Nakatunganga ka nang mamatay na lamang ang lumang telebisyon Naglakbay ka upang ito’y ilibing sa disyerto nakatagpo mo ang isang multong naliligaw hanap ang kanyang katawan sa hungkag na kahon This poem first appeared in Guwang (High Chair Books, 2013).
Nagliyab ang bayan sa bukana ng siglo matapos ihulog ang mga salita: hiling: pumaslang at manunog. Higit na mabuti kung marami kabilang ang lahat ng lampas sa sampung taon Tila nakabitin sa mga dila ng mga kampana ang mga kahilingan Matapos ang babala wala nang tumitingala sa dupikal Sa guwang kipkip ng mga kampana ang […]
You were idling around when the old television died You traveled in order to bury it in the desert where you met a lost ghost looking for his body in an empty box Translated by Kristine Ong Muslim. You can read and listen to the poem in the original Filipino here.
The town ignited at the dawn of the century after dropping the words: yearning: to slay and destroy by fire. It is much better if there is more including everyone older than ten years As if dangling from the tongues of cathedral bells the wishes After the alarm sounded nobody is looking forward to the […]
Sikapin mo mang gawin ang lahat upang maging sining ang iyong buhay ay laging mabibigo Sikapin mo mang gawin ang lahat upang maging buhay ang iyong sining ay laging mabibigo Sikapin mo mang agawin ang iyong buhay upang maging lahat ang iyong sining ay laging mabibigo Ang iyong sining ay laging mababago ng iyong buhay […]
Even if you try to do everything to make art your life, you will always fail Even if you try to do everything to make your life your art, you will always fail Even if you try to seize your life to make everything your art, you will always fail Your art will always be […]
Why pierce delicate flesh? Longing to see the sun. Why stray from a primordial alliance? Irked by the neverending wait. Why be wracked with anguish? Yearning to become thunder/river. How come a horn/branch snaps? There’s a gale and a kiss for defying it. Why does the mirror fracture/sin? Desire/it is in the illusion of every […]
Bats navigate the path in the dark, solely by echolocation. Defined by resonance and darkness— their lives. Outside the cave, an interlude of light. In a moment—crossing the hidden sanctuary—briefly they blanket the sky. Translated by Kristine Ong Muslim. You can read and listen to the poem in the original Filipino here.
