for year-long winters

you twinkle light, you twinkle bright

a glowering gas ball of infinite might!

the cusp of clarity caves, the crispness

curves tonight.

you cup me and swallow me,

you tickle me with delight. i thought i saw

(i thought you said)

today is not the end.

i toil with you, i toy with you

for no particular reason i remain

as if tomorrow proves, it breeds into

a herd of oxen in your domain.

(i thought i said)

your heart would, your heart would not

meld with metal like a stroke of luck.

as ridicule, as minuscule,

a decant of my sorrow, would breed not.

where my love is placed,

save me! i say, may the goat pass your way.

these are the middle struggles

for my earth-borne summers

as there are parapets and amulets

for year-long winters.

Paradise...

Up till now, I've been playing The Beach soundtrack hits in my head. Coron island in Palawan is just beyond magical. It is so beautiful there it's frightening because of its seeming perfection. Nothing compares, except maybe El Nido which I've yet to see, also located in Palawan. I wanna retire here. At the age of 30.

My officemates asked me how come I didn't bring them any souvenirs when I got back to Manila. I couldn't explain to them -- there's really nothing to bring back from Palawan except beautiful pictures and a mental imprint of almost being touched by eden. I couldn't bring them the experience of snorkeling through deep water with the current going opposite directions and "trofical pish" nipping at pieces of bread, the fear of being blown astray while on a rickety bamboo raft, or how one can exfoliate using polished coral and shell sand that feels like powder on one's feet. I couldn't give them the kind of water, so clear you can see the bottom even when it's 20-30 feet deep. I could not bring them the the stories we talked about, the laughter we shared while eating kilawing tanigue, the exhaustion of walking 700 steps to reach a cross-bearing summit, or the nudging we did inside the van on the way back to the airport.

I only have beautiful pictures, beautiful friends in those pictures ... and this blog entry.