Published January 15th, 2024
Under 25 Poetry Contest #5 – First Place
by Julia Ongking
you feed us words that make us swallow your
mistakes. my lolo
wails in the middle of the night
gurgling seawater
scraping blistered gums
scratching and scratching and scratching
he stirs, again cocooned within the coolness of virgin soil
remnants of his father's paddy – gropes a brother's necrotizing body
a singular, dappled narra flower caresses naked feet
he blinks &
a cube of ice is tied to a first-time mother's bloated belly
from under skin, frost blooms like a failed revolution,
forever crystallizes a membrane-bound baby the woman
is muted by grief &
i realize we have forgotten to name this brother now hell-bound
while i castrate myself in an appeal for forgiveness
lolo creases himself before a set of decapitated arms
arranged in the shape of a cross
recites a prayer &
in god's name! No.
the americans have arrived! No.
aguinaldo’s men to be crushed! No.
the americans have liberated us! No.
you have buried our voices. Buried amongst
the corpses you hid inside rolling Visayan hills &
Choked with the rasping confessions of newly-minted
murderers & Drowned alongside savage
revolutionaries & Misplaced within history books
in the name of modern philippineaamerican diplomacy
& Left unpublished to honor an unremembered
insurgency.
tonight, my mother decides to put her father to sleep.
About the Poet
Julia Onking resides in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines.
Read the poet's biography on Julia Ongking's Artist Page.
Next in Wax Mag #3:
Remain True to the Earth
by Nutmeg Hill
Back to Wax Mag #3
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