The Mentors’ Journal

it’s now during the bitter watches of the night when I miss you and your scent that once brought me to Wonderland— took me into the (almost) black shores of your nails, and let me dive into the vast trenches of your leaking palms bracing mine. so now, let me go again to the stretches of the ghastly slopes underneath your shirt and walk through every inch [...]

as I watch this no ordinary night pass by where jeepneys and buses are rushing toward me and passers-by hold each other closely it’s you waving goodbye as if at last the cold breeze of the wind that slowly oh slowly touches our skin simply reminds me of you but does that matter now? it’s the moon who’s behind us watching the two of us acting like strangers lost [...]

She has the features of the finest doll nice and pleasing to the eyes her innocent grin and arms so lean would capture any stranger despite her genuineinnocenceandchildish ways her eyes so merry seem to harry exasperate myinner state for in her eyes I see inside Dirty old man’s lustfulfurtiveglances for in her breath I hear so near Dirty [...]

betrayed in exchange of a few thousand bills, you were arrested by a band of unidentified men

Sumilip ako at nasilayan. Sa buong maghapon ngiti lamang ang nasa labi. Sumilip ako, At sumilip pang muli… Hindi tumigil hangga’t tinig ay marinig. Sa malamig na tinig, lahat na ay napawi. Ngiti. ‘di lamang sa aking mga labi, at ‘di lamang sa pusong ngayo’y ‘di tulad ng dati. Nagdilim at naudlot [...]

ama namin sumasalangit ka maswerte ka’t nasa itaas ka sambahin ang ngalan mo ng mga wala nang pag-asang gaya ko mapasaamin ang kaharian mo kahit bagsak nami’y sa impyerno sundin ang kalooban mo o [...]

noon, akala ko lahat ng itanim tutubo at darami. kaya kumuha ako ng kendi at mabilis na nagbungkal… at naghintay… nang naghintay. pero wala. “hindi mo kasi diniligan,” ang sabi ni inay, “ng pawis, dugo’t luha. o binudburan kaya, ng pataba ng pagmamahal.” kaya kumuha ako ng piso, at muling nagbungkal. piniga ang mata, ang pulso, pati ang taba. niyakap [...]

ito ang ako na hindi kilala ang ako na hinahanap ko sa salamin ang ako na hindi rin kilala ng mga kasama kong nagigising sa kung saan-saang kama ang ako na nababayaran ngunit hindi nabibili ito ang ako na dumadamit [...]

  Tatlong maiksing oras lamang ng aking buhay ang nakabahagi sa kanyang pagmamahal sa hindi kilala n’yang bulkan sa Albay. Wala sa aking akala ang payak na lupang tatsulok na ipinagmamainam niya. Ngunit hindi ako nagtaka. Pinagbukasan ng nag-aalburutong [...]

Matagal na rin kaming nakatira dito sa Payatas. Normal na sakin yung mga eksenang nasaksihan ko kanina. Walang bago; walang kakaiba. Dalawang bata na naman ang nadaganan ng mga bulto ng basura. Noong isang linggo nga lang, isang binata naman ang nailibing ng buhay kasama ng umaalingasaw na basura, kasama ng mga pangarap [...]

  I. Death became her. Like withered leaves in autumn or great drought in summer, she felt emptied and succumbed from bleakness. This Monday morning when Vicky woke up, she felt that everything was dry, docile, even bootless. She felt purposeless, laying sprawled under her sheets for couple of hours after dawn, watching how [...]

  N’ung ipinagtapat ko kay one great love na s’ya ang aking one great love, busted ako. Nagalit ako at pinapili siya: ako at ang mahabang kasaysayan naming dalawa o ang haliparot na wala pa ngang isang linggo niyang kilalang lamang lang naman sa akin ng konti sa height at ‘di hamak na mas matalino ako’t [...]

  “You are sons and daughters of LESSER GODS. Your parents were just laundrywomen and drivers and they don’t even pay taxes.” I was a senior in high school when I heard those words from the person I least expected to tell me those. Until now, I [...]

  Remember our music, Our throbbing pulses, In that bathroom In that bed.   Remember our breath, searing the holiness in us by that Intimate heat, humming with lemon, forever brushing   You and me. [...]