Beneath the Sampaguita Tree

I remember her

And her beauty.

Gentle as an infant's touch,

As powerful as a bull's charge.

I remember her 

And her smile.

In brightness rivalled by none,

None but the sun.

I remember her

Her sweet voice

To the ears like aural honey

Of which only God's taste worthy.

I remember her

And those soft hands

Her heavenly caresses

A treat for the senses.

I remember her

For I loved her

Not for her facade nor posture;

But for she had more.

I remember her 

When we met in secret

Lovers in the moonlight

'Neath the sampaguita tree's sight.

I remember her

When she said:

To our love, God shall be the witness."

A pact we sealed as we kissed.

I remember her

And the promise we made

"To stay forever in each other's arms

Be it in Heaven's grace or Hell's damns."

I remember her

When my sorrows began

She told me she'd appear,

But what came was cold fear.

I remember her

So, so vividly

As I searched for her high and low

With my love for her in tow.

I remember her

And I still do

Every night I returned for her

By the tree, to find her there

I remember her 

And it still burns inside

She returned pale, blood flowing free.

Where we loved--Beneath the Sampaguita Tree.

A Strange Place

I awoke one dreamy morning
To the sound of steel bellowing
Got up, got dressed, heard a box boom
Beside men trapped in a small room.


I fled like a masked caper
And saw men toil hard for paper.
To this they have become enslaved,
And silly black tablets they craved.


Youths move about, heads where feet were,
As to strange tunes their bodies stir.
They worship a squeaking white dwarf
Who dons a bizarre checkered scarf.


Slaves abound, trapped in white boxes,
Guarded by Hell's flaming foxes.
They speak in short bursts of letters,
Hunting little colored critters.


To a long chamber I was trapped,
As it moved, I had to adapt.
For the world had gone askew,
As it raced to the time of new.