Neither Poem by RIC BASTASA

After the early morning mass
i walk towards home ahead
of the crowd.

alone i see for another time
the leaves of the mahogany trees
falling

the strong wind comes in
a sudden
i even had the fear that
one of the branches
may break and fall heavily
on the cemented pavement

i stop for a while watching
how the leaves fall
flip flopping
somersaulting
and finally landing on the
pavement
and still blown to the farther
side of the
road

i am reminded of so many things:

so many leaves, so many lives.
zamboanga seige, colliding boats
at sea in talisay,
landslide in sagada
bus falling in a ravine somewhere
in negros
gas poisoning in syria
helpless children
collateral damages on innocent
civilians
twisted governments serving for
the selfish ends of their leaders

so many things

and then i think that i do not
really belong here
i am not one of those who
plan an attack and make it appear
that it is necessary
for mankind to survive
neither am i one of those victims
who can do nothing but
cry in helplessness
and in due time
choose no action but simply to
forget

and begin again as though
nothing bad really happened.