Touching the earth

 

pencil drawing, calbayog city, 2025

There are people who deprive themselves of everything.  And they never realize it.

We visit my wife's family in a little village deep in the mountains.  At night the mountain sky is clear, and i gaze up into the stars.  I imagine the universe in all its immensity.  Endless galaxies floating in space, like gems suspended in crystal.

The universe has no system of checks and balances.

There is no recourse for life wasted.

I wake up to the sound of roosters.  Dawn's gentle light whispers in through bamboo slats.  Everyone else is asleep on the mat, piled together, Filipino style.

I heat water and make my morning coffee.

The day's sweetest moment.

Caybago, 2025