There Is Love


I Know There Is Love - Chris Stain & Armsrock at Ad Hoc
Photo by p0ps Harlow

There Is Love
by: RJ

In that stern look,
Reciting countless threats of what not to touch,
Of what not to do, of what not to say.
No matter how sharp those eyes seem to be,
Even those windows to your soul betray you.
It shows me something else.
It shows me there is love.

In that heartbreaking comment,
That I look too thin now or too fat then,
That I look awful in my make-up,
That my perfume leaves a mind-numbing scent,
Even those words in your mouth betray you.
It tells me something else.
It tells me there is love.

In that fiery attack at my opinions
That I sound so stupid, so childish, so naive,
That I do not think as well as you
Or that I never will be as good as you..

Even those sentiments you keep hid in your heart betray you.
Because I feel something else.
I feel there is love.

For beyond your look are the eyes that I miss
Beyond your words are the lips I long to kiss,
Beyond your thoughts are the plans that I ardently wish,
And beyond this life is a love I can call my bliss.

So go ahead and give me that look
Pierce through my soul, cut within,
And while you’re at it, Why not burn it, peel this skin?
Grip my heart so tight, crush it with all your strength
Take its life in the very palm of your unforgiving hand
Say the meanest words you can ever come up with
Make up stories, mock me with your melodies
Do your best. And hey, do your worst.

For there is nothing I fear now.
There is nothing I feel,
There is nothing I see,
And there is nothing I long for
But to take this love of yours, catch it and bottle it up
Chain it, bury it and keep it for all its worth,

Because no matter what you do
And no matter how I think
It hits me with something else
It hits me with such powerful contradiction.
It hits me with sorrowful happiness,
With an unmistakable mix of inexplicable emotions
That proves to me — time and again
That you are, after all — all love.

You may be the puzzle I can never put together,
The equation I will never figure out,
The song I can never sing in perfect tune,
Yet one touch is all it takes,
I die in ecstasy in your warm embrace,
And I know in an instant, oh I know it too well
There is great love deep within you
There is love where you are
And I resolve to live and die perplexed
Under its irresistible spell.

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About Me
Cecilia Regina Aquino Blanquera Marmol aka RJ Marmol profile picture

I’m RJ Marmol — writer, musician, and independent creator based in Manila.

I write songs, essays, and books about the messy overlap between money, overwhelm, creativity, identity, and rebuilding. Much of my work circles around what happens when life stops feeling manageable — and how we try to think clearly, make decisions, and keep moving anyway.

I’m also the author of Rebuilding Under Debt: Thinking Clearly When Everything Is a Blur, a nonfiction book published under Steady Hand Press. The paperback edition is listed under my full publishing name, Cecilia Regina Aquino Blanquera.

On the music side, I release work as HeyRJ. On the writing side, this site is where I gather my books, essays, notes, and whatever I’m building next.

Music

HeyRJ is my sonic soul project. I create raw, minimalist-style and deeply personal music interpretations that feel like a late-night conversation with your truest self.

By blending lo-fi acoustic textures with poetic honesty, my work explores love, loss, grief, healing, and the quiet in-betweens of life. Each song is a letter — a journal entry — a gentle companion for when the world feels too loud or too quiet.

While my catalogue began with intimate cover renditions, my work is increasingly being shaped by original writing, drawing from years of poems, lived questions, and emotional survival.

“Stuck Home Syndrome” released on March 20, 2026 is my first original 20-track album written during a period when time felt compressed and days began to blur into each other. The songs came from sitting with thoughts that had nowhere else to go — unfiltered, repetitive, and sometimes uncomfortable. It’s a concept album that isn’t built around singles or polish. It’s closer to a continuous inner monologue, recorded with minimal production and very little ornamentation and meant to be listened to as one cohesive body of work. The goal wasn’t to resolve anything, only to document how it felt while it was happening.

On May 29, 2026 I released new original singles – “Rapturous”, “Uh Huh”, “Look At You”, “All That” and “Blew Print”. I continue to release both original and cover songs and intend to so for as long as I can so check back every once in a while — you might. just find something you’ll like.

For business inquiries relating to music, email me at: heyrjmusic[at]gmail[dot]com or my personal email at: rjmarmol[at]gmail[dot]com.

Books

Rebuilding Under Debt: Thinking Clearly When Everything Is a Blur

A nonfiction book about what debt does to the mind — and how to begin functioning again when financial stress has made everything feel blurred, urgent, and overwhelming.

Rather than treating debt only as a financial math problem, the book explores the emotional and cognitive realities of financial distress: shame, decision fatigue, avoidance, panic, relationship strain, and the difficulty of making sound decisions while mentally depleted.

Published under Steady Hand Press. It’s available worldwide in ebook and paperback formats on Amazon. Bookstores and libraries can also be order it wholesale via Ingram.

Contact

For book-related inquiries, media requests, bookstore questions, or discussion-group invitations, you can reach me through the contact page on this site or send me an email to rjmarmol[at]gmail[dot]com or hello[at]steadyhandpress.com