Taga

by Gerwin Vic E. Bhuyo

kon ako usa ka isda
ayaw na ko pan-i sa imong taga
tibuok kong lawas
ikisikisi
duyog
sa bulok
abohong ikog

ako usab nga

ihiyod
gabalodbalod nga hawak
ipamaypay
dalag nga kapay
ipabudlot
simod nga gasakyod
ipabuka
giuhaw nga baba

ipabuliskad
puwang mga hasang
ipagilaw
namunginging mga hingbis
ipahiyong
lubitosong mga mata

dili ko buot nga ikaw mahago
dili ko buot nga ikaw masagmuyo
dili ko buot nga ikaw magpalayo

busa
balika ko og isalibay
gikabiba mong bingwit
sa way paglangay
tukbon ko dayon
gamhanan
hait
silaw
nga sima
sa imong
taga
,

FISHHOOK
Translated from the Cebuano by Freya Natasha Fernandez-Dy

if I were a fish
don't bait me
with your fishhook
give my
whole body
a good shake
simultaneously
with my
gray-colored tail

and I will

undulate
my waist like the waves
fan out
my yellow flippers
pout
my protruding snout
open
my thirsty mouth
turn outward
my red gills
let glitter
my plentiful scales
smile
through my round eyes

i don't want you to tire
i don't want you to get frustrated
i don't want you to go far away

so now
come back to me and cast
that fishing pole on your shoulder
and hurriedly
I will devour
that powerful
sharp
shiny
barb
of your
fishhook
,

About the poet and the translator:

Gerwin Vic Evarretta Bhuyo is an OFW based in Bangkok, Thailand. He loves taking photographs and writing Cebuano prose and poetry. He tries not to miss every book sale event.

Freya Natasha Dy is a Cebuano freelance writer and artsy-crafty mom to a teenage girl. Lover of all things bright and beautiful. She dreams of one day leaving a world that is built on kindness, empathy, and truth to her daughter.