Journeys by Peter La. Julian

Composed in 2010, Daldalliasat was read during the Baguio Panagbenga Flower Festival last February--at the Audio-Visual Room of the College of Social Sciences, University of the Philippines Baguio.

JOURNEYS/DALDALLIASAT

1.
This looking for the pot of gold
This looking for the rich gentlemen
This looking for the young years

In Darayday, Santa Maria and Gabu
This looking for another shore
Is it looking for what is not there?

2.
In Honolulu, did the sun set in the west?
Did you see the full moon at noon?
Were you looking for the bar girl
Or was it Baguio's naked shadow in a dump
At a Waimanalo back street?

Was the apparition at Halekulani
on the beach at Waikiki a memory
of the white sands of Saud in Pagudpud?

3. What did you say to him--the huge Polynesian
in rumpled coat- who begged for a dollar as you
stepped out of Dimsum after gorging on noodles
in the late hour?

Did you wave him away? Or was it the grease man
stretching his arms for alms on the pavement beside
the Catholic church along Quezon boulevard?



8.
Stop it! Stop it!
Was the Caucasian in red-blue jogging pants screaming?
Was she terrified of the camera aimed at a grove of pine trees
Disappearing in the mist behind her?
Or was it the hound dog barking in nightmarish dreams?

9.
Whatever, arise old friend, walk again
the meandering path home where waits
The New York Times' best seller: it is a must

Read tonight while brown men toil, their color
Turning bloody red in the sun in that sad country
Of shattered windows and vanished dreams.


Caption, from left to right and down: downtown LA, USA, shot from the 5th floor of Sinai-Cedars Hospital; Vivo city, Singapore; Burnham park, Baguio city during a Panagbenga parade; farmers harvesting rice in San Mateo, Isabela; stopping for gas on the way to Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Mandalay Bay, where Manny Pacquiao fought Oscar de la Hoya (middle photo).

JOURNEYS/DALDALLIASAT

JOURNEYS/DALDALLIASAT

1.
This looking for the pot of gold/Daytoy panagbirbirok iti sangamalabi a balitok/This looking for the rich gentleman/Daytoy panagbirbirok iti baknang a malalaki
This looking for the young years/Daytoy panagbirbirok kadagidi kinaagtutubo
In Darayday, Santa Maria ken Gabu/Idiay Darayday, Santa Maria ken GabuThis looking for another shore/Daytoy panagbirbirok iti sabali a sangladan Is it looking for what is not there?/Panagbirbirok kadi iti awan?

2.

In Honolulu did the sun rise in the west?/Idiay Honolulu, simmingising kadi ti init idiay laud?
Did you see the full moon at noon?/Nakitam kadi ti kabus a bulan iti agmatuon?
Or did you look for the bitchy word or was it/Binirbirokmo kadi ti narugit a balikas wenno
Baguio’s naked shadow in the garbage can/Ti lamolamo kadi nga anniniwan ti Baguio iti basuraan On a back street in Waimanalo?/Iti maysa a lengleng a kalsada idiay Waimanalo?

Was the apparition at Halekulani on the beach in Waikiki/Ti al-alia idiay Halekulani iti aplaya ti Waikiki/
A memory of the white sands of Saud in Pagudpud?/Lagip kadi iti napudaw a kadaratan idiay Saud, Pagudpud?


3.What did you say to him—the huge/Ania ti imbagam kenkuana—ti narungbo a
Polynesian in rumpled coat —who begged/ Polynesiano iti kunes nga amerikana —nga ikkam koma/
For a dollar as you stepped out of Dimsum/Iti doliar idi rummuarka iti Dimsum
After gorging on noodles in the late hour?/Kalpasan a nagarub-obka iti miki iti naladaw a rabii?
Did you wave him away? Or was it the grease man/Pinaidamam wenno adda iti isipmo ti grasa a tao
Stretching his arms for alms on the pavement beside/A mangitangtanggaya iti imana iti bangketa iti abay
The Catholic church along Quezon Boulevard?/Ti simbaan-Catolico iti igid ti Quezon Boulevard?
The Honda Civic waited for you near a lampost/Inuraynaka ti Honda Civic iti asideg ti pagsilawan/Until the moon closed the ancient eyes in Oahu's Chinatown./Agingga a nagkidem dagiti daan a mata ti bulan idiay Chinatown ti Oahu.

4.

And what did you say to her, who greeted you,/Ket ania ti imbagam iti babai a nangkablaaw kenka,/A smile breaking her Oriental face, as you jabbed at/Umis-isem iti Dumaya a rupa idinto a nagpiselka
Eggplants and okra and ampalaya among Asian greens/iti tarong, okra ken paria kadagiti nateng ti Asia At Dong Phoung’s Texas grocery in ? Did she make-believe/Iti groseria Dong Phoung idiay Texas? Namati nga awan duadua
You were the cousin lost in the Tet offensive?/A sika ti kasinsinna a napukaw iti rinnupak ti Tet?It was a day when the word was made flesh/Aldaw idi a nagbalin a lasag ti balikas
And you laughed—tears in your eyes-- as she babbled on, her verbs galloping/Ket nagkatawaka—agluluaka— iti tarabitabna, napartak dagiti balikasnaLike wild horses from the great plains of Amarillo to San Francisco./Kas kadagiti atap a kabalio nga ages-eskapi manipud kadagiti nalawa a tanap ti Amarillo agingga idiay San Francisco.

5.

So what will you write in 15 minutes on three ruled-pads?/Ania ngarud isuratmo iti kinse a minuto iti tallo a bulong ti kuaderno?
Just jot down anything that strikes your mind/Isuratmo laeng ti sumken iti riknamSays Ricky Lee echoing Julia Cameron the American writer ./Kuna ni Ricky Lee iti parmata ni Julia Cameron a Puraw a mannurat
(Silence has afflicted the brown brain—the poet is dead--/(Inarabas ti ulimek ti kayumanggi nga utek—natayen ti mannaniw--And death is interred among the bones of dried words.)/Ket naitabon ni patay kadagiti tulang dagiti kupag a balikas.)

6.

The TV was on and the bad man was cursing son-of-a-bitch/Agan-andar ti TV, agsinsinallit ti kontrabida, okinnana/We are in terrible danger and the wife was lying flat on the bed/Agpeggadtayo iti napalalo idinto a nakadata ti kasimpungalan iti katre Her eyes covered with round slices of cucumber and Juanjuan/Nakaluban dagiti matana kadagiti ilap ti pipino ket ni Juanjuan
Was by his lonesome playing Cordillera notes on his plastic flute/Agkubkubukob iti kuartona, ipatpatayabna dagiti samiweng ti Cordillera iti plastik a pitona.

7.

No more are the snows under the pinewoods/Awanen ti niebe iti sirok dagiti saleng
And so are the icy mornings and evenings at the lake/Kasta met dagiti nakalamlamiis a bigat ken sardam iti dan-aw
Where dwell a thousand white ducks and multi-colored flying geese/A naed rinibu a puraw a pato ken marisan nga agtaytayab a ganso
Now agitated as the black man throws bird food/Nga agar-arikiakkak idinto nga ipurpurruak ti nangisit a lalaki ti taraonda On the murky water at 10 the morning./iti nalibeg a danum iti alas dies ti bigat.

8.

Stop it! Stop it! Was the Caucasian lady in red-blue jogging jeans screaming?/Saan!Saan! Um-umkis kadi ti Caucasiana iti nalabaga-asul a pantalonna/Was she terrified of the camera aimed at the grove of pine trees/
Disappearing behind the mists/Mabuteng kadi iti kamera a naipaturong rimmuong dagiti saleng a langlangeban ti angep?Or was it a hound dog barking in nightmarish dreams?/Wenno nangngegmo’t taul ti mangnganup nga aso kadagiti bangungot iti rabii?

9.

Whatever, arise, my friend, and walk again the meandering path/Tumakderka, ketdin, gayyemko,unorem manen ti umuleg a dana nga agawid/
Home where waits the New York Times’ best-seller ./Iti balay a pagur-urayan ti numero uno a libro ti New York Times .

It is a must read tonight while brown men toil, their hue turning bloody red/Kasapulan a basaem ita a rabii bayat nga aguper iti taltalon dagiti kayumanggi a tattao a tumingtingra a dara ti kudilda iti init/
In the sun in the country of shattered windows and vanished dreams./ Iti naliday a pagilian dagiti narumrumek a tawa ken natungday nga arapaap.