Beach walk inspires a day of poetry

As I was strolling one sunny day along a shoreline somewhere in Mactan Island, I chanced upon some beautiful faces and bodies enjoying the sun and the sand. What an exciting scene!

One particular pretty face caught my special attention as she reminded me of a signboard on which was written: “When you are in Rome, be a Roman. When you are in the beach, be a bitch.” I suspected there was a story behind that pretty face, an ugly sin behind a beautiful scene. And so, fearing that I was strong enough to resist anything except temptation, I sought another distraction and looked down and bent to pick up a handful of white sand and gently spread it on the palm of my hand. As I did so, I murmured a poem by William Blake: “To see a world in a grain of sand, and a heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour.” What an inspiring reflection!

I did not want to end the day without another bit of poetry. So I waited for the night to witness the sea bare her bosom to the moon and to watch a few clouds floating in the horizon like sleeping flowers. For, like William Blake and William Wordsworth, I wanted to see heaven in those wild sleeping flowers.

What a day of poetry along the beach!

—AMAY P. ONG VAÑO, [email protected]