Flawed Woman

I know a woman who has many flaws
Of her many flaws, two are glaring

One, she loves too much and when she loves she gives her whole self
Her last clothing
Her last meal
Her entirety to secure the other, she gives
Her security as she picks up arms and defends even one who is at fault
A spear, she takes on behalf of the other
But what makes this flaw so grave is that of those she loves, few love her back
So they do not give her their clothing
Nor their last meal
Nor all that they have to secure her
Nor do they pick up arms and defend her, indeed they attack when suitable
Nor will they take a spear on her behalf; indeed they scoot so that she can fall on one
While those of us who love her stare on.

Two, she cares too much and when she cares she gives her whole being
She gives anything to relieve the other
She rejoices with those who rejoice
She mourns with those who mourn
She aches when the other is in pain
A sleepless night of fasting and prayer she renders on behalf of the other
But what makes this flaw so grave is that of those she cares for, few care for her
So they do not part with their things to relieve her
Nor do they rejoice with her when she rejoices, indeed they are jealous of her
Nor do they mourn with her when she mourns, indeed they contend that her loss is befitting
Nor do they ache when she’s in pain; indeed they are the source of a number of them
While those of us who love her stare on.

We are the spectators, vying for her attention
Vying for her love and care, all to no avail
Instead she berates us
Takes from us and gives to them
We who love her suffer from her and suffer for her
But we know that those she loves too much do not love her like we do
And those she cares for too much do not care for her like we do
Surely, one day their acts will exonerate us
But for now those of us who love her stare on.

Lover

I kissed him and giggled in his ears
Taunt me
Flaunt me
Tickle me
Make me laugh

I looked him in the eye and said to him
Tease me
Kiss me
Want me
Make love to me

I placed his hand on my breasts and told him
Ignite me
Excite me
Touch me
Make me pant

And then he took me in his arms and lifted me to the clouds. He said to me
Pretend with me
Escape with me
Surrender to me
As we descended

The wicked transformation of a gentle soul

When a gentle soul is oppressed continually for so long
it eventually finds itself encased in darkness

with the bare minimum the soul struggles to survive
often eating of itself as it slowly starts to conform to its sickly look
the dingy cage full of the soul's excrete that it cannot escape from recycles poisons through the prisoner

tired, the soul looks for an escape

as thick as the darkness is, it does not quite suffocate it simply torments
as cold and jagged as the bars of the cage are they do not quite slit, only deliver a thousand scratches that torment
as poisonous as the atmosphere is, it does not quite take the breath away, simply sickens the soul in a continual torment

it relents

starting to transform from inside, it mutates into something less gentle, more learned but not gentle

suddenly the cage is clean and the soul is tidy and well
not until this instant does the prisoner realize it can lift the bars and escape
As it appears, the prisoner comes out a free soul
but only the wise see the shackle on the feet
the shackle of the responsibilities of adulthood
behold the innocence, the gentleness is all gone

The likes of you (Nelson Mandela)

The likes of you
make it seem as though dark hues are not doomed
The likes of you
fill us with massive hope that we now see looms
May the likes of you
always be found at our doorsteps and in our homes.

Kabi Yoo Si

Kabiyesi O
Alade wura
Eru jejeje, ti n migbo kiji kiji

Kabiyesi O
Oluwa mi
Adeda Aseda
Oba ti n je Emini Emini
Oba ti n je Emini mase beru
Alpha omega
Aterere kaari aye
Arugbo Ojo
Oba to n taye beni n teni
To foju orun bora bi aso
To fimole bole bi aso

Kabiyesi ni
Baba mi ni
Agbani lagbato
Ogbagba ti n gbalaini
Olowo gbogbo ro ti n yomo re nu ofo
Ibere ati Opin owun gbogbo
Oba awon oba
Oluwa awon oluwa
Baba mi ni

Mo wa dupe ola ore Re
Mo wa dupe ola ore Re o
Loori mi
Emi o ni gbagbe Re o mama se o Baba
Baba ose ose
ore Re loori mi
Emi o ni gbagbe Re o
mama se o Baba

A man afraid

I once knew a man who was afraid
He was afraid to love
and he was afraid to confront
He was afraid to move
and he was afraid to groove
He was afraid to give
And he was afraid to live
He was afraid to spend
and he was afraid to himself expend
He was afraid to share
and he was afraid to care
He was afraid to be faithful
He was afraid to be thoughtful
He was afraid to question
and he was afraid to say no
He was afraid to show affection
and he was afraid to show emotion

I once knew a man who was afraid
He was afraid of believing
and he was afraid of receiving
He was afraid of being a father
and he was afraid of his mother
He was afraid of being hurt
and he was afraid of being independent
He was afraid of being a husband
and he was afraid of answers
Indeed He was afraid of any change

And in all his fear he missed out on life
Because he never understood that one cannot be a man if afraid
or that one cannot discover if one does not attempt secrets to uncover
or that one cannot improve if one does not move

I once knew a man who read this and became bold

Taboo

Innocently you have stirred up my soul
I guess that can happen easily when one you try to console
Allowing my thoughts to guide me has pressed me to you in the dark
so I look at the date on my feelings and it appears they were postmarked
I wonder if we see the same thing
Perhaps you it leaves aching
My indulgence remains in my heart
in that way it keeps us apart
I can't conceive telling you
because I can't conceive losing you
But pray tell, will you love me if I alert you
or will you keep lifting me up when your calls pursue?
You are my own hidden taboo
May my heart always reserve a room for you

The battle for the soul

Struck by inertia the soul remains enslaved
Not until the essence of the soul is completely demoralized
Does anger, passion and justice awaken the beaten by force
To set the soul free the spirit sets on the course to divorce
It divorces itself from the demons that torments its home
The battle climaxes to a point and then the body becomes whole
The band is taken off and the soul lifts off the ground
The spirit soars and yet again the body is renewed

Ghetto

I knew I was different,
not very different, but my difference was obvious.
I always knew but for some reason it felt stronger this day.
So I stood up from amongst them,
not because I felt unwanted,
but because I felt I tainted their white sky.
A taint that to some creates exotic beauty,
but to the other something else.

As I stood up, my limbs began to move,
faster and faster and faster.
I didn't look back and didn't know where I was going
but my limbs controlled me and I kept moving.
The sun struck my bare shoulder like a slave master's whip
but my limbs kept moving faster and faster

I saw no obstacles, but I saw the land before me
It was home to my soul,my ghetto
as my limbs slowed, I closed my eyes
then slammed into a brickwall that was my prince
In his embrace I knew though I was different to some, I was same with another and more.
Hanging unto his neck my limbs gave way and felt only air.

You flew like an eagle, they said
Your gracefulness can only be matched by the sleek panther's, they said
Your flight was unobstructed though there were many obstacles
And you faded from sight like the railroad track

I knew I was different
not very different, and my difference wasn't obvious.
I always knew but for some reason it felt stronger this day.
perhaps because they acknowledge it,
so I stood up not because I felt unwanted,
but because I had to give my thanks.
I was strong and could run like none of them but like my prince could
To those who had thought I tainted their White skies I had become an exotic creature
and to the other an African feline...But what does it matter...

I knew I was different,
maybe very different, and my difference was obvious.
I always knew but for some reason it felt stronger this moment.
So I stood up from amongst them,
because I felt unwanted,
because I felt I only beautified their white because of my talent.
I felt unwanted...so I ran and ran till I got back to my ghetto.

I try

I promised I'll do it right this time
Grip it tight and stay up all night
Keep the sheets open
though it's always temptingly toasty in here like an oven
Do this sitting up hopefully not slipping off
It's hard but I've got to ride it and keep it up
hanging on to the bed poles
praying that they dare not close
The hard top sliding off my wet palms
my eyes closing with no such qualms
trying hard, but still slipping
and in the end, I knew it
I was falling asleep just a bit
My textbook hit the hard floor with a thud
and tonight again, study I could not

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh

You could swear she hates you
Her eyes glaring like flaming swords
Her gait bold and boasting undeniable authority
Though small in statue her tongue lashes out at you
With the intensity of a million pins digging at your skull

Your name from her mouth sounds like a curse you hate to hear
But which she suddenly loves to yell out with so much venom
As if to taunt you
Though you can see the top of her head
She seems to stand above all else

Suddenly steam is blowing from your ears
Your eyes become blood shot, red
Muscles become strung up ready to break
You are about to speak back or break down…

Then she smiles…Calls your name in the fondest ways
Sings to your ears your favorite songs
You try really really hard but the smile still surfaces
You can’t even detest yourself for smiling
She’s your mom
You could swear she loves you.

Strange

Have you ever fallen in love with a stranger?
Ever looked a stranger in the eye and told him you loved him?
Have you ever been a stranger to yourself?
Doing things you can’t reconcile with your true self?
Have you ever seen yourself through the eye of a stranger?
It feels strange doesn’t it?

Have you ever heard a strange song and known the lyrics?
Ever heard a strange beat and danced to it’s tune?
Have you ever desired something so strange?
Wanting it so much you became strange?
Have you ever understood a strange word?
Ever heard strange sayings that made sense?

Have you ever prayed for a stranger?
Though his troubles are strange to you, do you ever understand them?
Have you ever done strange things at strange times with strange people?
Ever thought of the strange people with strange faces, strange beliefs and strange gods?
Have you ever thought it strange that you could keep going and not know how to stop?
How the end is always strange when it comes?

The irony of longing

I don’t know what love is, the love between a man and a woman
I don’t understand the joy, the joy they have though they are drowned in debt
I don’t understand the bond, the bond that ties them together in a way that you do not know the beginning of one and the end of the other
I don’t see the beauty, the beauty they both see in each other, though one resembles a vulture
I don’t hear the tune, the tune they seem so in tuned to, which only they can hear and dance to
I don’t understand the sense, the sense of permanence behind it all, which makes them believe it is now and forever

I can’t see the reason, the reasoning behind the sacrifices they make for each other
I can’t grasp the idea, the idea behind sharing your space with another FOR LIFE
I can’t smell the perfume, the perfume they emit while making love
I can’t taste the sweetness, the sweetness in their bitter fights
I can’t understand the slavery, the slavery they practice with each other

But I long for my own love, my joy, my bond, my beauty, my tune, my permanence, my sacrifice, my loving, my shared space, my perfume, my sweetness, my slavery, my own very beginning that never ends.

You say you want a good woman

You say you want a good woman
A virgin bride
But a thousand you have humped dry
Numerous hymens lost to you this man

You say you want a good woman
One that allows you to boss her around
Who follows obediently as though a hound
Yet you’re surprised when you get an airhead whose opinion does not count

You say you want a good woman
One who goes to church and prays to God
But you search for her in clubs and pubs
Yet you’re surprised when she thinks God is a job

You say you want a good woman
One who shows you love like no other can
But you barely say you love her
Yet you’re surprised when her love towards you becomes a blur

You say you want a good woman
One who sees past your cool beamer
But you weigh yourself down with useless ice
Yet are surprised she is blind to your heart

You say you want a good woman
One who would not settle for less
But you’re always dishing out trash
And you condemn her while she’s out there cleaning your ash because she’s foolishly in love with your ass

Now if you think you’ve found a woman
That you think is right for you
She should be to you “ko ri ko sun” (I don’t see you or talk to you = I don’t sleep)
And you should be to her “olowo ori mi” (the meaning/wealth of her life)

And of course if you want it to last forever
To be an always and forever
You will have to ask the master builder
To lay the foundations and be your brick layer

For if the corner stone is not well set
The building will not stand the test
And if the Lord does not build
The builders build in vain

So if you want a good woman
One to be your wife
And the mother of your children
Sit up brother and be a good man.

Mai Pidgin

Di day wey I diskofa dat I fit unkofa mai ears
From di damn wears of modern fears
Na di day wey mai world Tosh reash di pidgin words

I nefa talk am bifor
But as I dey now I fit talk am pass di Boy wey dey lif past di door
Wey call hinsef bonboy

Mi sef no know hau di tin kapsure mi
E jus do mi kwantum leap
Woreva sha
As I dey spik am I go dey teash am
To mai freeman wey dey Amerikana...

yeah right!

My riddle called Love

I've got a million ways to tell it
a million tongues to speak it

a million things it'll give you
a million ways it'll teach you

a million lyrics written
a million songs to sing it

a million ways to do it
a million things that'll show it

a million acts that'll speak it
a million looks that'll scream it

a million thoughts that include you
a million touches that'll tell you

I've got a million emotions that I'm feeling
but only one word would explain it...

What "it" does to me

It starts from the tip of my tongue and flows down in the most fluid ways
It warms up my stomach and somehow manages to get to my head
making me giddy as though filled with wine
It devours my insides consuming everything in liquid fire
burning and leaving behind a trail of hot sensations
It touches my heart and leaves it panting
beating faster than usual
creating irregular beats
My senses become engulfed in it and my mind is incapable of thinking
My body shakes from the core and I begin to float in space
I become lost till I am awaken again.

My brownskinned Valentine

My brownskinned Valentine
You know I wish you were mine
And I think with little doubt, I'm already yours
With all the molecules of my heart in your favor

My heart gives way to your fierce probe
My knees to your hold
My lips to your demanding kiss
And my resolve to your smiling gaze...

You're the other half of my gold heart
resting on my bossom
Stealing warmth off my chest
as though a bird in a warm nest

You,
My heart and my Val

This Wanting

I hate this. This weakness, this fluid feeling
But it makes me smile, keeping me floating and needy

I love his touch
The way he does

Gently raking his fingers over my ribs,
My hips

Holding me just below my breasts
Causing an unrest

It’s tantalizingly painful
But I want him to move a little closer, very subtle

I fall asleep in his arms
And oh my dream, what a beautiful dance

Lying beside him takes away my thoughts
Leaving my mind tossed

Causing a flutter in my stomach
Not unlike a butterfly

Tightening my bosom peaks
Sucking in the strength in my hips

If my body could talk it would cry his name in need
Indeed calling him to hasten and be quick

I wonder if he feels my pain
Or my emotions needing a rein

Sees my ache
And knows my carefree ways around him to be a fake

Oh come quickly before I lose my mind
And call quickly before I turn mad