00:00 I asked, "Do you have a sister?"
00:02 She said, "Yes, I do."
00:04 I said, "Yes, I do."
00:07 She said, "But not a fish."
00:12 "What?"
00:13 "A fish."
00:15 "What?"
00:16 "A fish."
00:17 That's what I said.
00:18 To be honest, I don't want to answer that question.
00:23 But my heart wants to.
00:26 I'm very happy to be called a fish.
00:37 I am Apolonia Morales,
00:43 the mother of fish in Angono.
00:49 I am the fish queen of Angono.
00:54 [music]
01:03 In 1972, no one sold fish.
01:10 [music]
01:14 I was looking for a fishmonger.
01:18 I was looking for a fish that had a fish tank.
01:24 The water level rose.
01:26 In 1972, the water level rose.
01:30 The house was flooded.
01:33 The fishmonger was in the upper floor.
01:38 The house was also flooded.
01:42 I don't know if I was looking for a fish
01:46 that had a fish tank.
01:51 I told my husband,
01:54 "We have a fishmonger."
01:58 He said, "No."
02:00 "The water level is high.
02:02 There's no fish."
02:05 When he was near, I asked,
02:09 "Do I have a fishmonger?"
02:11 He said, "Yes, you do."
02:13 I told him, "Yes, you do."
02:16 He answered me,
02:18 "But not a fish."
02:21 "What?"
02:22 "A fish."
02:24 "What?"
02:25 "A fish."
02:26 I said, "Where will I get a fish?"
02:29 The water level was high.
02:32 The fish was swimming.
02:35 I told him, "You'll get a fish."
02:43 To be honest,
02:49 I didn't want to answer him.
02:52 But I wanted to.
02:55 We had a hard time.
02:58 When he said, "I have a fish,"
03:02 I was so happy.
03:04 But my husband got angry.
03:07 He said, "You're selling all the fish I have."
03:11 I said, "That's not fair."
03:15 "Is that bad?"
03:17 I said, "If you don't want it, I'll do it."
03:22 "I'll sell it."
03:24 "I'll take care of it."
03:26 I said that.
03:33 I was so angry with my husband.
03:37 He contradicted me.
03:39 "What are you going to do?"
03:41 "I'll cook fish."
03:43 "What fish?"
03:44 "Papaya."
03:45 I said that.
03:46 "Where will you get it?"
03:48 "I see people buying fish."
03:52 "People drinking beer."
03:54 "I'll sell it to Tito Riano."
04:00 He answered me,
04:02 "Aren't you ashamed?"
04:04 "Why would I be ashamed?"
04:06 "Why would I be angry?"
04:09 I said, "If you don't buy it,"
04:14 "I'll bring it to you at 3 p.m."
04:16 "When it's 7 p.m."
04:19 "and there's nothing left,"
04:22 "you have a tricycle,"
04:24 "bring it to us."
04:26 "And we'll just cook the fish."
04:29 When it was almost time,
04:31 "Tito Reng,"
04:32 "it's not even 7 p.m."
04:34 "You'll bring the fish."
04:37 "What fish?"
04:39 "It's all gone."
04:42 I couldn't hide my happiness.
04:45 I was so angry.
04:47 I was the only one who was buying.
04:54 No one else was selling.
04:56 Just me.
04:58 I was so angry.
05:01 Before I did it,
05:03 there's a story behind it.
05:05 The price of fish that day
05:08 was P100.
05:11 Now, if you buy it at 7,
05:13 it's P700.
05:17 That's why we bought
05:20 two lots of land.
05:22 We had a hard time.
05:25 I had to give up my life
05:28 for my seven children.
05:32 I fed them well
05:34 and not in a bad way.
05:37 I am Maria Teresa Cruz.
05:54 I am the daughter of Mrs. Apolonia
05:57 who started the fish farm here in Angono.
06:00 I started learning how to make fish.
06:06 Of course, since I'm the only daughter,
06:10 I saw what she was doing
06:13 and what she was asking me to do.
06:15 My husband and I were the ones who helped.
06:19 He no longer worked in the fish farm
06:22 because he was old.
06:24 Especially now,
06:26 he's old.
06:28 He can't do the fish farming anymore.
06:32 Since I got married,
06:34 I was the one who did the fish farming
06:36 and we were the only two.
06:39 When someone bought fish,
06:42 they would say,
06:44 "Do you know how to make sauce?"
06:46 They would say that.
06:49 I told my mother,
06:52 "How many sauces?"
06:54 She said, "Let's make a sauce."
06:56 We made a sauce.
06:58 Of course, when you make it,
07:00 and others see it,
07:02 they will also make it.
07:04 Because the sauce is already a partner.
07:07 When you buy fish,
07:09 there's already a sauce.
07:16 I'm a 240cm long female.
07:19 My mother said,
07:29 "Mother Plonya is the queen of fish in Angono.
07:36 I am the queen of fish in Angono.
07:40 Mother Plonya is the queen of fish in Angono.
07:46 Even if I'm poor,
07:48 I didn't study.
07:50 I'm far from my home.
07:54 We have our own land.
08:06 Even our children have their own homes.
08:10 I'm really thankful to my mother and my mother-in-law.
08:16 Even to the one above me.
08:18 I'm thankful to all who are supporting me.
08:31 Thank you so much.
08:36 If you have an interesting or inspiring story that you want to share,
08:40 email us at stories.olygood@gmail.com
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08:52 [MUSIC PLAYING]
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