My life is worlds away from war
And poverty;
I need not fear for life
Or liberty,
Yet to remember this
When darkness falls
Is still a test.

When night entombs me
In her shadowed cloak,
And stars are far beyond
My window’s view,
My own adversity will
Rear its head
And make its claim.

Then, as the darkness shrouds my mind,
The starlight cannot
Pierce the shadowed gloom
And the pain of others has but
Little light.

And if this makes me
Cold,
Unfeeling,
Cruel,
Then so it is, and so,
Too, are you.
So are we all.
Cold,
Unfeeling,
Cruel.

A tear is but a raindrop
In a thunderstorm of pain.
The thunder is my rolling sobs,
The lightning, my angry cries;
A flash of light amidst the roiling skies.

To talk of gentle love and me,
Seems something of an oddity.
Yet to speak of angels as muses sing,
Used to come so naturally.

A somber sonnet of the soul,
Would ease the pain of heartache's toll.
And bring with it some great delight,
Yet now that gift has taken flight.

I cannot find the words once more,
All left behind on battered shores,
Of love and loss and life now gone,
I've lost the strength to carry on.

No words shall leave this shaking hand,
Of light and hope and love once grand.
And soon shall I then fade from view,
As my words have after you.

A broken angel on borrowed wings,
To teach of love and what it brings,
To show there beauty at its best,
And lay a wild heart to rest.

To teach of pain then born of passion,
And mark the soul in subtle fashion,
To linger there in memory,
Forever bathed in agony.

Take this then, my parting gift,
A simple thing which I will miss.
My pen and heart belong to you,
Goodbye my love and gentle muse.

My country is an old book with a crumbly, dusty cover;
original and valuable
Like a book, you don't judge it by its cover.
What's inside it is what defines it.
Gently open it;
Read each word with heart,
Uncover its uniqueness
till it brings delight.
Find the book enjoying,
You'll never wish for it to end.
You'll read it one more time,
You'll show loftiness to it.
Oh, fellowmen, we're proud of our country
Even if we're not;
Our mouths say we are, but our hearts deny.
Oh beloved country,
We discerned ourselves
through judging you
because of our own fault.

**© Frank Lloyd Manalang, 2014

Two different worlds
Two seperate skies
And only one that they can see

Inside my mind
When darkness falls
There is no other soul but me

Alone I pace
In deepest night
And no one takes my hand

To lead me from
My shadowed tomb
Where I am doomed to stand

Ah, pray for me,
Though kindness helps,
For only love can save me now

A lonely girl
Lost long ago
Who does not trust, and knows not how

Too often left
Though many cared
And no one saw the pain inside

That lonely girl
The happy mask
Was made so carefully to hide

But now it cracks
The paint wears off
And someone soon is bound to know

And steps will tread
The lonely walks
Where only I’m allowed to go

Perhaps at last
Someone will break
The wall I’ve built around my heart

But no one will
For all have eyes,
And I have been too long apart

And so, alas
For here I stand
A lonely girl in a shadowed land.

When there seems not much to fight for,
Nor many left to fight,
When the dark is closing round us,
That is the time for light!

That is the time for courage,
From those both great and small,
That is the time for love and truth,
For those must save us all!

That is the time for honor,
For friendship's outstretched hand,
For kin to stand together,
One strong, united band!

So now that shadows threaten,
And hate destroys our peace,
Now fear and greed prevail,
Now, now is the time for these!

Now is the time, my comrades!
Now you must heed the call!
Now you must stand together,
Or we must surely fall!

So listen to me, comrades,
Remember my words this day:
Love and peace can triumph,
And drive this hate away!