ICON 2022

ICON EMAIL pauliworld.spcp@gmail,com FACEBOOK facebook.com/PauliworldSPCP INSTAGRAM instagram.com/pauliworldspcp TWITTER twitter.com/PauliworldSPCP

STAFF EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Jana Torres MANAGING EDITOR Laurein Mateo ASSOCIATE EDITOR Claudia Durban NEWS EDITOR Alexandra Ypil FEATURES EDITORS Luna Coscolluela, Gaby Martinez RESEARCH EDITOR Amelia Salva Cruz FILIPINO EDITOR Jolie Lim CHIEF CARTOONIST Veronica Angeles CHIEF LAYOUT ARTIST Frances Angeles ASSOCIATE LAYOUT ARTISTS Natasha Allenby, Mieka Laciste CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER Hananeel Martinez

LAYOUT Cristina Albarracin, Sophia Alejandro, Alexa Bentilanon, Grizz Imbao, Angela Imbuido, Louise Sese, Tyrelle Tebangin

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Veronica Angeles, Maya Erfe, Suzannah Sibug

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

White, Loreiz Abanes, Ckali Baldemor, Uzziel Camacho, Faith Dacara, Janina Esteban, Savannah Flores, Sofia Fugen, Jolie Lim, Aisha Manginsay, Ryan Mendoza Shyane, Mikayla Sanchez, Mischa Suarez

LITERARY 01

Aking Bituin

02

Kung Mabihag sa Liwanag

03

The Answer

05 06

CONTRIBUTIONS

by Ckali Baldemor Eclipsed

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Ilusyon ng Katotohanan

09 10

Sa Dilim Ko Makikita Ang Liwanag Ang Liwanag ng Pag-asa sa Gitna ng Suliranin

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CONTRIBUTIONS The Act of Loving

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A Letter from Hades to Peersephone

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What Lingers Beyond The Luminosity of Fortune

FEATURES 15

Ang Kinabukasang Walang Kasiguraduhan

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Ang Bayani at ang Kontrabida sa Bayani

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The City’s Nuisance

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CONTRIBUTIONS Tainted Paradise The Cursed Snake

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The Do’s and Don’ts in Life, as told by Korean Dramas

LITERARY

ni LOREIZ ABANES Ako’y kasalukuyang nakahiga’t tinatanaw ang mga bituin sa alapaap

Pagmamahal na hindi na sayo maipadadama at maibabahagi

Noong nakaraan lang ay kasama kita ritong mangarap

Ang pagmamahal na sa akin na lamang mamamalagi

Ang iyong paglisan ay hindi ko matanggap-tanggap Palagi pa rin inaasam ang iyong mahigpit na yakap

Nakagagalak na isiping isa ka na rito sa mga tala Araw o gabi man ay hindi nawawala Lagi lamang nariyan

Nais marinig ang malumanay na tinig

Patuloy akong papatnubayan

Ang iyong hagikhik na puno ng sigasig Ngiting nagdudulot ng aking kaginhawaan Ating mga alaala’y maigi kong iingatan

Mahirap ka man ngayong maapuhap Nililiwanagan naman ako ng iyong kislap Malalagpasan ko itong mga panaghoy

Sa kawalan ng iyong piling ako’y nalulumbay

Ako ay magpupunyaging magpatuloy

Habang ang mga bagay ay tuluyang nawawalan ng saysay Nalulupaypay sa bawat pagtangis Kailan ako mapapalaya nitong hinagpis?

Kahit na ikaw ay yumao Nakakintal ang iyong pag-ibig at buhay sa aking puso Ikaw ay sisikaping gunitain

Aking damdamin ay nalilipos ng kalungkutan

Sa pagtupad sa aking mga pangako at hangarin

Para bang kahungkagang hindi mapupunan Isang sugat na hindi mahihilom ng panahon “Ako pa ba ay makakaahon?”

Sa akin mananatili ang iyong pag-ibig na matimyas Ito na ang aking pahimakas Hinding hindi kita malilimutan

Ngunit, itong aking pagdurusa at dalamhati ay tanging pagmamahal Pagmamahal na hindi na kailanman muling sa iyo’y maitatanghal

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Nawa’y ikaw ay nasa walang hanggang kapayapaan Nagmamasid mula sa kalangitan Namumuhay sa kaluwalhatian

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ni JOLIE LIM Sa paglubog ng araw Ang langit ay naging madilim Ang liwanag ay hindi na natanaw Maliban sa kumikislap na buwan at bituin

Ang gawaing ito’y nagpaulit-ulit Hanggang sa hindi na natiis Nang nawala muli ang araw sa langit Tinakasan ang sakit at hinagpis

Araw, buwan, at taon ang lumipas Ang gabing madilim ay hindi na muling naranasan Sa bawat oras napaligiran na lamang ng karangyaan Nagsimulang mabuhay sa mundo ng kasinungalingan

Dumikit sa liwanag at ‘di na muli dumilim Napuno ng tuwa ang sariling damdamin Sa una’y masaya at naabot ang mga mithiin Pero bakit ngayon, parang may kulang pa rin?

Nakuha na ang lahat ngunit hindi pa rin sapat Saan nga ba ang tunay na liwanag?

Ang sagot sa tanong ay hindi rin sa dilim Kundi sa balanseng tinakasan sa oras ng takipsilim

Hindi buo ang araw kung wala ang gabi

hangganan Sa aking panlilinlang, iisa ang pinatunayan

Walang yaman, estado, o kapangyarihan Ang magbubunyag ng tunay na kasiyahan Kung nasakop ng pagmamataas ang isipan At sa katotohanan ay nagbubulag-bulagan

Walang saysay kung isa lamang ang mananaig Lahat ng kasakiman ay may kani-kaniyang

Layout by Mieka Laciste

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LITERARY

WRITTEN BY LUNA COSCOLLUELA It burns like embers, bursts from a phoenix’s flame Consumes like endless floods of rain that crash into waves

It carries through like echoing voices whispering through each passing day Like words of resin, gold, and myrrh, that haunt with what they say

It listens, oh, it listens to all your running thoughts It knows and, oh, it knows, what you think of it and not

But when all is said and all is done, the question still remains—

All this burning, All this drowning, All this everlasting whispered pain—

The answer that we do not know, Is if whether it was love or hate.

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ART BY SIBUG

Layout by Frances Angeles

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CONTRIBUTIONS WRITTEN BY CKALI BALDEMOR

Sa Wakas

Palagi mong inihahambing ang iyong

Isang panibagong landas

sarili sa iba

Uulit na naman sa simula patungo sa

Ngunit sa’yo lamang nakagapos ang

katapusan

aking mga mata

Ngunit bakit ganito? Bakit balisang

Maaaring hindi ko sakop lahat ng

kumibo?

kariwasaan sa mundo,

Na tila wala akong masilayan

Ngunit aanhin pa ba ito?

Sapagkat ang aking mundo’y suklob ng

Kung nasa akin na ang lahat dahil

karimlan.

lumilitaw ka na sa harapan ko.

Hindi alam saan tutungo

Ang iyong kislap ang nagbabago sa

Mga kamay nagiging pasmado Nais ko lamang ipikit ang mga mata At takpan ang lakas ng katahimikan Na pumapasok sa aking tenga.

Bagaman, tinawag mo ang aking pangalan At doon, nasaksihan ko na ang siklab ng

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takbo ng nakaraan Ang nagbibigay saysay sa tumatakbo ang kasalukuyan Ang aking kamay na hawak mo Sa libo-libong alapaap at pagkabalisa na nakapaligid sa aking mundo.

Na tila saksi mo ang kalutasan

kapaligiran

Na nakabaon sa aking mga mata

Oo nga pala, hindi nga pala ako nag-iisa;

At ang pagbigkas mo ng aking pangalan

Sapagkat nanatili ka.

Dama ko na ako’y mahalaga.

PAULIWORLD

ICON

WRITTEN BY SOFIA FUGEN You were my sun. Your warmth bleeds into my skin, just one touch and I am on fire. Your smoke breathes its way into my lungs, forever engraving yourself onto me. You’re brighter than any star. It’s hard to look at you. It’s even harder to look away. I am, after all, just the moon, forever bound to orbit you. This is the way we’ve always been. We were two sides of the same coin. We were yin and yang, and dark and light. Where you went, I followed. And where I stayed, you did too. We were everything and nothing all at the same time.

We were weekend trips to Enchanted Kingdom and Friday night dates to the skating rink. We were dancing barefoot on the beach and late night conversations. We were road trips and museums and planning the rest of our lives together. We were the stars and moon and sun and earth—we were everything until we weren’t.

Because what is a moon that has lost their sun? It is nothingness, floating around aimlessly, forever yearning for gravity to anchor it in. My ears are forever attuned to your voice, my body forever only yours. Your eyes will forever be reminders of what it was like to drown in your love, to bask in your energy, to be consumed by your warmth. And in my desperate attempt to salvage my dignity, I reach and search for meaning in the sky, for brightness in the stars, for contentment in the planets, but no one will ever pull me in like you did.

No one will ever swallow me whole and intoxicate every fiber of my being and satiate the void inside of me.

When I see you again I know that you’ve begun to shine much brighter and burn much hotter, but I cannot bring myself to look away. I cannot bring myself to move. Your flames, though warm, burn past my skin and your shine, though tolerable, blind me. Perhaps this will always be your effect on me. Perhaps this is simply the way we are meant to be. So, when you reach out your hand to me once more, I allow your touch to scorch me. I allow your embrace to set me ablaze. And I give in to the pull of the gravity around us. And, once more, allow you to swallow me whole.

Layout by Natasha Allenby

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LITERARY

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ni UZZIEL A. CAMACHO Maingay na sa labas, nagpakita na ata si Haring Araw. Ngunit, ang katawan ko’y tila nasa mga tala pa.Naglalakbay subalit hindi ako sigurado kung saan ako dinadala; basta ang nais ko ay tumakas sa dilim na dala ng kalawakan. “Bagong araw, bagong pag-asa.” Hindi na ako naniniwala kung puro pighati ang bumabalot sa aking tanawin. Itutuloy ko na ang aking pagtulog, tatakasan na lamang.

At sa hindi mabilang na pagkakataon ay nailigtas na naman ako ng panaginip.

“Bagong dimensyon, bagong kaligayahan,” basta dito, alam kong ako’y sigurado.

Ang unang destinasyon, isang karnabal. Mahiwaga. Ang lahat ng nakikita ko ay buhay, nagsasayawan ang mga letra sa musika. Maliwanag ang kapaligiran. Lubos na pagkalugod ang aking nararamdaman. Ito naman ang inaasam ko ‘di ba?

Sa isang iglap ay nahatak ako sa ibang lugar.

Pangalawa. Kweba. Lamig ng hangin ang bumabalot sa kadiliman. Wala akong malinaw na matanaw, ngunit komportable ang atmospera rito—tahimik, mapayapa, walang gulo, walang sagabal. Dito na kaya ako manalagi?

Ilang segundo’y lumipas at nag-iba muli ang paligid ko.

Huli. Ang kagubatan. Naghahalo ang aking nararamdaman sa masisiglang mga puno. Nagniningning ang ulap sa takipsilim; kalmado ang kapaligiran pati huni ng ibon. Nakakatukso ang liwanag at dilim. Hanggang saan ba ang hangganan?

Sa bawat lipat ko ng dimensyon ay nawawala ang bawat piraso sa sarili ko, ang sarili kong kahit papaano ay naghihintay sa aking pagbalik, sa aking muling pagmulat. Hindi ko na alam kung saan ako patungo, o kung may patutunguhan pa ba ako. Mas lalong gumulo ang lahat. Tumakas nga ako, ngunit tatakasan ko rin pala ang ‘takas’ na ito. Kahit ano naman ang piliin ko sa mga destinasyong nakita ko’y wala pa rin akong takas sa mga paparating pa sa akin.

Wala sa purong liwanag o kadiliman ang hinahanap kong solusyon, ngunit hindi rin sigurado sa kombinasyon ng dalawa. Kahit walang tiyak na sagot, alam kong sa akin nagsimula. Ako ang liwanag at ang dilim, ang kamay ko ang susi sa pintuan ng mga ilusyong ito. Sarado ngunit hindi kandado, pipiliin ko bang buksan muli ito?

Layout by Sophia Alejandro

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LITERARY

WRITTEN BY JANINA ESTEBAN

Ano ang naiisip mo sa salitang “dilim”? Maaring

Dilim,

takot,

pagkabagabag,

pagkakaisa.

... ito’y nakatatakot at nakakapagpabagabag, hindi

Paano? Sapagkat dito natin nahahanap ang

ba?

isa’t-isa upang makausad sa ating dadaanan. Sa Dilim,

takot,

pagkabagabag,

pangamba.

Marahil karamihan sa mga kabataan ay may takot

takot na dala ng dilim ay kinakailangan natin ng kasama.

sa karimlan sa kung ano ang pumapalibot sa ating

Nakalulula tignan ang dilim. Nawawalan

mga balat, sa mga hindi nakikita ng ating mga

tayo ng koneksyon sa buhay. Kapag naharap tayo

mata, sa pag-iisip na hindi natin alam kung ano

sa malulupit na katotohanan nito, likas tayong

ang kinakalaban.

naghahanap ng mga taong may kawangis na

Dito natin mahahanap ang mga halimaw at guni-guning umuukit sa kailaliman ng ating mga isipan. “Papa, pwede po ba iwan n’yo nalang na

nakabukas ‘yung ilaw?” Nakababaliw isipin na sa isang iglap, ang isang madilim na espasyo ay maaaring maglabas ng mga bagay na ating pinakakinakatakutan. Nakabibingi at nakabubulag ang lawak nito.

karanasan upang makipag-ugnayan sa kanila.

Hindi lang limitado sa isa, dalawa, o kahit isang pangkat ang kasangga.

Dilim, takot, pagkabagabag, pag-asa.

Sa isang paraan, ang dilim na sumisimbolo sa kasamaan, pagkawalan ng pag-asa at mga katakot-takot na nilalang ay kailangan natin sa buhay. Dahil sa dilim, naniniwala tayong may

balanse.

konsepto ng liwanag. Dahil sa dilim, ang maliliit

Dalawang magkasalungat na bagay: sa mga

na ilaw ay lalong kumikinang. Dahil sa dilim,

kantang tulad ng Sol at Luna, panalangin ni San

nagkakaroon tayo ng kasama sa mga problema,

Francisco ng Assisi, gabay ng Yin at Yang. Ito ang

nakakapagpahinga tayo at nasusuri natin ang

balanse na nagpananatili sa katinuan at katwiran

tama sa mali.

Dilim,

takot,

pagkabagabag,

para sa lahat.

Natutuklasan natin ang dilim sa kawalan ng

“..bago ko nalaman na may mga tagapagligtas,

ilaw: sa pagpikit ng ating mga mata. Ngunit sa

una kong nakita ang kadiliman.” Kailangan nating

panahon na napalilibutan tayo ng dilim, mas lalo

mawalan ng pag-asa bago makakuha ng ideya

tayong nagpapasalamat sa darating na bukas: sa

kung ano nga ba ang kahulugan ng “pag-asa”. Sa

maliit na liwanag, sa bagong panahon, sa pag-

kasamaan ng kadiliman, kitang-kita natin kung

ahon.

ano ang tama. Kung titingnan natin ang kabilang panig, hindi ba’t mas nakapapagod titigan ang patuloy na pagdaloy ng liwanag?

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Dilim, takot, pagkabagabag, pahinga.

Pagkat sa dilim ko makikita ang liwanag.

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WRITTEN BY RYANE SHANE MENDOZA

Sa lahat ng bagay na nangyayari ngayon, isa lang ang sigurado At iyon ay wala talagang sigurado Nakatutuwa bang pakinggan o mas nakalulungkot isipin?

Sapagkat ultimo sariling emosyon, hindi na natin kayang basahin Masaya ka ba? Galit? Malungkot? Pagod?

Noon, parang ang simple lang sagutin ng hindi o oo Ngayon, ang lumalabas na lamang sa bibig ay sana, baka, o siguro

Ngunit wala namang masama kung tayo’y nalilito sa isinulat ng tadhana Tandaan lamang na may iba pang direksyon, hindi lang sa gitna At ang ruta na tatahakin ay nagsisimula sa sariling desisyon Kung ang kasiyahan ay nakabatay sa tao, libro, pagtulong, o musika Ipagpatuloy, walang problema Kung may nararamdaman na galit at poot Mas pipiliin ba ang inaalagaang sama ng loob o magpatawad at lilimot?

Kung nalulunod sa sariling luha dulot ng kalungkutan Sasabay ba sa agos o hahawak sa kamay na mag-aahon sa iyo sa karimlan?

Kung nawawalan na ng motibasyon ipagpatuloy ang mga bagay Tanungin ang sarili kung kuntento na ba sa resulta ng naging lakbay?

Hindi man direktang ibinulong ng Diyos ang kanyang mga plano Binigyan niya pa rin tayo ng kakayahan magpasya; iyon ang klaro Kaya huwag matakot pumili at magdesisyon sa oras ng karimlan Malay mo ito pala ang daan patungo sa liwanag ng kinabukasan

Layout by Louise Sese

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CONTRIBUTIONS

tHE aCT o F lOVING WRITTEN BY SAVANNAH SUCRE FLORES

At first, love is a twinkling, glimmering emotion. Some say that it gives you a reason to get out of bed in the morning; some say it brings you intense, heat-filled moments of youth. Others like to believe it makes you see the world in every shade, hue and color, that your skin begins to glow and you’re overflowing with life.

In the beginning, love is enthralling — joyous, curious, new. But with time, the feeling dulls, and its blade becomes bitter and blurred. Some think it’ll become a rotten fruit so viscous that your only choice is to dispose of it and chase away any trace of its unbearable, painful memories; perhaps that is the cruelest, most horrifying thought in life.

Imagine — a society without laughter or joy or heartfelt tears to inspire the pages of books and the strains of melodies. Imagine the feeling of passionless work and effort, and dreams fading away into a hopeless moonlight. Imagine holding onto your partner’s hand and only being able to shudder at the sweat on their skin, or frown at the thought of being bound to them. Think of the world without love, and feel — emptiness, detachment, anguish, melancholy.

A society without love is hardly a society at all, and such a thought is the most frightening idea that could etch its way into my skin.

But love is not easy. It is resentful, and it will ache, throb, and become so sore that you’ll feel like vomiting; you will woe and cry until the night grows dark or your eyes become puffy and red the next day.

Love is so, so hard because it means opening up to people and letting them inside. It means finding families and partners and friends without expecting anything in return.

To me, love is painful simply because it is the act of tearing your chest open and pulling your heart out, even if blood flows and paints your skin in terrifying hues of scarlet and red. It’s reaching from within and exposing your bare, naked self to those trusted and treasured.

We are fragile and contradictory — we are scared. We fear the thought of handing our everything over to another, only to be met with betrayal. Terror fills us at the idea of offering ourselves over to someone else, and facing rejection. The heart will bleed out and paint our hands in red. And so we will hold it, and feel the rhythm of our pulse become slower and slower, until the tempo dies out. We will care for ourselves until we watch our heart die in front of us, and even then — someone will still be there to bring us back into life.

Love, truly, is terrifying. It is horrific, and sickening and saddening --- but it is beautiful. It is not always twinkling or throbbing, and it might not magically make you view the world in colors or have glimmering skin.

Love is a sword that pierces itself into my heart, and its sour blade cuts through organs as they leak with bloodied emotions on display for the entire world to see.

Love is – and always will be – the most unpredictable and unknown concept etched into my mind, but it is fluttering, bewitching, and irresistible. It’ll continue to live within townspeople and families and communities of every kind, and it will not rot as long as humanity continues to live on.

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Layout by Alexa Bentilanon

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LITERARY

A Letter from Hades to Persephone WRITTEN BY FAITH DACARA ART BY ANGELES, V.

You are hope, personified.

You are the first ray of light that streams through the windowpanes in the wee hours of the morning; The light patter of rain after a scorching afternoon.

You are a sip of nectar after days of endless thirst.

A bite of ambrosia after years of hunger.

The world says I snatched you from it– Bound you in chains, bribed you with the sweetness of pomegranates.

This I say, can I really be blamed?

Can I, a man who has never experienced true warmth, be blamed?

Am I truly a god– If I need your presence as if it was the golden ichor residing in my veins?

As I spend another day fetching the damned and the wicked from the Styx, I can only continue to long for your luminescence, my Persephone.

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What Lingers Beyond The Luminosity of Fortune WRITTEN BY GAB MARTINEZ

As the moon hovered over her flesh with an array of light, her shadow grew dimmer in tandem with the night The slender figure she grew to adore the evening before, was succeeded by a broken mirror in her late mother’s escritoire

Dancing the night away beneath the conscious moonlight, she was met with her son’s demise after a tragic fall from heights Anguish tormented the young woman wherever she walked resentment unraveled in contrast to the loving evening she once sought

A dance with a lover and a silk dress could not deflect the wreckage of her mother’s memory and a son she could not protect “Is this the price to pay for fortune?” the dame screamed or was misfortune always looming in all the joy that she redeemed?

The weight of ecstasy and all the pleasure life’s worth, could not be more inferior to the misery a subsequent tragedy can assert In pursuit of happiness, why don’t we consider the price to pay?

Should tribulation and suffering be the cost of momentary euphoria for just one day?

Layout by Cristina Albarracin

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FEATURES

WRITTEN BY GAB MARTINEZ

Content Discretion: contains mentions of suicide, mental illness, abuse, and death which may easily disturb readers.

Jumping onto the Chuo train line and being labeled a nuisance to the city of Tokyo was the sad reality faced by the fourteen-year-old Japanese online video streamer Rorochan_1999. Initially obscured on the internet, her life’s works and broadcasts only received significant viewership after Japanese rockband Shinsei Kamattechan released a song in the year 2019 entitled “Ruru’s Suicide Show on a Livestream”, a composition detailing the suicide of the once youthful and effeminate Rorochan_1999.

Her hobby of streaming started on the Japanese website Ninonico in 2012, wherein her streams mostly consisted of her singing, playing the piano, and sharing stories with her audience. As time progressed, her video streams began to feature dangerous stunts determined by the demands of her viewers. These stunts included jaywalking on busy streets and standing on the roofs of tall apartment buildings. She remarked about how it made her a legend at such a young age. However, it was neither her musical talent nor stunts that defined her online presence: it was her broadcast suicide livestream that remained an immortalized enigma amongst others.

Suicide livestreams are shown across various internet platforms such as Youtube, Twitch, and Facebook, in which the streamer or other featured members on the stream commits suicide in front of the camera for audiences to see. Rorochan_1999’s suicide livestream featured the young girl holding the camera as she jumped from the balcony of her apartment building, with her shrieks and a loud thump being heard before the stream lost connection. Another similar instance of a suicide livestream akin to Rorochan_1999’s broadcast is the case of Naika Venant, another fourteenyear-old girl who went live on Facebook to hang herself with a scarf after enduring years of sexual abuse from her foster care family. Although Naika’s friends immediately contacted authorities and encouraged her to stop, Rorochan_1999’s audience members encouraged her behavior and wanted her to jump.

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ICON This leads to the common reason for broadcast suicide livestreams. These people have not yet come to terms with their decision and need the public to determine their course of action.

Another reason deduced as to the increasing commonness of these suicide livestreams according to accredited psychologists is the need for the person to find a medium in which they are able to memorialize themselves for various reasons. It may be to make those who pushed them to the edge feel guilty, or as a way to share the pain and suffering they have had to endure with other internet users one last time.

Ultimately, it’s important that we audience members are willing to help and know how to appropriately react if we are to come across one. Suicide is already the third-leading cause of death among people ages 10 to 14, and the second-leading cause of death among those ages 15 to 34, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is significant that we reduce these numbers by reaching out to our family, friends, peers, and even strangers who seem to be struggling with internal and external conflicts that may lead to tendencies of self-harm.

The impact of mental illness on one’s well-being is often ignored, because, even if it impacts our work, personal relations, and lives, it still remains subject to taboo and discrimination amongst close-minded individuals. Although there is not one right way to combat the adversities brought about by thoughts of self-harm and suicide, we can always start by destigmatizing the topic and opening discussions and national programs that promote mental wellbeing and openness of one another’s struggles with mental health. The youth of today are the hope of tomorrow, and we should all do our part in keeping today’s generation safe and well taken care of mentally, emotionally, and physically.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, please direct them to these free-to-call and anonymous help hotlines: In Touch Philippines: (02)88937603 and National Centre for Mental Health Luzon Toll-Free Landline: 09178998727 8727

Layout by Natasha Allenby

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CONTRIBUTIONS

Tainted Paradise WRITTEN BY MISCHA SUAREZ

The devil wore a mask and called himself an angel.

Donning a cobalt tailcoat and velvet shoes, he left a scent of cigarettes at his wake. His figure rigid as he roamed the bustling streets at the eleventh hour. His smile charming, his laugh infectious, his presence illuminating the hollow hallways, yet. I detested him.

I detested those lips that spilled honeyed deceit at every sentence. He spoke of promises of redemption and salvation. All the distant delusions of my bloodied hands stained in red.

What light is there for a sinner chained to his transgressions for the rest of his life? What forgiveness?

What redemption? I only know the screams of hell. I only know of unspeakable crimes so deep that its evil is ingrained to my very bone. He offered absolution and I cowered. How dare he speak of utopias and second chances, knowing all too well I can have none of that. My shoes will only taint pristine carpets, my damned soul befouls his brilliance. I am a flame that razes life to the ground. The blade that reaps the breath out of the hopeful spirit. I am undeserving of his compassion.

And so, angel, I cannot stand on the same stage as you. You were but a fleeting dream I wish to never wake up from. A remedy to the horrors of my reality. But I cannot have you, nor your beautiful delusions of a life together. I can only sit here on the cold floor of my prison cell, wiping at the blood on my hands, praying its stain would vanish. I will end my days falling asleep to the memory of you who haunts me, convincing myself that I loathe you, I shall die with the secret that I was sorry. I’m sorry for not taking your hand that desolate night down 24th street. I’m sorry I declined your offer and shattered any hopes of a future with you.

God knows how much I wanted to get on that boat and run away with you, but Angel, paradise is simply not for the likes of me.

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In the story of Adam and Eve, a story we all know, the Devil is the snake who succeeded in his quest to tempt the first humans. But what if there was a side to that story that no one knew of? A side that was never spoken, so even God remains unaware. The story of the snake who was cursed. The snake who was thought to be the Devil.

The Cursed Snake WRITTEN BY WHITE

In the Garden of Eden, I scoured through the precious land, my eyes closed as I took in the sweet air of paradise. I felt nothing but joy, and peace, and wonder all throughout. When I opened my eyes once more, I saw my Lord’s newest creations. “Adam” and “Eve” who were created in His great likeness. But there was something wrong with the picture before my eyes. Something out of place. And as I continued to stare, I found it. In the hands of “Eve” was the forbidden fruit which God had forbidden them from eating. And standing right beside the couple was me. A me that was not truly “me.”

This fake held a devious gleam in his eyes, matched with a mischievous smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that “he” was the Devil. The Devil that had deceived the couple, and the Devil that had done it with my face. The peace and joy I felt moments ago was replaced with an urgency to oust the Devil from this paradise and stop the couple from consuming the forbidden fruit. However, I was but a moment too late.As Eve bit the fruit and shared it with her husband, the Devil whose job had been fulfilled simply fled from the scene leaving me, the real Snake, to take his place.

I could do nothing but watch as the couple covered their “nakedness” and hid from the Lord as he approached.

I could do nothing but watch as my Lord realized that his creation had disobeyed him, and eaten the forbidden fruit from the forbidden tree. I did nothing but watch as Eve placed the Devil’s deeds on my shoulders, and my Lord cursed me to crawl on the dirt with nothing but my belly for the rest of my existence.

And under the silent sky as I took my new form, I saw Eve turn her eyes to me once more. There, in her eyes, I saw an unmistakable pity for what I had become. But no matter how long, or how hard I searched those clear eyes like my Lord’s, I found not an ounce of regret. She does not regret disobeying the Lord. She does not regret that she is the reason that I am the way I am now. And as all this happened, I held an indescribable feeling inside me. It grew and festered within me as the moments passed and the couple was banished from the Garden of paradise. Ah…this is anger.

I felt the rage fester in my body which no longer held any bones. Rage against the Devil. Rage against my new fate. Rage against the humans. What part of them is alike to my Lord? They are nothing like Him! My Lord would never disobey such simple orders. My Lord would never listen to the words of anyone but God Himself.

And my Lord would never be tempted by the sweet words of temptation from the Devil. How foolish! Foolish, stupid humans! My Lord has cursed your kind but it is not enough! You do not deserve the honor of being known as beings of His likeness. I will not stand for such disrespect! Unforgivable. Unforgivable. Unforgivable!

These poisonous thoughts continued to fester in the mind of the Snake for years. He continued to live and breed on the land, crawling the dirt on his belly as he was cursed to be. And as his species multiplied, so did his influence. Some of his kin did not share the original Snake’s views, and saw the story simply as the fault of the Devil who deceived Adam and Eve. Others, however, shared the same views as him. And as these poisonous thoughts continued to invade their next of kin, and the generations after them, it eventually became their weapon.

The Snake who could not let go of his toxic grudge, equipped himself with a weapon because of it. A poison born and bred in his own body. With this poison, his fangs became deadly to humans who came in contact with it. Against the humans who ruined his life, he was given a weapon to attack with.

Layout by Grizz Imbao

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FEATURES

ART BY ERFE

WRITTEN BY JANA TORRES For the right people, there’s nothing better than coming across a good story. Be it action, love, fantasy, or slice of life, there will always be a tale that satisfies the unique human imagination. These remarkable stories thrive in the chambers of our minds and its fantasies, hence, they’re a rarity to come by in the sheltered world around us. Moreover, these moving scenes in our TV and computer screens can teach us a thing or two about conquering the rulebooks and contradictions in life.

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PAULIWORLD

ICON

Look no further than the art of Korean drama, aka Kdramas—the viral masters of storytelling, love, heartbreak, action, drama, and more. Here are four valuable tips and mantras to remember, taken from your favorite Korean dramas.

1. There will be second chances Life may seem like it always goes too fast. TOTGA’s come into our lives just to leave, and opportunities may be wasted because of doubt and misunderstanding. However, there are always chances at redemption.

The regrets we shoulder will trail into our adulthoods until we find a way to resolve them. Those regrets can turn into opportunities, disguised in the face of an old childhood friend or a personal project still waiting to be completed. Take it from Choi Ung and Kook Yeon-Seo from Our Beloved Summer - seasons will pass, but you will grow until the right time comes once again.

2. You are the main character (Now, this cannot be more literal.) No matter how boring or mundane life may seem, especially at these moments of isolation, our stories are worth telling. From the eyes of another, there is beauty found in the human personality: fragile, vulnerable, impulsive, imperfect.

This may seem like a stretch, another example of grossly romanticizing something that shouldn’t be. I beg to argue that it isn’t. It is simply embracing the fact that we are worthy of finding good and of attaining our passions. Enough of simply imagining ourselves as the star of a show: the next step is to act like it.

3. Mistakes, mistakes, mistakes The core of what keeps a story going is its never-ending conflicts. There will be ups and downs, tides to keep the characters on edge, and those events compel us viewers to carry the weight these fictional faces bear as well.

No interesting character arc comes out of a perfect personality, and the same can be said about reality. No one should be expected to fully know what makes a good person, or what forgiveness should be like. It’s impossible to recognize what the rational thing to do is in emotional situations. Holding ourselves to similar standards of perfection will only erase the shreds of humanity in us.

4. Taking risks and embracing changes We yearn to see villains redeem themselves and even have Prince Charming do something out of character for the sake of his love. This is a common theme seen in dramas like Squid Game and Crash Landing on You. During this time of isolation, we clutch onto the relationships we have now. We have urges to reduce the possibilities of people leaving because of newfound problems. However, change is inevitable, and though terrifying for many, it is essential to continue pushing our stories forward.

Layout by Anya Imbuido

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