Josefa Rizal’s nickname is Panggoy (1865-1945). She’s the ninth child in the family who died a spinster.
Among Jose’s letters to Josefa, the one dated October 26 1893 is perhaps the most fascinating. Written in English, the letter addressed Josefa as “Miss Josephine Rizal”, thereby making her the namesake of Rizal’s girlfriend Josephine Bracken.
In the letter, Jose praised her sister for nearly mastering the English language, commenting that the only fault he found in Josefa’s letter is her apparent confusion between the terms ‘they are’ and ‘there’. Jose also wrote about the 20 pesos he sent, the 10 pesos of the amount was supposed for a lottery ticket.
This indicates that Jose did not stop ‘investing’ in lottery tickets despite winning 6, 200 pesos in September the previous year. Even when he was in Madrid, he used to spend at least three pesetas monthly for his ‘only vice’ (Zaide, p. 221).