"The Quarter Bringeth"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I would have closed my eyes
but then I could not
I clench my fist instead
and see all the things that are not
II
A quarter left of my time
And I am still mired
Listening to the same things
And hoping that it will be fine
III
People can't change they say
So I expect the chaos to erupt soon
A little more , A little More
We'd hear so much howling to the moon.
Optum, Quezon City. September 1 , 2021. 6:30am
"The 31st"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
So what is holding me back?
Not my age , Not my skill
Not the way I think
Not the way I kill
II
I fathom this question
Completed all that I have asked of me
My Muse beckons for another round
And I cannot refuse this fee
III
I look at the chains and I smile
I move a little and they crumble aside
So what is holding me now?
Nothing Nothing I cannot abide.
Optum , Quezon City. August 31 , 2021. 12:47am Poem 31 of 31.
"The Path of Each"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Not all of us run the same pace
Not all of us run on the same path
Some move as fast as they can
Cut by countless blades of grass
II
Some move across gravel ,
bruised by each step they take
Some run and some stumble
maybe even hitting the unsurmountable wall
III
Some stay unmoving on their hills
And let the others pass them by
Just breathing one at a time
Not lifting a finger or a sigh.
Optum , Quezon City. August 31 , 2021. 12:42am Poem 30 of 31.
"Though Bound and Gagged"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Somewhere in the corner
Is a loud voice gagged and bound
It looks concerned
but cannot make any sound
II
There in the corner
Where I have put this instinct on hold
Fear reaches out to save my life
But I try to bury it some more
III
Self preservation , Anxiety
Bound and gagged but creeping inside of me
Desperation , Unknowns
The questions that never flee.
Optum , Quezon City. August 30 , 2021. 10:50pm. Poem 29 of 31.
'Word Fails"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
When words fail
And I cannot find the right things
I look at you
And fail miserably anew
II
Why smile at me
When I make you cry all the time?
And this life I lead with you
Seems like someone's nightmare come true
III
Why make my life worth living
When I am eventually going to fade
You smile at me
And the words again they fail
Optum, Quezon City. August 28 , 2021. 4:41am Poem 28 of 31.
"Considered and Done"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
"Save me I am drowning!"
That Voice called out to me
I reached out there in the darkness
But I found that I was drowning as well
II
I should have been a better swimmer
I should have known all there is to know
I should have been able to help
Instead of just letting go
III
So there I was paddling on
With the Sharks circling around me
All I can count on is myself
I stop apologizing for the old me.
Optum , Quezon City. August 27 , 2021. 11:27pm. Poem 27 of 31.
"When One is Wrong and Right"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Everyone is right
And Everyone is wrong
Ask each side
To see what is going on
II
Yet there are better answers
To better questions
Spouted out by the more charismatic
Shouted out by seeming lunatics
III
What are are arguments?
When you can shout over your opponents
What is logic?
When you shoot your foot in the process?
The Gatehouse Loft , Valenzuela City. August 26, 2021. 5:08am Poem 26 of 31.
"It that Beckons"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
There is a line here
Invisible between us where we stand
Despite being so near
I can't even hold your hand
II
You whisper softly
Cross it , Here I am
But when I do it
You are nowhere to be found
III
So I stand here on my side
Looking at your loveliness
Hearing your soft voice
Just witnessing your mirage
Optum, Quezon City. August 25 , 2021. 2:19am. Poem 25 of 31.
"The Hope of Fools"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
It will be my secret
This Cough , This Cold , This Fever
I will keep my distance to touch
I will be silent.
I will not sniffle.
II
I will keep on talking
To all of my team mates
Eat with them as if I feel nothing
Even if I can't taste this food I am eating
Nor smell the perfume I am wearing.
III
Yes I will keep this up
I have to keep on working
I have mouths to feed
I have people who depend on me
No one will know
I am sure no one will notice.
Optum , Quezon City. August 24 , 2021. 3:25am Poem 24 of 31.
"Raging Still Until the Lights Go Out"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Live as if it is your last day
While many will be called into action
There are a few who will lay their and wait
There will be those who accept their fate
II
There are some with no questions
And there will be those who ask.
Can I still fight this?
Can I exit at my own terms?
III
Is it finally written
This end that I was told
There are those who escape death
And grow to be so old
IV
Like like there is no tomorrow
I will not lay here and die
I will not accept the words of fate
I will not accept this fate of lies.
Optum , Quezon City. August 23, 2021. Poem 23 of 31.
"Those Who Stand For Nothing."
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Funny how you say those lies
With a straight face all the time
And I am mortified by the number of teeth
Who threaten to bite into my flesh
II
Buried in the fancy words
Are threats and other unimaginable things
Sprouting like flowers of death
the promise that will come in the end
III
And I stand there listening
To every little thing you say
Just another one of the many bystanders
Of these our dying days.
Optum , Quezon City. August 23,2021. 11:04pm Poem 22 of 31.
"Opening The Dams"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
We are all drowning
And as people cry out for help
The people who should help
Have now opened up the stream
II
They have freed the water
From the Dam it was held
And have now attempted to drown
A village already submerged
III
And Some of the people
Though dying still give praise
The water is for me they say
As if they can still be saved.
Optum , Quezon City. August 21 2021. 2:2am. Poem 21 of 30.
"The Sleepiness Sets In"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
How many times did I nod?
In front of this blank screen.
Thinking that my thoughts would type itself
through some forces unseen
II
And how many times has the time gone
when I felt that there were some left?
The Night was Rising when I came
And the Sun Rises from where I went
III
The minutes trickle away
as well as the mind that considers it.
Dripping into unconsciousness
and Writing less and less about it.
The Gatehouse Loft. Valenzuela City. August 19 2021. 4:50am. Poem 20 of 31.
"The Flash in Memory Lane"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I stood there across the street
Right from where you are
And I thought you would smile
I was fooling myself for awhile
II
And it came rushing back to me
That life that we thought we made
And it all crashing to me
That it was all unmade
III
So I crossed the street
Right in front of you
Not burning in that white rage
But safe in the knowledge that memories fade.
Optum. Quezon City. August 18 , 2021. 7:33am Poem 19 of 31.
"Not Coffee"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
What am I drinking?
In this cup that I brewed
Not coffee for sure
I have not been this awake before
II
I now understand
why I seem to stand still
while all around me
everyone like flies in a field
III
This crackling power
Unleashed in a cup
Maybe just maybe
because it is my 3rd one.
Optum. Quezon City. August 18 2021. 6:45am Poem 18 of 31.
"So I didn't"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
For Awhile I was afraid
That I could not stitch two words together
That my sentences would crumble when I write
That the ashes I was tasting were the words in my mouth
II
And more and more I let that doubt creep there
As I kept misspelling words that I knew
And the words were slowly fading out
Long before I can write them as a whole
III
Then one day in all this madness I said
I am writing for my pleasure
And my audience first and foremost was myself.
So why hesitate? When things go bad
So why hold of? When not all things are at hand.
So I didn't.
Optum, Quezon City. August 17, 2021. 10:38pm Poem 17 of 31.
"Nang Bumaba Siya sa Clinic"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
"Pinababa po ako dito"
"Masakit ang ulo ko"
Ano pa po ang nararamdaman?
"Wala nang lasa't pangamoy"
II
Dali dali sa isolation
Nailagay at kinausap
Kailan mo pa naramdaman ito?
"Matagal na , Nung Biyernas pa po,"
III
"At ilang tao ang iyong nakausap?"
"Nakasama sa hapag kainan?"
"Nakayosi? Nakatsismisan?"
"Nahalikan at Nahingahan?"
IV
"Marami po. Marami po."
Sinabi mo na may pagsisi.
Di po nila alam
Sana po ay wag niyong sabihin.
V
Kailangang sabihin. Kailangang malaman
Maaapektuhan ang kanilang kabuhayan
Maapektuhan ng dalawang linggo
At sana nga yun lang ang matatamaan.
Optum. Quezon City. August 17 2021. 2:24am Poem 16 of 31.
"Existence in that Grey"
By:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I awake in darkness
You awake in light
Opposites of the spectrum
Worlds separated by the night
II
And I thought it impossible
To meet someone like me
Living on that other side
But there you exist.
III
Then I realized the little grey
Where the worlds collide
I exist there and so do you.
For a little while I know it will do.
The Gatehouse Loft, Valenzuela City. August 15, 2021.8:32pm. Poem 15 of 31.
"A Question of Chaos"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I always liked placing ,
My foot in front of the other, that was me.
Not rushing towards where I want to be.
II
I would shut my mouth
And cycle through a thought
Before letting out a burst of filtered truths.
III
Yet lately my thoughts run amok
And I find my erratic runs toward you.
What in hell did you just do?
Optum , Quezon City. August 14, 2021. 1:30am. Poem 14 of 31.
"Number"
By:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr. MD
I
Sure it is just a number
But what has caught your minds eye?
That keeps you thinking of things
"I am not scared ", You lie.
II
So why are you too careful
When a Friday falls on this date?
"Oh you never know", you answer.
"One should never tempt fate"
III
Surely you have considered
All of the stories you have heard.
There are more numbers out there
More that you should be fearing instead.
The Gatehouse Loft , Valenzuela City. August 13, 2021. 8:42am. Poem 13 of 31.
"Accept"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
How many slumbering graves must I wake?
Till I get you to notice.
How many fates must I reverse?
For you to know that I am here.
II
If the Chaos can't hold you
If the changes are too slow
I am this existence
And I will let you know
III
That time holds no meaning
Where I can take you
And I am all you will need
All you have to do is say so.
The Gatehouse Loft , Valenzuela City. August 12 , 2021. 5:58am . Poem 12 of 31.
"The Burns"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
No One Asked You
Thing is No One asked them either
Living on the same planet
Breathing the same Air
Yet the Arguments continue
Without a second to spare
II
You do not represent me
Neither are you the end of it all
It feels like when we say things
We all end up in a free fall.
III
And people who pile on the flames
Rejoice when the person is up in smokes
Nothing is corrected
Nothing is solved
Just another smoldering ash
Where an opinion once stood.
Optum , Quezon City. August 11 , 2021. 2:31am. Poem 11 of 31.
"The Reason for Pain"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Why do people chase pain?
The Child asked the elder
Because sometimes Pain is where they live
The Elder Answered.
II
Because the dull becomes sharp
And they breathe a little better
when that knife is pointed
a little deeper on their sides
III
Chasing pain because it is the only way
That some feel alive in this existence
And to not feel that pain
Is to die an excruciating death.
Optum, Quezon City. August 10 , 2021. 6:23am. Poem 10 of 31.
"The Rise of the Phoenix"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Do you know where you'd find me?
Burning Bridges , Razing Paths
Consuming all the flames of the Earth
Till I can sate my Wrath.
II
It all comes easy
I don't even need to try
I have been alone in my darkness
I now open my eyes
III
And see the world burn
like it has never burned before
I feel the tender flames
Warm my once cold soul.
Optum , Quezon City. August 9,2021. 11:33pm . Poem 9 of 31.
"The Coward"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I relied on your self preservation
but it can only go as much
It goes the way of the dinosaurs
when things are on the line
II
Oddly enough it was you who begged
to be spared until the end
Yet the actions you showed
well misled me then and again
III
So it is much as your fault
As it is mine
when the life that I spared in you
is something I now took.
Optum. Quezon City. August 9 2021. 9:51pm. Poem 8 of 31.
"ECQ Season 3 Day 1"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr,MD
I
Will I let it crush me this time?
And extinguish my hope.
Would I ever let it
put me down in that hole?
II
Will I let this sinking feeling
sink me even deeper in this depth?
Will I let this darkness consume me
like it did the previous year?
III
I think not
and you can find me burying this monster
burning the bridge to that lot
and then the key to my ocean.
The Gatehouse Loft. Valenzuela City. August 7 , 2021. 11:36am . Poem 7 of 31.
"The Thing About What You Thought"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
The thing about a Last Dance
Is that it might not be.
When you close your eyes to darkness
Doesn't mean you won't open it to light.
II
While there are things that we can't take back
There are actions that can be done
While we can never unsay a word
The branch divides and you can decide
III
Just because the Sun sets
Does not mean it won't rise again
Just because we are in this loop
Does not mean it will never end.
Optum. Quezon City. August 7, 2021. 12:56am. Poem 6 of 30.
"The States that we are in."
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
The Fires keep on raging
And the bodies keep arriving
The Tears continue flowing
And the cost continue piling
II
The Fear keeps on rising
As people keep on Grumbling
Simple things are obvious
but people keep Complaining
III
And so the Loop of Hope-Despair
As we all are locked in a chain
In a world full of the dying
And those left with that pain.
The Gatehouse Loft , Valenzuela City. August 5 , 2021. 6:30am. Poem 5 of 31.
"Luhain"
Ni:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Luha
Bunga ng Lungkot
Bunga ng Saya
Bunga ng Galit
Bunga ng Sarap
II
Luha
Kung saan nagmumula
Simula ng mga kataga
Simula ng kilos at pagawa
Simula ng bagong...eh...Simula.
III
Luha
Sakit at Sakuna
Pamamaalam o Paanyaya
Maraming natatapos
Maraming natutuwa
Luha
Optum. Quezon City. August 4 , 2021. 4:02am. Poem 4 of 31.
"Ang Sukli sa Huli"
Ni:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
Minsan ko nang Nasabi
Salamat at Salamat
Minsan na ding nasabihan
Salamat at Salamat
II
Sa mga bagay na di kayang suklian
Sa mga bagay na ikaw lang ang makakagawa
Iniintay pa ba ang mga salita?
Papuri at kung ano ano pa?
III
Minsan titingin kung may nakatingin
Minsan ginagawa ng palihim
Kadalasan lumalabas na ng kusa
Kailangan pa ba ng salamat? Sa tingin ko Hindi na.
Optum. Quezon City. August 4, 2021. 3:52am. Poem 3 of 31.
"Cupid 2021"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I am lost in that beat
Like a heart that never fades
I am carried by their voices
It heals me in waves
II
I am carried by their motion
Towards the shore I almost reach
I am lost in that rhythm
They sway again and again
III
I emerge from this rapture
Their smiles carry me to the moon.
I vow to have one more day.
And now to move on.
Optum. Quezon City. August 3,2021. 10:11pm. Poem 2 of 31.
"Echoing Hollows"
by:
Virgilio F. De leon Jr.MD
I
I am lost in your distortion
A looping decay in the cosmos
Seeing hope from the distance
Almost there but Almost
II
You hear me in the reverb
A voice you no longer know
Prolonged in the ether
A lingering after glow
III
The sounds of distant spheres
Spinning on their gravity
And I slowly fade
Into other realities.
Optum. Quezon City. August 2, 2021. 9:04pm. Poem 1 of 31.
