Tell the children I’m afraid to die

Tell the children I’m afraid to die 

(A declamation piece from a distant memory)

Across the  Mindanao skies,
high above the plateaus of Bukidnon,
echoes a voice scared and trembling
from a creature fearing for its life.


“I am the guardians of the mountains.
On the tallest tree of Dalwangan is my lair,

Upon the tallest tree of Mt. Kitanglad,

I’ve built my nest, maybe my last.

If I lose it, my doom is near.

The dying of the trees is killing me like a knife!

Only then be the mourning or the sunset of my life.”

“From the air I’ve watched
the children of the valleys,
playing, laughing!

I watched them keenly with my eagle eyes
and hope starts burning softly, warmly
in my breasts like a kindling fire.

They’re the future!

They are my future!

Go! Tell the children I’m afraid to die!


Tell the children my life is linked,
with all the life in my forest home,
with the boar and the wild flowers;
the lawaan and the kalaw;
 and the fishes of the forest stream!

 Tell them that each blow of the logger’s axe,
chops of a post from my mountain home
and every bullet a hunter fires,
finds its way into my heart.
Tell them that when I die,
you’ll see a cloudless sky,
where I used to fly.

A thousand trees unmoored,
hauled by the greedy demons,
in shapeless coffins,
And a million creatures,
great and small, baking lifeless
 under the hostile sun, barren valleys,
 arid plains and waterless riverbeds.

Tell the children I’m afraid to die!
 Their hearts are soft,
their minds are young!
We must live together,
or together perish under the sun.
Tell them, that each tree they plant
becomes a new pillar of my mountain home
 and helps to make the rivers stay.
 Tell them that rivers water the land
and let it bear fruit for birds and man.

Tell them that clean air,
bright sunshine and cool refreshing rain
 gives life to everyone.

Let us teach the children
to build a world
that is safe for life.

A world, where we can live together,
you and I.

So speaks the eagle of Dalwangan and Kitanglad,
the eagle of Mindanao
with misty eyes.
We must let the eagle live and fly.

Life less Ordinary

 

Facing the public, I fear

And it all started from there

With a bold dream to conquer

An intellectual fighter

With hope, I start my journey

Of wit and audacity

Seven minutes, my speech shall take;

With a hard stand, I shall make.

I speak on behalf of them,

Whose justice is but a dream.

For those oppressed and helpless,

Every round won’t be pointless.

I will bluff when I need to

To convince them, I must do

In defending what I know,

It’s a chance I must not blow.

Matter, method and manner

As my weapon and armor

Aided by Athena’s wisdom,

Shall I stand in the podium?

“Hear, Hear!” That’s what I should hear,

It boosts me to hear that cheer.

“Shame, shame!” to a speech so lame,

Faulty logic is to blame.

I clap at those who beat me,

Proud to lose honorably,

Debate, you’re a vagary,

A life less ordinary.

Had it not been for Religion

 

If there were no religion, only humanity, the world could have been a better place. If there is only Humanitarian justice, no faith could cause biases and inequality. There could have been no faith to impregnate religious delusions which misled congregations.

If there were no religion, only humanity that uplifts the human instinct of self preservation, there could have been no holy wars to ignite terrorism- No Jihads, No Crusades.  There could have been no Al Qaeda to feed terror and trigger uncertainty in the middle of peace.  There could have been no sane person who got persuaded to be a suicide bomber and sacrifice himself for spiritual salvation.  There could have been no brotherhood (by faith) whose aim is to bring fear among innocents. Should that be the case, there will only be unity towards survival and prosperity. There could have been no global terrorism, had it not been for religion.

If there were no religion, only sincerity to serve humanity, there could have been no religious hypocrites in the politics, whose aim is to use religion as a way of winning the votes of the people.  There could have been no lay ministers whose actions contradict what they preach. There could have been no priests who assert that politics is dirty yet they engage into it.  There could have been no impostor who uses God’s name as an instrument to allure people, had it not been for religion.

If there were no religion, only exclusive humanitarian-statutory sovereignty, countries could have imposed laws that meet the needs of its people.  Had it not been for religion meddling with state affairs, the government could have approved legislations and actualized its full potential in serving the interests, safety and preservation of the citizens. There could have been no religious officials who take part in law-making while mitigating a potentially effective policy. There could have been a legal support towards capital punishment, euthanasia, divorce and contraception in the constitution to solve the quandary of overpopulation, crime, felony, hostility and poverty.  Death penalties could have minimized the overcrowding jails and made criminals hesitate to commit felony; Euthanasia could have cut down unnecessary medical expenses; divorce could have reduced a hostile family environment; and contraception could have prevented the birth of unwanted babies, reduced the number of hungry children and eventually, minimize poverty.  These dilemmas could have been solved long ago, had it not been for religion.

If there were no religion, there could have been no division among people. There could have been no confusion as to which belief guarantees salvation. There could have been no opportunistic individuals who establish their own religion to make money from while taking advantage of its followers’ twisted judgment.  There could have been no contradiction in ethical perceptions and a universal principle could have long been established, had it not been for religion.

If there were no religion, there could have been unity. There could have been no religious prejudices and no religious discrimination. No Muslims, no Christians. There could have been global cohabitation, just human beings living together in a society, had it not been for religion.

 (Disclaimer: The author has nothing against God/Allah or against any religion, but just the mere existence of religion itself)