Saturday 28 December 2013

EXHIBITION




A time when love
Must prove you
Productive
Strong
Worthy
To be pruned
The scissors
Snaps,
Its sharp steel
Blade
Slicing away
At the overgrowths
A lone tree now stands
Rounded to perfection
Bold green leaves
Firmly rooted
And specked
With
Ripen fruit




 That time when fire
Must prove you
Precious
Tolerant
Able
To endure
The flames
Rage,
Fiery tongues
Laving flesh off
To reveal
The hidden gem
A refined metal
Now lies
Nestled
In glory
Glowing
Bright
And beautiful






The time when ice
Must prove you
A possession
Treasured
Worth
The keeping
Cold vapour
Rises
Its fangs
Slowing the heart
Numbing
Yet preserving
The truss of grapes
Now is presented
After days
With juice still
Fresh
And fruit
In good shape






The time when the world
Must prove you
A misfit
Unwanted
Rejected
Denied
The jests
Increase
Their Spite
Grow
Tears
Freely flow
Seeming sad
Yet infinitely
Refreshing
The new creature
Now takes flight
Into light
Reveling
In warmth
That radiates
From within
Making her shine






When the fair
Starts
Tree,
Gem,
Fruit,
New being
Will be laid
On pedestals
Lifted high
Above
The rest

Thursday 26 December 2013

STEPS



Looking
Down
At my foot
Move up 
Then out

Letting
Joy in
As it lands
On
Fine earth

The move...
First
Of 
Many.



Soon
Old diaries
Will begin 
To collect
Dust
Which
Will be blown 
Off
When the child
Of a child
Gets to 
That faintly familiar 
Point
That was muse of those
Forgotten volumes

Only then
Will they
Be taken down
And read


After 
Three
Long
Nights
The sun 
Is risen

And 
Shadows
Become visible

But 
The immortal tongue
Of the wise
Guides

They say
Do not 
Regard
The shadows
Do not
Fear them


Oh how sad
The sun
Must be
To see
You tremble 
Before these
Knowing it
Was it 
That exposed 
Them all


If you'd  fear 
The snake,
Then 
You must fear
The snake charmer 
Even more






Thursday 19 December 2013

WONDROUS TALE




Can I stand 
Before you 
Right here
And sing
A solemn solo
Of one who
Found me
On a dark alley
All alone
Cold
 And dying
One 
Moonless
 Night?

Can I cry 
Refreshing 
Tears
As I tell 
Of the deep
Dark
Wild
Of terrors
Bloodthirsty 
Night creatures;
Present
At a gothic dance
Of horror
And I
Helplessly
Tossed
About
Like 
A rag doll…
Almost…
Almost…
Dead

Can I lay in joy now
And just breathe?

I cannot
I do not
Recognize me
Truly 
This must 
Be 
New

I smile 
At the stranger
In the mirror
And reach out
Wanting to 
Touch
The glow
In that smile

Is it
Could it
Be
It is
It sure is
Me?

Can I 
Whisper it
Speak it
Scream it
Write endlessly 
Of it
Can I….
Can I say it!

It is a 
Warm
Golden
Enveloping
Sort of
Feeling
That rose 
With the sun
And 
Spelt out
A new name 
For me
In the scroll 
Of the skies

Do you see
The 
Jubilation
I see
When I look up?

Do you feel
The peace that 
Settles
On my spirit
Like mist?

Do you just know
Deep down
Like I do
That it is well?

From now
Till the end
Of time

Do you hear it?
The sound
Of cherubs’ wings
Flutter?

Oh Can I…

Can I
 Tell you
This wondrous tale?

Saturday 7 December 2013

THIS SEASON


Seeing the half-naked 
Kids
Dance-walking 
Down the street
To the kiosk
 In that corner
To buy try-your-luck 
Balloons
With their faces 
White from 
Their morning baths
Is what this season is about

Catching the boys 
Toss knock-outs
Under Grandpa’s 
Old rickety car
At dusk
With their mismatched
Slippers and 
Oversized shirts balled up in the back
While they run for cover
Not knowing
Grandpa has seen them all
Is what this season is about

Turning on the TV
And hearing 
A local choir
Sing Hallelujah Chorus
In discord
Dressed in old robes
Yet smiling through
Their almost 
Sorry performance
And so you care not 
That they
Sing it wrong
Because their aged faces 
Are so jolly
Is what this season is about

The ringing out
Of Afehyia Pa
And the cheerful
Hope-filled
Afe-nkɔ-mmɛto-yɛn-biom
We hear all around us
Though the year
Had not been
One long sweet dream
Is what this season is about

So it is when we march up to 
Where one road ends
And another
Unknown path
Begins
That we, 
As one people
Stand and wait
Eager for the new
Saying in our hearts
May it be good

It is what this season’s about

Friday 6 December 2013

SCARLET JOY


She cannot
Remember
What
It does
Not feel like,
This cancer
That eats at her

Stiff-necked,
Half-deaf
She pens
Words
That
Lie
Limp
On
A
Greying
Page

They come
In spasms
Like the
Throbbing
Of her sunken
Veins

They break
Her spirit

Cold
Tears
Betray
Her resolve

Death racks
The body
Of the
Poet

Death,
Her uncanny muse

Sprawled
Before the altar
She prays

Lead her
To the heart
Of Pilate's
Court,
Silent listener

Lead her
To
Scarlet Joy

Thursday 5 December 2013

THEY SAY...



The day came 
And ended
And I did not see it
Time stole 
Its way past me
While I dozed
Under fluorescent lights

They say a shadow 
Will cross 
My bed
And snuff out
My breath
While I lay here
Shivering

They say fear 
Will come 
Speeding 
Behind it
Circle my neck,
And wrench 
Sorry sobs
Out from 
My insides

They say it's horrid
When it lasts
That I should pray
It acts fast

That when everything
Starts going cold
I should just smile
And let go

They say that's so 
I'll look pretty
When I'm laid in state
That's when I knew
What it was
They were talking
About

The day came
And ended
And I did not see it

Neither did I see 
Death.
As they described
It

I guess
I'm going to be laid in state
With a look of surprise 
On my face