By the Jal-o River

A small leopard cat (marae), Photo credit: scuba schnauzer @ Flickr Sleep is elusive tonight. Night owls are hooting in some distant trees. My mind wonders into some undetermined nest where some undetermined numbers of small leopard cat kittens remained restless waiting for their mother to return. Early this morning, Dodoy Pusit reported that a carcass of an adult small leopard cat (Marae) was lying in the middle of the highway just across my place. I was busy to give it a look. I just instructed the reporter to take a shovel and bury the dead wildcat. Now, as I lie down on my back in my bed tonight, Hypnos failed to pay me a visit. My mind worries about the missed chanced of getting to know the thief of my rabbits--are Marae keen of eating rabbits? My neighbors claimed that they prefer wild fruits-- bili, santoe, anungaw-tungaw, pakoe . I worry too what will happen to its brood. Dodoy described the remains to be that of a female one on lactating stage. She was trying to cross

I had bonding moments with my tres marias the other night. We watched the film adaptation of the musical, Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice on our video player. As expected, the film elicited questions--more innocent yet incisive questions, I believe, and I had a hard time answering all. We failed to see it to the end as the DVD malfunctioned. But I was personally contented as I managed to meet my objectives and subtly explained to them the meaning of the Palm Sunday event as the triumphant entry of a uique king riding on a donkey. Ham-an, Tay, it naakig si Judas kay Kuya Jesus? (Why is Judas angry of Jesus?) , came the first question by the youngest.  My childish approximation went like this: See the pouch tied on Judas waist? He's the treasurer and the business manager of the apostles. He carried the money and was the one accepting donations for the group.  Judas was a man of great consequence. He wanted to be relevant. He was mad at them and at

Anu ro ing nabatyagan nga hibasa mo ra sa imong kaugalingon nga hambae? Pilang beses ka eon nakakita it Akeanon nga blog o website iya sa internet umpisa nga nag-antigo ka mag-surf?  Kon igaimplementar eon rong Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) iya sa aton, Hiligaynon eon man kita ay owa 't a naeakot rong Akeanon sa 12 ka major languages nga pagagamiton kung DepEd.   Kat naga-eskwela ako sa Manila, malipay ang buot kun makabati ako it aton nga hambae ag bisan pa nga owa ku makilaea rong naga-estorya, ginapresentar ko kanda nga haeubtan ko rong andang gina-estoryahan. Akeanon gid nga eae-ag, kon kay Ka Roger pa. Daea kong kahidlaw ag kung bugae nga ikapakilaea sa iba nga ako hay tumandok it Akean ag kaliwat ku 10 nga Datu it Madyaas (Panay)  , nga ako hay nagadam-os it buling sa uyahon, nagasad-sad sa kalye kon makabati ku patik it tamboe ag nagapanaad kay Sto. Niño. Ngani nga sa seminaryo, bisan pa nga ako man lang rong Akeanon nga hanueod ag bisan pa nga

I have been fascinated by the manner John Michael Talbo t interprets pieces of those great men and women of the faith. He is gifted with such contemporary aura and creativity to attract the attention of the younger generation to take a third look --or rather to lend their ears, into the rather "obsolete" and unattractive works of the rather "conservative tradition" of the Roman Catholic Church. Below is a sample which will surely evoke something of the romantics out there. The poem is by Juan dela Cruz , a Spanish Carmelite mystic who lived around the time Ferdinand Magellan set foot in Mactan. The cut is entitled, "Where Have You Hidden" from JMT's 1990 Album, " Meditations from Solitude ." Also, herewith are some additional links which you may find relevant: On St. John of the Cross  On St. Teresa of Avila  Works of St. John of the Cross The Music of John Michael Talbot

Villa Consuelo, c. 1990 Recuperating. Reading a lot. Meditating in silence in a solitary place and yet in communion with all. Searching. Remembering a path once trodden by. Retracing and going further beyond and into the cloud of unknowing.   Trappist Abbey, Guimaras

WHAT you got with this equation: Nong Alex (God bless his soul) + Tay Seth + Ramly? Not Descartes. Not Einstein. Only a true blue Baleten-on can answer that. A yellow-bellied whistler (pilago) perching on a tree.        Name calling is one of the pastimes in rural Balete. It is not argumentum ad hominem per se but is typically a form of gut level communication between friends who wish to strengthen their bonds. Take for instance the late Nong Alex, Tay Seth and Ramly. On lazy afternoon in March of 1998, their paths crossed along M. Calizo St. From a distance, Nong Alex called out addressing no one, " Tong! " The perceptive Tay Seth responded in amusement, " Agoooo!, Agoooo! " " Tong!" Tong! ", Nong Alex rebutted. Ramly, who was setting beside me in one of the park bench (read: wall) as we waited the day to pass us by, suddenly interjected in jest, " Haron eon man kamo! " (There you are again!).        Wrong timing. Sun Tzu sag

Amor meus, pondum meum . (St. Augustine) WE ARE forever seeking something to satisfy our desires. That's our nature. We are endowed with a heart that is always restless and desirous. Our heart is a river, constantly flowing, ever changing. Those that have settled down are not actually settled down but have surrendered their desire to something lower than what they truly desire. But there are those whose hearts are aflame and seized the grace by letting the fire purify their hearts of their excess baggage. Then the wings of flame carry their restless hearts to where their treasures lie . There they settle, aflame but restless no more.