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IT NEVER OCCURRED TO ME that it was possible. That you could break the heart of a person you've never even met. And for that I feel terrible, powerless. It is one of those moments when you wish that the stars hold our wills, our fates; when you wish you're somebody else. Where is the beauty in that?

a kamikaze's letter

“As I write this letter, the ocean breeze feels cool on my skin; the very ocean is soon to be my grave. They tell me I will die a hero; that the safety and honor of my country will be the reward for my sacrifice. I pray they are right. My only regret in life is never telling you how I feel. I wish I were back home. I wish I were holding your hand. I wish I were telling you that I have loved you and only you since I was a boy. But I am not. I see now that death is easy. It is love that is hard. As my plane dives, I will not see the face of my enemies. I will only, instead, see your eyes, like black rocks frozen in rain water. They tell us that we must scream, “Banzai” as we plunge into our target. I will instead whisper your name and in death, as in life, I will remain forever yours."


- Hiroshi, Restless (2011)

justin vernon's speech

"It's really hard to accept this award. There is so much talent out here on the stage; there is a lot of talent that is not here tonight. It's also hard to accept because when I started to make songs, I did it for the inherent reward making songs..."




I am thrilled that Bon Iver, a folk indie band, pulls up an upset to win a Grammy (Best New Artist), toppling down J. Cole, The Band Perry, Nicki Minaj, and Skrillerz. Good music, once again, broke through the almost impenetrable walls of mainstream music, so I guess it is understandable that people who are estranged to this kind of music are in outrage, which I think is quite amusing. :P I am rejoicing while some Nicki Minaj fan wallows in confusion and disbelief, lashing out his wounded feelings into a Bonny Bear forum.

I watched the Grammys last night and out of all the winners, Justin Vernon's speech, I think, was the most sincere, boldest, and the only one which sounded like a speech you would expect from a genuine artist. Some say, it's pretentious. Some say he despises the Grammy Awards, but in my opinion, he really meant every word that came out of his mouth. I felt like he was receiving that award in behalf of all the unsung artists of independent music. He was uncomfortable receiving the award because, out there, a lot of talent is not recognized and will never be recognized through mainstream standards, yet he was there. It was also hard for him to receive the award because to the artist, the craft, the artistry is the essence of it all; the act of expressing oneself for the satisfaction of making art, and recognition, in a way, betrays it.

basta

I am really happy for you. I really am. Although, I have to admit, a secret place where I have kept you all this time is collapsing in itself, and for the first time, I was able to step beyond the line which you have drawn, and which I should have crossed a long time ago. And now, all I have is the memory of you-the faint tug on my sleeve, the fleeting sensation between my lips and your face, your hand in my clammy hands, your name resounding and fading through and back the thin sheet of rain, the fantasy hanging on my wall set in waves of water-washed colors.

I may not be able to convince you, because this is a truth embedded beneath the deepest limits of my consciousness, so out of reach like a  memory of a dream fading into the distance.  Even I cannot summon a smile to convince myself that what I am saying is true.  But I know it is, because in the end, the thought of you having found happiness is all what matters to me. You have wandered beyond and away from the divide we have made for each other. I pray I would have the heart to do the same. You will always be my first love, because even if I get lost to the ends of the earth, or whoever I meet, to love is to remember you and your subtlest ways that opened a window to true, innocent, and pure happiness.

Thank you for such a beautiful gift.

-Basta

she went quietly

Another reason to update my TV series playlist.

 

She went quietly.
She didn't make a sound.
She went quietly
With the wish not to be found.
She went quietly without a word of where.
Just a note that wrote: "Forgetting is easier."


- She Went Quietly, Charlie Winston