Women: Poems Written by Aklanons

Women: Poems Written by Aklanons
Compiled and Edited by
Melchor F. Cichon
July 2007



NYNN ROWENA TAMAYO

Haead Kay Arsenia

Gindaehan ta ikaw it mga bueak
Nga may kasiga ku adlaw
Ag kainit ku mga hiyom-hiyom
Agud taw-an it kasadya
Ro imong mga mata
Nga nagakasubo.
Mga violeta nga nagakiay-kiay
Sa huyop ku hangin
Pageaom ku mga daeanon
Nga owa maagyi!...
Ag mga rosas, singpuea ku dugo
Apang madali maeaay.
Ah, sayud ako kon paalin
Do mapisang it sanglibong parte
Ag do magbatyag it hapdi
Ku mga napirdi


LOSALLY NAVARRO-ENDLURI

fear nothing
even if our taj mahal
is made of bamboo

ALEX DE JUAN

BAKIT SI XELA AY NAGDIGHAY PAGKATAPOS MAG-INOM NG COKE?

Kanila lang
Puno ng pawis ang tansan
na nagyakap sa bibig ng Coke.
Naghalakhak ang tansan
na gin-aywanan ang bibig ng Coke.
Nagtambad ang kalawang
sa ilalim ng bibig ng Coke.
Gin-inom ni Xela ang Coke.
Si Xela ay nagdighay
pagkatapos mag-inom ng Coke
dahil gusto ng tansan na maulit
ang tunog ng kanyang halaklak
sa paglaho
ng kalawang
sa ilalim ng bibig ng Coke.



JOHN BARRIOS

SI LOLA SA OPINING DAY

nang magbukas ang bagong sinehan
sa banwa ng Kalibo maraming tao
ang naglantaw: bata, estudyante,
nanay, tatay at isang lolang naninigaw
sa loob ng sinehan
dahil hindi makit-an si Ritsard
na nakipagbarilan
sa kanyang mga kontra
hindi lang siya umiimik
kung ang lumalabas na ay
si Gritsin na nakabating sot
sinasamahan naman ng kababaihan
ang katahimikan ay abala sa paninipol
habang gumagapang ang kamay
sa ilalim ng pantalon
gumagapang din ang kamay ni Lola
para mahigpit na hawakan
ang bote ng sopdrink niya


MELCHOR F. CICHON

Inay

Inay, matuod nga may diploma eon ako
Pero ibis ag dayok man pirmi rang suea.
Pumanaw ako nga owa mag-eaong
Bangud nga indi ko matiis nga makita kang
Gatangis kakon.

Inay, kon manggaranon eang ako,
Eukaton ko ro atong eanas,
Patindugan kita’t bungalow,
Bakean kita’t kolord TV ag Hi-Fi.

Ugaling, Inay
Hasta makaron
Istambay man ako gihapon
Ay owa kuno ako’t diputadong maninoy.


Ham-at Madueom Ro Gabii, Inay?

Inay, ham-at madueom ro gabii?
May buean, Toto, ugaling may galipud nga gae-um.
Inay, ham-at madueom ro gabii?
May bombilya ro mga poste't Akelco,
Ugaling may brown-out.
Inay, ham-at madueom ro gabii?
Ginsinindihan ko ro atong kingke,
Ugaling ginapinaeong it hangin.
Inay, ham-at madueom ro gabii?
Toto, matueog ka eon lang
Ay basi hin-aga temprano pa
Magsilak ro adlaw.
Indi, 'Nay ah!
Sindihan ko't uman ro atong kingke.


EVA, SI ADAN


Bangud ginabot ka eang kuno sa gusok ni Adan
Agud may anang hampang-hampangan,
Maistorya-istoryahan ag mapautwas-utwasan
Sa oras nga anang kinahangean
Hay abu eon nga ngaean
Ro andang ginsueat sa imong daean:
Salome, Magdalena, Maria Clara, Bagyo Esyang.
Bangud mahuyang kuno ring dughan,
Maski ro bagyo nga makaeuka't butong
Ag makapaeunod it barko
Hay ginapapangaean man gihapon kimo.
Pero owa madumdumi't mga eaki
Nga maski si Mark Anthony
Hapatiyog-tiyog ni Cleopatra
Maski sa guwa it kama.
Owa nanda madumdumi nga si Gabriela gali
Ro nagpahaba't daean ni Diego Silang.
Ag sa Edsa kon owa ring kaeambong
Maghigot it rosas sa punta't armalite ni Freddie
Hay basi owa si Cory makasindi't kandila
Sa ermita't Malakanyang.
Mayad gid sanda magpalitik kon paano
Ka eang mapasunod-sunod sa andang ikog.
Owa gid sanda gapalitik kon paano mor magamit
Tanan ring utok, wawas ag hueag
Para kita tanan makatakas sa linaw it utang.
Owa ka gid kuno't kalibutan
Sa pagdumaea't gobyerno o simbahan.
Mayad ka eang kuno maghibi-hibi, magkiri-kiri
Kon magumon ring hilo sa imong saeag-utan.
Kon abu ring hasayran ag kon maghambae ka't
Kontra sa sueondan nga anda man nga hinimuan
Isaea ka ka amasona ag dapat eang nga isilda.
O kon bukon ngani myembro ka't grupo ni Brainda.
Eva, tupong gid eang kamo ni Adan
Sa tanan nga lugar, sa tanan nga butang.
Kon ham-at imo imaw nga ginapagustuhan?
O gusto mo gid eang nga ipadumdom
Nga kon ham-at makapalingkod imaw it leon
Hay ikaw ro anang kaibahan.
***

EVA, BEHOLD ADAM!

Because you were pulled out of Adam’s ribs
So that he could have someone to play with,
Someone he could talk with and who could ease his tension
In moments he wanted to,
Many names have been written in your path:
Salome, Magdalene, Maria Clara, Typhoon Esyang.

Because your heart has been said to be weak,
Even typhoons that can uproot bamboos
And can sink ships are still named after you.

But men forget that even Mark Anthony
Was rolled by Cleopatra
Even out of their bed.

They fail to remember that it was Gabriela
Who extended the path of Diego Silang.

And at EDSA if your tribe did not tie roses around
The muzzles of Freddie’s armalites,
Perhaps Cory wouldn’t be able to light candles
In the chapel at Malacañang.
They are good at cracking their heads planning
How you’ll simply follow their tails.
They do not worry about how you can use
All your mind, body and movements
So that all of us can get out of the lake of debt.
You do not know at all they say,
How to manage a government or a church.
You are good only in crying, flirting
Once your threads get messed in your loom.

When you know so much and you speak
Against the rules which they themselves have set,
You are called an amazon,
If not, you are a member of Brainda’s group.

Eve, you stand equally with Adam
In all places, in all things.
But why did you allow him
To do what he wanted to?
Or you just wanted him to think
That the reason why he was able to make the lion sit
Is because you are his companion.


SI AMBONG, ATI

Si Ambong, Ati—maitum.
Kueong ra buhok, gision ra eambong, ga siki.
Gakung-kong, kung-kong ka maeupsi nga eapsag
Gapakalimos sa Jaro Cathedral, sa J.M. Basa Street
Ay gintabog eon ra pamilya sa eugta nga anay ginaayaman nanda’t haeo.
Si Ambong, Ati, maitum, indi kantigo magbasa, indi kantigo magsueat
Maski ka anang ngaean ay sa andang barangay owa’t eskuylahan.
Si Ambong, Ati, ginasinggit-singgitan, ginadela-delaan
It mga unga kun imaw mag-agi sa daean ay maitum.
Ginapahadlok it mga nanay sa andang gatangis nga mga unga.
O sa mga unga nga indi magtueog.
Kon fiesta, ginataw-an si Ambong it salin nga suea
Ginasueod sa plastic o sa bag-ong bukas nga lata.
Kun bukon ngani, ginabagsakan it gate.
Agod makayupyop it sigarilyo, gapamueot si Ambong it upos sa kalye.
Agod makasamit it hamburger o juice sa pakite,
Ginapaeapitan ni Ambong ro nagakaon maski sin-o nga anang maagyan.
Pag-abot it gabii, maeugad si Ambong sa sidewalk o sa waiting shed
Kahulid ka anang maeupsing eabsag—
Mayad eang kun may karton nga banig ag owa’t baha o uean --
Agod magbaskug euman ra tuhod sa pagpakalimos pagka-aga.
Si Ambong, Ati—maitum. Ra ele-ele, ra hibi, ra pangamuyo
Indi mabatian, indi mabatyagan it gobyerno sa siyudad it tawo.
Ra singgit it tabang hay singgit sa Pluto.
Si Ambong, Ati-- maitum, indi makit-an it atong gobyerno.
Kon Dinagyang, sa selebrasyon etsa pwera si Ambong.
Eutay kuno imaw sa mga bisitang dumueo-ong.
Si Ambong, maitum, ginatabog it blue guard
Bag-o pa man imaw maka-eapak sa gate it Atrium ag SM Shoemart
Kunta may Gloria nga magbatak kay Ambong sa libtong it kaimueon
Agod sa ulihi ro gobyerno may buwes nga masukot kay Ambong;
Agod sa ulihi makabakae man imaw it Levis o barong
Agod sa ulihi makaeskuyla man sa U.P. ra mga inapo;
Agod sa ulihi owa kana’t magtamay, owa’t magtabog
Kon imaw mag-agto sa SM City ag sa Atrium.
Si Ambong, Ati--Maitum. Apo ni Maniwantiwan.
Ag Filipino. Pares kimo, pares kakon.
Kon ham-at owa imaw sa listahan it mga Filipino nga dapat buligan?
Kon ham-at indi imaw makasueod sa atong ugsaran?
Kon ham-at indi naton imaw maagbayan?
Kon ham-at indi imaw makadungan katon magkaon sa restauran?
Siyudad man baea ra’t tawo, indi baea, banwa? Indi baea, banwa?


NANAY SORIANG

Samtang nagakaeanta ro mga agagangis
Sa palibot it andang baeay,
Ginatinueok ni Nanay Soriang ro nagakaupos
Nga tatlong kandila sa altar
Nga ginapalibutan it eapoy eon nga
Mga rosas ag orkid.
Nagyuhum imaw pagkadumdom nana
Ku ratong mga mahapdi ag matam-is
Nga mga oras kon siin
Imaw kato hay isaea pa nga duyan, haboe ag hagdan
Ku ap-at nana nga mga onga.
Apang makaron...
Kon hin-uno pa nana kinahangean
Ro mga hakos nanda...
Imaw eon lang isaea
Ro nagatueok sa nagakaupos nga mga kandila
Bangud ro mga onga nana kuno
Hay sobra gid kuno nga kasaku
Sa pag-eagas it kwarta
Sa tindahan it Baclaran,
Sa opisina it Makati,
Sa night club sa Ermita
Ag sa baeay it Intsik sa Hong Kong.


A LETTER

John,
I will definitely go home
To our house
Where we can see the clouds
Through the roof.
I'm fed up
With the twinkling neon lights,
But I have not yet paid
For the earrings that I got
From Mama San.
I need them so my tinkling
Will be louder and my hips
Will be heavier.
Don't worry, John,
This Christmas
You and I will create a moon
And through the roof
We two alone
Will grasp its light.
Ana

FOR LORENA


The bullet that pierced your throat
Did not really stop you
From breathing. You are alive
As the rose that bears flowers
In my garden. Your thorns
Are still there, only they are
Bent. I can still smell your fragrance
Even from the distance.
It is still the same fragrance
That sharpened
The minds of your comrades
In crossing the ravines.
Your adversaries were wrong
In saying that you were silenced.
They are dreaming.
Your lips are clasped
But your voice
Is still reverberating,
Strongly, the squeezing,
And the twisting done
To our people
By our own countrymen.

YOU ARE A WOMAN

You are a woman---
A cook, a mother, a nurse,
A lover, a partner
In carrying rice seedlings,
In pulling beach seines
And in segregating
Sardines from puffers.

You are a partner in lighting candles
During a storm, during an earthquake.
Your arms can carry a sick child
Or a fallen hero
To a safe ground.

You are a woman
Who can laugh,
Who can love,
Who can sing
A lullaby
Or a war song.

You are a woman
Who can sigh,
Who can also lead an attack
With an armalite.

You are a woman
Who can push a pen
For freedom.

LORNA

Visit me after sunset
But bring me no roses
Nor candles.
It is enough that you still remember
That Sunday afternoon
At Pastrana Park
Where you blew your kiss
To my quivering lips.

When the time comes
For me to kiss the weeds
And be a part of the earth,
Sing no Ave Maria for me.
The chico
Where we planted our vows
Will wilt.

It is enough that you still remember
That Sunday afternoon
At Pastrana Park
Where you wiped my cold lips
With a black kerchief.

Goodbye!

WOMEN OF ANTIQUE

Stop crying now,
Women of Antique.
Your tears can’t raise a fallen man.
Shed no more tears,
Women of Antique.
The fallen hero
At the plaza
Like the man
At the tarmac
Is no Christ.

Shed no more tears,
Women of Antique.
Stand up and march
Against the fading light,
Against the moonless night
Until the breaking of the common dawn.


I, MARIA

When I untied my patadyong*
And wore long maong pants,
He gave me a belt
To tighten my hips.

I wiped away my tears
In the dark.

When I asked him to have a page-boy haircut,
He gave me a rubber band instead
To tighten my pony tail.

I followed his whim.

But when he chained me
Tightly
To his waist,
I bolted out
And knifed off
His head.


HER REPLY

I cannot accept your tears
As a peace offering.
Nor your kneeling.
I have enough of your plays,
Day and night.
My stage is now wrecked by your military footsteps,
Your stampings, your shouts
And your slaps on my face.
My mother spent priceless nights
To keep me from harms while I slept.
But here you are,
Blasting me to pieces
After giving you my heart,
After giving up my fashion career,
After leaving my parents
Just to be with you.
I buried
The makahiya leaves
That Maria Clara had entrusted me
Along with your promise
To offer me pink roses when I am down.
Unless you change
Your themes, your costumes, your scenes,
And recast your characters to our mutual understanding,
I will not bend to lift your heart
To embrace my clouded life.

Even then,
I’ll wait for you
At heaven’s rooftop.


THANK YOU, ANYWAY

I did not ask you
To keep my bitter mementos.
I knew from the start
That your heart had enough space only
For your own grief.

I did not ask you
To keep my tears for remembrance.
I knew from the start
That you wanted only to sip—
While it lasted—the juice that I could squeeze
From our fire.

Thank you, anyway,
As the golden ricefield thanks the volcano
For the lava it spews.


THE WHISPER

Aboy-aboy, batya and patadyong,
Listen to my heartbeats.
The chain I have with you
Is a cross to my calvary.

My parents told me
To just wipe away my biting tears
And put ice on my swollen lips,
A gift from my husband’s quick fists.

I have become his tail, my parents say,
After I have pressed my thumb
On our marriage contract.

Aboy-aboy, batya and patadyong,
It’s not a sin, isn’t it
To put off my chain from you
And march in the streets

With closed fists?


SUNDAY MORNING IN LEZO

In Lezo
On Sunday morning,
The mothers and their daughters
Will only drink tahu or coffee
And walk to church,
While the fathers
Will no longer fetch drinking water
Or chap fire woods
Because they are too busy
Blowing tobacco smoke to
And exercising their fighting cocks
Believing that the wages
They got from mixing cement with stones,
For one week,
Will double inside the cockpit.

YOUR JOURNEY

Your journey to His heart
Was a lifetime walk,
But He kept on waiting
For you.

He knew how you ignored
His presence
For you only saw
The proletariat.

He was an abstract non-existent
Blip, you used to say.

But He kept on waiting
For your honest understanding,
For you to discover Him
As your Lord.

Now you see
Not
Faded Christmas
But red
White
And
Green.


MOTHER

Mother
Is a lighted candle
And a winnow
Any time, any place
For a child
No matter what the price is.

WHY IS THE NIGHT DARK, MOTHER?

Mother, why is the night dark?
There is a moon, Toto, but the cloud is covering it.
Mother, why is the night dark?
The electric posts have electric bulbs,
But there is a brown-out.
Mother, why is the night dark?
I keep on lighting our kerosene lamp,
But the wind keeps on blowing it out.
Mother, why is the night dark?
Toto, it is better that you go to sleep.
The sun might rise
Early tomorrow.
No, Mother!
I will light again the kerosene lamp.


TO PILMA


You must not shed a tear
For me beloved.
I am not really leaving.
Please preserve my poems, my name.
They are for our children.

You must believe
That I am not leaving.
I was just asked by my Lord
To look for a new home
Where mayas are not caged
And gold fish are not aquariumed.

Shed no tears for me, Beloved.
We will meet again
Someday
In Heaven

Magdalena

Sige, magsugid ka kay Erap
Agod matakpan ka eagi it diyaryo sa karsada.
O mabalik ka eon lang
Sa tinubuan mo nga eanas?

Panumdumon mo ro mga gasgas
Sa tuhod ag sa siku mo
Sa paglinatay sa mga pilapil
Nga ginaputos it huyahuya.
Panumdumon mo ro bakagan ag dayok
Nga pirmi mo nga ginasuaea.
Bangud ring Tatay hay ginbutangbutangan nga nagpanakaw
Ag hasta makaron hay gaantos sa Muntinglupa.

Panumdumon mo ro sakit it likod
Sa pagtanum it paeay
Ag sa paglinas it uhay
Sa suhoe nga kwarintan pesos sa sang adlaw.

Sige, magsugid ka kay Erap
Agod mailisan ka eagi
It putting eambong
Ku mga eaki nga owa mo pa hikita.


Uuwi Na Ako

Uuwi na ako
Sa bahay naming see-through
Na malapit sa cell site
Ng isang cell phone company.

Babalikan ko na ang bunso ko
Hindi ko nga alam
Kung kilala pa niya ako
Dahil dumidede pa siya noon ng siya’y iwan ko.


Hindi ko rin nga alam
Kung kilala pa rin niya ang ama niya
Dahil laging sumusuray-suray
Kapag umuuwi ito.

Iiwan ko na ang entablado
Kung saan ang spot light
At neon lights ang humahaplos
Sa basa kong katawan
Kasabay ng pagdilat
Ng mga matang sabog sa wiski
At sa usok ng sigarilyo

Uuwi na kao.
Gusto ko ng marinig
Ang tinig ng bunso ko
At yakap niyang mahigpit.

Gustong-gusto ko na ring marinig ito
Sa bunso ko:
Inay, magsisimba tayo
Kasama ng Tatay ko.