Philippines Poem Novels & Stories

nang manatili siyang tahimik ay muling nagsalita ang binata. "Sige," ang sa halip ay isinagot ni Aria saka sinalubong ang maiitim na mata ng lalaki. Black eyes are natural to Filipinos. Although nowadays it seems that more of them have dark brown eyes, many Filipinos have a mix of other races, particularly the Spaniards who colonized the Philippines for three hundred and thirty-three years. And that is the reason Aria sees why her eyes and hair are brown. At iyon ang nakikitang dahilan ni Aria kung bakit brown ang kulay ng kaniyang mga mata maging ang kulay ng kaniyang buhok.

Even now that they are already in their seats, Daviah kept asking, and the way she talks really seems so mature. “Yes, Anak. The Philippines is beautiful, and for me, it’s one of the most beautiful countries in the world. I already told you, right? Doon ako lumaki, doon ako nag-aral, at doon din nagtrabaho si Mommy.” Malumanay na sagot ni Belinda at inayos ang buhok ni Daviah. Daviah innocently nodded, pero nakikita ang pagtataka sa mukha ni Daviah. Noong una, tahimik siya, pero napa-isip at ilang sandali ay sinulyapan ulit si Belinda.

Meaning ay may importanteng lakad na naman siya, saan naman kaya iyon. Tinignan ko ang oras at madaling araw palang pala. “Philippines,” simpleng pagtugon niya lamang sa akin kaya napakunot ako ng noo. Something popped up in my memory when I heard the country he will visit. “Are you, alright?” bigla itong lumapit nang makita niya sigurong nakahawak ako sa aking ulo. Tumango lang ako bilang pagtugon dito.

Unti-unti nang nawawala ang kumpyansa kong mananalo ako. "For the second place... August Clyde Dela Riva of Heinz International School." Nang tawagin ang pangalan ni August para sa second place ay nawala na talaga ang pag-asa ko. Sa tingin ko ay mukhang mas magaling talaga sa akin kaya ano pa kaya yung first placer na natalo siya? "For the first place and the champion of this year's Impromptu Speech..." nang banggitin iyon ay para na akong isang nalantang halaman. I slouched my back and looked down. I failed this---

giit ko habang tinitingnan silang dalawa. Nakukuha ko naman ang punto ni Tito. What will happen to my life and missions in this country if I move to the Philippines to hide? Because I'm going to hide, I feel like a chicken, and it appears that I'm wimpy. I didn't go through the trouble of training and putting in the effort to get here for nothing.

"Yes, sort of, Quil. But, it's Tagalog, it's a language from the Philippines. You know Philippines, right?" Tumango ito. "Yes, mother superior said it's a tropical group of islands, near Pacific ocean and I learned that Philippines has three main parts, the Luzon, the Visayas and the Mindanao. I wonder, how does Philippines look like." Dagdag pa nito. "Don't worry Quil, we will visit Philippines, soon." Sabi pa ni Mara rito. Ngiti lang ang isinagot ko sa kanila. Hindi kasi alam ni Mara na hindi na ako pwedeng bumalik sa Pilipinas, dahil sa paningin ng lahat ng tao doon, I am peacefully gone for once.

Napailing na lang ako at tinanggal iyon sa isip ko. Mabilis ang naging byahe. Hindi ko alam kung talagang mabilis ba o dahil lang subrang daming pumapasok ngayon sa isip ko kaya hindi ko namalayan. "This is my first time going here in the Philippines," nakangiting sambit ni Kirra, habang hila-hila ang maleta nito. "There's nothing special here, Kirra." "There is, Architect. Just like other people say, it's more fun here in the Philippines."

FEBRUARY 2024, PHILIPPINES "Seven billion people in the world. Seven continent. Seven-thousand-six-hundred-forty-one islands clustered into three major island groups: Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. Sa dinami-rami kong nakakasalubong na tao sa kalsada bawat araw sa Manila, ikaw pa 'yong taong nakilala ko out of nowhere. Sa dinami-rami na taong tinulungan mo, ako 'yong ma-swerteng taong hindi mo lang basta tinulungan; iniligtas at inahon mo pa ako sa kahirapan. Binigyan ng liwanag ang madilim kong mundo, at binigyan nang pagkakataon na mahalin ako at mahalin kita."

I still have to wait for that damn punishment before I can finally free myself from this damn life I am facing right now. "Do you want to go to another country?" she suddenly asked, still following me. I laughed because of her question. "As if I can go to another country without having you around me," I told her. The Philippines is not a bad country, after all. I like it here. I can speak their language if I want to. I just feel like I'm making their language suck if I use them.

Depths: 4 Hindi naging madali ang mga nakaraang araw sa pagpunta namin dito sa Manila. Lalo na noong paalis kami sa barrio. Kahit gaano katatag at desisido ka, mararamdaman mo ang kirot na makitang malungkot ang mga maiiwan mo. "Mag-iingat kayo doon ah" nanginginig ang boses ni Nanang Isa sa paalala kay Alen.