Blocks
Original by Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo
Translated, from the Filipino, by Tilde Acuña
Blocks
Discordant operations outside
discordant operations inside
just now the dissonance left
and I am thinking of giving in
STAND WITH SALUGPONGAN SCHOOLS!
I don’t hear faraway bombs
where the girl doesn’t hear
for almost two days the father and child
under the rubble
STOP THE ATTACKS IN MINDANOW!
here the child, now asleep,
likes lego and hasn’t been quiet
in putting together and taking apart
the pieces left behind
DON’T BOMB LUMAD SCHOOLS!
on this bed and pressing upon the spine
yet I gave in to somnolence
I’ll brush them off in the morning
if I don’t get used to the pain.
DOWN WITH U.S. IMPERIALISM!
FROM PALESTINE TO THE PHILIPPINES,
STOP THE U.S. WAR MACHINE
******
Bloke
Maingay ang trabaho sa labas
maingay ang trabaho sa loob
ngayon-ngayon lang din ako nilubayan
at sumagi sa aking isip ang sumuko
hindi ko dinig ang malalayong bomba
kung saan hindi dinig ng babae
ang mag-ama na magdadalawang araw na
sa ilalim ng guho
tulog na rito ang anak
na mahilig sa lego at hindi tahimik
sa pagbuo man o sa pagkalas
naiwan ang mga piraso
sa kama at kumakagat sa gulugod
ngunit nagpatalo ako sa antok
tatanggalin ko na lang sa umaga
kung hindi pa sanay sa nakabaon.
Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo teaches with the Department of Humanities of University of the Philippines Los Baños. Here, he helped institute courses on young adult narratives and creative nonfiction. He is the author of Shift of Eyes, Bukod sa Maliliit na Hayop, Alamat ng Sepia, and The Second Law.
Tilde (Arbeen R. Acuña) authored Oroboro at Iba Pang Abiso [Oroboro and other Notices] (UP Press, 2020), which includes versions of short fiction like “Forma: Notes” (Kritika Kultura, 2020) and “Postscript to a Transmutation” (Sigwa: Anthology of Climate Fiction [PUP Press, 2021]) that investigate translation and positionality. He teaches courses on creative writing in Filipino, literature, and Philippine Studies at the Departamento ng Filipino at Panitikan ng Pilipinas – University of the Philippines.
Translator’s note: Works of Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo seemingly mix, match, and deliberately utilize what hobbyists call “illegal LEGO techniques” resulting in miniatures that make sense and scaffold insight about domestic spaces and social spheres that sincerely inquire into the human condition. The poem “Blocks” is a literary contraption that reconstructs familial and familiar narratives post-destruction. Since Dennis & I have been co-authoring zines, poetry comics, and other hybrid work, translating “Blocks” from Filipino to English is not unlike our collaborative projects, save for the encouragement and guidance of Alchemy, especially the poetic acuity of translation editor Vyxz Vasquez.