Oke’s Musings: Poetry, People and Places

Tag: tale

  • The Devoted Friend from Project Gutenberg

    One morning the old Water-rat put his head out of his hole. He had bright beady eyes and stiff grey whiskers and his tail was like a long bit of black india-rubber. The little ducks were swimming about in the pond, looking just like a lot of yellow canaries, and their mother, who was pure…

  • Another Tale of the WildWoods

    There’s a land behind those hills Hidden in the forest, One mighty foliage; of brushes & roots At all times, Cloud is blue And King of the Forest Do fall in love with it When the Cloud blush It rains softly; mildly And little creatures Which live in the land Look up to the smiling…

  • Quiet Lakeside

    Once upon a quiet lakeside, Where blue clouds stay, With very thick fog dwell, And tall Figs hide in them Like towers, Over a host of colours, Painting down the valley When the sun rays fall And the forest below So all may turn to gold. Clouds are not left behind They shine in the…

  • The Frogs and the Well

    Look at this fable and reflect why we should think twice before acting. Two frogs lived together in a marsh. But one hot summer the marsh dried up and they left it to look for another place to live in, for frogs like damp places of they can get them. By and by they came…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Folktale: The Animal King

    Gather now; come closer Warm your hands, sit near the fire It is a cold evening. I have a folktale for you, And I hope it prepares everyone for a good sleep. Ifochakpi! Waa!! Once upon a time In a land far away Across seven rivers And seven hills Lived a clan of animals Then…

  • 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…

  • The Shepherds Tale

    Lonely stars filled the cloudy night Crickets quizzed behind the rocks But the lonely Shepherd stayed awake Watching the glittering from the star light Listening to the bleating of sheep, his lullabic songs Sniffing wet and mild airs that came from the lake He lays on his soft pillow of wool Wrapping his arms about…

  • 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…

  • First Words of P’Ville, SummerTown

    When the Winter Witch got tired of the warmth Which the fine golden sun brought She decided to leave the sunny, pitiful city And with her she took all her trinkets and jewellery Then she would stare across the vast wild Oat fields And all she saw was melting ice and she always sighed In…

  • 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…

  • Darkness falls

    Darkness falls… The cries of night wolves and wild dogs Rent the airs far away deep in the forest The wind grew milder, the moon light brighter And the sweet lullabies ring out from homes A tradition, one which the little ones adore The evening simmer into a deep darkness As the African tales went…

  • Lullaby: A tale of the cold night

    Once upon a time… It was a night of bitter cold And snowy storms gathered, The weight of snow lay thick Upon tree leaves and branches The slopes wore a sore face For the ice cold winter air Was so cruel to the night The little lake was half frozen And the ducks flew away…

  • Rainmakers’ tales: 2 tales of Oke- Iroegbu

    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…

  • Another Tale of a Shepherd

    Nothing compares to the sweet sleep Of all good and hardworking shepherds He retires with a fine and adorable smile And to his bed of wool, he lays Tuning into the local radio station To listen to some old folk songs Nodding almost silently to the rhythm Smiling to the memories of the stressful day…

  • The Tale of a Shepherd

    When it is time to leave the hamlet To leave the vales and the thornful paths To seek fresh and sweet grasses For the little bleating lamb and sheep The shepherd wakes from his slumber The roads are rocky and mountainous Filled with stubborn stones and quarry The mistletoe grow on the roadside But the…

  • A Poets Tale

    Have you seen the sun set over the dark clouds Behind the lonely traveller marching up the hilly mounds? The evening sets in, covering all the light living on Earth It was about time for, moon-lit tales and screeching crickets The wind surge, we are left to feel it The birds fly away, as the…

  • You, my Inspiration

    I shall look upon Thee In the face of the rising sun And on the evenings airy breeze Your beauty inspires me I sit staring into the air I see you walk to me Entangling me in your embrace Doing this little laugh I always grew fond of My joy knows no limit The fragrance…

  • The Legend of the Cretian Minotaur

    The King of Athens killed the son of Minos, King of Crete. In revenge, Minos conquered Athens and forced its King to send him seven youth and seven maidens every year as a tribute. These victims were then sent into a huge maze, or labyrinth on an island where they were devoured by a monster,…

  • The Old Man and The Bulb

    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,…

  • A Tale of Fantasia

    There’s a land far far away Somewhere any good traveller can reach A strong march thru fields of green and yellow wheat Which on it hides, flesh eating Ostriches And undisturbed monitors fighting to get a bite of flesh A sky that changes apparitions when stirred Across the long deep oceans With sea monsters, cucumbers…

  • A tale of the lakeside 2

    Once upon a quiet lakeside Where blue skies stay And very thick fog dwells With tall Figs hiding in them Hanging like towers There’s a riot of colors Down the valley When the sun rays fall On the forest below All turns to gold The clouds are not left behind They shine gloriously The water…

  • Some Tales of the Wildwoods 2

    There’s a land behind those hills Covered in the forest A green foliage; brushes and roots All the time the Clouds are blue And the king of the Forest Do fall in love with it When the cloud blushes It rains softly; mildly And the little creatures Which live in the land Look up to…

  • A Tale of the Lakeside

    Once upon a quiet lakeside Where blue skies stay And very thick fog dwells With tall Figs hiding in them Hanging like towers There’s a riot of colors Down the valley When the sun rays fall On the forest below All turns to gold The clouds are not left behind They shine gloriously The water…

  • A Tale of the Lakes: The Duck

    Once upon a quiet lake Beside a green forest Lived a Duck and her chicks All day they waddle through the waters Enjoying the serenity A day came and the Duck Brought her chicks all about her ‘Quack quack Daak’ she began ‘You have been friends With the Turtle You know the Lake More than…