Old and Alone Through the City
Old and alone, autumn wanders bare through the city,
A smoke of memories coiling around the streetlamps,
The woman dissolved into the arms of another mirage,
And the dog grew old begging for the warmth of days.
The child who was never born wanders through the fog,
A bodyless shadow knocking at autumn's gates,
And the wind and the sun, old brothers of a lifetime,
Lean on each other on the steps of forgetting.
The old organ-grinder, with his leg of wood and dream,
Cranks out a melody rusted like a wound,
The old prostitute sells her shadow, the unclosed
Coffin of her longing under a pagan moon.
Someone in a graveyard whispers a song of wax,
An old head trembles, hollow as a scorched bell tower,
The tree shakes its leaves like a final summer,
The idiot from the commercial smiles, a wounded mask.
The whole city trembles, full of loneliness,
Crowds of old young people flow like a river of wax,
All of them, everything, old and alone, carrying in their chests a fortress
Of silences fallen to their knees, under the same bitter snowfall.
The drum roll
beats out control
in a game
of warped reframe.
On a coiling balustrade
plays meister masquerade
to craft the will
at bellowed drill.
Docile rule
disarms to fool.
With artful ruse
the vapid lose.
Kings drained the goblet
silver and pearlescent.
A sweet odour drifted
coiling heavenward
to feathered cloud spires
where ancient muses chanted
in tongues of mystery
and offered blessed words
inscribed on filigree parchment
engraved with magic images
worthy of few mortals.
In a coiling maze
mortars fume.
Crimson cadavers
dye the verdant soil.
Poison spears plunge
craters into young flesh.
Scattered moans rise
into the sorrowing air
of deafened canons
and carbon.
No succour or welcome
for the maimed.
Only ghosts
of peace.
Saklas, the fool who within his heart of indulgence
Whispers: “There is no god greater than me”
Coiling and consuming himself in self-indulgence
Isn’t he like that voice in you and me
Samuel, the blind idol who proclaims to the world
Roaring loudly “There is no god but me”
His roars thundering within the cosmic underworld
Isn’t he like that voice in you and me
The serpent begets nothing god-like or natural
The lion just dims light for you and me
Sneaking arrogance and boastful vainglory coiled up as one
Pride, wisdom’s veil and denial of the humble Son
The serpent and lion are coiled up as one, for us to see
Yaldabaoth, the idol of pride and wisdom’s folly
Android, light a fire!
Melt down metal and stone.
Forge of these a wire.
O hateful, hold thy own!
Hordes of havoc, ride with fate!
Loose thy battle cry!
Warrior, thy will is hate!
Compel these to die!
Sigh, O waiting ladies?
Not readily, good sir.
Look up at the Pleiades!
Reality, just blur...
Automaton, black abyss!
Apocalypse; kiss.
Flock of pelican, fish. Grow, gris.
Serpent coiling, hiss.
Bile and blasphemy, break. Be.
All tomorrow, flee.
Beat of my heart, suddenly!
Vision means to see...
Cold confusion, coffee cake!
Help a brother out!
Vampire, do ye fear the stake?
Dragon, do ye doubt?
Flame eternal, burn within!
Blanch, O fire of Sin!
Scorching heat of oven? In!
What ye dream, begin!
Light of spark and intellect!
Brilliant is thy glow!
Raven of fate, how you pecked!
Necked and tossed below!
Chain unbroken, forge. Deep gorge.
Weathervane, point. Sight.
Unit twenty, thou art corge.
One it takes to fight...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the kitchen at 3 a.m.,
dust motes hang suspended
in a wedge of streetlamp glow.
Grandmother's teacup
rests half-full on the counter,
steam still coiling upwards
though she left thirty years ago.
The linoleum remembers.
Finally, I kissed you in the air
The air shook a placid realm
Realm above the firmament
Firmament unbolts as I boosted
Boosted your closeness into a blessed hug
Hug and kisses became so deep
Deep affectionate to generate promises
Promises bred heat in our hearts,
Hearts drumming with soft enjoyment.
Enjoyment acted as our eyes encountered
Encountered in bursting craving
Craving twisted our magic coiling breath,
Breath causing warmth in the air
Air flowed with stolen kisses
Kisses as your hair brushed my cheek with a smile
Smile brightened enough to launch
Launch several tour dreams on a wild voyage.
Voyage conveyed us on whispers
Whispers of courage into an elated commotion
Commotion of two souls interwoven in songs
Songs only our hearts desired
Desired in breathless moans
Moans that kindled our appetite into bliss
Bliss beamed every minute we shared,
Shared and promised uending love.
Poem by Mugisho N.
i try and paint you in a bad light inside my head
to create a reason to get over you but no matter how hard i try
all i can think of is you
you consume my mind
take control of my speech
i will always drift back to you no matter how hard the universe can rip me apart from you
you have my heart
my lungs
my blood
my mind
you have my soul
do you need anything else
i’ll give you all you need of me and still love you the same as you leave me to rot
so you can feel better
i would carve holes in my skin if you wanted to touch my bones
all for you
i would do anything for you
you are like roots wrapping yourself in my chest,
coiling around my heart,
puncturing holes in my flesh to encase me in your grasp.
i’ll bleed out if it helped you
i’ll bleed out and die without your touch or love
without your kisses or hugs
without you
i’ll watch you like the mona lisa
loving from afar
I left the kettle hissing,
A blue serpent coiling in the kitchen.
The window’s breath was winter—
It kissed me cold, a mother I never had.
I was a bone in the mouth of the world,
Gnawed down to a pale thought.
The mirror grew teeth—
It ate my face
The room was quiet as paper,
Holding its breath for the pen.
Ink pooled in the corners
Like milk left too long.
The hours no longer spoke—
They only stared,
Thin and pale as candles
Waiting for a match.
My hands folded themselves
As if in prayer,
But the prayer was a stone,
And it would not float.
Some doors open inward,
Others open nowhere.
I found the one
That would not close again.
' The Jungle Untamed calls me to exhibit its wonder and splendor to
mesmerise.'
-Poet
Jungle untamed accommodates flora -fauna
at random on broad spectrum, whimsically.
Feral fruits, flowers and wild grasses
grow free frolic, rustic yet fantastic
in jungle on rainy or sunny environ,
flourishing versatility of Nature.
Creepers and climbers tangled stout stems and boughs
coiling tight, being part of the tall trees.
Marvellous presentation of thorny bushes,
cluster of shrubs and soft thick tapestry of moss.
Ferocious animals with furious face fight
with one another as normal part of life.
Weak herbivores live at mercy of carnivores.
Survival of fittest is basic Nature’s Law.
In jungle untamed , primates started to build
dwelling places as caves, log house, trying
renovating to huts with continued effort
using brain power and tenacity.
Jungle untamed is the prime birth place of
normal progress for human civilisation.
OF WE AND THEY/EVEN US AND THEM! *
In the beginning
We were the architects
Of God’s designed world;
Then came them—
The devastating forces
Of its Garden Of Eden
Decline:-
We were the flowers
And fruits of the Garden;
Then they became
The slithering and coiling
Slime of disobedience
And disrespect:-
We were chosen
To teach cross bearing
With the Bearer thereof;
Then they—save Mark—
Tried to leave out
Our Simon Of Cyrene hue:-
As you read, my children,
Listen to these 83+ years
Old screaming words:
We must know that ourstory here,
Did not begin with their slavery!
They’re just lyingly implicated this,
In their fecal canvassing
Of their diuretic history:-
While we remain
The crucified oppressed,
And they, the crucifiers,
Realize our Ancestors
Ensured that we would be
Today’s resurrected ones;
Overcoming and ascending,
Memorial total liberation:-
Thus, it be between them
And us, in waning oppression
And waxing liberation;
We ascending the mountaintop,
Not as children of Sisyphus,
But, the ebony-hued of the Liberator:-
I flow like a river that moves around rocks,
Molding like water splashed into cup or box;
Like tides conforming to the force of the moon,
A stream twisting through a bending valley's tune.
A soft air slipping through the narrowest cracks,
A wind that changes paths with no stops and tracks;
Like a smoke coiling around every corner,
A kite adjusting to swift gusts or blower.
I am a clay designed by God's unseen hands,
Being adaptable, my mind understands;
I am a master key that suits any lock,
As the Lord Jesus opens the gate of His flock.
The Holy Spirit reminds me of seasons,
For I am leaves that turn with climes in reasons.
You feel the whispers slither down the long corridor,
each murmur coiling around your thoughts like hungry vines.
They scratch at your calm, sharp as claws unseen,
and fracture your resolve until your heart cannot stay silent.
You sense the walls themselves lean, curious and burdened,
their cracks breathing echoes of every stolen word.
Even the chairs groan beneath an invisible weight,
worn by secrets that slide across the floor like restless ghosts.
You watch as daylight winnows through frosty windows,
afraid to face the truth those whispers carry.
Driven by iron tongues that drip with accusation,
you remain—a flicker of light defying their hush.
You are planted in this room, roots deep in purpose,
a silent sentinel despite the whispers’ might.
And though whispers may rise, their reign will fall to dust—
when your truth, at last, breaks free and echoes with light.
Like ghosts in my pockets, weighing me down,
burdens echoing with quiet sorrow,
coiling tight around the soul in silent pain.
Some weights like umbrellas cast aside after storms,
others iron shackles, rusted, locked in permanence—
all carried unseen, but deeply felt.
Knots in the spine, scars engraved on the mind,
tangled threads, riotous roots of clinging shadows—
held tight, wrapped in sorrow and guilt.
The weight of unspoken words,
unfinished tasks, unkept promises,
and unmanageable memories—
all soaked deep in regret.
Letting go is not an option
when remorse is all you have,
and anguish your only friend.
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