wow ! how did i miss this one?
so, f a pregnant cat crawls n2 a warm (but not too warm) oven on a cool day, & gives birth, whatcha gonna call em,
biskits?
well, i kno this is not the poetry thread, but since i hv nvr posted a poem at destee b4, i ask u destee 2 pls overlook this & hope its not a violation of the rules or anything. i wrote this over 6 yrs ago when i was feeling esp afrocentric (yes, it waxes & wanes at times) & it really fits the topic ? to a t. u'll find my answer 2 ur ? at the end.
how can i make u understand?
luv 4 an unknown motherland
how real to me these yearnings seem,
a place where we can live our dream
how can connection really b,
4 this place so far from me
who think not n terms of i but we
will it bring out the best n me?
can its power change my destiny?
something I realized long ago
it's not an option i have 2 go
this pilgrimage will help me grow
relight my burned out inner glow
2 many secrets i must know,
so many debts 2 her we owe
vast beyond imaginings
contrasts starvation & diamond rings
i ve thought it could b paradise
her quiet beauty does so entice
i seek her counsel & advice,
am i willing thou 2 pay the price
telebroadcast scenes of famine & drought
inapparent causes r not thought about
impoverishment unencumbered throughout
suffering & death 4 europes clout
profiteers 4 unjust gain
heap on my homeland endless pain
they aren t concerned w/repercussions,
f it's not 4 profit there r no discussions
no matter how long & hard she screams & hollers,
they see afrika n terms of dollars
her mineral wealth must all be taken
irrespective of health & lives 4saken
a portion of me must still reside,
events there can instill such pride
i know that we r still connected
b/c my core is so affected
by news of risks the continent is taking,
or triumphant progress my families making
some identify w clothes or cars
they still don t know quite who they r
but 3 piece suits or burlap bags,
both will decay & become rags
don t focus on my outerwear,
thru verse i lay my soul out bare
they say don t make waves, go w the flow
they ll be sucked down w/the undertow
others may flock to france or greece,
europe can t make my longings cease
portrayed as natural disasters & plague,
but the tragedies r oft man made
w/a spirit hardship cannot defeat
w/an almost feminine mystique
a treasure trove garden retreat
w/every pleasure ur heart may seek
yet thousands die even as we speak
from far more than not enough to eat
isolation keeps her dependent & weak,
boundary lines she must delete
prospects 4 uniting r far 2 bleak,
separated, she simply can t compete
the poverty, squalor, death & sorrow
juxtapose w/the grandeur of killamanjaro
never will she attain whats best
aping greediness of the west
the solution to the racial fights
is brotherly luv, not civil rights
earth's greatest need is 4 advancement
n the science of luving others enhancement
w/diamonds oil gold & bauxite
few can match her mineral might
no land can match her vast potential
no where else has been so influential
my respect 4 her is reverential,
the whole globe was once so deferential
she must c europes role as wholly non-essential
& its culture, properly, inconsequential
until we re there we can never be home,
our ignorance led us 2 disown
this land of which the least is known,
n untapped potential she stands all alone
where lifes 1st fruits 2 the world were shown
physically huge but not full-grown,
r solid future seeds now being sown?
work toward the goal of being pan,
ignore the borders from europes klan
we wrote the bible & the koran,
we must unite while we still can
could journey 2 a distant shore
strengthen me & make me more ?
will i feel that i ve been there b4 ?
such contemplation's about whats n store
rich colored fabrics tribal dress,
warmth of an afrikan caress
varied dialects, melodic tones,
familial kinship so often shown
mysteries that will remain unknown,
the pride we share talking of home
no matter how i dress or where i stand,
my luv & longings 4 the motherland
intertwined by choice, design & plan,
so as long as i b black & b a man
from inside out i m AFRICAN
again, gr8 ? & i ve enjoyed & identified w soooo many of the replys 2 it. destee 4 president!