Finding Home

My cup of Mt. Kitanglad A delicious lightness to the palate Easing my way to good 'ol Monday Sweet potatoes steaming Spinach, basil Fresh eggs Birds serenading my early morning My notepad and pen Scribbling in purple ink like a six-year old just learning the tripod grip, skills that are finite. Silence Absence Laughter Joy Insight-- Where I am is where I'm supposed to be. And how beautiful it is. As beautiful as friends turning into family, Places that we take with us, Become a part of us Filling the spaces Creating some more Expanding our universes And making it small. Darkness, one that is necessary For light to Break through. This. This moment as I write.  I do not know a great many things But this, All this I do know to be true. (Photo taken at Visayas State University, Baybay City, Leyte)

The sun is out. The sky has cleared. It is time to go for a walk. Let's go walk, Garret, I say to him. He quickly comes to me and we go out the gate. He smiles as he holds my arm. The wind is soothing. Everything is quiet. The sun is beautiful like a shy orb getting ready to descend to her resting place. Do I pause in my tracks and take a photo? I decide not to. How about if I just soak it all in, commit everything to memory? Presence. My little boy's hand on my arm. The priceless smile on his face. His gentle singing. The birds singing with him. Presence. The moon appearing early. Our footsteps on the asphalt. The wind on our cheeks. A cow mooing nearby. Look, Garret, "Cow." He replies crisp and clear, "Cow." Presence.  Breathing. Joy on my son's face as he looks at me and says, "Walking." Breathing some more. Presence. To see and marvel at the curiosity and wonder on my son's face as the sun finally descends to her resting place

"Love is in the small things." Brewing beans In the early hours Pouring it into your cup A towel for your bath Fixing me breakfast-- toast buttered to perfection Spur of the moment Drive into our favorite city Savoring the sea and sky Our shared silences Taking our boys for a ride Here, there, anywhere Moon finding Sun chasing Morgan on your shoulders Garret singing, I love you, you love me... The shirt you gave me That says, "Nothing worth it is easy" Yet the small things are Don't forget Love is not the magnanimous But the ones that are minute That when piled one on top Of the other Become large.