*Note this poem is in Tagalog
Wala ang buwan nang siya’y makita
Lalaking apoy ang iniluluha
Ako’y lumapit at inalam ang dahilan
Ito ba’y luha ng kalungkutan?
O kapootan?
Siya’y walang katugonan
Sa’king bawat pagtatanong
Kanyang naglalagabgab na pagluha’y humahalik sa lupa
Sa akin, naghari ang pagtataka
Aking pagkatakot, kanya bang iniisip?
Sa pula’t makinang na lawa
Sa kadiliman ng kalawakan
Ipinagkait niya sa’kin yaring kasagutan
At ninais na ako’y lumisan
Ngunit nais kong malaman
Iba’t ibang uri ng kalungkutan
Iba’t ibang uri ng kapootan
O maaaring ito’y iba’t ibang uri ng kagalakan
Itim niyang mga mata’y sa akin tumama
Bumuhos ang apoy at diniligan ang lupa
Pinahid niya nang walang katapusan
Hanggang sa liwanag ay gumuhit sa abot-tanaw
Sa isang iglap, siya’y naglaho
Tanging pulang lusak
Ang patunay ng kanyang paglisan
Bukas ako’y babalik
At kapag gabi ay dumating
Lalaki’y aking tatanungin
Ano’ng dahilan ng ‘yong mga luha
=—————=
English Version
It was a moonless night when I saw him
The man who cried fire
I went up to him and asked why
Were they tears of sadness?
Or anger?
He did not reply
The more I asked
The more fire fell from his eyes
And I began to wonder
Does he think I am frightened?
By the pool of glittering red
By the darkness of the night sky
He would not give me an answer
And sought to push me away
But I needed to know
There were different kinds of sadness
Different kinds of anger
And maybe even different kinds of joy
He looked at me with his jet black eyes
Pouring flames onto the ground
He wept for several eternities
Until the light broke from the horizon
And in an instant he was gone
With only a puddle of red
As evidence of his passing
Tomorrow I will return
And the night after that
To ask the crying man
What is behind his tears
=——————-=
Inongok Illustration by Joshua Hamangal
IG: https://www.instagram.com/
