Oke’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Category: art

  • Life, A Walk In The Park

    Life is like a walk in the wooded green park Where strange fine flowers and plants grow, And pests; rodents, bunnies and insects abound On the roadside will be mistletoes, thorny roses, even cactuses With so many harmless weed plants sprouting all about They hurt if one touches them and won’t If one will let…

  • Haiku: Silhouettes Walk

    Grim pups howl Cold full moon Silhouettes walk

  • Fresh Start

    Waking sun reminds of onsetsFor the past is kept without,So light dew may bless the moment

  • Life

    Life is like a mist Life is a precious gift, a blessing that we should never take for granted. Life is like a mist. The mist appears for a while and disappears forever. So in your thoughts, relive the moments that brought smiles to your face. Relive the hugs from the ones you love, the…

  • Muse: Dear Starry Night

    Dear starry night, Friend of the lonely shepherd Attend to these heartbeats So that the night aura be grand Play the silent music of night Chart a path for this heart Where flowery dreams sprout Sweet & memorable moments With the approaching twilight Permit these emotions to pause At the sunset golden gate Let it…

  • Onyinye (Gift)

    Keep It On Lately, I have attempted to write more about love. In doing so, I decided to take some inspiration from my old work. I visited my archive and there’s a lot of rusty but good stuff. I grin when I see my old writing and how it has changed over the past decade.…

  • She Plays

    She plays the guitar as the winds tease the treeline Twilight brings our harmonious memories Together to admire the night sky, the setting sun, But impulses of shared affection let it again rise Fresh breeze – a moment of heartfelt enthusiasms These songs took my heart along with the rhythm Dancing, I realize I fell…

  • Peace

    A tranquil evening is nature’s wayOf welcoming a weary shepherd,Sundown – his thoughtful views heralds,Memories in which trees fiercely danceAnd soft grasses wait where birds fly home

  • Come Thunder (1967) by Christopher Okigbo

    Christopher Okigbo Christopher died fighting in the Nigerian – Biafran civil war that raged through the late 1960s. Then Nigerian politics was in grave turmoil, the military was in charge and various parts of the nation harbored umbrage for the Igbo people of southern Nigeria. The Eastern region attempted to break away from the federation…

  • Night Poem: Vocal Nature

    Night Nature has a way of entertaining itself, you know. There are the nocturnal insects and birds who sing through the night, there are the whistling pines and the stubborn wind. The night can be annoying at times when buzzing insects bother sleepers, it can also let her musicals perform lullabies to weary people when…

  • Woman

    The braids on your hairTypical of an African womanBlack and natural. Well fitStraight cheekbonesMixed into hair,Like a young gazelles face.Your nose is like the fine basketWhen you breathe, it’s a wonderSame with your walk on flowers When you dance, you smile,Showing teeth, unspoiledThe teeth: white and strongPerfect fitWhen you love, it is realYou’re black and…

  • Reflection: Faces

    Faces I am worried that my village would be a changed place when I return. It’s been a while since I left and I wonder what changed. I daydreamed on the bus as it sped down the hill. Palm trees crawled past, I lost count. The clouds seem to change with each turn but the…

  • Art

    Art means many things to different people. For me, art is an identity. This is an image from a friend from Algeria. I asked her to let me use it as this post’s picture. Hadjer is an artistic engineer. She loves painting and dreams of establishing a studio. Art is the beautyWe see up the…

  • Morning Wind

    this early morning wind is super happy for she is wedded to the chilly climate, this green land, her people, my delighted self, one beautiful place, I will always call home

  • How Lucky

    Gratitude I love you; I want you to know. It’s easy to take things and other people for granted. Sometimes people feel entitled because someone makes an effort to please or help them. Everyone needs to know that they are valued. Telling someone how much they mean to you is not wrong. Saying ‘please and…

  • Summer Returns: Tale of the Wildwoods

    Upon the glades and vales of the wildwoods The Mountain stood quietly by the forest side Sniffing the sweet smell comes from fresh growing flower shrubs The happy birds come flying back home Followed by all pretty insects and the boar herd The skies are tinted with blue skirmish Sometimes it seemed it will rain,…

  • Black & White

    We are one human race Tolerance I define tolerance as a beautiful word that can change the world for good. It’s accepting people for who they are. Racism, nepotism, tribalism, fanaticism, etc arise when we refuse to accept that other people deserve the rights we enjoy. When we teach our kids that there’s only one…

  • Greens and Stones

    There’s so much beauty in the world, there’s so much pain too. Pain prevails more because man wants it so. I wrote this poem some time ago. It’s self-explanatory, so I need not talk much about it. The bottom line is that man, in his quest for wealth and power, has become an enemy to…

  • The Shepherd’s Muse

    Glad that the night brought pleasant airsThe shepherd lay to relieve the day’s stressCrickets chirp, the night is absolutely youngBut dreams come fast to a weary nomad

  • Night Sings

    The wind whispers a melodyThe skies whirr alongNight flies buzz in the darknessThe moon may grow to a big fellowFloating effortlessly up the night cloudLike an evening mist in a dark worldLetting all things and time vocalize,When my silly heart hum in love

  • Bright Night

    The gorgeous galaxy serenade the earthA shooting star skips singing a ballad of loveThe night is bright, filled with lovely memories

  • Hearts

    Man and Nature Indeed, man had been nature’s worst opponent. The impact of man’s activities causes a lot of harm to nature. Logging, mining, drilling, fishing, hunting, plastics, and more contribute to our polluted and darkening world. While we seek to light up our future egos, we end up darkening the possibility of sustainability. In…

  • Muse: Lovely Dream

    Love is a beautiful thing I love the dimple gracing your face, Your smile and our mild embrace I love the joy I get when you smile And the thoughts my mind derives To taste the chilli and turmeric, Tasty soup that makes me frolic! I love the airs around you, Roses, lavender – nice…

  • Thank You

    It’s been a worrisome time for me. I’ve always run back to write poems and let things pass. But you guys have been awesome. Through the likes and comments, you encourage me to write and I return to behold a loving family waiting to read. To all my followers turned friends, to my blog family…

  • What Genuine Poetry Looks Like

    Don’t worry, just write… Poetry is like we humans. Each poem is one different man. So we do not expect a poem to look ‘exactly’ like another. Each has its uniqueness. It need not be lengthy or short, it must not be like Shakespeare’s work, or like Okigbo’s piece. However, a poem can come in…

  • Dusk

    Ripples crash down,Dusks full confession close,But the elements are rugged,Sand swirls,Squinting crabs,Insects fly around,Birds chirp to the stream’s current,Now the evening is gently joined with dayUp above the clouds, are starry grinsA single moment of benign intimacy

  • Love Poem: Tryst

    Breezes carry your memory; mild rosy fragrance, The wind may sing far into the quiet darkness But we wait patiently, craving for our happy tryst

  • Night Poem: Twilight Event

    there are so many stars out here, this night they quiver in this painfully cold twilight some hide behind the trees, their peace felt the clouds must occur in chains and courts but abundant stars kept eternally silent so I lay, to attend to this personal incident, to admire elegance, lovely vision – one terrific…

  • Sound of Dance

    I heard the sound of shuffling feet As they moved on the dry grassland So I waited for the style for tonight Lost in the musical earth, Of grassy turns, faded sighs, A generous puff of midday wind, Trapped in a box of an eager heart

  • Night Poem: Stars Glitter

    The cold night calls Stars glow up the skies Picturing many tales Stories only told by sight, So the Shepherd feels all From his fluffy bed of wool

  • When The Rain Goes

    I Wish, I Wish Not It’s in man’s nature to wish for a thing and when it doesn’t favour him anymore, wishes it away. When it’s the rainy season, homes, roads and streets are flooded. Mosquitoes, sun flies, roaches, tsetse and other bad guys go on a rampage. Though the rain might help many people…

  • Choices

    What we do in life echoes for eternity. Maximus Choices are tender,Just like mirrors,They are a reflectionOf what is or will beSo if in or out,Be mindful of optionsIf in, maybe gaily securedIf not in, then out of mindDecisions made every dayComes knocking many years,So let it be good always.

  • Kindness Makes All Beautiful

    Kindness makes everything beautiful We’ve hands so that we can help others. Kindness goes ‘hand-in-hand’ with giving. Dear friends, keep this with you always: Kindness makes everything, everyone, very beautiful.

  • Good Neighbour

    Our first neighbour is our environment – the air we breathe, the food we take in and the natural things that we see around us. Daybreak is her garment She dresses with flowers, Sings with voices sweet & soft And flirts with her helpers Good neighbour, fair nature, Flirting wind, green paradise Favourite aura, great…

  • An African Lullaby

    Come closer, come hear the song I must sing this nightCome let us sit under the mango, let us enjoy the moonlight,The sweet breeze brings memories, like the quiet riversideWhich flows freely, running in peaceful haste thru the wild The cold day took her toil on our strengthBut the night fire hands us some warmthLean…

  • Sunrise Before My Eyes

    The sun rises before my eyes,Light throws her veil on earthThe breezes travel southOn their pathLetting lyrics,Within, withoutI see how lucky I amTo have this unfailing love

  • Poem: He

    Free as the wind was heWith eyes glowing wild as tanCarved on steady rocks, his path,Submitting to nature, his passion To him walls are barriers,But fearless, he frolics aboutWading through life’s tideLike a lonely cloud, wandering,Heed to nature, his precious being

  • Muse: Nightfall

    Nightfall, one of tremendous cold, Glowing stars, showing the path Another stanza, a song of the heart Driving through the darkest sky An emotion known only to the herder

  • Morning Wakes 🌅

    Dew melt and drip off tree leaves, Pretty hues huddle, some rise, some fall The smell of cooking in the distant village, Morning their shy friend is finally awake Greenfields stretched into the horizon Monkeys yawn, birds tweet, rodents race, Treelines summon their leafy branches Worms are first with the feeding riot Tree leaves fall,…

  • A Kind Story

    This story you are about to read is imagined. I created it to talk about compassion, love and kindness. Abraham because of his kindness, entertained angels without knowing it. So this is another kind story. I trust the story’s lesson would be obvious to everyone. Have a nice read and a good night wishes from…

  • Story of Hope: Archie Williams

    You may have read or heard about the American Singer, Archie Charles Williams, who hails from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. On December 9, 1982, a 31-year-old woman heard a knock on her door. She went to check the door in innocence only to encounter a man who forced the door open and entered her house. She…

  • Muse: Love Acts

    words may dabble,but actions won’t,love works things out!

  • The Waterfall

    I tell the trees of your sounds and they are jealousWhen you fall, birds, the wild, all elements stop to listen,To hear Nature sing while she wash her garment in the mist

  • Peace

    Bird songs, butterflies, and sun rays,Fruits of peace from the sanctuary, Nature’s gratification to all mankind

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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.…