Once when I was a child
I wondered what it was to be wild
To live in the forests and in the trees
To befriend the boars and the bees
It was then I ran away
In my heart to seize the day
I made my way to the bamboo grove
And I imagined what treasure trove
It would be when I came running
But to my surprise what I found stunning
Was that the forest was not what I thought
And in my fear I had found myself caught
In the creeping darkness of the night
My heart was filling with fright
It was then something moved
By the bushes so I removed
Myself from the sound
I wished then that I would be found
By my family or someone I knew
But the sounds were following me so I flew
To the edges of the forest to my home
I soon realized I wasn’t alone
For a creature, large in size appeared
Though strange, it was not as I feared
It did not lunge or claw
It did not bite or gnaw
It just stood there watching
In a manner that appeared wanting
So I ran back away from the trees
Knowing that this would not have a reprise
I tried to wave goodbye when I looked behind
But the creature was not there, and I resigned
To remember its long white beard
Its large eyes and black fur, how they appeared
And as I lay in my bed
Full of thoughts within my head
I thank the lord for my family and home
For it is here I will never be alone
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Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Inspired by the Kulariut legends from Pampanga
Ugkoy Illustration by Charles Breiner A Medina
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