In Sombrero Island (Aborlan, Palawan), I noticed these two boys walking around holding on to the front part of their shorts to prevent the cloth from touching their privates. 

“Tinuli kami kahapon (We were circumcised yesterday!),” they declared to anyone who cared to listen. 

Cyrus is the silent one. He hardly smiles. He wants to be a soldier. Mark Anthony is more animated. His aspiration is to be a policeman. 

Strangely enough, a Balete tree towers inside the tropical isle covered with coconut trees. The kids kill time under the shade.

#ProjectLarawan. Profiles of the Filipino. One portrait at a time.

Project Larawan is an initiative of Gabriel “Gabby” Malvar, a documentary filmmaker, writer and photographer, whose narratives are nuanced with unique, inventive perspectives to provoke an inquisitive look at his favorite subject, the Philippines. Become a part of Filipino identity every other Saturday on the DAILY TRIBUNE.