Tampo
TAM-po
n.Withdrawing affection to signal hurt, while wanting to be coaxed back.
TagalogEstablished linguistic term
The Quiet Treatment
Ben had been married to Liway for three years before he understood the rules, and the understanding arrived, as these things do, via her mother.
"She is in tampo," said Tita Cora, over the phone, in the tone of a woman reading a weather report.
"She's not speaking to me."
"Yes. Tampo."
"Because I forgot the—"
"It does not matter what," said Tita Cora. "Are you going to fix it or are you going to be an American about it?"
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The forgetting had been small. That is important. It is always small; that is the entire design.