Complete Text of Lam-ang (an Iloko epic) - Page 10 of 16

When the meal was over
Cannoyan said:
Dear mother Unnayan
Please go into the yard
And pick some heart-shaped
Leaves from the vines ^[27]
That smiles when approached
And winks when picked.
Ay mother Unnayan
Mother, please gather
The areca nut for chewing
That laughs when gathered
Because we will give betel chew
To this man Lam-ang.
Dear mother Unnayan
Mother, please roll
The best tobacco leaves
Grown in eastern Cagayan.

When all these were done
This is what was said
By her father and mother:
Ay our son Lam-ang
Apo, what is your purpose
And your reason for coming?
This is what
The yellow-legged cock
The white rooster
The rooster of Lam-ang said:
We came, apo, to pay our respects
To your daughter Cannoyan.
Apo, with your permission
We came to pay court.
This is what
The yellow-legged cock said.

And this is what
The old folks said:
Ay our son Lam-ang
If you can fulfill
Everything that we can tell you
You will wed Cannoyan
But if you cannot
We hope you will not
Take it too hard.
Said the yellow-legged cock
If that is what you say, apo
Lam-ang can comply
With all your wishes.

Said the old man:
Ay my son Lam-ang
Let your eyes wander
In the middle of the yard
The path is made of gold
All the flat stones
Are made of pure gold!
Ay my son Lam-ang
Let your eyes wander
Look at the front yard
Two are like cocks
Four are like hens
Two are like shrimps
That are going upstream
And all these are gold!

Ay my son Lam-ang,
Let your eyes wander
So that you can see
The wealth of Cannoyan!
In the middle of our house
Inherited from our ancestors
Two balls rolling
Like oranges
Are of pure gold
Are the playthings of Cannoyan.
This frame and bar
Are pure gold
And the whole loom
Including the clothesline.

Said clearly
The mother of Cannoyan:
Ay my son Lam-ang
If you can match
What we told you of
You will marry Cannoyan
If you can match
Everything we showed you.

Lam-ang then replied:
Mother, about what you said
Dear mother Cannoyan,
About what you demand
They are only worth a part
Of what I inherited.
They are not even worth
One fish pond
Where I amuse myself
Catching small shrimps
I still have others
In the land of the Igorots.
Plus my inheritance nine times more
From my great grandfather
From my father beholden
And my mother Namongan.