Hagbayon

Marxist literature in experiential. As an ideological tendency, it is defined by one’s class. Nobody can really write about ethnocide as excellently as somebody affected by it. Nobody can really write about land-grabbing as authentically as somebody thrown away from his/her ancestral land.

This way of writing is a genre in itself with its own function. It should be allowed to exist. It is part of diversity in literary cultural articulation.

We just came from a poetry reading sponsored by BayanMuna and KMU for the EDSA Anniv. Present were Ben Escoto, Jo Bisuna, Kristian Cordero and Jason Chancoco. Tanikala also performed, not to mention the Salakab Theater Group.

A drinking spree soon followed here in my apartment.

There will be a poetry reading tonight at the Plaza Quezon for the EDSA Revolution Anniversary. It is sponsored by BayanMuna and some bands will also be performing. We were invited to attend it via Ms. Jo Bisuna, and other poets such as the likes of Frank Penones, Kristian Cordero, Esting Jacob, Ben Escoto and Rizaldy Manrique are expected.

Congratulations to the guys at DENR for saying that it is not really deforestation that causes landslides. Once again, you are right! Keep up the good work guys.

The transcendental good, the fabric of reality, could very well be the synthesis of the various discourses of human existence. It is best articulated in love in its transcending meaning. We see this in the film “The Butterfly Effect” written and directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Cruber. The film’s philosophical anchor rests on the so-called ‘Chaos Theory’, one of the offshoots of post-modernism. It says that there is no absolute truth and system of structure, and thus there is the divorce between the word and the object, the ideal versus the material. There is a lacuna in between, static, chaotic.

The film tackles this via the character of Evan, a boy gifted with the ability of breaking the strands of reality and time. In his early years, the phenomenon manifested itself as memory gaps or ‘black-outs’. The shrink suggested that he keeps a journal where he could punch in working memories. These journals served as the text, the work where he would later enter the cracks of his memory in order to make things better.

This film is obviously about freedom. In the same sense that deconstructionists would enter cracks in textual and pragmatic reality in order to worm in a new reality, a personalized reality—to become the ultimate reality of one’s own.  In the film, the black-outs turned out to be ‘textual gaps’ where strands of reality and time break, cracks where the protagonist can intrude and change the course of history.

But further analysis would say that the cracks happened because they had to happen. The subjectivity and ideological tendency of Evan as a human with personal values and desires guided him through. He was playing God but with human desires and limitations. He centered his choices on himself, the Self as God. Only to realize that it can never happen. There is still the transcending God, the One who knows all things.

The final crack that he went into was when the love of his life, Kelly was being introduced to her by his mother as captured in a home video. Now he gets into it and he exhibits love by telling her that he hates her and that if ever she comes near him, he will be killing her entire family. Not quite near the language of love, but it worked. Via ‘soft deconstruction’ of the language of love, he pushed away the love of his life for the good of all. Sometimes good-bye is actually ‘I love you.’

And the film ends with a promise. As yuppies, they come across each other in a busy corporate avenue. They feel the sparks, the ‘de ja vu’ of it.

Watch this film. It will make you think.

-February 18, 2006

Naga

City

13th Iligan National Writers
Workshop (INWW)

The National Commission for Culture and Arts (NCCA) and the
Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology’s Office of the Vice
Chancellor for Reseach and Extension (OVCRE) are accepting
applications from writers to the 13th Iligan National Writers
Workshop (INWW) to be held on May 22-24, 2006 in Iligan City.
Panelists this year are Rosario Cruz Lucero, Erlinda Kintanar Alburo, Jaime An Lim, Leoncio P. Deriada, Merlie M. Alunan, German V. Gervacio, Steven Patrick C. Fernandez and this year’s keynote speaker, the poet Michael U. Obenieta, 3rd INWW Fellow (1996)

Fifteen (15) slots, five each from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao are available for writing fellowships to the INWW.

Applicants are required to submit five poems, or, one
short story, or, a one-act play in Filipino, English or in Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, Waray (with translations) along with the applicant’s biodata, two 2X2 photos and a certification that his/her work is original. For short stories or plays, please submit a hard copy and a 3.5 diskette with the manuscripts encoded in MS Word 7.0. Unpublished works are preferred.

Writing fellows will be given free board and lodging, honoraria
and a travel allowance. Applications must be postmarked on or before March 30,2006. No applications or manuscripts will be accepted if sent by fax or e-mail. Applicants are also advised to keep copies of their manuscripts since these will not be returned.

Send all applications to the 13th INWW Director, Christine
Godinez-Ortega c/o OVCRE, MSU-IIT, Iligan City.
For more information call Pat Cruz
tels. (063) 3516131; or e-mail: ovcre-mepc@sulat.msuiit.edu.ph

LIRA Poetry Workshop

Tumatanggap na ng mga aplikante ang Linangan sa Imahen Retorika at
Anyo (LIRA) para sa taunan nitong palihan.  Gaganapin ang mga
palihan
tuwing Sabado at Linggo ngayong Hunyo at Hulyo sa College of Arts
and
Letters, UP Diliman, QC.   Ang Pambansang Alagad ng Sining na si
Virgilio S. Almario ang magiging direktor ng workshop.

Ang lahat ng interesado ay inaanyayahang magpasa ng limang (5) tula
sa Filipino kasama ang isang maikling bio-data at 1×1 ID picture sa
LIRA Workshop c/o Dir. Vim Nadera, UP Institute of Creative Writing,
2/F Bulwagang Rizal UP Diliman, 1101 Quezon City. Maaari ring
ipadala
ang mga ito sa e-mail address na liraworkshop@… at/o
lira_makata@… bago o sa ika-30 ng Abril 2006.

Ang LIRA ay organisasyon ng mga makatang nagsusulat sa wikang
Filipino. Naglulunsad ang LIRA ng taunang kurso at palihan sa
paglikha ng mga tula.   Sa mga palihang ito nagmula ang mga premyado
at kinikilalang makata tulad nina Vim Nadera, Romulo Baquiran, Mike
Coroza, at magkapatid na Roberto at Rebecca Anonuevo.  Noong
Disyembre 2005, ipinagdiwang ng LIRA ang ika-20 anibersaryo nito.

LIRA Poetry Workshop, now accepting applicants

The Linangan sa Imahen, Retorika, at Anyo (LIRA) is now accepting
entries for its annual poetry workshop.   The worshop will be held
every Saturdays and Sundays of June and July at the College of Arts
and Letters, UP Diliman, Q.C.  National Artist for Literature,
Virgilio S. Almario, would direct the said workshop.

All interested applicants are to pass five poems in Filipino
together
with a short bio-data and a 1×1 picture.   Kindly send entries to:
LIRA Workshop c/o Dir. Vim Nadera, UP Institute of Creative Writing,
2/F Bulwagang Rizal, UP Diliman, 1101 Q.C.   They could also send it
through email at liraworkshop@… and/or
lira_makata@… or before April 30, 3006.

LIRA is an organization of poets writing in Filipino.   It conducts
annual poetry writing workshops, spanning topics from traditional
Filipino poetry to post-modernism.  From these workshops sprung
respected and award-winning poets like Vim Nadera, Romulo Baquiran,
Michael Coroza, Rebecca Añonuevo, and her brother Roberto
Añonuevo.   
LIRA recently celebrated its 20th anniversary last December 2005.

BE ONE OF THE 15 FELLOWS IN THE IYAS CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP WITH
MULTI-AWARDED WRITERS!

The Iyas Creative Writing Workshop is now accepting fellowship
applicants for this year’s workshop, to be held April 25 to May 1,
2006, at Balay Kalinungan, University of St. La Salle in Bacolod
City, Negros Occidental.

Fifteen fellowships will be awarded by genre and language. Grants
will cover board and lodging and a partial transportation subsidy.
Deadline for applications is on March 31, 2006.

Interested parties may send two (2) short stories, six (6) poems, or
two (2) short plays for consideration, signed with a pseudonym, along
with a sealed business envelope containing the author’s real name and
pseudonym, a 2×2" ID photo, and a short resumè. Works must be
submitted in five hard copies, manuscript format (12 pt Times New
Roman, letter-size paper), accompanied by a soft copy (MS Word
format)on a diskette. Works may be in English, Filipino, Tagalog,
Hiligaynon, or Cebuano.

Send applications to: Dr. Gloria Fuentes, College of Arts and
Sciences, University of St. La Salle, La Salle Avenue, Bacolod City,
Negros Occidental 6100. Inquiries may be sent to glofuentes2003(at)
yahoo.com

This year’s panelists include Cirilo Bautista, Marjorie Evasco, Elsie
Coscolluela, Rayboy Pandan, Genevieve Asenjo, and Malou Jacob.

The Iyas Creative Writing Workshop is sponsored by the University of
St. La Salle, the Bienvenido N. Santos Creative Writing Center of De
La Salle University, and the National Commission for Culture and the
Arts.

The academe is always a battleground for culture and ideas. As an ideological apparatus, it must also be pursued by cultural workers along with the grassroot communities. For one, it can offer creative shelter and even monetary incentives. But we should not always look for the latter at this stage.

A lecture/workshop on poetry and fiction will be held today at the Ateneo de Naga University. It is sponsored by some English and Literature students in the campus. It will feature two lecturers, namely: Rizaldy M. Manrique and Jose Jason L. Chancoco. It will be in OB115 at 2-6PM.

It can be expected that our leaning would be on Bikol aesthetics and craft. As Bicolanos our own tradition should be our point of departure in activities such as these.

On a lighter note, we are happy that it is Valentine’s month once again and time for Lovapalooza. It’s been forever since I last went there, but heck.

Let’s just remember to keep love sacred. It’s an overused and abused word, so much that it does not mean anything anymore. We have so many misconceptions about it. But in the main, love is an inherent desire for humans to be with each other even if they don’t have to. It is also indulged in for the betterment of both parties. That is not to say that it is dependency, but rather, our aim should always be that the other person would be at his/her peak even if we are not with them.

As always…Dr Love.

Bicol region’s exciting poet Kristian Sendon Cordero follows up his first book Mga Tulang Tulala with his latest offering Santigwar. A collection of poems in Bikol and Filipino, this new volume promises nothing less but the supernatural, the santigwar being a traditional Bikol spiritual therapeutic practice. Now in the form of Cordero’s soulful poetics, it has morphed as a curative balm assuaging various sociological ills and ideological maladies.

The book will be launched in Aquinas University Center for Culture and the Arts on February 21, 2006, in University of Nueva Caceres on the 27th and in Ateneo de Naga University on the 28th. It is published by the Goldprint Publishing House in Naga City.

Cordero has won writing fellowships from the UP and Ateneo National Writers Workshop. A columnist in the Bicol Mail, he is a consistent HomeLife poetry awardee. He has also won top honors from the Premio Tomas Arejola para sa Literaturang Bikolnon, Sumagang Award for Literature and the Catholic Mass Media Awards.

For more information write boronyog@yahoo.com or visit http://www.santigwar.blogspot.com/

–JJC