Oke’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Author: Oke Iroegbu

  • Story of Humility: Abraham Lincoln

    Abraham’s Humble Story When Abraham Lincoln became the president of America, his father was a shoemaker. Naturally, egoistic people were very much offended that a shoemaker’s son should become the president. On the first day, as Abraham entered to give his inaugural address, just in the middle, one man stood up. He was a very…

  • muse: we win

    Do you believe that love wins in everything? I do. I’ll always choose the love team. A million tongues may singYou, I, our stars, we all win!

  • Love Poem: I listen

    A host of shrieking crickets A plethora of frogs abundant And birds of vocal strength Perform a chorus tonight, Wistful, thaw rhythms soft Saved for a dull night For two gentle hearts In natural silence rest I listen to your heartbeat On my embrace, this night

  • Don’t Worry

    Happiness is part of being healthy Don’t worry, be happy, is not just a famous song or quote for commercials, it is a healthy lifestyle. A happy person owns the world. Yes! Happiness is a sign of contentment and peace of mind. These three virtues are crucial to good health. Now, worrying will never lend…

  • A Place In My Mind

    Sometimes it’s hard to stop a rolling stoneBut whenever it may roll, it always seems to find its way back home. Alex Roe Family Influence I’m bringing a piece of me back. This gift, or ability to write started somewhere. I came from a family of disciplinarians, teachers, and soldiers. The women in my life,…

  • Quote: Power of Giving

    To receive, give

  • My Stars Shine

    stars shine to show the way drawing my paths on earth I set out, I set out to meet you, you traveller casting shadows of my past after, I sing joyfully when memories come even then, you hastily return to me when days travel, I observe lovely lights and hope in poems, to write of…

  • The Rain Returns All

    Poets as Lovers I assume all poets are lovers. So every poet love can be compared to a hysterical character. I put it thus: a poet’s love is like a crescendo, other times it goes decrescendo or fairly in between. It may be lenient, sometimes it’s wild! So pay attention to your impressions, my friends.…

  • What Poets Gained From Writing Poems.

    Poetry Poetry is a composition in verse or language exhibiting conscious attention to patterns. The bolded are crucial to understanding the true nature of poems. Poetry has been in existence for centuries. As an art that survived centuries, I was curious to discover why lyrics are written for so long. And to those who write…

  • Mandela’s Quotes on Love

    Give a child love, laughter and peace No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than…

  • Little Excuses and Morning Rain

    Little Excuses Laziness and procrastination, two nasty brothers always look for excuses. It’s raining cats and dogs out there and the day just turned dark. Initially, I was like ‘ah, there’s a storm out there, thus I need a little nap’, but I know better. This morning rain won’t cheat me out of being productive.…

  • Serenade

    Busy bees are hairy and elegantThe wind sour with her fury flightRoses are red, honored by the breezeThe night shivers in this chilly sneeze For you, I’m a nightingale of twilightAnd I shall chant a serenade tonight

  • Significance of Kolanut in Igboland

    Onye wetara oji wetara ndu (Igbo) He who brings Kola brings life… Kola nut is a symbol of hospitality and friendship in Nigeria. While other food can be cooked, the Kola nut needs no special preparation before presentation. It’s a bitter fruit of the Kola tree¶, grown all over tropical Africa. In Igbo land, Kola nut is a…

  • Harriet Tubman

    If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going. Harriet Tubman Harriet Tubman (nicknamed Moses) was an African American born into slavery in Maryland, USA. She…

  • Little Thoughts

    silent thoughts on a quiet twilight of trodden paths, and marks left memories sport, cuddles soft, starry nights you and I – a team, lovebirds, to our silence listen, sounds only known to two cheerful hearts, the verge and onset

  • Love Poem: Tune of Bliss

    what do you perceive when you look into my eyes? is it an orbit formed from love where stars shine in the reverie? mornings maybe airy so curtains may dance, my arms are hairy so it’s a sheer thriller, now, I’ll let you know, you’re a creator of great happiness, for every time you smile…

  • Quote on Love

    True love is an honour, not everyone has got one.

  • Quote on Family

    Things may change, but everyone begins and ends with the family.

  • Sounds (Of Water)

    Poetry may come in form of flowing water, That tells of no serious thing in particular; But about the few that wash others’ feet And the wild that calls the forest home, It chats of fauns that hide in crevices Where waterfalls are happy to fall in currents, Rushing, flowing in streams and slow rivers,…

  • Love Poem: She

    she wears pleasant flowersand bakes cakes of fine flourwhen she sings in the morningmy heart dance with her song

  • Love Poem: If

    Your pretty face reminds me of the sun,When she rose from the back of many hillsDragging her gold blanket before farmsSo if I am to paint a beautiful museI will imagine sunrise over wheat fieldsAnd imminent evening when birds fly home

  • Night Is Getting Married

    The wind plays with my humble village When creatures of day crawl back home, The imminent storm tells no one of his arrival Young goats call to their mothers, And crying babies listen to the whine The barn is quiet but for the noisy wind The windows shake and rooftops dance Clouds are dark, no…

  • Quote on Perseverance

    Remember, people, the universe; everyone is waiting to applaud you. Stay focused on your dreams.

  • Go With The Wind

    Go where the wind goes, where sunset is gold, where hills, rise and fall and discover the world.

  • If Cards Tell Tales

    There are 52 cards in a deck and each one has a different story Judging Others People assume they know other people’s stories. So in their minds, they already judge people’s characters. Shrek, the 3D cartoon ogre, sadly affirmed that people judge even before getting to know him. This, of course, is because of his…

  • Hope

    When all seem lost, just look up, there you’ll find hope As the wind blew, no one knows exactly its direction or destination. But all one can feel is her affectionate breeze. Be hopeful, stay encouraged and never give up. Things take time, greater things take even more time. Is it not said that all…

  • Short Story: Umuosiala by John Okereke

    We all swarmed in pairs to the village square, strolling, briskly and for myriad bent octogenarians crawlingly. From all nook and cranny, villagers poured into the main footpath leading straight to the copious square like water from river tributaries. To an onlooker on the farms on either side of the almost narrow path, this flux…

  • My Tiger Stripes By Njabulo N.

    Self-Esteem In a world full of racism, competition, and all manner of vices, I chose to care less about people’s opinions of me. Hence I wouldn’t let those take all of my attention. I don’t have the time to worry about what others say in regards to my race, complexion, height, or status. I won’t…

  • Quotes: Love Vs Hate

    Hate destroys the very structure of the personality of the hater… When you start hating anybody, it destroys the very centre of your creative response to life and the universe; so love everybody. Martin Luther King Jr Hating people is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat. Henry Emerson We…

  • Muse: Moment Of Affection

    I fall each time I stare into your eyes, Your loving smiles are like daybreak It provides strength to a weary heart, So I cherish every moment of affection

  • Amuse: Fighting Bird

    This little fluffy guy is busy fighting his image on my reflector glass. Who’s staring back at you? Get him, buddy. 😁

  • Love Song

    I knew to love because of you Hold my hands, dear aficionado, let’s watch the shining stars drift Upon this lovely moonlight, this will remain our favourite moment

  • Quote on Love

    However things turn out, you’ll always be my love.

  • The Wind Cheers

    The Wind Cheers the wind cheers for meit dubs me great names,gives an account of tales,I missed in my absenceand let me dance with her airs.out in the tranquil forestwhere all elegant things roam,where all beautiful birds sing,and where memories encounterthe ancient, undulating altitudes,sits Ovim, my darling land!the land of bravery,the land of my father,and…

  • Three Brothers

    three lush brothers, firm upon torn boulders, wistful blue skies flying clouds sigh, tentacles as palms day made to warm these green brothers, yokes of sweet nectar, golden sunshine blotched lines, spiky front as arms familiar to harm

  • Lightning Strikes by Arunav Barua

    The Earth was turbulent, primeval turmoilThe passions expressed, boiling, hot oilHistory has her reasons for staying hiddenThe answers she holds to lands forbidden Mankind was a happy accident, mere fateBillions of years after the Earth’s, little lateGive or take a century, the legend remainsBut history cannot wipe away all the stains The Earth belonged to…

  • Seasons

    After the winter comes summer, after the gloom comes happiness.

  • Let Love

    Power Of Selflessness The truth is, without love no valid progress can be made. It’s surprising to learn how powerful love is and how this power can change the world we live in. Consider that governments can sign humanitarian pacts and withdraw from them at the last minute or if offended, women and children rights…

  • Quote on Love

    A person with compassion prefers peace because violence does not stand a chance. Love perseveres; love is not proud. Kindness is one of the highest forms of love.

  • Love As Living Water

    Love like precious elixir, Green, blue, of many hues Pure as the sweet spring – Leaping water, living waters, Flowing fast, east and west, In haste to lands far away, I desire, fetch this life-giver, This abundant zest of vitality So that the glamorous spring May birth a new beginning One that won’t lack anymore

  • Midnight by Robin Bliss

    Waking from my sleepGlancing at the clock, it’s midnightThe witching hour I thinkLightheartedly to myself The night is still, quietNo traffic noise at allNo wind blowing noisilyQuiet and peaceful here Except for the breathingOf my beloved, sound asleepRaising myself on my elbowI kiss her lovingly on the head She murmurs something. still asleepI’m glad that…

  • Night Song

    when night decides to play a song it will be a throbbing lullaby on the roof, flying insects buzzing by the window tally to this exhilarating night sound, and howling from the wind, so deep resound, whereas the night is young

  • Quote: Love

    Love knows no colour or creed or nation. It’s a torch that, if appropriately harnessed, can heal and overcome anything – Oke Iroegbu.

  • Art: Ruhige Nacht

    Ruhige Nacht Variety is the spice of life, they say. So I’ve decided to give this blog post a title in German. If I was proficient in the language I would love to write the entire blog post in German. Ruhige Nacht is Quiet Night in English. If I was a European, I would be…

  • Home

    Home may be far awayBut the wind brings her memoriesI hear from the flight birdsI see it in the rain and sunshineI see it in the falling tree leavesAnd the little bug crawling up my sleeves From far away, I look backHope on my breast, I walkAgain, playing mirthful songs,A long, long way from home

  • A Hopeful September

    Hope is the faint light that keeps burning in our hearts even in profound darkness September is a month that means a lot to me. It reminds me of life and death. It’s my sober month. Someday I’ll find the courage to write about September’s significance to me. I’m grateful for everything. It was just…

  • Igbo Proverb: On the Kite and Eagle

    Igbo: Egbe bere, Ugo bere, nke si ibe ya ebele, nku gbajie ya English: Let the Kite perch, let the Eagle perch, any that forbids the other from perching, let its wings break. Origin: This proverb originated from the Igbo tribe of Nigeria. It’s commonly used when trying to settle disputes or for prayers. Meaning:…

  • Folk: Eri, the Orphan

    Once upon a time. In a land far away, when things were not the way they are today. There lived an orphan, Eri whose parents died when she was just a few months old. Her uncle took her in, to raise her alongside his kids, Agbona and Tete. Eri was hardworking. She learned new things…

  • Perception

    Just as a man thinks, so is he Here’s an image that tells a story. Take a thorough look. What does this picture story tell you? In this image, a cat paints a picture of himself. To achieve this he observes himself from the mirror. On the mirror, which also represents how others perceive him,…

  • Tale of The Night

    Once upon a time, it was a cold night And one of loneliness for three shepherds, Their melodies were the sheep glad bleating Their balcony was light with the stars up above In the distance, away from their little fiesta Forest wolves called to the rising moon The cold night’s grip was terrific this time…