The Youth Is On Fire 7: The End of the World

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CONTENTS save us, liza soberano by Andrea Panaligan Kaharap ang Huling Araw ng Bakasyon ni Paolo Tiausas Here at the End of All Things by Regine Cabato December 21, 2012 by Ticia Almazan Isa Iyong Pambihirang Pagkakataon ni Rommel Bonus Bea Osmeña rediscovers the agency of both body and heart in her debut book of poetry “Artificial Limbs” by Jam Pascual Bababa na ang mga tala ni Jerome Flor The moment I encountered the word ‘guillotine’ by Alfonso Manalastas Noong Nalaman Nila Na Hindi Na Kailangan Matakot sa Kamatayan ni Carissa Natalia Baconguis It All Ends Here by Earl Carlo Guevarra EDITORS Jam Pascual Ralph Fonte EDITORIAL TEAM Bea Amador Fiel Estrella Gaby Gloria LAYOUT ARTIST Gian Nicdao CONTRIBUTORS Ticia Almazan Rommel Bonus Regine Cabato Jerome Flor Earl Carlo Guevarra Alfonso Manalastas Carissa Natalia Baconguis Andrea Panaligan Paolo Tiausas ART Marx Reinhart Fidel Megel Joshua Ramiterre Myla Rodrigo Ennuh Tiu COVER by Myla Rodrigo
EDITOR’S NOTE Art by MARX REINHART FIDEL We’re not endorsing pessimism, but urgency. Contemporary apocalypse discourse is characterized, I think, by a recognition that the ideologies we’ve come to trust have failed us. Capitalism and neoliberalism have helped create a society in which only a handful of people hold a majority of the world’s total wealth, and are able to cling to this wealth by exploiting vulnerable bodies and natural resources. Our ongoing climate crisis spells the end of human civilization in the next few decades. Fascist leaders sponsor genocide. This ain’t no 2012 Mayan calendar shit. These are real lives, beset by real lethal things. Our last issue of The Youth Is On Fire operated on the key word “Rage,” and writers and artists like you responded in kind with pointedly anti-Duterte, anti-corruption works. So we put ‘em together and put ‘em out in the form of what I think was one of our strongest issues — an incandescent, hazardous-to-evil art bomb. This was 2017, and certain issues were still very fresh, and we were energetic and busting high kicks and flailing pom-poms for the future. And then we got tired. By we, I mean, we at the office. Bursts of outrage are always going to come in waves, consuming and receding. And when death is abundant and life is precarious you get into the habit of tending gardens. And there were so many gardens to tend that weren’t The Youth Is On Fire. Some of those gardens weren’t work-related. In the face of doom, we built protective fences around the sources of our joy, sought friendship and community, mustered megawatts of strength every morning just to get out of bed. Not a lot of people understand how exhausting this side of cultural work can be. The argument could be made that half of lifestyle journalism is made of ads, and media partners, and sponsorships, and the half-hearted endorsement of products and personalities that pacify more than invigorate. The other half of that work is keeping an eye on current events, popular culture. And well, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says total ecological ruin is possible within our lifetime. And our current lineup of senators is full of killers and crooks. So what happens when today’s issues tell you that wholesale social collapse can totally happen before you can apply for a senior citizenship card, and that the current systems, mechanisms, and policies in place won’t do much unless we actually get around to guillotine-ing the rich, Robespierre style? You get tired. You get cynical. When living a moral life looks impossible, you work a little less hard. Again, we’re not endorsing pessimism, but urgency. I’d like to think that at the end of the day, in our heart of hearts, we know that fighting for a better world is some thing we need to do, maybe even want to do. But there is value, I think, in assessing how the idea of the apocalypse affects our inner worlds. When we think about the end of the world, how does that influence the way we feel sorrow, anger, or even joy? This issue of The Youth Is On Fire was born not just from the little respite we got from our extended hiatus, but also from our contemporary existence, laced with the looming possibility of the end of all things. It’s a good one. So don’t cry, dear reader. We’re still alive, despite everything. TEAM YS
Page 4 and 5: TALA NG PATNUGOT Anim na taong gula
Page 7 and 8: Photo by ENNUH TIU
Page 9 and 10: for not having opportunities. i get
Page 11 and 12: Here at the End of All Things BY RE
Page 14 and 15: Art by MEGEL JOSHUA RAMITERRE
Page 16 and 17: Bea Osmeña rediscovers the agency
Page 18 and 19: Bababa na ang mga tala BY JEROME FL
Page 20: Photo by ENNUH TIU
Page 23: It All Ends Here BY EARL CARLO GUEV

The Youth Is On Fire 7: The End of the World

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