Category: Poetry

Paghulagway

Poetry by | September 27, 2021

Gimingaw hinuon ko makadungog
aning kusog nga katawa,
maklaro na tingali lagos nga puwa
sa gamay’ng bata nga wa nagkandimao
ang singot ug sip-on sa ilahang dula.
Sa luyo sab makita ang ilang ginikanan
nga nag-uma ug kaning tiguwang na babayi
nga nangguna samtang kanunayong miamin
iyahang apo sa tuhod ug usa ka laki
nga nagkaon nagsuwa og tinapa.

Halap man kani, naay uban nga napanas na dinhi
ang kalipay migikan sa ginagmay’ng butang
anaa may mawala ukon mobalik
ang kinaiya gikan pa sa una
nagpabilin sa karaang hulagway
gipilit duol sa bintana nila Lola Dulor
masayran sa iyahang mata samtang gisaysay
ang kalahi sa kaniadto ug karon nga katawa.

 

Mary Divine Escleto hails from Alabel, Sarangani Province. She participated in  the 1st SOX Summer Writing Camp and Davao Writers Workshop in 2019. She is  a member of Writear’s Sheet, Sigaw Heneral and Sarangani Writers League.

May Langit din sa Hardin

Poetry by | September 27, 2021

May paruparong
pumasok sa aming bahay
Sabi-sabi may bumisita raw
mula sa mga nawalay.

Magbigay-galang daw kami
‘yan ang sabi ni Inang,
Hanggang sa lumipad ito
patungo sa aming bakuran.

Sinundan namin ito
nang dahan-dahan sa pag-apak.
Doon nakitang nagtipon-tipon
pala ang aming mga kamag-anak.

Arth Jay Murillo, is from  General Santos City. He is a fellow of the  5th Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio Writing Workshop for Spoken Word (2021) by the Likhaan: University of the Philippines Institute of Creative Writing.

Tsa

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

Nag-iyagak
sa nagbagang abohan
ang inalisngaw
sa puthawng takuri,
Ug kansang
kamot mihapuhap
sa init-init nga kuptanan aron
hinayon pagbubo—

sa tasang
gitaksan og
dahong laya.

Mihinunob ang gabukal nga tubig
sa naglutaw-lundag nga tinapok
ug ang dalag nga mituhop,
mibukhad og alimyon sa hasmin

nga daw mihangop kanako
samtang nagpabati pud sa kainit
mihayaw nga anago sa’kong panit.

Tuod, kanimo
gikamingaw pag-ayo.

Ug nagpabiling
handumanan
kaning gihay
sa buwak
nga pila ka
tuig nimong
giamumahan,
pagkahumota!
Karon ako nalang
kining ipalutang,
magtuhop
sa akong tsa
nga diria ka
magpabilin,

Kanunay.

Si Niño Jan Pol Dosdos natawo ug nagdako sa Dakbayan sa Pagadian.

 

 

Ayuda

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

Mother babysits her infant. By the bank,
father is trying to catch eels. He throws
the line, worm dangling from the hook,

into the river. Children in do-re-mi’s.
Younger ones sleeping over mats
of milk cartons. No undies. Older ones

playing with rubber bands in the dusty yard.
No tops. The shanty under the Acacia
tree is roofless. On the stone stove nearby,

a kettle is whistling. Its steam signals
the water is now hot and ready for mix
with coffee to fill in their aching hearts.

Raul G. Moldez writes from Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines. Author of two collections of poetry, A Day in a Poet’s Life and Other Poems and Mga Taho Gikan sa Akong Uniberso, his works have appeared in Philippines Free Press, Philippines Graphic, Philippine Panorama, Sunday Times Magazine, Crowns and Oranges, Kinaadman Journal, Bisaya, Sunstar Weekend, Homelife, Ani Literary Journal, Bituon, Dagmay, Tinubdan, Red River Review, and Sentinel Literary Quarterly, among other publications.

Kamatayon ug Kinabuhi

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

Gatuk-ong si Charon, ang anak ni Erebus, ang tigpamangka sa sapa sa Styx.
balig usa ka dako ang pamilite sa kalag una makaabot sa gingharian ni Hades.
Ang impiyerno ilawom sa yuta nagpaabot.
Ug tingali langit ang hikaplagan uban sa sinselyong wa matunol sa kalibotang masalaypon.
Ang usa ka dako tugbang sa usa ka bugsay paingon sa lubnganan.
Sayri, ang kinabuhi bililhon diay sa kamatayon.
Hinumdomi: way baliling moturok ilawom sa yuta.
Apan kapila nanghimakak si Pedro kang Hesus?
Bugti sa manok nga ihalas sa kalasangan ang kaidlas,
uyamot giluiban ang manluluwas sa manluluwas
ang tuktogaok sa manok molanug sa kinauyokang bukog sa tangkugo.
Hinumdomi, way umoy ang lupad sa sunoy aron abton ang panganod.
Sanglit ang kamatayon ug kinabuhi, managsama.

Jovanie Garay teaches language and literature subjects at DOSCST-San Isidro Extension Campus. His short stories and poems appeared in Dagmay, Manila Bulletin’s Bisaya Magasin, Kabisdak and Katitikan.  He is this year’s fellow for Balak in the 59th Silliman University National Writers Workshop (SUNWW).

Spelunking

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

and then
after a short
ceremony
a mouth
of stone
devours
a man
with a gas
lamp.

Raul G. Moldez writes from Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines. Author of two collections of poetry, A Day in a Poet’s Life and Other Poems and Mga Taho Gikan sa Akong Uniberso, his works have appeared in Philippines Free Press, Philippines Graphic, Philippine Panorama, Sunday Times Magazine, Crowns and Oranges, Kinaadman Journal, Bisaya, Sunstar Weekend, Homelife, Ani Literary Journal, Bituon, Dagmay, Tinubdan, Red River Review, and Sentinel Literary Quarterly, among other publications.

Stay Aswang Stay

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

They were deities of a dying age,
once revered for their beauty and power.
The town shaman was chosen as their gauge,
they danced for rain, healed, nurtured each other.
Then the Spanish priests came to preach Jesus
to subjugate, take over land, and rule.
The villagers fought back, raw and vicious.
Their priestess was turned as the devil’s tool,
kapre, mantianak, manananggal.
Showed up in the night to scare everyone.
The tales of woe fringed on the magical,
smeared with blood, paranoia, hate, bar none
The aswang’s life and voice need to be heard,
fluid and immortal, with rights assert.

Joseph Mendoza is born from Davao. He took up BS Creative Writing in SFSU. Once from Berkeley, now residing in Davao City. He likes tennis, beaches, Italian food and a coffee junkie.  He has self-published two books of poetry. Some of his poems are found at  joegasparauthor.com.

Life

Poetry by | September 20, 2021

is a line
linking years. And

in between, these
minor lines exist:

A line that brings
power to the house.

A line that carries
water to the sink.

A line that gives
breaking news.

A line that allows you
to hear your sweetheart

from afar.
Lines that help

fortune tellers
predict the future.

Lines that are written
on the forehead by time.

Raul G. Moldez writes from Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines. Author of two collections of poetry, A Day in a Poet’s Life and Other Poems and Mga Taho Gikan sa Akong Uniberso, his works have appeared in Philippines Free Press, Philippines Graphic, Philippine Panorama, Sunday Times Magazine, Crowns and Oranges, Kinaadman Journal, Bisaya, Sunstar Weekend, Homelife, Ani Literary Journal, Bituon, Dagmay, Tinubdan, Red River Review, and Sentinel Literary Quarterly, among other publications.