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Philippines Graphic Reader

Dale As I Explain to Him This Weird Thing Called Love

Is love visceral? Is love political?We elect emotions as tyrantsDictating the rest of our historyWhile I hold your hands gentlyWalking down the parliamentOf desire throbbing inside.Do you still believe in democracyOr are we doomed to fiasco?Listen to the waves inside my chestAs if...

Teddy

He was known in the social media world as Teddy Faux, and one wouldn’t mistake his appearance: a rounded face with squinted eyes and a huge grin every time he posted his vlogs on YouTube. Recent events uplifted his chest since his trusted patron...

Fritz and the Llama

Fritz and the llamaLive in the desert.Fritz waves Hi to a camel.The llama spits at it.“How rude!” says the camel.“She’s my sister,” says Fritz.Fritz and the llamaLive in the desert.Fritz drinks from an oasis.The llama spits at it.“How rude!” says the oasis.“She’s my...

Grandpa’s Secret

I used to think my Grandpa was 100 years old. I had every reason to—his hair was pure white, he walked with a cane, and he moved slowly. Sometimes his hands would shake as he gestured or when he would lift a cup of tea to his lips.

Shadow in the Garden

(Thinking of my daughter on her first death anniversary) It is a recurring thoughtAs lightsCast a shadowOn a familiar bookIn my gardenOn a restlessEarly morning. What if she were alive todayIn the era of the unthinkable? Would she have goneTo the pollsWith me and her sonNow...

A Fight at the Reefs

Gigantes Island, central archipelago.  Summertime. Young Benjamin, on vacation with his kin, is standing by the seaside inhaling the crisp breeze of the easterlies, which blows continuously in the same pitch and speed. Light is breaking on the horizon and is strewn over...

Random Pickings

GRANDSON OF BAYAWAK

I have been bullied since I was a kid. People have been calling me the grandson of bayawak. I never knew why such a...

Of Sunrises and Sunsets

1 Night falls I hear crickets And the sound of waves As the sea marks A quiet day Towards a somber weekend 2 I have lived with face masks And face shields For years And...

Chopin’s Valse de L’Adieu

After a year of hesitant whispers, Their mutual nodTo terminate the engagement. Clouds of unknowing Drift over Paris, The syllogism of parting Known only to Maria WodzińskaAnd him.  Perhaps, it...

Three Baggies, One for Each of Us

“Did you get it?” Tobi asked, though he already knew the answer just by the look on Jimwel’s face. “Three baggies, one for each of...