The Ghost in the Glass – a first draft

The Ghost in the Glass

“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language.

And next year’s words await another voice.”

– T.S. Eliot

He took two photographs of himself

as if he were a ghost trapped in glass.

Shirtless, the sun striking him

directly from above, he could feel

ultraviolet rays penetrating his skin.

A fool foolishly marking the last day

of another year in a country where he remains

alien, though not on paper. He Skyped

with his family back home the day before

with his webcam turned off.

A glimpse of his mother on her birthday

was all he asked for, her sight

having left her years ago. He saw everyone

there peering through the tiny lens

of his sister’s tablet. No one saw him.

-o-

Filed under: Africa, Filipino poetry, Mga Tula / Poetry, poetry, Uncategorized