She paints flowers

By Virginia Jasmin Pasalo

 

THS poem was read 16 December 2020, on the occasion of the first painting exhibit of a dear friend, Girlie Villariba, held at Io International (formerly ISIS International Manila), 3 Marunong, Diliman, Quezon City, 1101 Metro Manila.

  

She paints flowers

She picks flowers on the road

as we walk, gathering a mix of blooms

in her hands, in her pockets

 

Slowly, I walk with her

sorting the flowers, giving them names

 

Along the way, we stop

look up at every aratiles tree

to gather fruits, sip the juices

or swallow, or roll them, in our tongues

 

She sings with the birds

especially the ones she sees in her dreams

with the colors she prefers

with the music she likes to hear

 

And then we walk back, taking in the sun

and the balmy morning air

with flowers in her hair

 

At home, she fingers

the paints on the blank space

to capture the scents, and the colors of the day

the blank space becomes, a garden

 

she asks me to choose which one to bring

and I choose, without blinking

the one that reminds me of you

and smiling, she says, “Then, this must be for you”.

 

I look for you

in between the flowers

breathing in the smell

of jasmines kissed by a star

traveling with blue birds

through moonbeams

of the crescent moon

 

In the silence of her garden

through her eyes,

I see your heart

I hear you.

I feel you.

My silent sea.

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