Carayan Journal

El Padre Capitan, 1624


Fray Agustin’s military skill would eventually
make him feared and renowned among Mindanao
Muslims  as “El Padre Capitan.”
–  Francis Madigan SJ

To God be the glory,
but the hour is his:

from the fortress,
his men burst like
thunder
upon them
now falling
like stalks under
their arquebuses,
the rain of spears
and arrows,
blowpipes and darts.

Right now
the sword he wields
over his head
is light like a halo.
His horse has wings.
Under the crescent
moon, his young
blood, all of twenty-
three years, tells him
he is every inch
a soldier.


poetry, Carayan Vol 1. No.1 Dec 2015

 

© 2016 English Department, Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan
ISSN 2467-5679
All poems, stories and other contributions copyright to their respective authors