“Because it is so hard to keep the world going. There is always the temptation to abandon the effort altogether. For there is always the sowing and the harvesting, the building and the repairing, the falling down and the rising up again. Every day, everything has to be done all over again. In our world, it is always Monday morning.”

Nick Joaquin, The Woman who had Two Navels

 

Summary

The story started when Connie Escovar went to Hong Kong to have a surgical operation to remove her extra navel, because she believed that she was born with two navels. had been experiencing hallucinations and delusions, seen in the way she proclaimed that she was 30 years old, and got married in the morning a while ago when she was asked by the horse doctor, Pepe Monson. The truth behind Connie’s age and marriage were only revealed after her mother, Concha de Vidal stated that she is much younger than 30 years old, and that she was married almost a year ago.

Connie Escovar

When she was young, Connie Escovar allegedly believed that all people have two navels until she discovered that her doll, Minnie, only had one. She wanted to hide the truth that she found out that she only had one navel, and threw her doll into the water. She pretended that there were people who robbed her, but no one believed her story because there were many guards around the mansion. She was a rich, but neglected child who spent most of her time in the big mansion. She wanted the Billiken god, and manipulated her father to have the doll. Her mother was always out, and she became aware in her teenage years that Concha de Vidal was hiding something from their family. Connie’s mother forced her to marry Macho Escovar, so that she could see her former boyfriend easily. Connie discovered the truth after their first honeymoon when she saw the love letters between Macho and Concha. Aside from the surgery, she went to Hong Kong to see Paco Texeira, the love of her life.

Paco Texeira

Paco Texeira is a half-Portuguese and half-Filipino man who had a concert in Manila, for he had a contract with his manager. He has a Spanish wife, Mary and they have three children. He uses his mother’s maiden name instead of his father’s surname which is Dela Cruz. His father is a musician who has many bad habits, such as being boozy and having different women in the cabaret. He didn’t know his father much, as his mother escaped from his father. When he was in Manila, he wanted to have a solitary exploration in his homeland. Since he was a bandleader working in the night clubs, he met Concha de Vidal. Señora de Vidal wanted to have a trade of information between them about their respective countries – the Philippines and Hong Kong. Because of this, he often went to the big Spanish mansion of Concha. Gossips, such as that he is the new fancy boy of Señora de Vidal spread around in the place and he lost the trust of the band for escaping the practices. He was able to learn the dirty reality hidden in the beautiful introduction of Señora de Vidal’s exploration of the society when he once explored by himself. Because of his long stay in the Manila, he was able to meet Connie and became attracted to her to the point that he wanted to rape her. Fortunately, his time of departure arrived and he was able to get back to Hong Kong. After his return, his attitude changed and his guilty conscience made him stay in the house and avoid leaving anymore.

Señora Concha de Vidal

Señora Concha de Vidal is the mother of Connie and one of the beauties in the society. Her first love was a handsome writer, but unfortunately, he died as she was carrying their child. She was able to meet an abortionist named Manolo de Vidal. She aborted the baby since she didn’t want to embarrass the name of her parents. In the present time, she had been compared to a saint attracting the attention of younger men. She has a husband and children, but she didn’t care for them. Once when Connie, her daughter, was still a child, she abandoned her for Macho Escovar. They had an affair, but needed to separate because of the destructive gossip between them that had the potential to destroy their reputations. She is a sinful, selfish and greedy woman who only thinks of her own pleasure.

Macho Escovar

Macho Escovar is the former boyfriend of Señora de Vidal. In the process of his marriage, he realized that he loved Connie and wanted to start their relationship from the scratch. He followed Connie in Hong Kong but needs to go back to Manila because of his father’s death.

Ending

In the end, she met Paco in the park and they escaped and abandoned their respective partners. The news of Connie’s death spread in the town like a fume that made Macho guilty. He killed himself and Concha de Vidal through the shots of his gun.