Ernie Macatuno

Ardor Left Ernie Macatuno

When the Filipino people's aspiration for freedom was opposed by Spanish colonial rule, the conflict would have been resolved with the triumph of one and the defeat of the other. It was not so in the Philippine Revolution in 1896. The United States entered the conflict, with the Americans first fighting the Spaniards, the the Filipinos. The conflict became as complicated as it was prolonged, with much of it remaining hidden or unknown for more than a century. In the foreground of this conflict are the political leaders and generals, heroes and scoundrels. There are the ordinary people - two young students, one a Filipino, the other a Spaniard; two Americans, one a soldier, the other a journalist; three young beautiful Filipino women and an equally young beautiful Spanish woman; Filipino town leaders and a Spanish parish priest, and a soldier. How they related with each other, or fought in some instances, is as complicated if not more profound and captivating than the larger picture of the war and the revolution. The conflict ended and a new era of peace and progress began in the Philippines. It also marked the beginning of friendship between Filipinos and Americans that remains to this day. This is the story of Ardor Left.