Before the second episode of the Philippines Graphic Literary Workshop (PGLW) concluded on March 21, we knew that we had one more thing that we can offer our bright young fellows: a starting platform for their creative endeavors. Here, we present one of their final outputs from the workshop. We also asked them to provide an artwork that they think best represents their stories. Read on.
All children want to come to Jesus—
that's why this one glowed in a cradling
rock, and this river, known relentless, refusing
this not-Moses, washed not it but what
was left. No bulrush basket, no fever cried,
only squinting foliage, a dry gurgle and blind
canopy of heat, and the quickness
of what left, the fish-boned mother. Who
will recognize this child but the womb, this
still-gnarled, soft-skulled exile at the feet
of a wanting world? O Jesus, your own
knelt dying by the cross. Son and Mother,
sons and mothers, watch her rise,
ragged, knees grazing a naked bed.
Written by Cristina Andrea Rebanal
Started in 1927, the Philippines Graphic is the longest-running printed magazine of national circulation that provides relevant news and features and promotes Philippine literature.
