The Hermit

07/21/10

4:22 pm

Bay Ridge

 

The Hermit

Home searching

The assiduous hermit seeks a dwelling.

It has become larger, 

And its house lesser,

The pressure on its waist consuming.

As it rummaged around for second-rate shelters

He had to resist other husk carriers

Yearning religiously

Frisking scrupulously,

Finding its niche.

As it settled in one shabby nook

An untouched refuge it now betook

Its unarmed tail now protected

From all the scrapes and bruises, he now departed.

It may not be free from the toil and grapple

Yet now it could rest its claws

For tomorrow a new day begins

A new soul labors,

A new spool spins.

Pautang

07/19/10

10:05 am

Bay Ridge

Pautang

Kayod-kabayo,  

Pukpok sa martilyo.

Pilit idinugtong ng mga pakong kalawangin,

Mga basang kahoy, natuyo ng hanging mahabagin

Tubig at pawis

Naghalo sa kalsadang marungis

Batang aba, lumangoy sa dapat na batis

Animo’y ilat sa alingasaw at putik

Dugo mong busilak

Sa uga’t lamang ang pagdanak

Ngayo’y itim na galos sa balat

Itim na islang nailubog ng luhang alat

Mga alaalang itinatangi

Inilibing ng agos at sidhi

Hikbing nag-uumapaw, pilit sugpuin 

Maisalba lamang, mga santo’t panalangin

Hagupit ng kalikasan

Parusang di ninais makamtan

Tila mga langgam sa munsik,  

Ngunit sa diwa’t isipa’y lakas ng pananalig

A Summer Dream

07/01/10

8:22 am

Bay Ridge

A Summer Dream

My eyes peeped out a puny aperture,

 Hoping to see the world in a more lucid scrutiny.

Nothing was different as the universe unfolded.

The world was mundane, visibly tiresome

 And the routine was endlessly constant.

Objects had no color.

But their shadows remained

 As if the absence of light was more apparent.

It was murky and my eyes grew tired.

But I still watched in ennui,

 Eager to have hysterics about something stimulating.

But there was no amusement.

Not even an assurance of it.

This uncertainty was grueling.

I was exhausted.

My eyes went shut to the world.

Shadows became permanent.

I dived into oblivion.

 As this lifeless vacuum became a dwelling place.

But soon the darkness faded out peculiarly

 And the unimaginable became truth.

Objects shifted randomly.

Vibrant lights were beyond belief

  And its colors came out unpredictably.

This disorder was beyond description

 And it was gently undisturbed.

This occurrence left me elated.

And this unutterable understanding

 Became hard-earned wisdom.

Trust was sincere and immeasurable.

There was only room for belief,

 And doubt, I did no more.

  

New York, New York

 07/01/10

8:19 AM

Bay Ridge, Brooklyn

 

New York, New York

 

Busy streets, crowded pathways.

The agonizing stench of charred meat and traffic smog filled the air.

A crammed-full procession of wheels turning infrequently.

Earsplitting clamor of angry voices and dead-beat street singers.

Runners and walkers interweaving on solitary trails.

A society assembled in a riotous foyer of an enormous metropolis.

Amidst all the humming and bustling

An unquiet mind is erratically nomadic.

Eager to connect with new a soul,

Looking to discuss the oddities of everyday,

Boast the know-how of a bizarre expertise.

Discuss the satirical antagonism of pietism and that of bureaucracies.

Yet with all present, not one listens.

All and sundry walked with glasslike crates, incarcerated.

Without the risk contact and collision.

Connection is undesirable, injurious.

Communication simply belonged to the lunatic.