Love a Librarian: This is NOT Acrostic (aka Hindi Ako Beauty Queen)

It's Valentines Day. To celebrate this day of love, the blog will feature five librarians who answered my call to share their feelings and passion towards the LIS (Library and Information Science) profession. In an email I sent two weeks ago to more than fourteen LIS professionals, only five found the courage to write and express their inner most feelings and openly share it to the public. 


It's an interesting revelation how strong and ardent their feelings are towards the practice of LIS; how one librarian could make a great influence to another person; how, in practicing LIS, one has found meaning in life. Beginning today and the next four more, readers of the blog will be treated to essays, reflections and yes, poetry by librarians on one of their many loves -- being a librarian and loving it.


Dean Igor Cabbab of the University of the Philippines School of Library and Information Studies has cut first blood. Here he shares a poem written in Filipino on staying on in the LIS profession, and how, for many years, he has wandered away only to find himself drawn back again. Love is lovelier the second time around, indeed!

10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Igor Cabbab is (or once was) a guitarist, a drummer, a singer, a rapper, a martial artist, a skill toy and yoyo professional, a fire-breather, an ethnic woven-cloth painter (weird, I know, I painted paisley patterns on cloth for export), a poet, a writer, an editor, a comic book professional, an events photographer, a theater tech director, a graphic artist, a website designer, and many more. For some unknown reason he's also a college professor and the Dean of the UP School of Library and Information Science (UP SLIS, celebrating its 50th year, *uber-shameless plug*)


This is NOT Acrostic
(aka Hindi Ako Beauty Queen)
by Igor Cabbab

Kumakahol ang tuta
Ng kapit-bahay ngayong gabi
Nakakainis na nakaka-awa
Baka naje-jebs o nawi-wiwi
Ilang pagkakataon, Ilang ulit
Ilang beses inisip
Kung bakit umalis
At kung bakit bumalik
Ewan ko ba
Kung ano ang dahilan
Ilang beses ko na nga ba
Ito pinag-isipan
Institusyon ba
O mga tao?
Mga Istudyante?
Mga katrabaho?
Klase, computer
Istudyanteng umiiyak
Thesis, test paper
Pedicab na di-padyak
Lecture dito, seminar doon
Hands-on na madugo
Workshop sa kung saan
"...and Beyond..." patungo
Sandamukal na libro
Alikabok ang nasisinghot
Pasaway na istudyante
Rason ba kung ba't ako'y nakasimangot?

Ewan... (Dunno...)

Basta... (Just Because...)

Nandito lang ako... (I'm here... To stay...)

^_^

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