So, you’ve ticked online film reenactments, concerts and theater reruns off your lockdown bingo. If you think that’s all there is to the virtual experience, maybe you haven’t turned to Savage Mind: Art, Books, Cinema yet.

In partnership with Ateneo De Naga University, this cultural hub in Naga, Camarines Sur has launched an online video series called “Himati,” where people read us Bikol poetry. “Himati” is a Bikol word for a deeper form of listening and feeling. To amplify this, some readings are also coupled with graphics from books included in Savage Mind’s collection.

Performances by different personalities are already up on their Facebook page, like Lui Quiambao Manansala reading Jun Belgica’s works and Sue Prado reading the Bikol poem “Kansyon ni Oryol.” Recently, progressive king (and Naga native) Enchong Dee also delivered an excerpt from the Bikol translation of “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran. Now this is the content we deserve.

Whether you’re emotionally constipated or a regular poetry dweller, this “Himati” is coming for all of us. Enjoy watching, folks, and don’t forget to support local lit.

Read more:

An independent bookstore in Naga is molding Bicol’s art scene

What’s the ‘Massacre of Manila?’ Let Gabby Padilla and Enchong Dee tell you

Photography by Paolo Crodua