- Eight (13)
1 I will contain my excitement
I will take a deep breath
and close my eyes
2 I will think that
six days will pass as usual
without notice, and
3 the nights will be
restful, I will sleep without
counting the hours
4 my stomach will be
alright, breakfast will be
as big as they always are, and
5 later in the day, I will write
poems ...
- Eight (12)
1 he talks to me about the cats
when I am sad and I think
the cats think that is funny
2 then the cats are anxious when
I am sick and they like to
sleep on my belly
3 the cats understand three
languages now, English, Tagalog and
Bisaya, I talk to them a lot and so
I learned to speak catese
3 of ...
- Love Letter to a Child (from “The Island”)
my child
take care of
your soul
it was forged upon
love that is rare
upon a bond that endures
your father cradled you
with his songs and
endowed you with the
blood of his mystic ancestors
and your mother thinks of
you constantly in
her meditations
she is pensive when
she sees you hurting
she is old yet she gathers
her strength for you
to keep you
alive, my child
feed your soul ...
- Waiting for Sunset (15, on second thought…)
Now I am about to finish the final draft of a book of poetry. It took a few days before I started feeling better again. He always greets me in the morning and helps me sleep at night. I like the seclusion. I get ignored sometimes. I felt too exhausted. Maybe I can start traveling ...
- The Amulet (from “The Island”)
it was of course a
breach of trust that
he couldn’t even remember
what he had done and so
he couldn’t even remember
how he ridiculed my pain
amongst his whores and
how they laughed! and he
denied where I had walked since
he abandoned me to
the crusades yet
I offered peace and he
dismissed
and can’t remember
without memory he
claims without any
idea of what he
was doing
and so ...
- The Craft of the Knife (from “The Island”)
for many years
he was relentless
meticulous in the
craft of the knife
carving out letters
on pieces of wood
that the river carried
after every storm
he carved the messages
for no one and yet
he let the river
take them back to
somewhere he wished
for in jest perhaps and so
he becomes weary
and weary
with the knife
yet the craft of
the knife
gave him the skill of
the fork
like the ...
- The Fiesta (from “The Island”)
he must’ve been
eight hours dead when
I saw him
I identified the body and
they gave him to me
without asking
who I was
and I didn’t know what to do
except not to cry
because he didn’t
want me to cry
I should’ve been there
when they took him
I should’ve been
washing his body
I should’ve been
combing his hair
but now everything that
should’ve been
have already been
done in the ...
- Eight (11b)
1 this time it will
be like the first
poem like the very first
steps of a child
2 and somehow this
frightens me I feel
like I am very small like
I return to my
mother’s womb
3 outside there
is turmoil, a bustle of things
they make me feel
insignificant so
free
4 it is the simplest of
all forms the most basic
of all fears where I as ...
- Eight (11a)
1 yes, it appears to be the first poem of someone
the very first steps of a child, very simple, very careful
2 I started making the brush poems, illegible, when I was in
the city in a very small room, very crowded, there is little space
3 perhaps, to wish away the turmoil of the city and yet
at ...
- Waiting for Sunset (14, on second thought…)
Now I am about to finish the final draft of a book of poetry. He always replies to my maunderings. He insists our work should relate to each other. He always greets me in the morning and helps me sleep at night. I wanted to destroy all my work. I get ignored sometimes. I felt ...
- Eight (10)
1 change my freedom for a mortgage
2 amicrazy? amicrazy?
3 change my sunshine for a wage slave
4 noway! noway!
5 change my old love for some candy
6 wotthehell! wotthehell!
7 I got ham and bacon to make
lots of salad lots of tea
8 my love is so romantic I’m impetuous
and he loves me we’re toujours gai
toujours gai!
Inspired by Don ...
- Eight (9)
1 after the storm here
in the city it
is gray and
dreary
2 so I get excited
when a ray of
sunlight
enters the room
3 back home
after the storm
the sun shines through
the trees
and suddenly
4 there’s a field of
pink flowers
in the garden
sometimes they are white
never pink and white
at the same time
5 the goat ate many of
the flowers
but they keep coming back
6 here ...
- Eight (8)
1 it will be a sacred ritual
to contain the delirium of
our fasts
2 pour carefully the
emperor’s wine upon
my tongue
3 molave smooth
like your thighs
beneath my feet
4 the bed is soft
and not in shambles
where our weary
bodies lie
5 my breasts upon yours
the light scent of
sandalwood
where we touch
6 now let us kiss
gently, softly
drench these lips
we are parched
7 with your finger
stroke ...
- Eight (7)
1 ah there you are yes you
my mighty bull
white raging bull
2 upon whose horns I sit
my toes on your nose
you tickle me!
3 you yes you
my frisky dragon
burning your breakfast
while eating!
4 let’s dance the fire
on your tongue
let us drink wine!
5 ah there you are yes
you my dear Neptune
6 the pearl of my aching loins
7 I am ...
- Eight (6)
1 I’m on fire, love
the saudade of your lips
2 I’m glowing with
the heat
the saudade of
your fingers
2 hold my little berries
in the warmth of your mouth
that wonderful warmth
that saudade!
4 my lily of
the valley
glisten with
the lick
of your tongue
5 in the thrill of
the sultry saudade
of your kisses
6 oh! love
this belly so
tenderly misses
7 the glint of
your jewel
on my lips ...
- Eight (5)
1 so you say folks
at the market
they all ask about me
when they see you
getting by alone
2 then at the city
the tricycle drivers
they’re cheering where
I am, why
you’re all alone
3 seems in the village
folks they’re betting
do I return
to you
or not
4 my folks
they’ve been asking
if you’re coming to
take me back
5 I know it’s been crazy
it’s been hard but
you ...
- Eight (4)
1 often I say foolish
things, let’s not talk
just hold my hand and look
at me, I’ll shut up
2 if I won’t let you
kiss me, just bring me
lilies from the
garden, I’ll smile
3 I lie in bed and won’t get
up, let’s have breakfast
in bed
4 if I’m crying, please
kiss me!
5 if you cuddle the cat
instead of me
that always makes
me ...
- Waiting for Sunset (13, on second thought…)
Now I am about to finish the final draft of a book of poetry. I wrote the poems during a very difficult time in my life. He always replies to my maunderings. He always greets me in the morning and helps me sleep at night. I get ignored sometimes. I like the seclusion.
We have an ...
- Eight (3)
1 when I am angry
and confused
ask me
for a walk in the woods
2 though I often refused
ask me
for a swim
it makes me happier
3 on doleful days
ask me
to sit with you
and wait for the sunset
4 or cook
a meal together
it’s fun
5 and it was nice
I thought
when you ask me
to look at the beans
you’re growing
in the garden
6 or in ...
- Eight (2)
1 my first winter and spring was
with you, we entered the Pfynwald
and I wasn’t cold, perhaps
the Alps love me
2 and my first temperate summer
we went swimming in Scheveningen
though I couldn’t swim
3 when you first came to Asia
the gods must love you because
in Hong Kong they gave you
a wonderful banquet!
4 we were weary but
we walked through ...
- Eight
1 he cried, so much
when he saw me enjoying the water
like a little girl
2 the baby pink flowers
he got them, to decorate my hair
so cheap, but they made me happy
3 after we made love, he said
I had changed, I have matured
he caressed me until
I fell asleep
4 I urinated on myself, yet
he massaged my wet feet ...
- Waiting for Sunset (12, on second thought…)
Now I am about to finish the final draft of a book of poetry. I am beginning to miss my husband. She said she kept hearing voices. He always replies to my maunderings. He always greets me in the morning and helps me sleep at night. My tumors are all behaving themselves too. I like ...
- The Hunter-Gatherer (from “The Mechanical Cock”)
In the heart of the bustling city
– a peculiar hunting expedition –
Where female is stalked daily
– by gatherers of a certain sort –
They watch her silicones reflected
– on the tall mountains of glass –
In the dusk a feeding frenzy
– the clink of glasses and jewels –
The deafening synthetic music
– to deaden the screams of the ...
- The Plumber and the Engineer (from “The Mechanical Cock”)
In the twilight of mental male
there is plumbing of great complexity
– It grinds to a halt –
– repairs are D.I.Y. –
but the pipes are the finest
the Christofle of silver
In the dusk of the male sex
there is appliance of great interest
– It sputters electric –
– revived by D.I.Y. –
but its cogs are the finest
the Baccarat of ...
- The Golden Calf (from “The Island”)
There was talk in the market that morning
of the bombing of Manila
and so I collected the rice and tomatoes
swiftly, and passed by the church
with a prayer, a quick touch of my fingers
to the Santo Rosario and to my lips
the church will be full tomorrow
when they begin to count
the bodies of the dead
I crossed the road ...