Writing

The Birdkeeper

My wife was a free spirit, an independent soul. She had an iron will and was used to carving her own path. When I met her, I wanted her, and she came to me, she came to love me… She went down to earth to meet me.

We built a home in the city, in a row of tightly connected houses inside a humble old subdivision. The weather was warm, so heavy, and so humid, but we dealt with it even if we complained daily. We raised our two children there. I also found a new hobby – keeping a group of doves that would daily fly out of five small holes from our balcony. They would launch over the basketball court in the middle of the subdivision, circle wide into the cloudy skies. After some time, they would come back with another loop in the air… (Read more)

The Heartsong

My father saw me in the crowd, ran up to me, and met me with a strong and hearty embrace.
His claws were velveted and his fur was comfort. (Like Aslan.)
My daughter! he shouted.
She’s come home!
The crowd applauded. But the orchestra kept on playing.
I’ve always been having this orchestra play for you, he said. I’ve conducted it and taught all the musicians to play my song.
It’s always playing for you. It came from my heart.

He opened up his coat and I could hear a separate noise from the orchestra. It was a song from my Father’s heart! It was like a little kitten starting to meow, and compelled by the music and his love, I put my ear to his chest to listen to it… (Read more)

The Day Everything Changed

This is an account of my experience during the earthquake on the 25th of April, which shook the nation of Nepal, and after, the world. This article was also published in the Filipino-Canadian magazine, “Absolutely Filipino”. 

It was a fine Saturday morning in the city of Kathmandu. Considering it was the only holiday everyone had in a week, a welcome breather for the youth who’d been burned out by studying and taking exams (as it was their gruelling Exam Month), and that, even though the upcoming summer was still giving us a cold shoulder, generally everyone was in a good mood.

I was at church, listening intently to an awesome sermon in our fairly small but wonderful congregation. It already felt like an amazing day, and I was looking forward to what else would unfold when we would go out into the city.

Then the earthquake came, and the whole city would never be the same again.
(Read more)