“The fly of your trouser is open Mr. Engineer,”
so whispers the street boy just before
the engineer enters to be interviewed for
the job of his fancy.
He can’t hide how grateful he is to the boy
for the heads up.
He needed that kind of help;
Don’t we all?
We are all wet, but afloat, finally; the countless attempts to rise up notwithstanding; safe from the dire mire; waiting patiently for the cloud of sour adversity to pass; my white-feathered brother and I. We can now look up to the skies from where the perch came, the straw to grasp; and each other’s warm…Continue Reading “THERE IS HOPE”
That hunch that whispers to me
what is right and what is wrong;
it tells me when to run, walk away
or to stay put.
It shoots straight, and candidly,
unapologetic for any pain
that hurts my heart;
it tells me who my real friends are,
when to say yes, and when to say no.
Kwa nini mwanilaumu na roho kampenda yeye? Kwa nini mwanishtumu na macho kajichagulia? Si haki kabisa. Mimi mwenyewe nishaamua na moyoni ashaingia. Niacheni niringe naye. Ikiwa penzi ni wazimu jamani niacheni niugue. Hata mkinidhalilisha; sitotengana na aliyenipenda. Niacheni nitambe na niliyetunukiwa. Katu sitaachana naye, kwa sababu moyo kamteua.
I remember when you were a rose;
ruffled then the feathers became;
under the weather you slowly cruised;
the sunshine faded;
and the flower withered.
Life hit hard; it lied, played games,
brought regrettable connections,
and distorted the truth.
You’ve seen and done it all,
you hurt deep and you wept.
Walisema penzi letu
mwishowe litopunguka.
Walisema jua letu litazama
na giza itatanda.
Walisema rohoni utanitoka.
Walisema penzi letu litafifia,
libaki mazoea.
Waongo hao.
Waongo hawajapata
kuvutiwa na penzi.
Waongo hawajapata
kuridhishwa na penzi.
Why did you do this last night?
It’s hurting me and I can’t forget.
Why must you risk your life so?
You allowed her, and that’s a fact.
As I watched, she massaged
your bare skin,
severally kissed you tenderly,
and even suckled.
To make matters worse,
she most probably even infected you.
On the one hand, in sympathy and empathy,
they seek to save life and heal the world;
by lending a helping hand,
give hope, and make the day
brighter for people facing
life-threatening natural calamities.
On the other hand, in rage,
they brand the others as terrorists, jihad,
neo-nazis or inferior race, then rain bombs,
destruction and anguish, having no qualms
whether they shed the innocent blood
of children and the defenseless.
Difficult to bear it must be,
with happiness all robbed,
weighed down by sadness,
or reeling in the pain of loss.
But this stress, go away it shall.
Just like yesterday,
it will be well, again.
It is well.
Thank you for draining off,
the strain of waiting for
your drops on the panes,
from our brains.
Gently pelt, and leave
the leaves and the flowers,
to live and blossom,
bounties of grain to produce.