Batanes

BATANES

I am a traveler

In my heart

To a place of sky and sea—

A sky so pure,

Deepest blue,

Sea, same color

As the sky—

Not so distant

As the farthest reaches

Of the earth or so

Inaccessible, yet

Sufficiently remote

So that solitude

Is a lone bird

Hovering

And silence

Is the expanse

Between two gray islands

Barely visible

As you stand

Atop a cliff

Dropping steeply

Down to shore.

Breakers whisper

As I breathe in sweet air.

Inhaling to my fill,

I lose all appetite

And dine on the wind.

No longer corporeal,

I am a subsistent soul.

Originally published in Magis: Official Publication of the Magis Deo Community (July 2014), page 12

Batan island, view overlooking the West Philippine Sea