Nang Umalis na ang Nananangis mong Asawa

Nang umalis na ang nananangis mong asawa,
Inunahan kita agad ng paliligo ng aking mga halik
Sabay paghilamos ko sayo ng mga masasakit na alalaala ng kahapon.

Nilabar ko rin ang pinakapinandidirihan kong
Mga sulok ng iyong kasingit singitang nakaraan
Sabay salok sa isang milyong tabo ng aking nagnanaknak na pasensiya ng mga naipon kong luha
Upang mahugasan ang nakikita kong
Mga libag nang ako'y una mong sinaktan.

Tiniis ko rin ang hirap ng pagkiskis ng bato sa iyong kabalatan upang tuluyang
Maalis ang lahat ng kabuktutan o kung hindi ay makalimutan
Ang aking katangahan sa bawal na pagmamahal.

Shinampu ko rin ang nagpapalakpakan mong buhok
Malapit sa utak ng lahat ng mga panlilinlang
Sinabon ang balat hanggang sa palad mo na hindi naman naging akin.

Sa muling pagbanlaw inisip ko na mabura
Na ang lahat ng mga natatandaan ko
Pero parang imposible.
Naisip ko kung kailan pa kaya matutuyo ang mga luha
Na binigay mo sa akin nang napakatagal

Mapapanatag ba ako kung masilip ko ngayon ang tunay na laman ng iyong puso?


-Tula ng Isang Kabit na Taga- Embalsamo

ang araw ay lumilipas na parang lasing

ang araw ay lumilipas na parang lasing
na agos ng tubig sa batis
upang sagasaan ang mga nakaharang
na mga maliliit na batong
sumasama sa tubig
at ang mga iniwang mga bakas
mga alaalang nagpupumilit
na sumabay sa susunod pang
pag-agos ng panibagong paglalakbay
sa dilim

Ang Tula Pala ay Parang Isang Bus

Ang Tula Pala ay Parang Isang Bus

Ang tula pala ay parang isang bus,
Na bumabagtas sa lahat ng klase ng panitikan
Patigil-tigil ang bawat saknong
Lulan ang mga letrang mga pasahero
Nakaupo o nakatayo silang nagigitgitan
Upang makabuo ng mga salitang
Nakakatakot, nakakainis, nakakalungkot o nakakasaya
Sila ang patuloy na bumabaybay
Sa likulikong daan ng mga linya
Na parang patigil tigil na mga trapik ng mga pantig
Na isa isa mo na ngayong binabasa
Sana ay mahusay ang aking pagkakamaneho

On Trekking our own Pico de Loro

“Two good eyes may be part of the equation, but there are so many other qualities that make a person successful, like the skill and talent you develop, the time you devote to it and your persistence.”

 —ERIK Weihenmayer

(The only blind man in history to reach the summit

of the world's highest peak - Mount Everest)

On Trekking our own Pico de Loro

If there is a logbook at the top of every mountain, my name had actually been added from a long list of many hundreds of people who have done the same and some other records of hundreds and thousands who have trekked through its foothills.

The whole Cavite will not care though even those tricycle drivers who waited for us for the business of transportation and warned us for such risky attempt. However, I can say that my whole being rejoices like how I was greeted by facebook friends thinking I have been one of the national icons displayed in billboards, published in magazines, and commercials. My climb was considered historical or akin as to winning an Olympic gold Medal. It also shows the brave spirit of myself as a Filipino, a mark that had left in our souls even now. But however it was set that way, I indeed have proved to the world that we Filipinos can possibly take the challenge; I mean, we indeed won the challenge on standing at the forehead of the sky. (As if they will care) But the feeling is different especially when the experts at the time announced the success of us trekkers; especially on the thought that most of us are beginners at that time who previously dreamt of reaching one.

It is there.  According to the National Geographic Society, it would cost about $50,000 to $60,000 per person just to climb Mt. Everest. But imagine, me just spending 20 pesos for a registration at the DENR entry post. My second thoughts: Who would dare to spend 20 pesos just to risk one’s life; what more are the skills and the guts needed. The list would seem to be endless. However, for some people who have already reached the summit, they climbed the mountain not just that they want to be famous or beat any particular record. It is because of the reality that human beings love to achieve and what is there in front of them saying the usual statement, “It is there. The dream is waving and all you need is your motivation and passion on how to reach it.”

We may not be mountain climbers but definitely all of us have dreams. Our dreams can be anything. Our dreams can be desires that lie deeply within our hearts. These can be possibilities that we see happening in our lives or something that we would like to accomplish. These can be ones we have planted or planning to be planted in front of our priorities in life. There can be a lot of them in our minds; such dreams that are endless to mention. Call them as “all the mountains” that we want to conquer and for the most part, a lot of these mountains that are difficult to climb.

Our dreams or our mountains may not just be individual aspirations. A number of us might be looking or aiming at the same mountain just like Janet Belarmino, Carina Dayondon, Noelle Wenceslao and Leo Oracion. At some point, we trek a particular mountain together with someone else or a group of people. These are goals that we aspire to meet together with our friends, officemates, family members and our community.

Building Contact. We are not only viewing our mountains in an encyclopedia. If we have chosen one, we need to try to build contact to that particular mountain. Read the map or even study the terrain by being in there “for real”. We might see the effect of that particular mountain to be relieving, wonderful, and stimulating but then we cannot imagine that at the back of this interesting panoramic beauty are debris, broken paths, rough terrain, and dangers along the way. There can be cliffs. There can even traps. Those are the ones you cannot notice or rather you cannot possibly avoid. But you will easily get along with these cliffs and traps once you to learn where to step and how to be safe next time you pass on it again. What is the moral lesson here then? When we aim for something in life it is important that we study and weigh the risks involved and advantages attached in achieving it. It is sacrosanct as well to learn the tools and qualifications that will be required of us to become successful. If we do not have the needed prerequisites and experiences yet, this is our signal to hone and sharpen our skills. By being aware of the stakes, we get grounded on reality and this places us in a better position to take charge of our own path and develop areas in our persona that need work on. By acknowledging and working on our weak spots, we become better, stronger and high performers.

Choosing our Mountain and Standing by it.  As we journey towards the summit, it is expected that we will meet a lot distractions and hurdles. Like the very slippery pathways, rocky slopes and muddy trail that our team has to overcome, we have our own challenges to triumph over and it will come in a lot of forms. It may come in the form of lack of knowledge and direction, being burnt out, lack of self-confidence, frustration when we don’t get things right and de-motivation from the people around us. There are a whole lot of people who will be affecting us in our journey. Some might say negative things about us; negating us with all our actions. If we allow the negative energies to seep in, we end up lost in track of our main goal or perhaps we end up as an individual who has exerted lots of energy for a goal he doesn’t want to pursue anymore.

Our ability to achieve goals is always a function of how positive we see adversity and how much will power we have. It is our choice if we let the obstacles to defeat us or fight back and be a success. It’s the winning attitude that will elevate us to heights that we ourselves will be amazed.

Protecting Yourself. Your tools for the trek are useless if you forget your own self. That’s why you need to listen to what your body says. Learn how to give what it deserves. Drink and eat enough. It is not proper to abuse our bodies just to force ourselves with a particular trek. Do not force yourself. There is time for everything. You can possibly stop climbing once in a while but do not give up. Just feel the scenery for a while. Feel the surroundings. Jump. Kick some rocks. Inhale. Exhale. And then climb again. The climb can be difficult but that long journey will be the way for you to learn and be better.

Learn from the Master. It is possible that someone has already reached the mountain you are aiming to climb. Learn the different styles and strokes on how they had reached that particular mountain. Seek advice and guidance from them on where to use the rope, what pathways are relatively safer and ideal to pass by, and some of their experiences that will possibly be of good use with your long journey. Experience is a good teacher and the “master’s” experience will serve as your compass along the way.

Don’t Get Bored and Don’t Rest on Your Laurels. Climbing a mountain takes time and effort. The time spent in climbing a mountain ranges from a couple of hours to a number of days. Patience is therefore important. Remember that we cannot climb two mountains at the same time. Changing our minds would be worse like climbing down again in your first mountain and climbing back in for the next one. At that point, we will not reach any mountain tops at all.

When we have reached the summit, enjoy what it brings.  Celebrate what we had reached. Let go of your emotions. But remember, nobody had ever conquered any mountains. We may be standing at the top but it will take just a moment that we will feel tired, hungry, exhausted, and lonely. It is just the time that we need to go down. It is good to jubilate on our triumphs but resting on our laurels in another story. Once we start thinking that we are good enough, that where we start to become stagnant and benign. To be able to enrich one self, it is important to constantly revisit, redefine and enhance one’s capabilities in response to the demands of times. Let us dare to make a difference and leave a positive mark on everything we you do. Like us, reaching the summit of the mountain is not enough for us. We may come back and climb the mountain again to traverse, and find another way aside from the usual trail. By being able to achieve this, we could earn the respect and the admiration of mountain climbing community.

But then, this is not the end of the story. Once you have climb one of your chosen mountain, there are still a lot of mountains to climb or any other mountains to discover. Perhaps to tell everyone about this particular mountain that you had climbed and telling them that it is possible. 

And I am doing the same thing in my own little ways; perhaps making my next Mt Pico de Loro in my mind; a goal that I am the one who will first climb#.

ang "ngayon" na kay hirap itawid

ang bahag-hari ay dahil gusto nating magpatawad kahit ang mga tinik ay nabunot na sa mga pusong sugatan;
dala ang naghihilum na peklat sa kadiliman, pinili kong maglakad upang mabawasan ang walang katapusang pag-iisip sa nakaraan, noong tayo minsa'y mga bubot na rosas, na naghihintay ng buhos ng ulan; sa pagdilim ng kalangitan, sabay nating
tiningala ang biyaya ng pagkakataon
ng walang hanggang kasiyahan; umulan ng malakas noon sa labas
at gaya ng mga napasayang mga bubot na rosas sa mga paso, pawisang inangkin natin ang ating mga sariling laman, hinagkan , hinalikan ang mundo sa ating sariling kamunduhan; pagtagal, sinabi mo na di mo na kaya pang magpatuloy
kaya paatras kong tinanggap ang pagtila ng ulan, sinisi ang paghihiwalay ng mga ulap, at binaling ang lahat sa pagpupumilit na maging tama ang mali

Ngayon sabay ng pagtila ng ulan, tinanim ko ang punla ng pangungulila sa paso na dinidiligan ko ngayon ng mga dumadaloy na mga patak patak kong luha;

sa ilalim ng bahaghari.