On Novemberr 26, 2018, coinciding with the Opening of the Bethlehem Village in Woodrose, Fr. Francis Ongkingco, Assistant School Chaplain, launched his latest book, The Drum III. This is the third book in his series of short stories about the first Christmas.
According to Fr. Francis, each of the five stories in the first two books – Drum I and II – were gifts to his nephews and nieces:
The Drum, however, revolves around the enigmatic figure of the Drummer Boy. Traditionally, he has never been part of the manger, but I felt very attracted to his very special role. This stirred my imagination to tell his story in very broad strokes, but enough to instill in the reader a childlike attraction for his person and mission…Who was the drummer boy? How did he meet the Holy Family? What did he play for the Newborn King?
In the third volume, the character of the Drummer Boy takes on a more prominent place as he represents every person’s journey in search of God. It hopes to encourage everyone to foster the interior ingredients that will help us not only to find the Child, but also to always possess Him within us and in turn be His sages of joy and peace.
The story ends rather abruptly, or shall we say, unfinished! Does becoming a sage mean that Cesius, the Drummer boy, became immortal? What does his new mission entail and if so, how does he continue to be in our midst?”
These questions and more will hopefully become another story for us to look forward to!