Once upon a time—around the corner from Neverland, two bus stops past Narnia, and slightly to the left of your imagination—there lay a kingdom so peaceful that even the dragons practiced yoga. The king was wise, the queen was kind, and the royal accountant was deeply concerned about the rising price of magic beans. In… Continue reading Why Fairytales Matter – Slides
Tag: folk
Legend of Wawadomea: First Wave of sails
There are dreams I like to forget. These dreams came, went and when I wake I find myself still wallowing in my own reverie. These dreams gave me illusions and changed the way I perceived the pirates. After the quick fight with the cannibals of Juren, a small island off the coast of the bigger… Continue reading Legend of Wawadomea: First Wave of sails
Kindness: The Lion and the Mouse
Here is one of the oldest and best loved stories of kindness paid and repaid. From it we learn that compassion lies within the power of both the mighty and the meek. Kindness is not a feeble virtue. One day a great lion lay asleep in the sunshine. A little mouse ran across his paw… Continue reading Kindness: The Lion and the Mouse
Grandmother’s Table
Good evening everyone. This story was adapted from the Brothers Grimm and I’ll like to share it with you. It may be that the older we get, the more this story will mean to us. But we should learn it while we are young, for the sake of the generation coming before us. We should… Continue reading Grandmother’s Table
Moonlight
Spherical white gold With memories impressed, Up the dark skies Riding on the clouds And sometimes to stand To light the woods, And the vales and heights Creating bold- Caricatures of trees, Images of the land The moon light Gives illumination To the world at night So the clouds may glow white
Once upon a time…
Once upon a time you preferred the silence to my love Then trees leaves fell, they fall quietly and so you went Once I held your hands in deep love and we walked the paths, And you told of our future but now you will not see me anymore We played together, you were my… Continue reading Once upon a time…
First Words of P’Ville, SummerTown 2
Summer had a lake which shone with the sun light The shivering of the waters were seen even in the nights By the roadside were carts drove were green and yellow flowers And at… Continue reading First Words of P’Ville, SummerTown 2
Amuse: Poetale of a town boy
I have become the village belle Just that in fact, I am not a girl Nene was so good in eulogizing me She sang of my praises even when I did nothing She told the villagers about my escapades in the city She told them of my big eye glasses and how it fit my… Continue reading Amuse: Poetale of a town boy
When I am not making the rain fall
And flood the villagers huts and farms
And to make the river banks overflow
So that the forests pathway is swampy
And the great crocodiles are washed ashore;
Then I will be watching the glittering stars
And talking about the stars, the night and moon
Well, the night is never complete without a tale
For the sleepy little ones,
But this time, no reading from a book
I shall tell you of the Forest and her folks
… Oke- Iroegbu
(a)
Once when the Forests owned all the land
And the Forest King has loved the greens
For it spread, such that the white mountains
Were covered with green grasses and plants
The Wind truly loved the look on the Mountain
For during the Winter, she had grown terribly cold
That she felt absolutely nothing even for the Wind
Then she had no dimples, no smiles, no blushing
Then it was only the Tomato that blushed about
Tanners, farmers, pupeteers called out to her
And all she could was smile and blush deep red
The Ice King wooed the Mountain and usually
Gathered about her face to give her a warm kiss
But this never went down well with the cool Wind
Now that the Ice King has gone with his captains
And Summer has come, the Forests came with their greens
How awlful, the Wind felt all year round
Seemed he was just a big time born loser!
But the true logic being that the Mountain
Was never meant for this young Wind
(b)
Now it was the tradition that the young men
Cut wood in the neighboring green forests
Before they can be allowed to chose a maiden
There was no axes in the town and near hamlets
And men were desperate for things
Even when they are not ready and ripe for it
Mirtle was a young man, despised and frail
Naturally dull, but deep inside he was a man
The youth of the hamlet, saw him as a weakling
And infact unfit for this great competition
So he was abandoned, and the other men
Went deep into the hearts of the green forest
Looking for wood, for there was no axe then
Then came dwarves walking about the hamlet
Without food or warm clothing
And night came upon them daily
And they starve and want warmness
And no one cared or even looked at them
For the villagers loathed the dwarves
But not all of them were villains
The weak Mirtle might be weak physically
But he had compassion and love
And knew what it meant to be cold
Not from the treacherous night weather
But from the hatred that lurks in peoples hearts
Mirtle gave his food and warm cloths
To some of the dying dwarves
Sharing with them till he had none
One night, the Chief Dwarf presented a gift
And lo! An axe, not just ordinary
And so Mirtle had wood and a fair maid
For his kindness to strangers in need
I knew you got the message, I had imagined and made this story to teach about love and kindness. Abraham entertained angels without knowing it.
Once in a quiet sunny forest
The cruel Sun starved the Earth
And her little furry inhabitants
Of drinking water and comfort
The Owls & Wolves yawn in hunger
No one was able to decipher
Why the Sun brought her asunder
As all was thirsty for water
The forests dwellers hatched a plan
One of travelling to the village of men
Across hills & valleys thru strange land
And numerous tribes, peoples and clans
Such was the painful and heavy strife
For the bigger animals couldn’t thrive
The little animals ran for their dear lifes
From both the bigger animals and the Suns strafe
I met an old man
Walking down the lane
Passing thru the barn
With a face, bold and stern
He dropped his stick
And I watched him stoop
His body rattled, weak
And down the steps, I took a hop
“Hello sire, lemme help you”
He looked up, a bright smile
“Oh, goodness, my son, bless you
i had been on the road for miles!”
The evening was cold
A storm was on its way
“Please do come inside
And I shall bake you some cake”
The face brightened the more
And thru the steps I led him
Taking our time as we head to the door
The sun sets, the clouds dim
And then the winds blew
Snow balls fall in drunk circles
And the road was full of white hue
I set the little brown kettle
And soon it was whistling
“Sire, you can stay the night”
I saw the hope in his eyes, dwindling
“Thanks for your hospitality”
He smiled again with some pain
The bulb up the ceiling kept shining
And I see glares of the old man
Take a side look, once and again
After tea and very hot shower
He lay on the bed, with his eyes on the ceiler
I sensed the unease, and made for the bed
“Sire, is anything the matter?”
He grunted and calmly shook his head
“Nah son, but I kept watching
This little light shining up there
I prefer to sleep on something
Afar off this little Sun up there!
I dont know what holds that”
He pointed to the bulb, carefully
Trying to let me see
Why the bed should be moved
Fearing should the hand
Holding the bulb decides to let go
What might become of him
