DIVIDE BY TWOBy Francisco Arcellana
God knows that I hate the sight of violence, But is it really violence I cannot stand? Isn't it rather truth?
"They have set down a line of adobe blocks, three blocks wide and two blocks deep,across the lawn between their cottage and ours," Belle said."Yes, I know" I said. I walked to the window and stood there, looking over at their cottage. The piano music from the cottage came strong and clear. "I was here thismorning when he brought those blocks home" I peeled my shirt; it was soggy withsweat…" He carried the blocks in the baggage compartment of their car. It took him allthree trips. He had three boys with him to help." I shook my shirt in the cooling air andwalked to my room. "And I know where he got those blocks too. There is a constructiongoing on right now at the engineering school. They have a pile of adobe blocks there ashigh as the Cheops. You can't miss it. You see it from the bus line every time." In myroom, the strains of piano music didn't reach sustainedly.Belle followed me into my room. "They have marked off boundaries" she said "Theyhave defined limits".I folded my shirt about the back of my armchair. "So they have", I said. "So they have".My undershirt was wet too, I yanked it off."It is as if they have put up a fence," Belle said."Fences make good neighbors," I said. I whipped the apple-green towel off the T-bar andrubbed myself briskly."It might as well be the great wall of China," Belle said."Well not really," I said. "It is not as bad as that." I returned the towel to the crossbar. Ilooked around for a dry undershirt but did not find any. I went to the bedroom where myclothes-closet was. Belle followed me. There was no light in the closet. The bulb hadn't been changed since it went bad shortly after we moved into the cottage. I fumbled in thedark feeling with my fingers. In the darkness in the closet the strains of the piano camesteadily, strong and clear."She is no Turk but she keeps playing the...