Sunday, December 12, 2010

On Blossoming

Isang tula galing sa makatang si Louise Gluck



The Red Poppy

The great thing
is not having
a mind. Feelings:
oh, I have those; they
govern me. I have
a lord in heaven
called the sun, and open
for him, showing him
the fire of my own heart, fire
like his presence.
What could such glory be
if not a heart? Oh my brothers and sisters,
were you like me once, long ago,
before you were human? Did you
permit yourselves
to open once, who would never
open again? Because in truth
I am speaking now
the way you do. I speak
because I am shattered.


***

Sobrang floored ako nung una ko 'tong nabasa. As in yung napanganga ako sa putanginang ending ni Gluck, ang ganda-ganda kasi. Yung collection to which this poem belongs ("The Wild Iris") won a pulitzer and why shouldn't it? Nagtatalaban kasi yung mga tula, hindi lang sila mga cinollect na tula page after page. Yung lugar mo bilang tao napapagitna sa engagement between plants, gardener/god, snake, etc. (sorry walang zombies)

Naalala ko bigla itong tula na'to kasi last night I was lucky enough to be in the company of people whom I can relate to in an unprecedented way. Some of those things I never thought I could voice out or share, nagawa kong sabihin out loud. (Ang tawag don Peer Pressure, haha)

Naramdaman ko ulit na teka may puso nga pala ako, and of course, not just in a romantic way.


When I read this poem again just this morning, it felt different this time, parang naglimpse ko lalo yung multiplicity ng meaning ng tulang ito. Right now, I've never been happier to say that yes, I too am shattered.

And not in an emo, blade-on-the-wrist way. Wasak.

3 comments:

  1. hahaha hindi mo talaga ako pwedeng isabak sa mga ganito. mahina talaga ako sa mga matatalinhagang salita. mas nacocomprehend ko more ang visuals than texts. kaya hindi ako mahilig magbasa.hahahaha

    kaya wala akong maisagot sa literature class namin nung nag-aaral pa ako.wahahahaha

    but anyways, although may naintidihan akong konti, but i'll keep it for myself nalang baka mali din.lol

    ReplyDelete
  2. btw, you can visit Pulsar's blog. magkakaintidihan kayo for sure. i recommend his blog and writing. :)

    http://pulsargravity.wordpress.com/

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hindi naman ito classroom kaya ok lang magshare kyle!
    Sige nga at mabisita rin ang blog nya, thanks sa recommendation.

    ReplyDelete