The Invisible Battle for Normalcy

So this quote from Albert Camus popped up on my Facebook feed:

"Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal."

And I thought nah, there are a few who realize it. They just choose to ignore the silent battle raging in front of them. Because if they acknowledged it, what then? They couldn't do a damn thing anyway. The spectacle of this struggle for the "normalcy" that society imposes embarrasses them. So instead of asking about your emotional and psychological state, they just respond to your overly enthusiastic smile with a bright hello, followed by an excruciating small talk.

Baybayin: Isang Pagpaniwalag

Mga kaibigan,

Nais ko lamang ibahagi itong mumunting karunungan:
Ang tawag po sa ating pre-Filipino writing ay Baybayin, hindi Alibata.
Alam kong ang karamihan ay tinatawag itong Alibata -- isa rin ako sa mga taong iyon noon. Hindi maiiwasan na talagang may mga maling impormasyon tayong masasagap. Pero pakiusap, ngayong alam nyo na, wag nyo nang gamitin ang nasabing misnomer. Lalong-lalo na pag nakikipag-usap kayo sa'kin. :)

Kapag nais pa ninyo ng dagdag na kaalaman, basahin ang sumusunod. Ito ay isang screenshot ng About page ng baybayin.com, ang website ng isang kilalang tagataguyod nga baybayin sa Amerika at pati na rin dito sa Pilipinas. Ang website na ito ay isang mainam na simula kung nais ninyong makipagsapalaran tungo sa importanteng bahagi ng ating kasaysayan at kultura. 🐥

Para sa Minamahal Kong Pagong

Aking bitwin
Mga ngiting dala'y hangin
Init ng pangungulila'y pawiin

Wag mag atubiling suyuin
Itong pusong nabibitin

Halina't hagkan aking damdamin
At nawa'y iyong dinggin
Mga tulang ginugunita ang 'yong ningning

Mga Hinaing at Pagsusumamo

Nais kong makita
Ang kislap ng iyong mga mata.
Ako'y nangungulila
Sa iyong mga tawa.
Nakikinig ka ba
Sa aking pagsinta?
Nawa'y ako'y iyong magunita
Sa tuwing mabasa itong tula

Pagka-inip at Kamatayan

Buhay.

Ano ang silbi ng buhay
Kung ang aking pagkatao'y
Binabalot ng dilim at ginaw?
Ang aking puso ay lumulutang
Sa walang hanggang kawalan.

Kawalan.

Walang laman ang aking kalooban.
Ako ay naglalakad patungo
Sa isang kinabukasang walang saysay.

Naglalakad. Naghihintay.

Sa kamatayan na magpapalaya
Sa aking nagliliyab ng pighati.

When I Went to a Poetry Reading Event, Prepared a Poem, and Was Too Gutless to Read in Front of an Audience

What the fuck is new, right?
This is the same, old bullshit about paranoia and anxiety attacks.
I bet anyone will be tired of reading about them.
Hell, I'm tired of writing about them.
But they hold me in a tight grip, and I'm too tired to fight them off.

So instead of taking advantage of the open mic and reading my poem, I recorded it in a video, hours after the event, in the safety of my room---where my friends, panic and doubt, are kept at bay.

I should have read my poem on that stage.
I should have. :/
Sigh.

World Poetry Day 2016

I'm late. Again. What can I do? I procrastinate.
And it's not like I have followers, so it won't make any difference if I'm on time or not.

Anyway, as the title promptly provided, this post is for World Poetry Day--which was yesterday. But since it's still March 21 in some parts of the world, I think this tardiness isn't such a grave offense. Anyway, no use explaining. Here are the links to the poems I made in the days preceding World Poetry Day: Of Supernovas and Parallel Universes, Merong Alak at Pulutan, and Tanaga Para Kay Lara. The last one is dedicated to my ate and guru/sensei in the workplace, Lara Francheska. She's leaving for a new company soon. TT

I also tried spoken-word poetry for the first time! Yay! It's titled This Is What I Think When I Talk to People. Please be kind when watching my piece. :)

So, I guess that's it. Hope my pieces have touched you somehow. <3