Rizal had many artistic talents from a young age, including drawing, carving, painting, and performing magic. He enjoyed spending time outdoors observing nature. Even before learning to read, he could skillfully sketch various subjects. He wrote his first poem at age 8 and his first dramatic work was performed in a festival and received praise. Rizal had a lifelong interest in magic and read extensively on the subject. As a youth, he would often meditate alone on the shore of Laguna de Bay, grieving over the oppression of his people by the Spanish and developing a determination to fight tyranny.

1. Rizal’s Artistic
Talents

2. Artistic Talents
Since early childhood Rizal revealed his God-given
talent for arts
He drew sketches
He curves figurines out of woods
He paints
He do magic

3. Even before he learned how to read, could
already sketch pictures of birds, flowers, fruits, rivers,
mountains, animals and persons.
Jose had a soul of a Genuine Artist.
He is an introvert child, with a skinny physique
and sad dark eyes, he found great joy looking at
blooming flowers, the ripening of fruits, chirpings of
birds like cicadas and dancing waves.

4. He loved to ride on a spirited pony, and take
long walks in the meadows and lakeshores with
his big black dog named Usman.
In his room he kept many statuettes which
he made out of clay and wax

5. “Laugh at me now! Someday when I
die, people will make monuments and
images of me!”

6. Prodigy of the Pen
 Rizal was a born poet. His mother encourage him to
write poetry. At an early age when children usually
begin to learn their A,B,C, he was already writing
poems.

7.  At the age of eight, Rizal wrote a Tagalog poem
entitled “Sa aking mga Kabata” (To my fellow
Children). He wrote it in an appeal to our people to
love their native languages.
In poetic verses, he proudly proclaimed that a
people who love their native languages will surely
strive for liberty like “the bird which soars to freer
space above”

8. Rizal must have written other poems than the
one mentioned above during his early boyhood in
Calamba. Rizal, himself, related that he wrote poems
when he was a little boy and his mother, who key
versification, corrected them for him.

9. First drama by Rizal
After writing his first poem, he wrote his first
dramatic work which was a Tagalog Comedy, which
was staged in a Calamba festival and was delightfully
applauded by the audience. Which was then bought
by the gobernadorcillo of Paete.

10. Rizal as a Magician
Rizal had been interested in magic since he
was a boy. His nimble fingers and supple wrist
could perform many tricks which dazzled the
eyes of the onlookers. He entertained the
Calamba folks and his friends in school with his
clever sleights of hand and magic lanterns.

11. In later years when he attained manhood,
he continued his keen predilection for magic. He
read many books on magic and attended the
performances of the famous magicians of the
world.

12. Lakeshore Reveries
During twilight hours of summertime, Rizal
accompanied by his dog, used to meditate at the shore
of Laguna de Bay on the sad conditions of his
oppressed people.

13. Young that he was, he grieved deeply over the
unhappy situation of his beloved fatherland. The
Spanish misdeeds awakened in his boyish heart a
great determination to fight tyranny