Pepe was a 10-year-old boy, the son of a sugar worker, who lived in dire poverty. He would walk five kilometers to school every day, carrying a small bolo. When it rained, he would cut a long banana leaf to make an umbrella and continue walking.

He also carried a "towel whip" for protection. It was a small towel with a pebble or marble tied to one end. Once, an aggressive dog attacked him. He snapped the towel like a whip. The pebble hit the dog in the nose, and it ran away.

He was hungry to learn about geography and history. He lingered after school in the humid, smelly library. Geography taught him that he was on the island of Negros, where the huge sugar farms were located. History taught him that there were poor farmers who rebelled against the rich sugar barons. He also learned about the longest peasant revolt (85 years) on Bohol Island, led by Francisco Dagohoy, who was his idol, against the Spanish rulers.

Eventually, his sugar worker dad was "promoted" and his family of three — Pepe, his mom Rebecca, his dad Diego — moved to a huge 1,000-hectare banana plantation in Agusan del Sur in Mindanao that had 600 farm hands.

At the crack of dawn, Fortun, the plantation owner, would make the rounds on horseback for two hours, talking to the workers and getting updates on the farm situation. He was accompanied by his arrogant 12-year-old son Francis with his pet German Shepherd. Fortun allowed Francis to whip the people and animals. He had a special attraction to Pepe, whipping him every day.  Pepe would simply dodge the whip but he would get welts on his arms at times.

One morning, losing his patience, in the presence of Fortun, Pepe caught Francis' whip and pulled him down from his horse. He took a hard fall. Francis stared at his dad for help, but he did not react, wanting Francis to handle the situation on his own. Francis used the whip again but Pepe wrestled it out of his grip. The German Shepherd came to the rescue, but Pepe used his towel whip on its nose, which made it run away. Francis and his dad left without getting back at Pepe.

The next day, Fortun and Francis came again, but without his whip and his dog. Fortun told Francis to apologize to Pepe. They were left alone together and Fortun came back for his son an hour later. In that one hour, Pepe and Francis became instant friends. Francis was curious about Pepe's towel whip. Pepe taught Francis how to use it. Eventually, Francis made his own towel whip, and they would target small pebbles on top of a table. The pebble would ricochet wildly when they scored a hit. Eventually, they became the best of friends.