The Literary Bumpkin's Blog

The Thief in the Summer Days — Jezreel Madsa Lo, far so as laughter and mirth is found The sons of men in sheer ignorance feast! By surprise thou at summer days abound Trembles are the grounds of the greater and least! Visit me not in my youth Oh gentle thief! Keep the jars of my head empty and lull For thy menace wipes my skin like handkerchief Thy presence blaring may it be yet dull To where go I should, or flee if I would? Behold, certain is thy shuddering advent In Hades dwelt thou in plain solitude Past shalt the days be when thou art silent Thou must to flee, Soul, seek death by your own Hide behind the Rock—in Him and him alone

Love—the Amalgamation of Reason and Affection “Penis erectus non habet conscientiam” (An erect penis has no conscience) ~ Archer Taylor [ The Proverbs ] Love is the consolidated product between affection and reason; that is, unless affection is produced by, or agrees with our rationality—only then it would be logically called love. For many today, people have different relative conceptions of what love is. Some have thought of it as a bizarre ‘electrifying’ feeling that produces bent to smile and sometimes with an element of sexual urge. All of these notions nonetheless are simply guesswork and are deficient of grasp as to the nature of love.  As is true, most people in this postmodern era, where ‘relativism’ thrives as an epistemological philosophy—i.e. truth is seen as something that is dependent upon one’s point of view or subjective opinion. In effect, our conventional knowledge of love becomes arbitrary, to say the least; and its significant meaning becomes co...

A Brief Summary Edited by: Jezreel Madsa One of the stories about the creation of the world, which the old folks of Panay, especially those living near the mountain, do not tire relating, tells us that in the beginning there was no heaven or earth—only a bottomless deep and a world of mist. Everything was shapeless and formless—the earth, the sky, the sea, and the air were almost all mixed up.          Then from the depth of this formless void, there appeared two gods, —Tungkung Langit and Alunsina. Just where the two deities came from it was not known. However, it is related that Tungkung Langit fell in love with Alunsina and, after so many years of courtship, they got married and had their abode in the highest realm of the eternal space where the water was constantly warm and the breeze was forever cool. It was in this place where order and regularity first took place.                    Tu...

Edited by: Jezreel Madsa EPIC OF HINILAWOD Hinilawod is the oldest and longest epic poem in Panay. It is usually sung for a period of three weeks at intervals of two hours at night. It contains, in its complete form, some eighteen stories. Each story represents three generations. In the eastern part of what is known as the Philippines, there lived a beautiful goddess named Alunsina, goddess of the eastern sea. Alunsina fell in love with an ordinary mortal named Paubari and she married him though she knew that marriage between heavenly persons and ordinary mortals was frowned upon. When the marriage was discovered, Maklium-sa-t’wan, god of the plains and valleys, became angry. He vowed to make life miserable for the unfortunate couple. Together with other gods who felt insulted by the marriage, Maklium-sa-t’wan sent down raging storms and floods to the kingdom, of Paubari and Alunsina. Fortunately, Suklang Malayon, the guardian of happy homes, had warned...

A Concise Introduction of the History of English Language Edited by: Jezreel Madsa The word "English" has variety of meaning depending on how it is used in a given context. In some occasion, it refers to the people who dwell in a particular area in Great Britain; other times, it refers to English Language, as is universally used by people across the globe.  One way to define English is to trace down its origin and history, as well as, its development or evolution over time. THE ORIGINS AND HISTORY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE   The British Isles  have been inhabited by different peoples for a long time and before they were islands. The excavation at Boxgrove in southern England show that early humans were present possibly 500,000 years ago in what we now call England. These hominids , however, are assumed not to have had language. They used tools to wound and kill big animals and may have continued to live there until the Ice Age. After the Ice Age , ...

GITANJALI BY: RABINDRANATH TAGORE Thou hast made me endless, such is thy pleasure. This frail vessel thou emptiest again and again, and fillest it ever with fresh life. This little flute of a reed thou hast carried over hills and dales, and hast breathed through it melodies eternally new. At the immortal touch of thy hands my little heart loses its limits in joy and gives birth to utterance ineffable. Thy infinite gifts come to me only on these very small hands of mine. Ages pass, and still thou pourest, and still there is room to fill. When thou commandest me to sing it seems that my heart would break with pride; and I look to thy face, and tears come to my eyes. All that is harsh and dissonant in my life melts into one sweet harmony--and my adoration spreads wings like a glad bird on its flight across the sea. I know thou takest pleasure in my singing. I know that only as a singer I come before thy presence. I touch by t...