The mother kept the moon in her belly. She had five secret children, she would later reveal, non-chalantly, as if talking about the weather, 16-degrees cold as the thermometer read.
Three boys and two girls, on top of the other five. To whom would she give the moon? To one of the five secret offsprings, she said.
What would she do with the moon in her belly? I wondered, deep in thoughts. The task is to give it to the most deserving child, she said. The one she loves the most. Yet, she said in a whisper one quiet morning, with doors locked and windows shut, there would be no love child; no other family.
And that the moon would be for the original five, each with a slice of the round, crimson ball. This is the mother who kept the moon in her belly, along with well-kept secrets of her quiet, perfect life.
January 26. Heartbreak Hill.
Indonesia
BATU, Indonesia. Photo by Jes Aznar
