Oke’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Author: Oke Iroegbu

  • Muse: What I love about you

    I love the dimple that grace your face, Your hearty smile and warm embrace I love the joy I get when you smile And those thoughts you serve me I love the taste of your turmeric and garlic, Sweet soup that makes my heart frolic! I love the airs around you, Roses and lavender, I…

  • The African Palm Tree

    The palm tree is one of the strongest trees in the world. In tropical Africa, this plant grow wild, though it’s now cultivated. In Igbo land, the leaves, barks and roots is used to produce different kinds of medicine. The boiled seeds serve as food and the oil is used for cooking. The wood is…

  • Visit Africa: Masai Mara

    Video from Guardian TV

  • Twist and Turns

    Twist and turns, that’s the song of life and the road But crawl, walk, run towards those brown hills, Dust shall become a dress or a travelling companion

  • Haiku: A Summer Walk

    Take a summer stroll down the green bush Find three squirrels play by fallen tree logs Splash! A frightened frog jumps into the quiet pond

  • The Goose that laid the Golden Egg

    You may agree with me that evenings are best for story telling. In Africa, evenings are valuable family time. Dinner or sitouts allow time to reflect on the days work: achievements and disappointments, and to tell tales. Tales don’t just act as lullabies but convey moral virtues (and vices) as well. Now when a story…

  • A poem for Sailors

    See the sailors ships dance on the wave To the rising sun they prepare to sail Waiting to greet birds and smooth tides, And to dream when the evening rides See the sailors gather their sails With rum as their better companion They sing and tell tales from happy mouths, While the ready ship waltzed…

  • Can you spell IF?

    Please can anyone help these guys? 😅😂

  • Nigeria

    In the morning, the sun rises Above the horizons and cliffs And on the smiling faces on the farms Hope rises with the sun, As the children roll out their bicycles To the tanned fields of the hamlet Followed by their pets, puppies and kittens A proud cloud draws a huge smile And on the…

  • Unabhangigkeit Nigeria!

    Today is October 1, 2019, doubling as the beginning of October and Nigeria’s Independence Day. This day in 1960 we became self governing when the Brits left. So †Unabhangigkeit Nigeria! From the coasts of West Africa, I wish a Happy New Month to all my followers and to Nigerians I say Happy Independence Day! As…

  • Smile for me

    Smile for me beautiful one, Draw your joy, let it infect everyone Be happy when it goes well And when all seem uncertain But pay no heed to illusions, To thoughts that groom pain For when heavy storms gather, It takes a smile to break the fear Now consider the colorful rainbow, 🌈 How noiseless…

  • Teach me to Love you again

    For our love’s memory I cherish your love dose, Your care and your beauty, Each time the swift sun rose Gracefully, I recall our hopes… But the candle light dwindles And I miss you, now that it faints Teach me to love you again Embrace me when I fail; The hugs, cuddling, I’ll relearn- For…

  • Visit Africa: Gaborone

    If you love nature, then you should visit Bostwana. There’s a lot of Game and Nature reserves in this country, trust me, you won’t get enough of wildlife sighting here. We’ll be checking out the capital city; Gaborone, a beautiful town in my ‘to visit list’. Gaborone is known for the Gaborone Game Reserve, sheltering…

  • The Shepherd King

    If you are conversant with David’s story in the bible, then you can recall that he was a lad who led his father’s sheep to pasture in the forest. He learned to fight, for he fought off Bears and the Lion that came to steal the sheep. He learned to play the guitar which came…

  • Thoughts on Contentment

    Most vices become when there’s a lack of contentment. Burglary, pilfering, all manner of stealing, falsehood, and even hatred of oneself are all discontentment factors. I asked some elders about their thoughts on contentment, and they gladly led me through their wisdom. As we all know, happiness is a great virtue worth teaching our younger…

  • The World’s Greatest

    Join me to reflect on this †video clip. You become what you tell yourself. Wake each morning with a desire to become a better version of you. The world needs your skills and talents, don’t hide them. It’s a good morning from West Africa. I’m up and thankful. Have a blessed day. * †Video excerpt…

  • The Boy Who Cried “Wolf”

    This is one of Aesop’s most famous fable. It’s old but not rusty. As you read through note that the fastest way to lose what we call our good character is to lose our honesty. There was once a shepherd boy who kept his flock at a little distance from the village. Once he thought…

  • Happy Autumn song

    Autumn plays a game of colors Warm is her painted trees and land Sweet are the songs from her birds With the two, she gave benevolently *** Image by Yaran Qadr

  • Positive Attitude to Life: Gratitude

    Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happened- John Miller. Be thankful for all the gifts of life. We can hear birds sing and…

  • African Myths 3

    Myths are believes that are not true. In Africa there are so many of them. Let’s have a look at some. In some parts of Africa, beating children with a broom is a curse. Flogging the girl-child with a broom may delay her marriage. 🤭 Do you know that breaking palm kernels anytime from 7PM…

  • Celebrating Arts: Glennys Arias

    As I mentioned sometime ago, I celebrate creativity, knowledge, arts and people. Today I will be taking a peek at Glennys Arias new book. I’m privileged to be reading from the author herself! These are excerpts from The Creator’s Angel which is published in Amazon.com. Chapter 6 We stare at each other in complete silence,…

  • Thoughts on Teaching Math

    Consider the first time you taught someone how to ride a bicycle or did any form of teaching. It wasn’t easy, was it? Teaching is a stressful job. Teaching math is much more stressful. Math is in everything you do! Before trying to explain this, I make the students relax. Many students fear the subject,…

  • Random Thought: Countryside Vs Cities

    It’s Saturday evening in West Africa. I’m sitting outside peeling oranges. Apart from the dreamy breeze, this mouthful of oranges is the only comfort I’ve for being bored. COUNTRYSIDE My hometown is beautiful. There are breath taking hills masked in green matter. There are streams, ponds, rivulets and waterfalls, rocks and ancient caves. There are…

  • Drums of Nature

    These are drums, of joy and fulfilment, Listen, Heaven sings her melodious hit Her clap of thunder startles me, Yet the raindrops act as my lullaby ** With Elabh

  • Why it is important to have a plan in life with Piere Ingrams.

    Piere Ingrams says replace bad habits with good ones. From Ohio, USA, Piere takes us on why it is important to have a plan. Good morning from Africa!

  • Look beyond your past

    In the morning I wrote a hasty poem titled “Looking Beyond”. I also tried to finish a large chapter of a book I was reading. This book (God’s Generals by Roberts Liardon) told stories of how great men and women once wallowed in shame, failure and defeat. It also narrated how their resilience, patience, hardwork…

  • Look beyond…

  • Self-Control

    The secret of surviving tough times is your response to them – Dr Chris Kpakpovwe The problems of life is not the problem itself. The problem is our reaction to the problem. We can allow problems to grind us to self pity or depression or it can become our stepping stone to progress/creative new thinking.…

  • Visit Africa: Cotonou

    Have you heard of Cotonou? Cotonou is a large port city on the south coast of Benin, in West Africa. At the eastern end of central Boulevard St. Michel is the huge Dantokpa Market, which features religious items and spices alongside everyday objects. To the southwest, the 19th-century Cotonou Cathedral has a striking red-and-white striped…

  • Muse: For you…

    Light will be my sweet, loving words With your faith I will stand my ground, For when I look into your pretty grey eyes I behold a warrior, your happiest desire! You are my delicate flower bud For you, I will sing and stand guard Songs, poetry and lavender perfumes, All my muse, my all…

  • African Myths 2

    I biala. That’s Igbo for ‘you are welcome.’ Tonight I will be updating my post on African myths. So sit tight and read some of Africa’s do’s and don’ts! Have you heard that you shouldn’t call a 🐍 by name during night time? Well, we were told that if you do, a 🐍 will visit…

  • African Folktale: the Crows and the Cuckoo

    It is evening here and I feel like telling you a story. Bring your mat, come sit with me outside, by the fireside and let us enjoy the night breeze. Once upon a time there lived a set of Crows which plundered farms. Each day the farmers try to catch the Crows to no avail,…

  • Thoughts on Family

    Sometimes things change, but we begin and end with the family. Family is everything. It’s the final bus stop for every one. Please think of the prodigal son who returned to his father when he lost everything. Here are some notes on what to do to keep positive relationships with your family members. Don’t let…

  • Sharing the Love (with Franklin Onuoha for Charles Iroegbu)

    Happy birthday big brother. I have joined with Franklin Onuoha to dedicate this to you. I give credit to Franklin for the Title. We wish you greatness, peace, happiness and love. We celebrate you. Sharing The Love: If I would chose three Of people and things To take with me on a journey You will…

  • As he thinketh…

    Know that whatever you will become is a function of your thoughts. We are what we think. With our thoughts we make our world. What you picture in your mind, your mind will accomplish for you. Consider the image above. While the world saw a cat, the cat saw himself a Lion! We could be…

  • Dreaming of Summer

    Summer is a dreamers tale, told in advance In this dream; grasses are green and squirrels dance Summer is the song of comfort in the hearts of many It refreshes, renews and brings solace to the wary Summer is the wild flower growing by the roadside An adorable fragrance from shrubs, sweet and mild Summer…

  • Positive Attitude to Life

    Life is in minutes and seconds. There is no such thing as a bitter end, because an end is the beginning of something new. Learn from mistakes and keep moving. BTW only the living can make mistakes. So be thankful for life. Life is like a building that can be renovated and rebuilt from scratch.…

  • Leadership: Is Education Really Worth It?

    I debated the relevance of education in Africa. So I will weigh my thoughts on a pendulum. If the pendulum swings to yes, I wonder why we have educated Africans who make little or no effort to enhance the social and economic well-being of the continent. I wonder why people with academic zeal are not…

  • Excursion: Coke with Primates

    An excursion it was to the Songhai Zoological Garden, Owerri, Nigeria. The weather was mild and sunny. Our bus rode through the dusty hills leading to the garden. The dust followed the bus for miles. Now those hills stood ageless like a wallpaper surrounded by green forests. I can still picture it all. On the…

  • Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships 2020

    Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships are for candidates from low and middle income Commonwealth countries, to undertake full-time taught Master’s study at a UK university. Funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), Commonwealth Master’s Scholarships enable talented and motivated individuals to gain the knowledge and skills required for sustainable development, and are aimed at those…

  • Let’s Tour the Alkebulan by Abdurrazaq Mubaraq Adebayor

    Come walk with me to African blessed abode, To see the wondrous beauty the Earth has bestowed; We’ll bask in the surreal splendor that surrounds us, And listen to nature composing the streets hustle and bustle, As car honks and random disc jokey tootles across the street, Sending our minds wandering into a poet’s lovely…

  • Muse: Lullaby

    What is the sound of lullaby to you? Is it the touch of raindrops on rooftops Or the mild, soothing voice of love? Will it be a swift palm upon a light drum Or the Sparrow singing her heart away? To me, lullaby is a touch to the soul What the body is too heavy…

  • Making most of Love 1

    Singles and doubles, you can recall how it felt, loving someone especially when it was reciprocated. I always wanted to share a thought on creating happiness for loved ones. Here it goes. Your spouse should be the first point of joy and happiness. Celebrate each day you spend with him/her. Always tell them how happy…

  • A Shepherd’s Song

    Evening airs are comfort to a tired soul, Which all morning was submerged in wool, Cuddled by cute lamb, fresh and beautiful. Up in the skies, glittering stars play their role Stories of the giraffe and the moon they tell, How the giraffe ate the sickly moon half! As the Shepherd lay down on the…

  • Dear South Africa

    Righteousness exalts a nation.

  • Celebrating Talent: Damilola Ajayi

    I thought about celebrating good and talented people. Here we go, the first person in the series! Permit me to introduce this pretty, humble, enterprising young lady. She is Damilola Ajayi, from Ekiti state in Nigeria. When I first met Dami in 2017, I wasn’t so sure of what to expect from her. As I…

  • Why I decided to let go

    The title should have read “why it is necessary to let go“. I decided to use the title above because I’ve been betrayed, played and taken for granted by people I trusted and gave full loyalty to. So I’m a practical example and if you can relate, tag along. Unfortunately, some people are good in…

  • Poetry of Faith

    Mine is a poem from the heart, A voice in the desert Calling Listen to the truth Have some faith!

  • Persevere

    The fisher who draws in his net too soon Won’t have any fish to sell The child who shuts up his book too soon Won’t learn any lessons well If you would have your learning stay Be patient – don’t learn too fast The man who travels a mile each day May get round the…

  • Why you should visit Africa 2

    Do you find happiness and healing in natural things? Do you get inspiration from your natural environment? Do you like hanging out with the wild and getting blessed with views of a beautiful land? Maybe you love to watch the young deer gallivant through the Veldt. Then a visit to Africa will do. I, for…