The Bridge

By Norbert Mercado

The Saphan Mon wooden bridge spans the Song Kalia River which cuts through the town proper of Sangkhlaburi and the Burmese Mon Village called Ban Wangka.

On one side of the bridge lies the village of Mon which has been the sanctuary of members of the Mon tribe who fled from war and persecution in Burma. In that village lives Thinzar Wint Kyaw, a twenty-one year old girl whose parents fled Burma when she was only nine years of age.

On the other side of the bridge, Chatchai Ratanopol, a young doctor, returns to his hometown in search of his place in this world.

Their paths are about to meet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Norbert Mercado
• Release date: Jan 2, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310413025

Norbert Mercado

"In this age of revolution, the contemporary writer should utilize the pen for the preservation of peace," Norbert Mercado, a Filipino author, stressed. The books he has written and published, including his anthologies, unapologetically assert the indispensability of peace in a nation’s progress. The author has written more novels than any Asian writer had in just a brief period of time. In fact, he has surpassed the number of novels written by world-renowned novelists like Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn (winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, 1970) and American authors Ernest Hemingway (winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, 1954). Solzhenitsyn has four novels to his credit, while Hemingway has eight. His style of writing is simple and succinct, but poignant and colorful like Hemingway’s THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA, and Solzhenitsyn’s ONE DAY IN THE LIFE OF IVAN DESONOVICH. "The simpler the novel, the better," he said. In line with Japanese Yasunari Kabawata’s writings about the Japanese way of life, most of Norbert’s novels focus mostly on the current situation in his country. Kabawata is the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968. His books present hope to the Filipino, especially to the "economic exiles" in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan whom he has spent most of his time with, in their daily struggles. But most of all, his novels lucidly show the futility of war and violence in the resolution of political-economic-class conflicts in the Philippines. "War should not be used as an instrument in resolving political conflicts. Writers who abet wars and revolutions must think of the widows and the fatherless, the chaos, destruction, and suffering of the people whom they claim to be concerned about," he said. What if, like Solzhenitsyn, Hemingway, and Kabawata, he eventually wins the Nobel Prize? What will he do with the US$1,000,000 award? "I will use the prize for establishing a Peace Foundation that will assist in the formulation of policies which will resolve the current shooting conflicts in the country and help alleviate the continuing poverty of our countrymen." He will take charge of the foundation and personally campaign for a peaceful settlement of the conflicts in the Philippines. "The insurgency and the secessionist rebellion have foreign support. A Nobel title will give me the personality to approach the leaders involved in the conflicts," he explained. Born on March 25, 1955, he is the youngest among the children of Mr. and Mrs. Aurelio Mercado, Sr. of San Manuel, Tarlac. He graduated from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, with two degrees, Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Communication. Voted Outstanding Campus Journalist in 1974, he was a columnist and associate editor of the Philippine Collegian, the campus publication of the University of the Philippines. He has also written articles for various newspapers and magazines in the Philippines, as well as abroad. He also won the 1981 National Essay Writing Contest sponsored by SIDESTREETS Magazine. Norbert is a graduate of the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), the topmost armed forces school in the country, where he was conferred a Master’s degree in National Security Administration (MNSA) and the rank of Lt. Colonel in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). He graduated from the NDCP at the age of 32, the youngest in Class 21 which had already produced several generals in the Armed Forces, and the youngest graduate in the history of the National Defense College of the Philippines. He was elected one of the fifteen directors of Class 21. He was conferred the degree of Doctor of Divinity (Applied Servanthood), Honoris Causa, for his almost 30 years work in Christian literature. His batch mates include Senator Robert Barbers, Undersecretary of Trade and Industry and Bulletin Columnist Nelly Villafuerte, Actor and Producer Fred Galang, Rev. Peter Vasaya, and the His Royal Highness Sultan of Sulu and Sabah Ishmael Kiram. A sports lover, he was a rifle marksman in his UP ROTC days, and a winner of the 1988 and 1989 5,000 meter-run sponsored by the National Defense College Alumni Association. His sports include swimming, basketball, volleyball, boxing, karate, cycling, and marathon among others. A traveler, he has attended various international conferences and trainings in Asia and Europe. His travels have widened his insight not only of places, but also of people he has constantly observed and empathized with. He is the youngest graduate of the Singapore Haggai Institute for Third World Leaders in 1980 at the age of 24. "Let us work for peace in our country, in any way we can," Norbert stressed. Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers." Ria M. Mercado

Book preview

THE BRIDGE

a love story

NORBERT MERCADO

Also by Norbert Mercado

NOVELS

72 Hours in Moscow

Cambodia's Children of Sorrow

The Children of Mars

Even the Grass Bleeds

I Don't Need A Throne

The Korean War

The Last Romanov

In The Shadow Of The Roman Empire

Farewell Darkness!

The Roman Governor of Judaea

Morning Glory

Love Is Beautiful

Prepare For Eternity

Dulce Extranjera

BOOKS IN THE ENSOMO SERIES

Pilgrims To Jerusalem

The Burning Of The Fields

A Year Without Summer

For more information on Norbert Mercado, visit

http://norbertomercado.blogspot.com

THE BRIDGE

Norbert Mercado

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Except in cases of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2015

All rights reserved. This book is sold, subject to the condition that is shall not, by way of trade or otherwise be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form or binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

ISBN: 978-1-310-41302-5

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

VERSION: 2015-01-03-0900

Dedicated to

Professor Tessa Jasminez

University of the Philippines

Diliman, Quezon City

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Last Chapter

Dedication

A Historical Novelist For Peace

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. . . CHAPTER . . .

1

The wooden bridge in the town of Sangkhlaburi, West Thailand connects the town proper to the Burmese village of the Mons, a tribe in Thailand.

The name of the bridge is Saphan Mon.

There is rarely a tourist in Sangkhlaburi who does not know, or has not seen the wooden bridge.

The 850 meter long bridge is the longest wooden bridge in all of Thailand.

In fact, it is the second longest wooden bridge in the world. It is next in length to the Horrai Bridge, located in Shimada, Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan which is 897 meters long.

The Saphan Mon wooden bridge spans the Song Kalia River which cuts through the town proper of Sangkhlaburi and the Burmese Mon Village called Ban Wangka.

On both sides of the river lay hills, mountains, and waterfalls of picturesque wonder. No wonder that the place is one of West Thailand’s most frequented tourist spots. Sunrise and sunset scenes of beauty and serenity are simply unforgettable to any foreigner who spends time on the bridge.

The village of Mon has been the sanctuary of members of the Mon tribe who fled from war and persecution in Burma.