He was the seventh child in a family of 11 children (2 boys and 9 girls). His parents went to school and were well known. His father, Francisco Rizal Mercado, worked hard as a farmer in Biñan, Laguna. Rizal looked up to him. His mother, Teodora Alonso Realonda y Quintos, was born in Meisic, Sta. Cruz, Manila. She read a lot and knew about art and many other things. Rizal said she was loving and very smart. He learned the alphabet from his mother when he was three years old. At age five, while learning to read and write, he also showed that he could draw and paint. He surprised his family and relatives with his pencil drawings and sketches and with his moldings of clay.