27 October 2009

that sad symphony

I regret that night:
when your splendor was clear to
my eyes, but I failed to sing the
song befitting you. Now the nocturnal
rhythm is playing that sad melody
of unproclaimed love. It started with the
gust of cold wind. Could have been
warmed by your presence – melting
my frozen heart. Then the dogs howled,
a crescendo-decrescendo summon for
company. There were the creeps of the
invisible. Shadows of the unlived moments.
How I wish it were the sweet
reverberation of the violin. Playing
our song. Then a moment of silence
disturbed my thought. And little by little
I heard the sound of my lonely heart.
A sad symphony calling you.

15 March 2009

rooted

I sat under the shadow of this tree;
and pondered about life –

Where the river of fate will lead me:
to the plateau of abundance, or the
vast sea of mystery; could be
the desert of oblivion.

Then I asked: where I be,
will this old tree where I take refuge
stand forever?

08 February 2009

immortal city















There are cities that never die.


And where my weary feet lie I see one.


Once sanctuary to natural wonders: of

towering luscious trees like narra and

acacia. The canopy of which shades

little insects – red fiery ants, bugs, praying
mantis,
butterflies of rainbow hues. Where
birds of different feathers nestle. Plants and

flowers scatter. Blooming to color the ground

as canvass painted with pastel. Native.
And appealing. Fresh and refreshing.


When time passes. There are still trees

and shades – now made of metals. Almost

touching the skies. They hide people – dyed

with different traits. Some sweats in their field.

Some trades flesh for life. There are

saints; hypocrites. Indeed, they are colorful.

Above are birds: giants carrying people

to places. Below are similar oversize bugs.

The grounds are flourishing with colorful grass

and vegetation. But the texture and smell,
they
differ. Plastics, rubbers, steels, papers.
Stinking like hell. Polluting the world.


This is a city that never dies.


Because it lives without a heart.

23 January 2009

a red tulip

My eyes fixed at this wonderful
flora that ever graced this terrain.

Don in crimson dress, inviting,
and beaming with refined beauty.

At times I felt its stare at me.
With the sweetest smile on its face.

But I just could not decipher reality.
Fantasy was toying with emotion.

Then –
a strong instinct to pluck it.

Except I hesitated, was unsure. Afraid.
It might only wilt in my hands.

12 January 2009

dream














Pardon my doubt on your
existence,
but you pain me
when light opens my eyes.

In verge of despair.
You give false impression –
that I am encased in a
warm embrace. Of a beloved.
Only to realize that illusion.
I shiver in darkness. My bare hands
hugging my body. Cold.
Desolated in the shadows.
At times you affirm this loneliness.
With another loneliness.
Devastating. Please! I am hopeful:
don’t make my day an eternal night
of storms. Shine light in my darkness.
Make me fly when all else are in the sky.

10 January 2009

in solitude

Tonight I write a poem for the lonely
for I am one – trapped in a cozy room
where the
only light emanates from a
dying lamp;
I hear the sound of silence:
it is deafening.
But it reminds me I am alive,
for
in this unholy hour past midnight, nothing lives
except me. The moon and the stars shine

brightly at the dark sky, they would not confess,
but loneliness
overpowers their being. Like me.
As we
live distance apart a single touch is
impossible.
I want to shout to arouse the stillness
but I recognize the futility, no one will be awaken

except enemies. In this time, I am alone;
my mind though kept wandering, traveling
through time – past, present, future.
Yesterday
I had the company of loving beings,

this minute I exist in solitude; will tomorrow
be the same, I ask.
No one is certain, but me.
If
I persist, paradise is a hand away.
So tonight I end this solitude,
tomorrow I will sow company.

09 January 2009

waves














You are great – a part
of a vast ocean enfolding the whole terrain
I will drown if you swallow me, gasping
for breath as my air chamber
slowly crumbles;
the dangerous but wonderful, it is you.
Beauty: the scene of your palisades that churches
become dwarfs:
hue of blue and white intertwined with
splash of green all around. But be not too proud;
you are nothing –
the sun and sky gave you color,
color that nothing compares
and the tectonics dance you in great rhythm
choreographed in harmony.
Be simple, and in eternity
I will see you forever
living in grandeur. Waving.

room 209

Nakadungaw ang aking mga mata sa bintana.
Nagmamasid ng mga taong dumadaan. Sa labas,
may mga estudyante: masasaya, nagkukwentuhan,
nagtatawanan . Ang iba seryoso,
siguro may pagsubok sa klase
may nalimutang basahin; kawawa.
Sa kotse sa kalsada, masid ang
mga propesyonal may kausap sa cellphone
habang nagmamaneho, huwag naman maaksidente.
May mga nagtratrabaho sa kalye,
bantay ang mga panindang nilalako
dyaryo, sigarilyo, pagkain – sarap.
Mabuti pa sila. Nasisilayan ang pagsikat

ng araw, ramdam ang pagpatak ng ulan,
nakakapaglibot kung saan. Malaya.
Habang ako nandito sa loob,
nagmamasid ng buhay sa labas: isang bilanggo
– inosente pero walang magawa
nakatali ang kamay
bilang ang paghinga. Death sentenced:
ilang buwan na lang sabi nila.
Di makalakad ng malayo: nanghihina.
Puso’t katawan naghihirap na. Kaya heto,
nakadungaw lang sa bintana. Nag-aabang ng buhay.
May hinihintay. (Sa Hospital Ward 209)