I once spoke with National Artist F. Sionil Jose, both of us hailing from Pangasinan. He often invited me to his bookstore in Ermita to converse in Ilocano, although I’m not fluent. I learned Ilocano during my high school years when my family moved to Pangasinan, but Filipino remained our main language at home, sprinkled with occasional Ilocano expletives and phrases.
Our conversation centered around writing. He advised me to...
