A man of faith, yet he never truly grasped the concept of Resurrection. All he knew was that a year had passed since his last Easter, a somber day under the gray skies of Dalat.

No rain fell. Not a single drop of water from the sky touched his eyes. The day he lay on a pine hill, lost in thoughts of life and death.

Now, he was welcoming his second Easter. He lay motionless, his gaze fixed on the clouds. His body, a mere skeleton, lay straight. His face, expressionless. His arms, lifeless, stretched out beside him.

His hands, clasped on his empty abdomen. His stomach, long gone. His hands now rested on his spine. Rain poured into his eye sockets, the only remnants of his flesh.

He drank the rain, a daily ritual. Before swallowing, he never forgot to make the sign of the cross. The rain seeped down his spine, spreading to each branch of his bones.

His mother visited his grave, her voice a soft whisper as she inquired why he hadn't returned for dinner.

He smiled, his teeth uneven against his lips. Of course, he was still eating. Rice, chewed within his eye sockets, a soft, liquid-like substance. The rice flowed down his spine, spreading to his hands.

Still outstretched, lifeless hands. His hands, once again, clasped on his empty abdomen. But his stomach was gone again. The rice continued its journey down his spine.

One day, he regained his hearing. His ears, miraculously born within his eye sockets, popped out on both sides, perfectly balanced.

He was quite amused. At least he no longer had to rely on his eye sockets for hearing. But his ears were coated in dust, hindering his ability to hear clearly. He could only hear sounds close by, no whispers, no cries.

Tears would fall upon him, like rain, of course, into his eye sockets. He drank the tears again, too salty, not good for his spine. But the tears didn't flow like the rain. They kept falling into his ears, blocking them. From that day on, he was deaf.

One day, he was filled with joy. They gave him a person as a gift, a yearly tradition. They would give him one, then take it back, only to return with another. This person could talk, listen, and cry.

This person had a stomach and a spine too. Of course, he was happy. He was about to rise, but fear gripped him. How much rain was trapped in his eye sockets? How much rice? If it all spilled out, what would he do?

So, he remained motionless, his body straight, his face expressionless, his arms lifeless. But he seemed to stir. The dust fell from his ears, and he could hear again.

His ears detected the scent of cigarette smoke, sweet, not Marlboro. He wasn't used to Bastos. He raised his hand to cover his nose, but where was his nose? He placed his hands on his spine. Strange. Where was his spine?

He gagged. Disgusting. The person they gave him was performing an act of masturbation. He saw through his eye sockets. Impossible. He smiled. Don't. Don't fall in here.

His eye sockets could only drink rain and consume rice. They could not contain human fluids. Human fluids couldn't flow into his spine (his spine was gone).

He smiled again, his mouth naturally closed against his teeth. He was surprised. His nose returned. His stomach reappeared. The dust vanished from his ears. His spine straightened. His arms extended. He kept his teeth together and smiled.

That day. They celebrated Easter.