a stranger |n my own cOuntry

stranger in your own country

Arvin Escatron — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 18:51:19 +0000

Panglao Island, Bohol; photography: RV Escatron

You travel every chance you get.

The backpack gathers dust not from storage but from endless commute from place to place, island to island. Through the window of the plane, the windshield of the bus or the upper deck of the ship you stare at nothingness and frame the experience. And assure your self that there is much to see and explore.

It started out as a backseat ride to the farm in your childhood that became a wellspring of what you aspire for. In spite of yourself, you plant the sea and the land beyond that. You try to map that world. And build beaches, waves, surf and huts more than streams and mountains.

There was a time when the sea, your ally, betrayed you. You vowed never to travel again in monsoon but ended up tweaking it anyway. Because in your head, in these travels, you are one with yourself and you discover that you can be a stranger in your own country.

Last Trip and other poems

Arvin Escatron — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:11:00 +0000

Kamalig ni Lena

Arvin Escatron — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 10:29:20 +0000

Ang hinaling timailhan nga takna na

Sa ilang panag-uban sa lipak nga higdaanan

Duyog sa pagsalup sa adlaw ang pagkamang

Sa asu—kini nangagni aron paga-tambalan

Ang gihidlaw niya’ng kaunoran

Duyog sa pagkagay sa alkansiya

Nga dugay na niya’ng gitapigan,

Ang pag

gay

day

Sa mabugnaw nga dila ni Lena

Gahinay-hinay pag

daus

Sa iyang gabaga nga lawas

Nga gipa-ud sa amakan

hilit

Niining lawud

Sa ilang kamingaw