A Cinematographer's Confession

I think the images
feel the movements.

That is why, my beloved sibling,
I cannot be complete in photography.
The static eye does not deliver me to contention.
I want the motion.
I want the sequences.
I want the ambience.
I want the sounds.
I want the rising dust.
I want the shifting light.
I want the choreography of it all.
I want EVERYTHING!

Yes, that visual greed is
within my being

-- By Nelden Djakababa

I have no heart to ...

I could not bring myself
to tell the world about the riots
which have smashed our country.
I have been so savage

I could not bring myself
to tell the children
about the widespread corruption.
It is undermining our future

I could not bring myself
to repeat to nature lovers
the devastation of forests.
It has been condemned by the world

I could not bring myself
to disclose to the students
the true unemployment rate.
It will make them despondent

I could not bring myself
to whisper to the newborn
the frightful figure
of our foreign debt

Neither do I have the heart
to speak the whole truth,
because all the facts and figures
will make everyone moan

But, alas,
for a mother like me
it can be so painful
to remain silent,
as the children need to learn
the right language,
the virtue of truth
and sincerity

Lullaby

Sleep, my baby, sleep
Have a magnificent dream
of being a crown prince,
although your father
is an impoverished citizen
and we live
in untold poverty
while the climate
keeps changing every day

-- By Ngatini Rasdi

-- Translated by TIS