Sublimity in print.

Flightly
Visitors

The winter season is near, and I have been preparing myself for its coming. The sound of the flowing river and the trickling sound of gathering water are music to my ears, but as the air grows crisp, I am deeply pressured by the quiet tension of competition. Defending my territory is tough, especially when others are also aware of the necessity to fortify themselves. Perched on a thin branch extending over a body of water, I am keen on watching for intruders. However, I do feel that I have to migrate sooner, as it seems that the scarcity of food is already paving its way. Once again, for this season, humans will see the magnificent electric blue coming in a flash as another kingfisher takes flight to migrate. Now, I do not want to be haughty because it has only been a month or two since I left the nest. To put it simply, the planned migration will be my first. As the setting sun painted the sky with a day’s goodbye, and as the vibrant hues of autumn are fading in this chilly evening, I am perched still but with justified anxiety.

Instinct’s drive works wonders. For it is our inherited navigation skills that guide us throughout our journey. The routes and destinations are largely instinctual. As for me, without prior experience, I am motivated by this knowledge. Of course, there is still room for anxiety since I have to make stopovers to replenish, and I do not know what dangers are present for a newcomer. And with this, I will be depending on fresh bodies of water again, such as lakes, rivers, and marshes, that could still offer fish. Because environmental cues and my internal biological clock are telling me that the cold weather is approaching, I am informed that it is time to leave for someplace tropical that would be able to provide abundant food and favorable living conditions. Yes, this first time of mine is not a first for the entire species of the Alcedo atthis. This is our nature, and it is carried on from generation to generation. I am glad to say that I put my trust in this.

With a low altitude of about 30 feet and a speed of 40 kilometers per hour, I am inviting myself in the wind by beating my electric blue wings. Slicing the air with my aerodynamic black beak, designed for ease of flight and hunting, I am in a rush of excitement to find new lands and, of course, waters to make use of this pointy beak. This journey would take me an estimated five days, considering that I have to stop in some locations to gather the energy lost. Traveling from southern China already in the threat of winter and planning to make stops in Taiwan, my goal is to reach the Philippines in an accessible location such as the northern part. As solitary as this journey is, this is not stopping me from prioritizing my need for an abundance of food.

As I dart through this journey, please be mindful of other migratory birds. Common kingfishers such as me are fortunate enough to be listed as one of the abundant and widespread species. Other migratory birds are decreasing in population. This awareness is what the annual World Migratory Bird Day is advocating for. Some species are in danger of habitat loss, climate change, and other environmental pressures. Human, it is your job as a sapient and rational being to take responsibility for our safety. As a fellow migratory bird, I must speak for what this journey means to us, and I do hope you understand what those endangered species partake in as well.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lamb-mule Dane

Lamb-mule is a student in the program Literary and Cultural Studies with Creative Writing. He is fond of reading books, mostly fictitious works.

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18 March 2025
I want people here to be familiar with the term “mamimikpik”, it's our native term for potter. Historically, it was used to refer to the notion of a Supreme Deity among the Visayans, as God Himself was reckoned by the ancients as a potter who spinned the proverbial clay to make man.
Read More
17 February 2025
“Can bad husbands be good fathers?” I’ve watched my mother weep upon learning yet another of my Papa’s mistresses more times than I can count. I hear people urging her to leave, they will curse him on her behalf. But she will raise her head, swallow her sobs, and say, “he’s a good father.”
Read More
15 February 2025
You might never see me come home with a bouquet of daisies that don't smell like sorrow. You might never meet miniature versions of me, and the only person on this Earth who will ever "have my eyes" or "have my smile" will be myself. Perhaps I just observe the experiences of others, to later turn my head and experience my own company.
Read More
14 February 2025
The next day, I took several “Are you Aromantic?” tests, and most of the results came back positive. However, it was challenging for me to accept it at first. I kept invalidating myself with various “what ifs” like: What if I’m just avoidant? What if I do have commitment issues? What if I’m just bitter towards romantic love which is why I’m so repulsed?
Read More
14 February 2025
a poem on how our view of love changes over time as we grow, we might realize that the love once comforted us was silly or trivial but love is love, nonetheless. love ought to make you grateful to be alive: love makes you want to be alive so love, my love
Read More
04 April 2025
Habang nagtatanghilain kami nabanggit ng aking ama ang sumusunod: “Gusto kong mahirapan siya, gusto kong maparusa siya.” Ang taong tinutukoy ng tatay ko ay isang lalaking maraming beses na naging sentro ng iilang pag-uusap at pakikipagtalo tuwing kumakain. Halos isang dekada na kaming mag-ama, maging kaming buong pamilya, na nag aaway at nadadala sa sigaw dahil sa iisang tao na ito. Isang tao na kamakailan lang ay walang sawang paghahanga at kung minsa’y pagsasamba sakanya ang nagagawa ng pamilya ko, lalo na ang papa ko. Isang tao na sa tatlumpu’t taong niyang pagiiral sa dyaryo at isipan ng mga Pilipino, ay tunay na nagbigay kahulugan kung anong klaseng bansa at samakatuwid, anong klaseng tao tayo. Ang taong nais makita ng aking ama maghirap at maparusahan ay si Rodrigo Duterte.
Read More
27 March 2025
Whenever somebody finds out that I am a lesbian, it always garners a mixed bag of reactions. Some people would immediately have this expression on their face like things suddenly clicked into place, while others would have such a huge reaction like they weren’t expecting me to be one. It was sort of understandable, given that I never really… look like a lesbian? Maybe it’s the lack of carabiners.
Read More
24 March 2025
When I was born, I wasn’t a woman, but a blank canvas. But because of my sex, I was already assigned the role of a woman before I could even pronounce my name. The physician who tended to me likely wondered what kind of husband I would have in the future, and my parents probably speculated how many children I would give birth to someday, even when they only held a creature with no sense of self-identity in their arms.
Read More
23 March 2025
Off to the right of my peripheral vision was this mysterious orange glow just outside our bedroom door where our altar was. My parents rushed to and from the bathroom and the bedroom door with buckets of what I can only assume was water as I sat on the bed, confused and with no idea of what was going on. It was past midnight, and I was half asleep. Everything seemed like a blur to me. I had not known it yet, but a candle that was not properly put out a few hours ago had just grown into something that we almost could not control.
Read More
21 March 2025
Housework is the single most significant unpaid labor in all of history. Whether it is appreciated or unnoticed, it remains existent in all households. While the gap is prominent in eastern countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, with some men reporting that they do zero hours of domestic work, and not so much in western countries such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, where men on average still do household chores yet still lags an hour less than their female partners, the fact remains the same.
Read More
18 March 2025
I want people here to be familiar with the term “mamimikpik”, it's our native term for potter. Historically, it was used to refer to the notion of a Supreme Deity among the Visayans, as God Himself was reckoned by the ancients as a potter who spinned the proverbial clay to make man.
Read More
17 February 2025
“Can bad husbands be good fathers?” I’ve watched my mother weep upon learning yet another of my Papa’s mistresses more times than I can count. I hear people urging her to leave, they will curse him on her behalf. But she will raise her head, swallow her sobs, and say, “he’s a good father.”
Read More
15 February 2025
You might never see me come home with a bouquet of daisies that don't smell like sorrow. You might never meet miniature versions of me, and the only person on this Earth who will ever "have my eyes" or "have my smile" will be myself. Perhaps I just observe the experiences of others, to later turn my head and experience my own company.
Read More
14 February 2025
The next day, I took several “Are you Aromantic?” tests, and most of the results came back positive. However, it was challenging for me to accept it at first. I kept invalidating myself with various “what ifs” like: What if I’m just avoidant? What if I do have commitment issues? What if I’m just bitter towards romantic love which is why I’m so repulsed?
Read More
14 February 2025
a poem on how our view of love changes over time as we grow, we might realize that the love once comforted us was silly or trivial but love is love, nonetheless. love ought to make you grateful to be alive: love makes you want to be alive so love, my love
Read More
04 April 2025
Habang nagtatanghilain kami nabanggit ng aking ama ang sumusunod: “Gusto kong mahirapan siya, gusto kong maparusa siya.” Ang taong tinutukoy ng tatay ko ay isang lalaking maraming beses na naging sentro ng iilang pag-uusap at pakikipagtalo tuwing kumakain. Halos isang dekada na kaming mag-ama, maging kaming buong pamilya, na nag aaway at nadadala sa sigaw dahil sa iisang tao na ito. Isang tao na kamakailan lang ay walang sawang paghahanga at kung minsa’y pagsasamba sakanya ang nagagawa ng pamilya ko, lalo na ang papa ko. Isang tao na sa tatlumpu’t taong niyang pagiiral sa dyaryo at isipan ng mga Pilipino, ay tunay na nagbigay kahulugan kung anong klaseng bansa at samakatuwid, anong klaseng tao tayo. Ang taong nais makita ng aking ama maghirap at maparusahan ay si Rodrigo Duterte.
Read More
27 March 2025
Whenever somebody finds out that I am a lesbian, it always garners a mixed bag of reactions. Some people would immediately have this expression on their face like things suddenly clicked into place, while others would have such a huge reaction like they weren’t expecting me to be one. It was sort of understandable, given that I never really… look like a lesbian? Maybe it’s the lack of carabiners.
Read More
24 March 2025
When I was born, I wasn’t a woman, but a blank canvas. But because of my sex, I was already assigned the role of a woman before I could even pronounce my name. The physician who tended to me likely wondered what kind of husband I would have in the future, and my parents probably speculated how many children I would give birth to someday, even when they only held a creature with no sense of self-identity in their arms.
Read More
23 March 2025
Off to the right of my peripheral vision was this mysterious orange glow just outside our bedroom door where our altar was. My parents rushed to and from the bathroom and the bedroom door with buckets of what I can only assume was water as I sat on the bed, confused and with no idea of what was going on. It was past midnight, and I was half asleep. Everything seemed like a blur to me. I had not known it yet, but a candle that was not properly put out a few hours ago had just grown into something that we almost could not control.
Read More
21 March 2025
Housework is the single most significant unpaid labor in all of history. Whether it is appreciated or unnoticed, it remains existent in all households. While the gap is prominent in eastern countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, with some men reporting that they do zero hours of domestic work, and not so much in western countries such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, where men on average still do household chores yet still lags an hour less than their female partners, the fact remains the same.
Read More
18 March 2025
I want people here to be familiar with the term “mamimikpik”, it's our native term for potter. Historically, it was used to refer to the notion of a Supreme Deity among the Visayans, as God Himself was reckoned by the ancients as a potter who spinned the proverbial clay to make man.
Read More
17 February 2025
“Can bad husbands be good fathers?” I’ve watched my mother weep upon learning yet another of my Papa’s mistresses more times than I can count. I hear people urging her to leave, they will curse him on her behalf. But she will raise her head, swallow her sobs, and say, “he’s a good father.”
Read More
15 February 2025
You might never see me come home with a bouquet of daisies that don't smell like sorrow. You might never meet miniature versions of me, and the only person on this Earth who will ever "have my eyes" or "have my smile" will be myself. Perhaps I just observe the experiences of others, to later turn my head and experience my own company.
Read More
14 February 2025
The next day, I took several “Are you Aromantic?” tests, and most of the results came back positive. However, it was challenging for me to accept it at first. I kept invalidating myself with various “what ifs” like: What if I’m just avoidant? What if I do have commitment issues? What if I’m just bitter towards romantic love which is why I’m so repulsed?
Read More
14 February 2025
a poem on how our view of love changes over time as we grow, we might realize that the love once comforted us was silly or trivial but love is love, nonetheless. love ought to make you grateful to be alive: love makes you want to be alive so love, my love
Read More
04 April 2025
Habang nagtatanghilain kami nabanggit ng aking ama ang sumusunod: “Gusto kong mahirapan siya, gusto kong maparusa siya.” Ang taong tinutukoy ng tatay ko ay isang lalaking maraming beses na naging sentro ng iilang pag-uusap at pakikipagtalo tuwing kumakain. Halos isang dekada na kaming mag-ama, maging kaming buong pamilya, na nag aaway at nadadala sa sigaw dahil sa iisang tao na ito. Isang tao na kamakailan lang ay walang sawang paghahanga at kung minsa’y pagsasamba sakanya ang nagagawa ng pamilya ko, lalo na ang papa ko. Isang tao na sa tatlumpu’t taong niyang pagiiral sa dyaryo at isipan ng mga Pilipino, ay tunay na nagbigay kahulugan kung anong klaseng bansa at samakatuwid, anong klaseng tao tayo. Ang taong nais makita ng aking ama maghirap at maparusahan ay si Rodrigo Duterte.
Read More
27 March 2025
Whenever somebody finds out that I am a lesbian, it always garners a mixed bag of reactions. Some people would immediately have this expression on their face like things suddenly clicked into place, while others would have such a huge reaction like they weren’t expecting me to be one. It was sort of understandable, given that I never really… look like a lesbian? Maybe it’s the lack of carabiners.
Read More
24 March 2025
When I was born, I wasn’t a woman, but a blank canvas. But because of my sex, I was already assigned the role of a woman before I could even pronounce my name. The physician who tended to me likely wondered what kind of husband I would have in the future, and my parents probably speculated how many children I would give birth to someday, even when they only held a creature with no sense of self-identity in their arms.
Read More
23 March 2025
Off to the right of my peripheral vision was this mysterious orange glow just outside our bedroom door where our altar was. My parents rushed to and from the bathroom and the bedroom door with buckets of what I can only assume was water as I sat on the bed, confused and with no idea of what was going on. It was past midnight, and I was half asleep. Everything seemed like a blur to me. I had not known it yet, but a candle that was not properly put out a few hours ago had just grown into something that we almost could not control.
Read More
21 March 2025
Housework is the single most significant unpaid labor in all of history. Whether it is appreciated or unnoticed, it remains existent in all households. While the gap is prominent in eastern countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, with some men reporting that they do zero hours of domestic work, and not so much in western countries such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, where men on average still do household chores yet still lags an hour less than their female partners, the fact remains the same.
Read More
18 March 2025
I want people here to be familiar with the term “mamimikpik”, it's our native term for potter. Historically, it was used to refer to the notion of a Supreme Deity among the Visayans, as God Himself was reckoned by the ancients as a potter who spinned the proverbial clay to make man.
Read More
17 February 2025
“Can bad husbands be good fathers?” I’ve watched my mother weep upon learning yet another of my Papa’s mistresses more times than I can count. I hear people urging her to leave, they will curse him on her behalf. But she will raise her head, swallow her sobs, and say, “he’s a good father.”
Read More
15 February 2025
You might never see me come home with a bouquet of daisies that don't smell like sorrow. You might never meet miniature versions of me, and the only person on this Earth who will ever "have my eyes" or "have my smile" will be myself. Perhaps I just observe the experiences of others, to later turn my head and experience my own company.
Read More
14 February 2025
The next day, I took several “Are you Aromantic?” tests, and most of the results came back positive. However, it was challenging for me to accept it at first. I kept invalidating myself with various “what ifs” like: What if I’m just avoidant? What if I do have commitment issues? What if I’m just bitter towards romantic love which is why I’m so repulsed?
Read More
14 February 2025
a poem on how our view of love changes over time as we grow, we might realize that the love once comforted us was silly or trivial but love is love, nonetheless. love ought to make you grateful to be alive: love makes you want to be alive so love, my love
Read More
04 April 2025
Habang nagtatanghilain kami nabanggit ng aking ama ang sumusunod: “Gusto kong mahirapan siya, gusto kong maparusa siya.” Ang taong tinutukoy ng tatay ko ay isang lalaking maraming beses na naging sentro ng iilang pag-uusap at pakikipagtalo tuwing kumakain. Halos isang dekada na kaming mag-ama, maging kaming buong pamilya, na nag aaway at nadadala sa sigaw dahil sa iisang tao na ito. Isang tao na kamakailan lang ay walang sawang paghahanga at kung minsa’y pagsasamba sakanya ang nagagawa ng pamilya ko, lalo na ang papa ko. Isang tao na sa tatlumpu’t taong niyang pagiiral sa dyaryo at isipan ng mga Pilipino, ay tunay na nagbigay kahulugan kung anong klaseng bansa at samakatuwid, anong klaseng tao tayo. Ang taong nais makita ng aking ama maghirap at maparusahan ay si Rodrigo Duterte.
Read More
27 March 2025
Whenever somebody finds out that I am a lesbian, it always garners a mixed bag of reactions. Some people would immediately have this expression on their face like things suddenly clicked into place, while others would have such a huge reaction like they weren’t expecting me to be one. It was sort of understandable, given that I never really… look like a lesbian? Maybe it’s the lack of carabiners.
Read More
24 March 2025
When I was born, I wasn’t a woman, but a blank canvas. But because of my sex, I was already assigned the role of a woman before I could even pronounce my name. The physician who tended to me likely wondered what kind of husband I would have in the future, and my parents probably speculated how many children I would give birth to someday, even when they only held a creature with no sense of self-identity in their arms.
Read More
23 March 2025
Off to the right of my peripheral vision was this mysterious orange glow just outside our bedroom door where our altar was. My parents rushed to and from the bathroom and the bedroom door with buckets of what I can only assume was water as I sat on the bed, confused and with no idea of what was going on. It was past midnight, and I was half asleep. Everything seemed like a blur to me. I had not known it yet, but a candle that was not properly put out a few hours ago had just grown into something that we almost could not control.
Read More
21 March 2025
Housework is the single most significant unpaid labor in all of history. Whether it is appreciated or unnoticed, it remains existent in all households. While the gap is prominent in eastern countries such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, with some men reporting that they do zero hours of domestic work, and not so much in western countries such as Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, where men on average still do household chores yet still lags an hour less than their female partners, the fact remains the same.
Read More
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