let's not talk about comparing native and imported oranges right now...unless it's in relation to the country's trade policies ;)
ReplyDeleteas for the effect of throwing dalandan vs. ponkan, or men attracting wives, i suppose the only way to answer that would be by applying the scientific method with enough replicates to come up with a good statistical analysis. hehe.
hahaha! that's a good way to see it. So I have to be nicer when they ask me about it next time. LOL!
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed that my man's just tardy.Or, because he's a bit unique and prefers lemons. =)
ReplyDeleteThe "men" surrounding me are the true goddesses. It's just the constant contact with them that makes me reflect their ethereal quality and creates an illlusion to those who don't know any better.
I saw your published article. I left the copy on Vincent's bed. Lord knows he could use a few oranges thrown back at him as well. =)
hahaha! now that's one theory--you're not getting any oranges back because you're surrounded by men who will never throw them in your direction :P
ReplyDeleteand how is our dear vince?
"as for the effect of throwing dalandan vs. ponkan, or men attracting wives, i suppose the only way to answer that would be by applying the scientific method with enough replicates to come up with a good statistical analysis. hehe."
ReplyDeletea true scientist's reply but from one who could weave words to touch people's hearts! May your ponkans weave their magic soon.