Under the shade
of these cumulus clouds
here the earth greets you
with blinding light, but
the rain is always in
your somnolent eyes.
And you gather something
out of the viridian sea:
a handful of shells
for your dead loved ones
a fistful of sand
for your city of rust.
You hear flatlines
in the distance
as the horizon blooms
with a procession of waves—
beneath the fire rainbow
a sailboat drifts
towards carabao island
like a slow
moving funeral.
—
Simon Anton Nino Diego Baena, originally from Bais City, Negros Oriental, is now based in Iligan. Some of his works have already been published in Mascara Literary Review, Philippines Free Press, The James Franco Review, The Blue Hour Magazine, among others.