Adobó Criollo

Canto a la angustia A mis ojos se acercan  días nublados, silenciosos espacios grises y azules intensos, enterrados simulacros de vida  vestidos de sin-nombres listos para la inevitable partida.  Ninguno queda vestido en diamantes. Ninguno salta la piedra de oro.  Ninguno empluma hojas de jade.  Todos se secan, se vuelven sal y polvo. Sin-nombres encarnamos otras serpientes y adornamos otras cotorras  con pieles de Santos.

Karlo Sevilla Dear Aesthete,  This Could Turn Deadly   You whisper to me that the lonely firefly that blinks and dives down the undergrowth is a teardrop of a broken star.   And this same night amidst the chaos, the infant’s soft laughter is the chimes of a miniature carillon — the last music her mother shall ever hear now that the martial knocks tremble the wooden door.   And you yourself have long realized that you will stand up against injustice no matter the cost, because the most beautiful thing in this life is to do what is right even at supreme sacrifice. © Karlo Sevilla Philippines  Karlo Sevilla of Quezon City, Philippines is the author of the full-length poetry collection “Metro Manila Mammal” (Soma Publishing, 2018) and the chapbook “You” (Origami Poems Project, 2017). Recognized among The Best of Kitaab 2018 and nominated twice for the Best of the Net, his poems appear in Philippines Graphic, Revolt Magazine, Radius, Ramingo's Porch, Unlikely Stories Mark V, Collective