Read – 𝐴𝑠ℎ𝑎 𝐺𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑧

The Women’s Baths by Ulfat al-Idlibi

Rewritten in a postmodern technique of magic realism: Our household was troubled by the uncanny: my grandmother, who passed away last week at the age of seventy, still exists within our presence. Her voice is still imminent amongst the whispers of the wind. As the leaves of the Black Mulberry tree make subtle movements, herContinue reading “The Women’s Baths by Ulfat al-Idlibi”

Travel Bliss

Travelling helps us reflect on inner bliss, a contemplative empathy for others, and a yearning to become more spiritual with oneself and the world. In the video that I watched, “Japanology: The Shikoku Pilgrimage,” By Peter Barakan, I was impressed with the path’s serene and calm enlightenment. It made me want to experience it asContinue reading “Travel Bliss”

Essay on Robin Hemley & Mohezin Tejani

Reading Hemley’s essay, helped in grasping one’s cultural consciousness and its present undergoing change due to modernity. “Before we left for Manila again, Pakoran’s daughter Susan handed Laurie a short essay she’d written in her native language. Laurie had asked Susan to write the essay, not because he wanted to encourage her as a buddingContinue reading “Essay on Robin Hemley & Mohezin Tejani”

Robert Hass: On Poetic Relevancy

Robert Hass in his book Twentieth Century Pleasures: Prose on poetry essay emphasizes the importance of what is necessary in poetry writing. In the chapter named “One Body: Some Notes on Form”, he argues that everyday experiences and practices are the most efficient to use on one’s own writing of form. He induces that theContinue reading “Robert Hass: On Poetic Relevancy”

Plato’s Republic: A Dialogue of Ethical Politics

Plato’s Republic focused on the argument of what constitutes the being of a good person. It also tackles the definition of Justice and reflects this question on both the political and personal aspects of a human being. His strategy was to develop ideas on the primary notion of the ideal society, politics, and justiceContinue reading “Plato’s Republic: A Dialogue of Ethical Politics”

Modernism over Colonialism

Ananta Pramoedya Toer’s “This Earth of Mankind” “This Earth of Mankind” is a story that speaks of the conflict between modernism and colonialism amongst the Dutch and Indonesian relations. A story consisting of both the rapid change and the stagnant ideals of the characters, it is a story that conflicts on the issues ofContinue reading “Modernism over Colonialism”

Sa Aking Panalangin

A Concept of what it means to be a Filipino… For my great Southeast Asian novel, I choose the Philippines as my designated country. I want to write about my own country through the lenses of the Filipinos who are struggling with poverty, crime, and injustice. I hope to exhibit these problems in a wayContinue reading “Sa Aking Panalangin”

The Ostracism of One’s Own Norms

Upon reading Gustave Flaubert’s “Madame Bovary,” Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House,” and Miguel de Cervantes’s “Don Quixote,” I noticed one similar circumstance that all of the protagonists encountered. All of the protagonists: Emma Bovary, Nora Helmer, and Don Quixote de la Mancha chose to reject the notions of their present society as they embrace toContinue reading “The Ostracism of One’s Own Norms”

Travel Writing

Travel writing renders a sense of place as the writers interpret their own insights. It is, more so, a celebration of the grandeur of place that connects to one’s sense of place and wanderlust found in contemporary travel writing. The sense of place permeates our language up until the present because of the existenceContinue reading “Travel Writing”

Vipassana: A Form of Liberating Meditation

My First Vipassana Experience My First Vipassana Experience was when I was 19 years old. My Philosophy class introduced me to the concept of Vipassana. Much to our excitement, we bombarded our professor about his own experiences, “When one talks about meditation, everything seems light, easy, and applicable right away but it becomes the very oppositeContinue reading “Vipassana: A Form of Liberating Meditation”