Oke’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Tag: Africa

  • Okechukwu’s Haiku

    The night came and went, but we are awake to Gods call Though the night brought darkness and bricks of wall To everyone, men and women, great or small Yet the love of God wakes with us to perfect us all Good morning from Africa!

  • Owerri

    How I missed you beautiful city The city that made me a man! Oh, how lovely it is to walk your streets Like Robin back from the gaols of France But then the city wear a new look Like a silver bracelet, shiny and comely Upon the old things the new thrive New Owerri and…

  • My humble land

    Now the morning has come finally After the stress of yesterdays rain This hilly land wakes warily Our pots are full of Heavens blessings Sweet musings and fine sights are all about me The bees, the green hills, the swans that fly away The vast fields of flowers which crops the Lilies And the blue…

  • Time to Pray

    ” …For where is God our maker, who giveth songs in the night, Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of heaven?” -Job 35.10, 11 Now the lands is dry We seek drinking water Strife is the order of the day Pain, prejudice, poverty Little…

  • A son of the hamlet

    I was born and bred in a big city But nought interests me More than a quiet life Which the serene hamlets give I was the king of the jungle With maidservants and menservants And a great sand house Filled with sand-made yams Commanding the mango fruit To fall for my noon delight And the…

  • The Jungle: West African Lion

    In the depths of the Savannah Where Nature prowls Strays a solitary beast- The King of the jungle Deep growls rent the night From one end of the world To another it spreads Striking horror to hearts And to those who dare To wander the unsafe night The crickets quiz But they are safe Yet…

  • Sun rising

    Hail the sun rises from the East From the back of the houses and hills Up the skies, just above the green forests On the faces of the glittering waters And the rugged patches of the dusty earth The sun rises upon all little hamlets And on all busy streets of the towns, On the…

  • The African mist

    1. The mists still settle upon the hamlet The hills, the vales and the green forests All is treacherously hidden in it One must tread very carefully, lest You step on a stray scorpion or serpent Or fall into a ditch or a fast flowing rivulet The morning took the place of the night And…

  • My Musing: February 11

    Aha, my mind seems to laugh at me… But I cared so little for what it thinks I say to it, “there are more to life than you see” And for the world I say, “follow the sun as it sinks” For a shepherd, I am a stranger and sojourner …Travelling to a land far,…

  • The Golden Savannah

    Have you seen the African golden Savannah? Come drive through dried brown grassland Come bake in the heat of the sun Come taste the corn beer, cooked by the locals Come ride the horse through the wildlands Come draw your name on the tropics beaches Come and see… The stray serpent, the Python or the…

  • Masquerades

    Strings of flax fall from your stress Hides carved from animal skin And strange cloth embellish you You swerve around like a drunk Scaring children and younger folk Caring for nothing but for asunder The masks on you remind of the hyena Your whip dragging behind you as you walk As you seek peoples’ doors…

  • Taming the Wild: Masai

    Somewhere in Africa Strong winds swept all to asunder But the Masai march against it With spears black with greasy hands And faces painted like Halloweens ghosts Pushing the tall shrubs down Frighting lions off the forest paths With bare hands they dare the buffaloes And call to the Boar for duels What manner of…

  • Who I Love

    Oh I am in love Your grapes gave me wine Your love gave me life It is at your table I dine I stand at the foot of a hill Watching the setting sun Near the busy oil palm mill I see women, their quarry burn The road to the stream Are littered with fallen…

  • Breaking the Igbo Kola Nut

    God our tryst makerOur lover and He who knows allChineke m, ke bi nigwe!Maker of the UniverseHe whom fetches water with a basketTo disgrace the bucketHe who whips us with one handAnd consoles us with the otherHe who stills a raging seaHe who made the Kola nutThe King of all foods!We come to You, our…

  • Oh Africa

    Oh Africa my love The land of many tongues Beautiful and blessed The land of the Ashanti, the Twi The sweet songs of the Zulu The many dialects of the Niger area The turbaned face saying ‘Sannu’ The pretty faces of maidens all around Dancing with the beats of the drum Giggling and letting their…

  • Tears of Children

    The tears we shed, Now I have no more tears The world watch all die And really nobody cares The world is torn apart The little place we lived destroyed We have just our skin to save O the cries we shed The pain we see The humiliation of people The destruction of farms Of…

  • The Rising sun

    The sun rises! Giving her warmth To all, rich and poor Throwing her light On the trees That shade little fauns The gloom is gone The clouds are blue And the birds are out Playing and surfing the air The weather is warm And the heat is on The sun rises Our crops rejoice The…

  • Africa

    Oh Africa! The land of warriors Of Shaka the Zulu Land of great trees and waterfalls The Victoria and the Chad the Baobab and the Iroko A land of green forests With many faun and flora A goldmine, a pouting sky The wonders of Nature A setting sun in the evening Have you heard the…

  • Nigeria

    In the morning, the sun rises Above the horizons and cliffs And on the smiling faces on the farms The 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…

  • Viva Africa!

    Africa –my pride The land of husker corn Barley adorn your lengths And date palms embellish you The coasts in your waters Glitter with mother of pearls Signifying your just blood Salmon glide on in its might The land of Quasar drum And the… palm beer Your calabash is full of sorghum And millets grounded…

  • Poetale: The Tortoise and The Dove

    Before I tell this poetale let me describe the nature of the Tortoises character in African cultures. The tortoise is a reptile that lives on land. In African tales the tortoise is perceived as a cunny creature that finds a way to trick others. Now in Africa we sit beneath a trees shade listening and…

  • Our African Heritage

    The sun has risen with hopes It throws its light on our faces On our farms, and our homes And we see our shadows cast back Our African heritage comes alive To do her best for all human kind For all beautiful infants For all that gives life This is our own, our pride From…

  • So Long A Dreamers Joy

    The sun gave its last smile Then went to sleep for the day Cool wooing sea breezes wash thru Sending an emissary notice To the gleefully shining stars On a night many wondered about The moon happy as he seemed Searched the beautiful glades in haste Looking for ones love –his love Once, more crickets…