Tell me how,
Tell me now.
Tell me why,
But not a lie.

I shall rise from a heartbreaking pain
And you will see that I will reign.
Look deep within and see my sorrow
That's your last peak, there's no more tomorrow.

Can't make me stay
Even for a day
You once saw me shimmer
Now I'll be dimmer

Yesterday was a long time ago
All I could remember was I had a foe
I thought you were a sweet, little angel.
But that is only if one looks from an angle.....

Now they're coming,
Strings are strumming
I have to run
This will be fun.

I live, I die
I shriek and cry
Is life worth living?
With words unforgiving?

There's just so many things and people that I miss....
These walls and corners have already been filled.
I need to get away...
They're overflowing.

.     Maybe
               I liked
                        rainy
                                days
                      ­                  before
                                               but-
   ever        since       you      came,                                  
    all I
    could
    picture
    were                  
    the                  
              sunny
         days

She did not find the grim
in falling apart. For
every time she found herself
to be broken, she knew
she was brutally remaking
herself, and collapsing
to be reborn like a
rioting star; haunting the
dark sky.

**© R.M. Drake

C rippling from the stares of the
Y ears that behold when
R eality struck quick
I rradiating where I abode, exposing the
L ife I wished to have not known
L iving in a masquerade to have
E nticed myself into the brink of the unknown

You were but a stranger
radiating the empty sky,
dwindling the hours
whenever I felt transparent.

Let not fear be a hindrance
To the things you wish to say or do
And so as the gloom of day
Keep you static, unmoving

Supress no longer
The emotions you bottled within
And let your thoughts ascend
Unto their own paths

* *

Endure the flow;
Leave the circuitry be
Let the pulsations persist;
Let yourself feel a moment for once

Or must the weight of the shadow remain to envelop you
Unless you choose to break away–
Not only shall the sunshine touch your skin,
But the crystals be absorbed and dissolved

I keep on turning
and skipping pages,
blank as they may be

Reckless enough to
lose them in the way,
still continuing

Life had given me
another book to
be written upon

And yet here I am:
starting and stopping
on a blank canvas

* *

Since the day I met you,
there's been this swirl
in the pit of my stomach,
there's this shy little smile
being drawn on my face
whenever I think of you,
and this sense of unrealism
that I could not understand.

Minute white crystals
That sparkle in the day,
Precious little gems
Lay along the bay

Footsteps in the sand;
The past that left a trail
Merry moments building castles
As father begins to sail

Golden summer haze,
In a memory filled with bliss
Nostalgia I had to face
All it took was one simple kiss

Tayo lang naman ang magkasamang umukit ng hugis puso sa mga bituin,
magkahawak ang mga kamay habang nagkukuwentuhan ng mga pangarap at hangarin

Sana... hindi muna magtapos ang gabing ito
Kung magagawa kong banatin at pahabain pa ang oras para lamang mapatagal sa'yong piling

Ngunit kinaumagahan na nang ako'y magising...

Akap akap ang sarili, mabigat ang damdamin
Nagbuntong-hininga't bumulong nalang sa hangin

Hindi ko na alam kung ligaya pa ba ang tunay na hangad
Bakit ba lagi nalang ganito...
Sa panaginip, patuloy mo akong dinadalaw
Naniniwala ako sa salitang 'tayo' ngunit heto't nag-iisa na naman ako

My hands were on the steering wheel
I fell asleep, I fell asleep
Drove to the edge of a cliff so steep
There's not a pain that I could feel
Is this a dream, Is this all real?

The bubbles they, begin to rise
I guess it's true, a murky hue
When you believe, there come's a price
Ye had been a fool, what more to do?
Soon to depart, succumb to rue

Pearls of black musn't stare at white
It's time to go, It's time to go
Then spread thy wings and then take flight
My precious beam, go with the flow
If in ashes, burnt, shall you wake,
**know~

Caught amid a raging storm,
we mused if to delay
that its eye had yet to take on form
we surge–come what may

The threat of doom, its whereabouts
had flown beneath our feet
may it take away these petty doubts
and let winding roads meet.

I am a passive vacuum cleaner
inhaling all the toxicity.

crumbs colliding
to form a singularity,
gave birth to my
own destruction

The open gates tell me I must stay
or be devoured by the lightning ray
The flowers do sprout in the springs of May
only to dwell by the end of the day

Why did you take a different turn
in hopes of getting back?
Headed to the point of no return,
you've bleached the mirthful black

I can't keep up with your speedy pace
that's blinded by beauty, salvaged by grace
There's only so much that I could erase
the only exception is your face

On shallow waters, you've hidden something
whereas every ship mysteriously sank
Spheres will always withold a 'something'
For now I see, it's not as blank.

Had I let time and weather reach this minuscule pebble
that it had let itself be tainted with powdered pistachio

Had I been so grateful to put it out of its misery
tossed into the river of ever-flowing ink, varnished by the sun

I wonder
when soon really is
I wonder
if I could still see tomorrow
I wonder
if I could measure *'forever'

I wonder and wonder and wonder

I wonder
how this all began
I wonder
just how would it end
I wonder
who you were before

I still wonder and wonder and wonder

I wonder
if it was a blessing
I wonder
perhaps it's a curse
I wonder
to where I would go

*When I think of you, I wonder...

.

this is dangerous
too many times
i wish –
under the bed
on the bed
at my closet
but nobody told me
i'd never get better
it scares me –
*wishing

Confined in the bubble of thought,
I sit before this room
the pitchers, the glasses,
the paintings on the wall
The portal behind the window pane,
beholds madness in one's eyes
the cracks, the chipped paint,
the ombre imprint of life

Stroke by stroke, line by line,
you tear your life away
Coloring in the drafted frames
then bind them with a gauge
So much dust have accumulated
more than enough to see your tracks
But turn to a blind eye,
and exhale the puff of smoke

L abirynth of
O dysseys
V enturing the
E ther

"A hundred hearts would be too few
to carry all my love for you."

To turn your back and walk away
Away from what you once held dear
Oh dear, you knew you had to go
Go to where the wind will take you
You befriended melancholy
Melancholy was stuck with you
You were merry, you must admit
Admit that it was all okay
"Okay" is what you always say
Won't say for fear of them to know
Know the truth, it can only hurt
Hurt the ones you cherish the most
Most of them will be kept inside
Inside where they can safely slumber
So slumber now though do not sink
Sink in the letters of goodbye

I am a ghost
among the crowd,
silently looming

The predictability
of the unpredictable,
I linger

At my most,
I take on form,
ever looping

To retain,
To disperse,
To lay low or regain

I wish to be still
At a constant zerø,
if you may please

But I—
spread too thin
or dense too quick;

I will forever remain
in this gentle cycle
rinsed in chaos.

I have endured for so long
Now they'll all be washed away;
In my mind, I was always wrong
Not until you came my way...

I see the darkness of the clouds,
You see the silver lining;
I see the shadow of the night,
You see the light surrounding

I feel the coldness of the winter,
You're the fireplace beside;
I may seem as icy, but
You're the warmth I try to hide

It has always been "No", but
You keep on insisting "Yes"
Unlike me, you're a ball of hope
For now, just let me rest.

* *

I scrambled my thoughts
in search for words yet I lost
myself in the way.

On thin, white sheets, today, I lay
Each IV drop, brings me dismay
There's something I have longed to say...
You pull the plug and make my day.

You remind me of daffodils...
Oh, how silly life had been
T'was all so sweet, but I was left with your after taste

raindrops from above
forming into clouds; ignites
twice—the spark of joy

The sea
kissed the shore as
they intertwined; cocooned
by long-forgotten memories

*dissolved

You were the star that watched me,
twinkling in a vast dim space;
You were the candle in the middle of the room,
sending wisps of smoke in air.

You built a pathway for the microchip,
directing energies from place to place;
You weaved your words into my mind
and left with an unfinished blanket.

The moon was still up in the midst of the day,
the clouds are spouting rainbows as rain.
The years have passed, this flower has not bloomed
Will this ever be the day I awaited?

The hours are fading
And withering in
Upon her blossoming cheeks
Yet ruthless skin.

Sitting here alone
in an empty, tranquil room
I've got nothing left to fear
than time itself colliding

I entered the phase
and went back in time
those teary-eyed souls
helpless and desperately calling

A heart who seeks revenge
being repainted from time to time
All the chaos it has encountered
tragedies, death, and sorrow

Although happiness fills in,
it overflows and bursts
An unfathomable hole
where the beast loves to creep

Eye to eye, we gazed
there, it struck me
This phantom I only met
by then took my awakening

Out of the blue, they came
their voices growing louder
serenity is fading
My solace, abruptly chopped.

Hindi ko tanda kung bakit
Basta't alam kong masakit...
Masakit ang iwan ka ng taong mahal mo
Tulad na lamang ng  pang-iiwan ko sa'yo

Hindi ko alam kung ano ang rason
Basta't mga damdaming ito'y dapat nang ibaon
Na dapat na lamang limutin ang lahat
Ngunit yun pala'y, hindi ito sapat

Aaminin ko na ngayon na ako'y nagkamali
Na ang iyong pagtitiwala'y tuluyan kong binali
Bakit ko nga ba nagawa ang mga bagay na iyon?
Na pati pagmamahal mo'y basta nalang tinapon

Ako'y di karapat dapat sa isang tulad mo
Ngunit sa pagkakataong ito, sana'y dinggin mo ako
Limutin na natin ang mapait na nakaraan
Pagkat Diyos na rin mismo ang gumawa ng paraan...

Kundi dahil sa aksidente, di ako matatauhan
Sa pagmamahalan nating puro galit at tampuhan
Kaya burahin na natin at magsimula muli
Gawin ang tama't huwag nang mag-atubili

Pasensya na rin kung di kita lubusang tanda
Basta't sa kinabukasan, tayo'y maghanda
Paano nalang kaya ang buhay ko kung wala ka?
Laking pasasalamat ko nalang  sa'king amnesya

Tired of replay
again and again and again
When will it stop?
Tell me, when will it end?
Clenched fists,
face plastered with anger
Soul burns with fury,
the beat goes faster and faster
Tip the tables, throw the papers
Let them sob and fear my wrath
I am the ruler, fear my power
Just try and trespass my territory
And let's burn in hell together.

We trailed through the moonlit road
As I wiped the tears that streamed my face—
Everything was calm, everything was serene
It felt like we were passing by a city
That had long fallen to deep slumber;
Where had once all the rushing cars had gone,
Back and forth, non-stop, as their engines rattled
With much desperation, pleading to rest.

Step by step, we slowed our pace, feeling the cool breeze shying from us
As we came to a halt.
The leaves ruffled, still, and the stars twinkled brighlty.
Everything seemed to come together in perfect harmony.
It all felt quite bizzare yet astounding;
quite frightening yet calming;
quite gloomy yet comforting.
It was unlike anything I've ever experienced before–
Perhaps my heart and mind had finally been at peace
And that the turmoil inside had faded into nonexistence.

• ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ •
Who knew that what a known-to-be ordinary walk
Could turn into a magnificent, almost magical cure-
A cure for the mind that's filled with cloudy thoughts,
And a cure for the heart filled with pain and faults.
But what had truly made things better was..
Having you by my side amidst the whole tranquility
The entire scenery might have felt mysteriously unreal to me
But your presence was my reminder that it was all reality.
• ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ •

Plays the music
of sweet symphony
Glowing, growing hearts,
my genuine melody
The song goes on
with awe and excitement
perfect and clean 'till
A tick here, a tick there
Where is that from?
Never knew there's a beat
says the metronome.
And it begins, it fades
must crank it to go on
harder and faster
But it stopped.

Scratching and screeching,
give it a little tap.
It plays once again,
but rewinds and rewinds
"Nobody loves you,
Nobody did."
Words I've never heard,
tune was unknown
"It was your time
yet you awoke."

The song intensifies

Walls are crashing,
dreams drifting away
I knew it had to stop.
My ears were bleeding,
eyes were tearing
I didn't have the power
so I let it be...
It never stopped,
but my heart did.
My body, fresh and pure
hiding the decayed inside.