John Iremil E.

Teodoro
John Iremil E. Teodoro
BORN
in San Jose de Buena vista, Antique, Philippines November 14, 1973

Born to a middle-class family in Antique province, Teodoro gained early recognition as a creative writer since
his college years. He writes in four languages, namely English, Filipino, Hiligaynon and Kinaray-a. He is a
member of the Alon Collective and the Tabig/Hubon Manunulat Antique. Many of his literary works have
been published some of the country's leading journals, magazines and newspapers. He is a five-time awardee
of the Palanca Awards and has published countless books of fiction and poetry. He obtained his bachelor's
degree in biology from the University of San Agustin in Iloilo City and completed a master's degree in
creative writing from the De La Salle University-Manila with high distinction where he is currently pursuing a
PhD in Literature.

Among Teodoro's first distinctions were the Literature Grant of the Cultural Center of the Philippines and
Gawad Ka Amado in 1993 for his early attempts in Filipino poetry. His first full-length play in (The First Rain
of May) won 2nd Place at the 1997 Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. He later worked as a
journalist for Bandillo ng Palawan-Edisyong Filipino in Puerto Princesa City, a publication devoted to
environmental issues in the province of Palawan.
On February 20, 2008, (The First Rain of May) was premiered by the De La Salle University - Harlequin
Theatre Guild at the Tanghalang Huseng Batute, Cultural Center of the Philippines. On October 9, 10
and 11, 2008, the play was re-staged by the guild at the College of Saint Benilde, School of Design and
Arts, Black Box. In the same year, his essay collection (Thoughts and Angry Ramblings of a Siren
Pretending to be a Princess) won the Manila Critics Circle National Book Award for creative non-fiction
whereas shortly after, he was bestowed the (Pride of Antique) Award for Culture and the Arts from the
Antique Provincial Government.

In 2001, he returned to Iloilo City and taught literature as an assistant professor at the University of San
Agustin where he became the founding coordinator of the Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute,
managing director of the University of San Agustin Publishing House and moderator of the student
publications. He also initiated the establishment of the annual San Agustin Writers Workshop to promote
creative writing in Western Visayas.

His full-length play Belasyon, which dramatizes the country's diaspora, was staged at the Cultural Center
of the Philippines in 2003 as part of the University of San Agustin Centennial Commission's activities. In
2004, he was recognized as one of the Outstanding Augustinians of the Century for his lifetime
achievement in culture and the arts. His poetry (If Poems Could Buy Men) was shortlisted for the 2006
Manila Critics Circle National Book Award.
 Morning, Puerto del Mar, Isla Guimaras
Always, there is a hidden cove
in my heart
where all year it is summer
and the rain visits
only when I am desolate. But this morning, I am truly at the sea,
swimming by myself in waters
whose lines are clean as a poem. Perhaps, heaven’s jet way is a shore
with sand as fine and white as the long dresses of angels.
Perhaps the chorus of their voices
is cool and pure as the lapping tongues
of the smallest waves. How blissful it would be to take my last breath
reclining in the arms of the sea,
wrapped in the warm rays
of a just-risen sun. But I have many more poems
that I must write.
Poems of love. Love like the sea, deep and color-changing,
custodian of such mysteries.
Alice Tan Gonzales
Sc holed in the public education system, Alice Tan Gonzales cut her teeth on Si Pepe kag si Pilarin the 60s
and fed on Hiligaynon Magazine in late grade school for scant reading materials within her reach. After
Grade II, Alice reconnected with the language in her study of the Hiligaynon ballad called compose for her
Master’s thesis at the Ateneo de Manila in the early 1980s. She started writing in Hiligaynon at the prodding
of the “Father of Contemporary West Visayan Literature” Leoncio P. Deriadain 1988. Born of a Filipina and
a Chinese and speaking Hiligaynon at home, it is no wonder she should write her first short story in
Hiligaynon and discover her deep connection with the language in the process.

Alice has found a home in the Humanities Division, College of Arts and Sciences, UP Visayas where she
teaches literature and communication. UPV sent her to school at UP Diliman where she finished her Ph. D. in
English Studies: Creative Writing in 2008. UPV has all this time recognized her and supported her
specialization and expertise in Creative Writing in Hiligaynon without prejudice or condescension, for which
she is constantly thankful. She writes poetry, drama and fiction in Hiligaynon, and her area of study includes
Hiligaynon folk literature.
She was awarded the Carlos Palanca Hall of Fame for Literature in 2014 for winning five first places in the
Hiligaynon Category of Maikling Kuwento
LIST OF WORKS
•Istoryahan Ta Ka Uli, Kasingkasing Press, 2016, a collection of stories for older
children
•Ilongga: Madamo nga Guya, Seguiban Press, Iloilo, 2014 — a collection of poems on
woman
•May Isa ka Kuring nga Hari kag Iban pa nga Sugilanon, Kasingkasing Press, Iloilo,
2010, a collection of seven stories for children
•Sa Taguangkan sang Duta kag Iban pa nga Sugilanon, Seguiban Press, Iloilo, 2009 —
a collection of short stories in Hiligaynon
Felino S. Garcia, Jr.
Heart song and Other Poems is only the first book of poems by Felino S. Garcia, Jr. But collected between
its covers are some of the most amazing love poems I’ve read. There is no rawness, no rush, and no half-
cooked efforts in this collection. We have to thank publisher John Emeril Teodoro of Imprenta Igbaong for
coming out with this collection of poems.

The book is divided into four sections. “Coming to fruit” deals with love’s beginnings, when the days pass in
a blaze of happiness. And the nights more so, as captured in a poem called “Flood.” The poem has an
epigraph from the now-iconic song of Basil Valdez: “ (When it rains and I’m with you).” The poem points
out the overpowering presence of love, like water that drowns everything in its wake, including the lovers.

Water then and wind:

the natural elements of motion and force are compared to the brute power of love. In his novel A Farewell
to Arms, Ernest Hemingway seemed to say that between birth and death there is only loneliness. But Garcia
points to another direction: that beneath birth and death there is loneliness, yes, but also the bright and
shining possibilities of love.
Moreover, the poet implies that love is not just moored in the elements of nature, but also in the elements
of the body. The face and the voice, which are staple fare in the usual love poems. The body and its sensory
zones, which are staple fare, too, in the usual erotic poems. But in our poet’s book, love is de-familiarized
and the “heart song” is the snore of the beloved. From snore to song is one bold leap, but our poet has
steady legs and a pole-vault surer and stronger than any other’s. Watch him trace that arc.

“How you snore, my dearest one./ I stay up all night . . . . / I can bear listening to your heart-/ Song
breaking loose,/ Breaking through the throat’s/ Darkness, soft singing its way/ Through this listening
silence,/ Filling the brims of my watchful eyes/ And rising like a hairline/ Of breath, or smoke gathering
light/ Unto itself, air sprouting flowers. . . .”

“My skin’s terrain” is the second part of the book. Here, the poet talks about the art of cartography. But
what are mapped are the slopes and seas, the coves and caves of the beloved. Such appropriation — for the
poet is also a keen student of contemporary criticism and has grafted its select theories into his poetics —
is also found in two other poems in this section.
The body’s desires and dreams are etched in the poem “Inscription”.
Here, the body’s various vowels and consonants, the syllables that form a text, find a haven and home. This
triumphant work should make the three horsewomen of French feminist criticism giddy with joy. “ Must I
then seek/ A quick, sudden release/ From all these beginning less and endless/ Sensations and ululations/
When you are already inscribed on my body,/ On my body’s margins and boundaries,/ On my body’s text as
ecriture/ Defying, denying all forms of otherness,/ Othering and erasure/ Like love drawing us all in/
Mercilessly in its full embrace—/ Ever grasping,/ Running out of breath.”

There is also the appropriation of the poetics of Islamic mysticism in the poem “Pillow,” with an epigraph
from Khaled Mattawa: “Come love like a crushing seed.” Islamic mysticism is focused on the Tariqa, or the
Sufi Path. Its poetics is rife with motifs of birds and blood, of spore, semen and light, of journeys whose
destination is the Beloved. Garcia weds beautifully the sensual gesture and the mystical moment in the
poem “Pillow.”
“Imagine him as you close your eyes./ Imagine him in your sleep./Imagine him as though this were your
last slumber,/ As though you would no longer hear/ His voice echo the bird’s sweet singing,/ As though
upon hearing him, your body, your ribcage/ Could no longer be shaken into sobs,/ Convulsed into tears as
though you were cursed/ And could never be awakened./ Imagine his voice as though its sweetness/ Could
no longer like an arrow/ Pierce your heart . . . ” “Beyond this lifetime” is the title of the third part. In a
homage to the finest love poems, the sensual the spiritual have become one in this poem, wedded in utter
and singular bliss. The readings of the poet are varied; in this poem, he alludes to Buddhist motifs.
Without the endpoints and pauses of punctuation marks and in lines fluent and fluid, the poet leads us to
the heart of nirvana:
“and like the Eightfold Path fulfilled/ you came stepping in this room quietly/ as if it were a lake you
dipped soaked/ your feet/ as if you were a bodhisattva/ deferring enlightenment How we learned/ to
breathe in time murmuring each other’s/ name over and over like a mantra/ while we slept in this bed
shaped like a lotus/ on a night made lucid by the full moon . . . .” “The wind relents” is the last part of the
book. And as if to mimic the natural order of things, it deals with endings.
In “The Second Aftermath,” the persona is full even when empty, for the beloved’s presence is made even
more manifest by his absence. The poem has images of wayward fish bones stuck in one’s throat, of
boulders sinking deeper than gravity could hold them, of eyelids closing for the night. I would like to end
this review by quoting in full the poem “Undertow.” It is a poised, painful meditation on the pendulum of
love and loss. Like a haiku, it tells us that beauty is fragile and transitory, and its very transience hurts.
“No one speaks/ Of all that was here/ All that you and him were/ All that will no longer be/ Between you
and him/ In a single blink/ Final and irreversible/ And yet world of his touch/ His whispers his voice/ The
sea in his mouth/ Its undertow hissing/ The sound of it all/ Still hanging in your heart.”
The tradition of the love lyric is long and diverse. Heloise wrote letters to Abelard, Robert Browning to his
Elizabeth Barrett, Walt Whitman to his anonymous young men, and Emily Dickinson “to a world that never
wrote to me.” It seems that the poems of Felino Garcia Jr. belong to the world explored by Whitman and
Dickinson. Garcia’s poems are letters to a world that still turns a blind eye to the wonder, the majesty, and
the pain of men loving other men.
Warm, witty and wise, grainy with the many landscapes of love and longing, the best poems in this
collection have already earned their secure places in the many rooms that comprise Philippine writing in
English.
Alain Russ Dimzon
Alain Russ Dimzon was the first fellow for Hiligaynon Poetry of the UP National Writers Workshop. As a
poet, fictionist, lyricist and songwriter, his works in Hiligaynon, Filipino and English have appeared
in Home Life, National Midweek, Philippine Panorama, Sunday Inquirer Magazine, Philippines Free
Press, Philippine Graphic, The Sunday Times, Ani, Patubas, Mantala, In Time Passing There Are
Things, Native Words Native Roots, CCP Literary Yearbook, The Best of Likhaan, San Ag, Philippine
Studies, Tulaan Sa Tren, Under the Storm, Sansiglong Mahigit na Makabagong Tula sa Pilipinas, PEN
Journal, Sa Atong Dila, Alpha Records and RAWA Records. His awards come from Hiligaynon
Magazine, Home Life, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Komisyon Sa Wikang Filipino, Fray
Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute, Department of Tourism, Department of Environment and Natural
Resources, The Ilonggo Music Festival and the Asian Composers League.
He has authored and co-authored scientific and policy papers which passed the screening, were invited,
presented or published by the University of Florida, American Academy of Sciences, Widener University
of Pennsylvania, Amsterdam and Berlin Conferences on the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental
Change and the International Society on Equity on Health-Canada. Recently, he received the Gawad
Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas from UMPIL.
WORKS
1.REPENTANCES & REHABILITATIONS
Earliest Published Poems
(c) 2016, Kasing-kasing Press, Guimaras, Philippines

2. WALO KAG DOSE NA

Contemporary Hiligaynon Songs in the Folk Style Tradition
(c) 2015, Kasing-kasing Press, Guimaras, Philippines

3. ANG MANUNULAT KAG PENDULUM

Hiligayon Poems with English Translation & Notes on the Author’s Philological Theory
(c) 2008, University of San Agustin Publishing House
 WALO KAG DOSE NA
Contemporary Hiligaynon Songs in the Folk Style Tradition
by ALAIN RUSS DIMZON ROMULO PANGAN

What can be the most appropriate contemporary definition of a folk song?

In this time of digital publishing, can the “product of no time and no person” and “…its medium is word of
mouth rather than print…” which Evelyn Wells said about folk songs in general be still relevant?
If a true folk song lives in oral tradition, then would folk songs be nascent in the technological
advancements of communications or can these technological advancements make the genre of the folk
songs extinct?
Art history is a history of a long evolution. No form is spontaneous. Every style always contains
similarities, by chance or volition, with an older or younger form. The preservation of tradition may be
trite in thought and action. But we, the authors of this collection, are transcending the preservation of
tradition. We are building on tradition. We do not proclaim our songs to be truly folk. We consider these in
the folk style tradition! The lyrics are short and repetitive. The melodies are also short and repetitive. The
songs have a combined accessibility in lyrics and melody and that makes them more proximate to no other
genre the folk or traditional song.
June 2015

Alain Russ Dimzon was the first fellow in Hiligaynon Poetry of the University of the Philippines National
Writers Workshop. He won the Gawad Emmanuel Lacaba (Best New Writer in Hiligaynon) of the National
Commission for Culture and the Arts in 2000.
As a poet, songwriter, lyricist and fictionist his other awards came from Home Life, Hiligaynon Magasin,
Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, Department of Tourism, Department of Environment and Natural Resources,
Ilonggo Music Festival, and the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. His poems, songs, lyrics and
fiction in Hiligaynon, English and Filipino have been published by the Sunday Inquirer Magazine, The
Sunday Times, Philippine Panorama, Philippines Free Press, Philippine Graphic, National Midweek,
Philippine Studies of the Ateneo de Manila University, The Best of Likhaan of the University of the
Philippines Creative Writing Institute (Diliman), Busay of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas,
Sanag of the University of San Agustin, In Time Passing, There Are Things (Society of St. Paul), Native
Words, Native Roots of the Mindanao State University, Ani of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, The
CCP Literary Yearbook, Patubas and Mantala of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts,
Sansiglong Mahigit ng Makabagong Tula sa Pilipinas (Anvil), Tulaan sa Tren (National Book Development
Board), Under the Storm (Antithesis Collective), The PEN Journal (Philippine Center of International PEN),
Ang Pagbalik Sang Babaylan (Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino), Alpha Records-Philippines, Calvary Church of
Hong Kong, and the Asian Composers League.
He has authored and co-authored scientific and policy papers, which have passed the screening, and which
have been accepted, invited, presented or published by the University of Florida, United Nations-Food and
Agriculture Organization, University of California Riverside, American Academy of Sciences, Widener
University of Pennsylvania, Berlin Conference on the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental
Change, Amsterdam Conference on the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change, International
Society on Equity on Health-Australia, Sustainable Resource Development (SURED) – Germany. His
services have been hired by the World Bank Institute, United Nations Development Fund for Women,
World Wildlife Fund, Save the Children Foundation, Canadian Urban Institute, among others.

He is the author of Ang Manunulat kag ang Pendulum (The Writer and the Pendulum), a book of
Hiligaynon poems with English translation and notes on his Hiligaynon philological theory, his output for
the 2006 Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute Competitive Book Writing Grant; and Repentances
and Rehabilitations (Published Earliest Poems). He is a member of the Philippine Center of International
PEN (Poets, Playwrights, Essayists, Novelists International).
 Hiligaynon Poetry
BY ALAIN RUSS DIMZON
THE WRITER AND THE PENDULUM

1.A writer Has been removed From his room Which has turned Into very thick glass.
His typewriter Is yearned By his fingers, But is touched By his eyes.
His old book Is yearned By his eyes, But is touched By his fingers.
The writer And his typewriter Should be one.
The writer Is not a stranger. The stranger Is the padlock.
"I will open The door! This is my room! My witness Is the pendulum!“

2.The writer is angry.

"Golden star, You seem to shrink Against the words Of the novena!
Che Guevarra, I will have you married To St. Mary!
The red flag Is the bridal gown! The masses Are the sponsor!"
Smoke rises On the dilapidated terrace. The writer is angry.
At the tip Of the rosary beads, He has attached a bullet On the crucifix.
He has them married In his name that Has no father And no son.
The smoke subsides. The pendulum Does not swing. The angry writer Turns a page.
Melchor F. Cichon
Melchor F. Cichon is presently a librarian at Aklan Catholic College Library, Kalibo, Aklan. He used to work
at Great Savior College Library and at St. Therese-MTC College Library in Iloilo City after retiring from the
position of head librarian, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences Library, University of the Philippines
Visayas, Miag-ao, Iloilo. He is a former lecturer in management at the U.P. College of Management. Cichon's
poetry has been recognized by the Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas (UMPIL), which awarded him with
the Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas on 25 August 2001. He is a recipient of the 2006 Fray Luis de
Leon Creative Writing Grants, awarded by the Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute(FLDCWI),
Coordinating Center for Research and Publications of the University of San Agustin. His manuscript is
entitled "Siniad-Siad nga Kaeangitan/Strips of Heaven" and is a collection of Aklanon haiku with English
translations.

Education:
Certificate in Fisheries, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City 1970
Bachelor of Science in Education, Manuel L. Quezon University 1974
Certificate in Governmental Management, University of the Philippines, Visayas 1982
Master in Management (Public Management), University of the Philippines, Visayas 1982
Master in Library Science, University of the Philippines, Diliman 1985
June 6, 2014
MELCHOR F. CICHON is the Head, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences Library, U.P. in the
Visayas. He was born in Sta. Cruz, Lezo, Aklan and educated at the University of the Philippines where he
obtained his Certificate in Fisheries, Certificate in Governmental Management, Master in Management, and
Master in Library Science. He used to teach management courses at the College of Management, U.P. in the
Visayas, Iloilo City. He took his Bachelor of Science in Education, major in Library Science and minor in
English at the Manuel L. Quezon University, Manila. His works include(Ham-at Madueom Ro Gabii)
1999;Philippine Oddities, Love Can Find a Way and Other Proverbs on Love; Haiku, Luwa and Other Poems
by Aklanons edited by Melchor F. Cichon, Edna Laurente Faral, and Losally R. Navarro . , 2005.
He maintains the website, Aklanon Literature, and also has a blog. His awards: First prize, first Home
Life poetry contest,1994. First Aklanon CCP grantee for Aklanon poetry in 1994. Third prize, Sentro Ng
Wikang Filipino, U.P., essay writing contest, 1994; 2nd prize (Aklanon category) and 3rd prize (Filipino
category), National Commission for the Culture and the Arts poetry contests; 3rd prize in Hari/Hara Sang
Binalaybay (King /Queen of Poetry), 1998 poetry contest sponsored by U.P. in the Visayas Sentro ng
Wikang Filipino; 1st prize in a regional poetry writing contest sponsored by the Sentro Ng Wikang
Filipino, U.P. in the Visayas, Iloilo City, February 22, 2002. On August 25, 2001, he was a recipient of
the 2001 Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas Award presented to him by the Unyon ng mga Manunulat
sa Filipinas (UMPIL).—August 26, 2003
 Awards, Recognition, Honors
• 1963 First Honorable Mention, Mindanao Regional School of Fisheries, Rio Hondo, Zamboanga City, 1963.
• 1969 Second Prize, On-the-Spot Essay Writing Contest, MLQU, Manila, June 11, 1969
• 1971 3rd Honorable Mention, Slogan Writing Contest, sponsored by the Sulu Ng Inang Wika, MLQU, Manila,
August 19, 1971.
• 1971 Partial Scholar for three consecutive semesters, School of Education, Manuel L. Quezon University,
Manila, 1969–1971
• 1979 Only winner, Poetry Writing Contest, sponsored by the Public Information Radio Iloilo, Iloilo City, 1979
(now DYLL Radyo ng Bayan)
• 1983 Fellow, UNDP-UNESCO-NSTA-UPILS, 5th Post Graduate Training Course for Science Information
Specialists in Southeast Asia, 1982–1983
• 1991 Certificate of Appreciation presented by Akeanon Literary Circle, November 10, 1991, Kalibo, Aklan
• 1993 First Prize, First Home Life Award for Poetry, 1993. (Winning piece: A Letter1994---CCP Literature
Grant for 1994 for the writing of Ham-at Madoeom Ro Gabii, Inay? Ag Iba Pang Binalaybay (POETRY),
February 28, 1994
• 1994 Recognition for his earnest efforts and dedication in serving as TRAINOR on the Application of
UNESCO-MINI-MICRO CDS/ISIS Software to Library Operations
• 1994 Certificate of Appreciation awarded by Central Philippine University, Iloilo City, July 21, 1994
Recognition for his earnest efforts and dedication in serving as TRAINOR on the Application of UNESCO-
MINI-MICRO CDS/ISIS Software to Library Operations
• 1994 Recognition for his earnest efforts and dedication in serving as TRAINOR on the Application of
UNESCO-MINI-MICRO CDS/ISIS Software to Library Operations
• 1994 First Prize, Home Life Poetry contest, 1994. Entry: A Letter
• 1994 Second Prize, Aklanon Category, First All-West Visayan Poetry competition, 1994. Entry in Aklanon:
Hueas It Bato ag Baeas ag Iba Pa nga Binaeaybay
• 1994 Second Prize, Filipino Category, First All-West Visayan Poetry competition, 1994. Entry in Aklanon:
Mga Bueabod sa Kauswagan
• 1994 Third Prize, Professional Category, Uswag U.P. Visayas 1994, essay writing contest, UPV, Iloilo City.
Entry: DR. LEONCIO P. DERIADA: MASIGLANG LIDER SA MULING PAG-USWAG NG MALIKHAING
PANULAT SA WESTERN VISAYAS
• 1994Writing Fellow, 34th National Writers Workshop, May 2–20, 1994, Dragon Room, CAP Building,
Dumaguete City, sponsored by Creative Writing Foundation1996---Certificate of Appreciation, for having
served as Resource Person during the Training Course on Fisheries Research Methodology and Technical
Writing sponsored by the Department of Agriculture-bureau of Agricultural research held at the College
of Fisheries, UP in the Visayas, Miag-ao, Iloilo, December 2–4, 1996.
• 1996—Third Prize, Professional Category, Uswag U.P. Visayas 1996 essay writing contest, UPV, Iloilo City.
Entry: SI HENERAL FRANCISCO DEL CASTILLO NI TAY ITSONG.
• 1996—Writing Fellow of the 3rd Iligan National Writers Workshop, April 22–26, 1996, MSU-Iligan
Institute of Technology, Iligan City
•1997—Service Award, for 29 years of service to the UP Library, on March 7, 1997, UP Main Library,
Gonzales Hall, diliman, Quezon City
•1998—Third Prize in the Hari/Hara sa Binalaybay 1998 held at the UPV Auditorium, Iloilo City, March 13,
1998. The winning piece is SA MGA NAGKAEABALI NGA SILAK
• 1999—Certificate of Recognition for his Thirty-Two (32) Years of Invaluable and Dedicated Service in the
University of the Philippines, presented on July 28, 1999
• 1999—Featured in a book of poems by our poets to mark the end of the century, IN TIME PASSING,
THERE ARE THINGS: 100 Home Life Poets, edited by Leoncio P. Deriada. 1999. One of the two Aklanons
in this book.
•2001—Certificate of Appreciation presented by Alpha Phi Omega, International Services Fraternity and
Sorority, Kappa Gamma Chapter, University of the Philippines in the Visayas, as judge in the 1st Alpha Phi
Omega-Inter-College Debate held on the 22nd day of February 2001.
• 2001—Outstanding Alumnus, Lezo Elementary School, Lezo, Aklan, April 1, 2001
• 2001---Recipient of Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas (for Aklanon Poetry) for his outstanding
achievement and pioneering work in poetry in Aklanon, August 25, 2001, Goethe Institute (German Cultural
Center), Auditorium, Aurora Blvd, Quezon City. Bestowed by Union ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas
(UMPIL)for his outstanding achievement and pioneering work in poetry in Aklanon that have marked his
considerably significant and permanent contribution to Philippine literature. Using the peculiarities of his
mother tongue to its full potential, he has, in articulate poetic terms, expressed the lamentation and
celebrations of his fellows, transcending the local milieu to become one of the country's esteemed poets.
• 2001—Certificate of Appreciation awarded by the University of the Philippines in the Visayas UPV
Kamaragtas for his unselfish and dedicated efforts as a judge in the Quiz Bee on the Filipino-American War
held at the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences Audio-Visual Hall on February 27, 2001.
•2002—First Prize, Bigkas Binalaybay 2002, professional and written category. Entry in Aklanon: Si Ambong,
Ati.
• 2003---Certificate of Appreciation for unselfishly supporting the organization (Alpha Phi Omega,
International Collegiate Service fraternity and Sorority, Kappa Gamma chapter, UP in the Visayas, Miag-ao,
Iloilo) by sharing his time and talent as one of the Chief Judges during the PAINDISANAY 2003, a Literary
Musical Contest held on September 25, 2003 at the University of the Philippines in the Visayas Auditorium,
Iloilo City.
• 2004, July 22---awarded as the University of the Philippines in the Visayas Most Outstanding Research and
Professional Staff
• 2004—Nominee to the Lingkod ng Bayan Award
• 2006—Book writing awardee conferred by the Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute (FLDCWI),
Coordinating Center for Research and Publications of the University of San Agustin for manuscript Siniad-
Siad nga Kaeangitan (Strips of Heaven), a collection of Aklanon haiku with English translations.
Professional Affiliations
• Board of Director, Hubon Manunulat
• Member, Philippine Librarians Association, Inc. (PLAI)
• Member, Philippine Association of Research and Academic Libraries (PAARL) (In-active)
• Adviser, Akeanon Literary Circle (ALC)
• Co-Adviser, UP Akeanon (University of the Philippines in the Visayas, Miag-ao, Iloilo)
• Co-Adviser, Grand Knight Chess Club, University of the Philippines in the Visayas, Miag-ao,Iloilo)
• Auditor and Founder, Ilonggo Literature Archive, Inc. (ILA), Iloilo City
• Secretary, Ilonggo Literature Foundation, Inc. (IFLA), Iloilo City
• PRO,REPSA, UP in the Visayas, Miag-ao, Iloilo
• Chancellor, Knights of Columbus, School Council 10095, based in UPB Iloilo City
• Lifetime Member, UMPIL
• Member, UP Writers Club (for having attended the creative writing workshop in Dumaguete City)
• Member, Philippine Librarians Association, Inc. (PLAI) (in-active)
• Member, Philippine Association of Research and Academic Libraries (PAARL) (In-active)
• Adviser, Akeanon Literary Circle (ALC)
• Co-Adviser, UP Akeanon (Miag-ao, Iloilo)
• Auditor and Founder, Ilonggo Literature Archive, Inc. (ILA)
• Secretary, Ilonggo Literature Foundation, Inc. (IFLA)
• PRO, REPSA
• Chancellor, Knights of Columbus, School Council 10095, based in UPB Iloilo City
• Lifetime Member, UMPIL Member, UP Writers Club
Writing:
Cichon has promoted Aklanon literature through his writing and several blogs that he maintains. Cichon's
blogs include, Events in My Life, Dawn to Dawn, Profile of Filipino Fisheries Scientists, Fisheries
Librarian and Aklanon Literature
Poem in June. Home Life, June 2004,p. 24
A Letter. In: In Time Passing, There Are Things : 100 Home Life Poets edited by Leoncio P. Deriada. Makati
City: Home Life, 2000, p. 86. (This poem won first prize in its First Poetry Contest, 1993)
Still. In: In Time Passing, There Are Things, p. 87
Thank You, Anyway. Mantala 1(3):98 2000 Strike. Mantala 1(3):99 2000
Rue. Busay. June 1992, p. 91 (This poem won Third Place, English Poetry Writing Contest,Miag-ao Summer
Arts Camp Poetry Workshop, 1992)
• Pushing the Night Ani 3(2): 151 June 1989
• A Youth's Voice. Ani 3(2): 152 June 1989
• Brother. Busay 3(1):14 December 1997
• Upon Seeing Magellan's Cross Busay 3(1):15 December 1997
• Lorna. Busay 2(1):44 October 1996
• Driver. Busay 2(1):45 October 1996
• Women of Antique. Philippines Free Press, December 12, 1991
EVA, BEHOLD ADAM!
Because you were pulled out of Adam’s ribs So that he could have someone to play with,
Someone he could talk with and who could ease his tension In moments he wanted to,
Many names have been written in your path: Salome, Magdalene, Maria Clara, Typhoon Esyang.
Because your heart has been said to be weak, Even typhoons that can uproot bamboos
And can sink ships are still named after you.
But men forget that even Mark Anthony Was rolled by Cleopatra Even out of their bed.
They fail to remember that it was Gabriela Who extended the path of Diego Silang.
And at EDSA if your tribe did not tie roses around The muzzles of Freddie’s armalites,
Perhaps Cory wouldn’t be able to light candles In the chapel at Malacañang.
They are good at cracking their heads planning
How you’ll simply follow their tails. They do not worry about how you can use
All your mind, body and movements So that all of us can get out of the lake of debt.
You do not know at all they say, How to manage a government or a church.
You are good only in crying, flirting Once your threads get messed in your loom.
When you know so much and you speak Against the rules which they themselves have set,
You are called an amazon, If not, you are a member of Brainda’s group.
Eve, you stand equally with Adam In all places, in all things.
But why did you allow him To do what he wanted to ? Or you just wanted him to think
That the reason why he was able to make the lion sit Is because you are his companion.
Mark Anthony A. Grejaldo
Mark Anthony A. Grejaldo was born August 11, 1980 in Iloilo City. He is a
graduate of Mass Communications from the West Visayas State University.
He started writing poetry in 1998. In 1999, he became a fellow for Poetry in
the Iligan National Writers’ Workshop and the U.P. National Writers’ Workshop
in Davao City. “Lihim ng mga Alitaptap” (his first attempt in writing a
screenplay) was a finalist in the 3rd Star Cinema Screenwriting Contest.
Born and raised in Iloilo City, Philippines, Mark is a poet and an artist. He is an
aspiring fictionist, novelist, and screenwriter. When he is not busy, he plays
online games
Mark Anthony is an author. He is also the Founder, President, and Publisher of Q- Boro Books.
Anthony has written Essence Magazine bestsellers, Paper Chasers, Dogism, Lady's Night, and The Take
Down. With each story that he tells, readers always ask the question, 'Is this a true story? Did this really
happen?' Mark takes that as a compliment and a testament to his creative ability.

Early on in his life, Mark would write stories in his spare time, sort of like a hobby, but he never had the
intentions of becoming an author or a publisher. Many of those stories were written longhand in five subject
spiral notebooks and stashed away in his closet. In fact, on several occasions, while cleaning his closet, Mark
came close to throwing the stories in the garbage.

Eventually, Mark typed the stories he had written and let people read them, and, to his surprise, everyone
loved it. The enthusiastic response to what he had written was always the same. So after much
encouragement to not let his talent go unnoticed, Mark decided to self-publish his work. The success of his
self-publishing efforts proved to Mark that he indeed was gifted and could stand his own against the best
authors in the business. Writing has since become Mark's passion, combined with finding new writing talent
and helping to bring that talent the masses.
MY MOTHER IN ILIGAN
(For Merlie M. Alunan)
O Mother, you bore me
As a writer there In Iligan. I still remember
You bathing me. With your fragrant criticism
For I peed with stinking Letters on my fresh
Poems;
Your planting
Some ideas on writing
Which I now Harvest.Thank you very much, Mom,
For making me grow within
One week. If ever I have a child
In literature, I will make him grow
Likewise the way
You have made me grow. You know, Mom, I miss
The days I was Beside you. Now that you are In
Tacloban and I am here
In Molo, shall Our shadows ever embrace again
Sometime? Ah, maybe there In Erehwon.
I LONG
In the whisper of the narra
At night while
It rocks the sal-ing,
In the monotone of our rooster
Whose crowing wakes us up
At dawn, In the argument between
Our two dogs which of them
Would eat lunch first, In the silent words
Of the fish in the river were
We bathe and wash our clothes,
In the screaming of our Ducks for they are being
stalked By the cat of the house across,
And in the noise of the rats
In our kitchen as they Gnaw the sacks
Of palay—
I long: for Here at the Evacuation Center,
The only thing I Hear is the silent
Howl of the ashen wind After Mayon growled And
salivated Embers.
Genevieve L. Asenjo
Genevieve L. Asenjo (fiction writer, poet, translator; Philippines) is the author of four books including Lumbay ng
Dila (The Melancholy of the Tongue), winner of the country’s 2011 National Book Award. Her short stories and
poems have appeared in many magazines and anthologies. She translates into the Philippine languages Kinaray-a,
Hiligaynon, and Filipino, and is the founder-director of Balay Sugidanun (Storytelling House). She is Associate
Professor of literature and creative writing at De La Salle University-Manila. Her participation is made possible
by a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
Genevieve L. Asenjo is a
Filipino poet, novelist, translator and literary scholar in Kinaraya, Hiligaynon and Filipino. Her first novel, Lumbay
ng Dila, (C&E/DLSU, 2010) received a citation for the Juan C. Laya Prize for Excellence in Fiction in
a Philippine Language in the National Book Award. In 2012, Asenjo participated in the International Writing
Program (IWP) Fall Residency of the University of Iowa. In 2009, she spent six months in Seoul as Overseas
Writing Fellow sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of South Korea. Asenjo is an associate
Professor at De La Salle University in Manila. In 2010, she founded Balay Sugidanun (The House of Storytelling).
Dr. Genevieve L. Asenjo is associate professor of literature and creative writing at the Dept. of Literature. She
writes in three major Philippine languages as a poet, fictionist, and novelist and author of six books: taga-
uma@manila (NCCA, 2005), Pula ang Kulay ng Text Message (University of San Agustin Press, 2006), Komposo ni
Dandansoy (UST Press, 2007), Lumbay ng Dila (C&E/DLSU, 2010), Mabaskog nag Hiligaynon 1 (C&E Publishing,
2013), and Sa Gihapon, Palangga, ang Uran/Always, Beloved, The Rain (Ateneo de Naga Press, 2014). She was an
Honorary Writing Fellow in the International Writing Program of the University of Iowa in
2012 and Overseas Writing Fellow in Seoul, South Korea in 2009. She has received awards from the Don Carlos
Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and Komisyon ng Wikang
Filipino. She founded Balay Sugidanun and a founding-member of a writerʼs group, Taftique, Inc.
LIST OF WORKS
1) “Bomb”, One-Act Play. Staged during DuLa Salle 2018, Rights Minus Wrong, by the Harlequin Theater
Guild,
William Shaw Theater, De La Salle University-Manila, April 4-7, 2018.
2) “Ang Felicidad Project”. Short Story. Published in May Tiktik sa Bubong, May Sigbin sa Silong, Allan
Derain (ed.). Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2017.
3) “Pangangamusta Mula sa Balaan Bukid”. Short Story. Trans. “Greetings from Sacred Mountain” by Michelle
Tan
Tiu. Published in Kritika Kultura 25 (2015) ISSN 2094-6937.
4) “At Paglaway sa Balat ng Kahoy na Inyam” . Excerpt of the Novel Ang Itim na Orkidyas ng Isla
Boracay. Published in ‘Bien! A Festschrift in Honor of National Artist Bienvenido L. Lumbera. David Jonathan
Bayot, Jaime Oscar Salazar, and Johann Vladimir Espiritu (eds). De La Salle University Press v, 2015.
5) Sa Gihapon, Palangga, ang Uran/Always, Beloved, the Rain, a collection of poetry in Kinaray-a with
English translation by Ma. Milagros Lachica (Ateneo de Naga University Press, 2014) ISBN 978-971-9913-26-
9 Citation/Recognition: Finalist, 2014 National Book Award, National Book Development Board (NBDB) of
the Philippines Selected for Exhibition & Presentation during the Cultural Partnership Initiative (CPI)
Program 10th Year Anniversary at the K-Hotel Seoul, October 26-31, 2015, Seoul, South Korea. CPI is a
cultural program covering Asia, Africa, and Latin America administered by the Korea Culture and Tourism
Institute (KCTI) under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST) of South Korea.
6) Lumbay ng Dila. Novel. C & E Publishing & De La Salle University. 2010. ISBN 978-971-584-936-4 Citation
for Excellence in Fiction in a Philippine Language, Juan C. Laya Prize, National Book Award 2011.
Manila Critics Circle & National Book Development Board (NBDB) of the Philippines.
 Isidro Cruz, 1926 - 1988
Isidro Cruz was born on month day 1926,
at birth place, Texas, to Aurelio
Cruz and Antonia Cruz (born Arrendondo).
Aurelio was born in Mexico.
Antonia was born on May 16 1905, in Texas.
Isidro had 4 siblings: Alvaro Cruz and 3 other
siblings.
Isidro married Maria Teresa Cruz (born
Lopez).
Maria was born on October 15 1928, in
Mexico.
They had 4 children: Aurelio Cruz and 3 other
children.
Isidro M. Cruz
Isidro married first name Cruz.
They had 2 children.
Isidro passed away of cause of
death on month day 1988, at age 61 at death
place, Texas.
He was buried at burial place.
Isidro M Cruz holds a Ph.D. in Literature from De
La Salle University. He received two National Book
Awards for Literary Criticism / Literary History
from the Manila Critics Circle for Pungsod —
Damming the Nation: Region/Nation and
the Global Order in Contemporary West Visayan
Literature (University of San Agustin Publishing
House, 2009), and Cultural Fictions: Narratives on
Philippine Popular Culture, Politics, and
Literature (Libro Agustino, 2004). He won the first
prize in the Don Carlos Palanca Award for his poetry
collection Bodies of Water and other prizes
from Philippine Panorama (short story and poetry)
and Home Life (poetry in English and Filipino). He
is a Professor of Literature and Dean of the College
of Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Education, University
of San Agustin, Iloilo. He is the coordinator for
West Visayas and secretary of the National
Committee on Literary Arts, National Commission
for Culture and the Arts.
Children’s Lit at 10th San Agustin
Writers Workshop
CHILDREN’S literature will be the focus of
the 10th San Agustin Writers Workshop,
scheduled on May 2-5, 2012 at the
Residence Hotel, Iloilo City.
Ten writing fellowships are available this
year, the Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing
Institute at the University of San Agustin
Center for Research and Publications
(UCRP), organizer of the annual workshop,
announced.
Selected fellows will learn from
distinguished panelists, all of whom have
won awards in the prestigious Don Carlos
Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature,
and citations from other award–giving
bodies for writers. Dr. Leoncio Deriada, who
is on the Palanca Hall of Fame, will set the
tone for the four-day workshop.
Children’s Lit at 10th San Agustin
Writers Workshop
CHILDREN’S literature will be the focus of the
10th San Agustin Writers Workshop, scheduled
on May 2-5, 2012 at the Residence Hotel, Iloilo
City.
Ten writing fellowships are available this year,
the Fray Luis de Leon Creative Writing Institute
at the University of San Agustin Center for
Research and Publications (UCRP), organizer of
the annual workshop, announced.
Selected fellows will learn from distinguished
panelists, all of whom have won awards in the
prestigious Don Carlos Palanca Memorial
Awards for Literature, and citations from other
award–giving bodies for writers. Dr. Leoncio
Deriada, who is on the Palanca Hall of Fame,
will set the tone for the four-day workshop.
Completing the panel are: Dr. Genevieve L.
Asenjo, chair of the Department of
Literature at De La Salle University Manila;
Dr. Isidro M. Cruz, dean of the College of
Arts and Sciences of the University of San
Agustin; Dr. Alice Tan-Gonzales, Literature
professor at the University of the
Philippines – Visayas, Prof. John Iremil E.
Teodoro, Language professor at Miriam
College, and Mr. Marcel Milliam, who won
the First Prize in Poetry for Children
(Filipino) in the Palanca Awards last year.
Preference is given to applicants from
within the Western Visayas region since the
advocacy of the Institute is to support
writers in Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a and
Akeanon.
 Education
University of San Agustín
Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.)Architectural Design
1988 – 1993
Activities and Societies: Jaycees Philippines, USA Writer's
Guild, Mirror Poetry Guild, Pen & Ink Architecture
Magazine, Atelier, Pubukad, Yew, Philippine National Red
Cross
University of San Agustín High School
1984 – 1988

John Carlo H. Tiampong

BIOGRAPHY
John Carlo Tiampong is an experienced architect with more than 15 years of professional design exposure in
international urban design, master planning, interior design and project implementation in China, Singapore
and the Philippines. A self-motivated, independent and highly creative manager, he transformed JC Tiampong
Design + Build into a strong player in urban residential and business design. With solid management and
people skills, he manages more than 200 employees working simultaneously in different projects. Armed with
excellent CAD 2D/3D skills, he produces quality graphics and realistic 3D perspectives which is realized in
detail in every project undertaken. He is well-traveled around China and Singapore.
John Carlo Tiampong is a licensed and accomplished Philippine Architect.

DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
Design has been my passion all these years. It’s not so much about the finished product that I love, but the
design process. That exhilarating game of creative choice where I am faced with infinite design possibilities.
Like chess, where every move has a corresponding play, each stroke of my pen, whether I’m designing a
building, stage backdrop, logo or magazine cover, opens up new possibilities and new concepts I’d eagerly
soak up just to experience the thrill. That must be why my architecture is so eclectic. I throw in so many
sketches just to come up with a single idea or concept, preferably one that doesn’t follow any set of aesthetic
rules, as each building is, and should be, unique, with a quality all its own, one that capsulizes and responds to
the client’s aspirations. Forever fascinated with building form, it is essential that I first challenge the
imagination and resolve the form before getting down to the technical. This way my buildings border on the
iconic, an interplay of dynamic spaces, textures and shapes that bombard the senses no end.
And to think architecture is mainly about shelter, the preservation of everything that we deem important in
life, makes it all the more exciting.
Ciento Cincuenta: Basilio
SEPTEMBER 13, 2012
Ron Matthews Espinosa , The Director

Basilio, the eldest of Sisa’s two sons, is a pious and hardworking boy who only hopes to bring his family out
of the rut. These dreams nearly came to a halt when he and his brother Crispin, sacristans in the local
church, were suspected of stealing. In the course of their escape, Basilio lost his brother while his mother
was driven to insanity at the thought of loosing hers sons. In El Filibusterismo, Basilio never hesitated to
stop dreaming for a better life and eventually became an aspiring doctor whose medical education was being
financed by Kapitan Tiago.
The poem Inumol by Arch. John Carlo Tiampong juxtaposed with alarming statistics on the plight of
Filipino children depict the modern Basilios today. It is said that a child is abused every ten seconds and
usually not by a stranger but one who has legal and moral ascendancy over them in their homes, day care
centers and schools. This disturbed me since home is supposed to be a shelter that offers affection and
protection of our children.
Directing this poetry in motion was a big challenge in that I demanded myself to make my audience feel
sympathetic to the advocacy; that in the end of the play parents in the audience come home and hug their
children and for children to find their voice against abusive parents.
I would like to thank Lucky Vicncentino for the choreography and my Artistic Director for the motivation.
My inspiration in this play is my family who made me realize how fortunate I am for their unconditional and
priceless love. To God Almighty, my deepest gratitude.
Basilio
Leah Rose Hiponia and Bibiana Uzoigwe, The Writers
The issue of abuse, oppression and poverty has been a prevailing case since the time of Jose Rizal over
150 years ago and continues to be so 150 years hence. Basilio is a typical example of a social cancer then
and now, the abuse of children. He and his brother Crispin were victims of physical injuries by their
father, a drunkard and gambler who forced them into labor, making them work extra hours to take care
of their needs. They were also falsely accused for stealing church property and subject to harsh
punishment.

The Basilios of today are still victims of various forms of abuses inflicted either as a result
of negligence or ignorance, by parents, strangers and society at large. We have weaved the poem
Inumol by John Carlo Tiampong with alarming numbers on the plight of abused children – domestic
violence, human trafficking and even child prostitution.The Philippines is reported to have the one of
worst cases of child labor in the world. The nation also ranks seventh in a list of countries with rape
cases with victims aging 4-17 years old; among others.
This performance poetry is meant to awaken our minds to the abandoned children on the streets whose
future are wasting away, to those who feel insecure even in their own neighborhood, to badly battered
children of parents who are suppose to protect them.
In this production, we appeal for society to give its children life, hope and their basic rights. We ask that
we give them back their childhood.