ISSUE II: Odyssey

PROSE
POETRY
C O L L A P S E D
CONVERSAT
By ARUN PAUL KAPUR
By A.R. SALANDY
Ostracization can be cruel
But Nadz says that some 'peak' in high school,
I O
you know? No one told us.”
The afternoon sun slit
through the trees that towered above
us.
“We were given a paper to
fill up earlier. You didn’t get
anything?”
“No.”
May 15, 2020
“Enhanced Community Quarantine
will be extended until May 30, 2020.
Anyone below 21 years old and
above 60 years old are prohibited
to go outside. Any person seen
outside without a valid quarantine
pass will be detained. Please follow
the protocols and guidelines
accordingly,” the reporter for the
evening news narrated over a video
of a group of people sitting with
handcuffs on their wrists.
May 20, 2020
“Happy birthday, Daddy!” I pushed
my face into the phone’s camera.
My father’s video feed was
grainy but I could clearly see him
in his red crisp shirt, the empty
backseat of his car and a glimpse of
the steering wheel at the edge of his
video.
“What are you doing for
your birthday? Are you cooking
something?” My mother asked.
“Maybe I’ll eat a burger.”
I sat beside my mother.
“We’ll make some spaghetti in honor
of your birthday, Daddy!”
“I’d love that.”
June 6, 2020
“You sit around all day, doing
nothing. The least you could do is
come with me and help me buy the
groceries for the next two weeks.
Do you think I can do this alone? I
shouldn’t be the one doing this but
I’m the only adult in this family. Do
you think you can do this alone? I
think not. Unless you want to starve,
stand up and stop complaining!”
July 7, 2020
How many months has it been? I
rarely get out, except those days
when I accompany my mother to buy
groceries. But I don’t mind not going
out at all. I have always loved staying
inside but now… it’s different. I get
lonely when I’m inside our house.
It suffocates me. Is it because I no
longer see the streets brimming with
people? Everyone is trying to bring
back the normality they had before
the pandemic. They chat, smile
and laugh. But there is something
hampering them, resisting against
them, and they are hopeless against
it.
I have never liked going
outside and I often avoid the crowds
but now I miss them. I miss the
events, the boisterous activities of
the city. I miss hearing the static
raucous noise of the malls, or the
chatter and shrieks of children
playing outside.
July 24, 2020
“Happy birthday, sweetheart!”
August 16, 2020
“I’m so tired! I’m tired of taking care
of three children on my own. I’m
tired of doing all the errands alone.
I have no one else to turn to. If only
you were here, it would have been
so much easier—no, don’t tell me
you need to work. You could have
found work here! We could have
set up our own business, like those
online businesses today. They’re
everywhere. We would have made it
work—no, you’re too greedy. Are you
going to prioritize your—"
I rammed my earbuds in
my ears and set the music to the
maximum level, drowning out the
noise around me.
noise around me.
October 9, 2020
The Philippines has the most strict and
the longest lockdown in the world—the
radio chattered in the background as
I accepted my father’s evening video
call.
“Daddy, when are you going
to get us?”
The country has recorded
334,770 COVID-19 cases, 275,307
recoveries, and 6,152 deaths.
“Daddy, I miss you.”
Out on brick red grounds
Where taunts locked this body tight
In endless battle,
For lament as one does on action,
Only true planning
May succeed to break engendered fear
Grown on subtle propaganda
And teased with tokenism lofty,
For in muted academia
Can capitalist gain be seen to overtake
Any sense of victory I say,
But one can argue some are simply
Born cold hearted,
And in their predictions lose humanity
To jealousy and vain infatuations,
For some may rise to the fore
And some may gain meritocratic success,
But most remain jaded
In fantasies educational.
By FAITH MCKINNON
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BMDDIGITAL.COM
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