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Servant by Bienvenido Lumbera (Poem)

On the shut door of the mind
We knock, we of soul and body torn;
We who serve and are ignored,
Broken into pieces to be of use.
Our heads nod, our arms lift,
Our feet are quick, our faces turn:
We scatter our parts to the beck
And call of those higher than us.
Deep within, we have a name,
A story to tell. Against a harsh life
We've put up a fight, only
To end up with a servant's life.
We serve the strong, we are
Feet and arms wanting to climb,
Heads and faces used to fool the law,
Will we be whole again tomorrow?
Up ahead the new day shines,
The change-of-fate we seek-
Then we shall rise again,
With our names and bodies back.

The Summer Solstice by Nick Joaquin (Short Story)

The Moretas were spending St. John’s Day with the children’s grandfather, whose feast day it was. Doña Lupeng awoke feeling faint with the h...