Confucius Say
The dreams I can’t recall on waking
Must be shaking their heads if they were
Folk, from not a false universal
Sense of waste that extends to even
The airy nothing that they are – such
As, if the ruthless truth be quoted
From Quixote, we all of...
Seeking
In silence I render my song
In stillness I yield
In the dimness and the brightness
I could see that it is
The One
Still I seek
I am drawn to the distant sound
Of waves splashing on waves
Of rocks breaking on rocks
Of soft rain seeking to blend with...
Stone and Scratcher
after a photo by Frank Cimatu
My human knows how to scratch
ecstasy and submission out of me,
rendering my retractable claws
cold as a wet nose.
My side turns into a Zen garden.
I lie, a stone smoothed by hands
of love, slender fingers
tracing landscapes on my...
I see a scarecrow
On the yellow moon
By the window
Of the third kind
Woman or man
I ought to know
I look to the left
It shifts to the right
Towards Venus
I look to the right
It pivots to the left
Away from Polaris
But the night
Out of the spotlight
Restarts daylight
A Dirge
(Majayjay-Lucban Road,
June 16, 2024)
How swift the shift
from Thalia’s smile
to Melpomene’s frown.
One moment, Jack
was about to crack
a joke. Then smack
into our bus the trike
smashed, a deadly
strike. Traffic crawled
at the bloody spectacle
of the sprawled body
splayed in a strange
angle. Dazed in shock,
I brace myself
for a...
The Demanding Gospel
For Sunil Stephens
“Luke’s Gospel is a gospel of mercy; it emphasizes Jesus’ identification with the poor and the lowly, and His willingness to forgive sinners. Yet it is also a demanding gospel, for it shows that being a follower of Christ...
Flowers grew in the cracks
of the gardener’s calloused hands
as she glanced at the garden she cultivates
She never wanted to disrupt their growth,
yet they need...
And while it’s true
that knowledge of self is
required before you can
love, truly love, you must
also have a healthy
faith in the unknown,
an appreciation for
the wind...
Malalim ang ‘yong mga mata’t
Hapis na ang mukha.
Hindi ko na mabilang ang iyong mga gatlâ.
Dati-rati’y parang tigre ka kung tumingin,
Matikas ang tindig,
At buong katawan...