Poetry for Women’s Month

Helping celebrate Women’s Month are two recent books by our women poets. The first is Cadena de Amor: New and Selected Poems in English, Filipino, and Spanish by Marra PL. Lanot, published by UP Press.

It had a well-attended launch on Feb. 26 at Iago’s in Quezon City, with a good number of the author’s “Kawomenan” friends conducting readings and musical numbers. Among them were actresses Lolly Marra, Bibeth Orteza, Shamaine Centenera, Adriana Agcaoili and Banaue Miclat, with Becky Abraham and Karina David rendering rousing songs.

In attendance were National Artist for Literature F. Sionil Jose and his beloved Tessie, former Congressman Satur Ocampo with his wife Bobbie Malay, generations of UP Diliman stalwarts including Ambassador Jaime Yambao, Jenny Llaguno, Alma Miclat, UP President Danny Concepcion and Atty. Gaby Concepcion, Prof. Nic Tiongson, Direk Carlitos Siguion Reyna, sculptor Julie Lluch (whose work served as the provocative image on the book cover), artist-author Boboy Yonzon and better half Guia, Marra’s former colleagues at MTRCB for which the affair served as a happy reunion, writers Lualhati Bautista, Lilia Quindoza Santiago, Kit Kwe and husband Kris Lacaba, and of course Pete Lacaba — the last two the most important men in the poet Marra’s life.

She has authored four previous poetry collections, mostly in English, and books of essays and profiles. This latest collection is divided into four sections: “How Do I Love You?” (with 42 poems in English), “Sa Kaarawan ni Serafin” (42 poems in Filipino), “Llevo” (25 poems in Spanish), and “Selected Poems” (36 previously anthologized poems in all three languages, including her most popular, among these “Soldier’s Song,” “Witch’s Dance” and “Sa Kabilugan ng Buwan”).

Three different versions of the title poem appear in the first three sections. Here’s the one in English: “My youth is filled with cadena de amor/ Crawling in the fields,/ Climbing up unsuspecting trees,/ Clinging to makeshift fences/ Hugging other flowers, other leaves,/ Seemingly unfamiliar with its cousin/ The Bleeding Hearts,/ Blocking off the full redness of the sun/ So that it stays pink in bud shape/ Even in its bloomingest…/ Cadena de amor/ Is the color of youth.”

Other poems on nature, family, love and womanhood are joined in by socio-political concerns (“Where the Dictator Is Buried” and “Our Country Is a Mouth”) and elegies for her mother Gloria and two women friends: “Liezl” for actress Liezl Martinez and “Brave Edith” for National Artist Edith L. Tiempo).

The Filipino section pays tribute to both her mother and father, the writer and astrologer Serafin Lanot, as well as Maningning Miclat and Leonardo Co, and also has its share of protest poetry (“Ang Bala,” “Kapayapaan” and “Batas Militar”).

Each of the poems in Spanish is footnoted with a brief précis in English. Among these are tributes to Frida Kahlo and Oaxacan healer Maria Sabina, as well as meditations on Cuba and Mexico and a recollection of Medellin in Colombia.

Song and dance, travel, and the Internet also occupy the poet’s mindfulness. But constant is the theme of womanhood. My favorite remains “Nawawala Kong Tadyang,” which ends thus: “Ang buhok ko’y stilwul/ ang balat ko’y sindilim ng gubat/ pero salamin ang aking mga mata/ ng liwanag ng araw,/ linaw ng dagat/ sining ng buwan/ na inukit ang yong larawan.// Sa kamay ko, binti at paa/ gumagapang ang mga ugat,/ tila punong-kahoy sa bundok/ na kumakapit sa lupa,/ sa bato, sa bangin:/ ganyan kita aakayin,/ ganyan mo ako masasandalan.”

Falling on Quiet Water (Haiku Sequence) by Ma. Milagros T. Dumdum, published by Bathalad, will have its official launch on March 17 at Qube Gallery, Crossroads, Banilad, Cebu City, starting at 3 p.m.

Presenting a couple of haiku each are two dozen readers, among them the author’s colleagues in Women in Literary Arts-Cebu which she co-founded and headed as president, as well as a son, daughter-in-law, grandchildren, and husband, fellow-poet Simeon “Jun” Dumdum, Jr., who will also start the proceedings with an invocation.

Marjorie Evasco will speak on the book, while a reader’s response will be rendered by Johanna Michelle Lim. Emcee Grace Marie Lopez will also call on Mila Lucmayon, Tiny Diapana and Julia Uy for musical numbers, while Karla Quimsing will deliver the closing remarks.

“Gingging” Dumdum’s first poetry collection comprises 123 haiku, which Marj Evasco describes as undergoing a process where “the seeing eye calligraphs the fluid gestures of living in one stroke, almost as if the brush never leaves the silk paper up to the last word.”

We’ve all tried our hand with haiku, and found how the gnomic exercise remains a delicate challenge. Constancy of craft has evidently resulted in these triumphs among Dumdum’s offerings:

“The quiver of leaves/ Before a windstorm lashes/ Is my heart’s echo”

“Does a tree recall/ Its pith? The ocean its depth?/ Do I, my memory?”

“People at the mall/ Peeling bright ripe oranges/ Not minding the moon”

“Marbles and slingshot./ None of these drew me to you/ Come. Stay. Game over.”

“Rain shimmers at noon/ Translucent needles falling/ I need some mending”

The sequence could go on forever. No hop, skip and jump of observation cum imagination, but a continuum of imperial messages.