From bathroom pipes, kitchen sinks
From inside cabinets, drain and sewer points
The cockroach approaches in a flash of time.
Once sighted, woman gets scared and yelp
A chance for the brave husband to help
And to flaunt his bravery and might.
Seizes the broom sitting at the corner
When the brave man comes with the broom
The sly cockroach is already lost from sight
The brave man hits at every nook and corner
Misses the target, and the mission to kill, fails
Leaves his wife in utter despair and anger.
Finds the pest below the cot and hits it hard
The cockroach struggled but did not die
Broom snaps, pest flees without a trace
Nastiest pest, nocturnal in habit
The insect at its best at night
Rarely surfaces in broad daylight
Finds escape routes to hide from sight.
The insect loves and lives in grime and filth
Ill at ease in open space and broad daylight
Always in hiding and retreating to dark
Pale tan , reddish brown, glossy dark to black
Shades of repulsive colours, gross to look
Notorious for infestations and spreads diseases
Now hogging limelight in media discourse.
Calm the moon rose in the night,
its silver glow gliding gentle and serene
tracing a graceful arc across the sky.
Scattered stars speckle the tapestry
lest we launch our dreams their way.
AP: 1st place 2026
Evening murmurs quietness,
Quietness reflects fright,
Fright stoops the soul,
Soul needs bright,
Bright evaporates the shadow,
Shadow cracks night.
Night brings trouble,
Trouble creates discomfort,
Discomfort nurtures the darkness,
Darkness embeds courage,
Courage expects for morning,
Morning kills night.
Night shows the scuffle,
Scuffle breeds power,
Power lifts the drained,
Drained discovers dawn,
Dawn pinnacles the voyage,
Voyage leaves nightfall.
Poem by Mugisho N.T.
Deep beneath the twisted root,
Where silence wears a felt boot,
The mother curls in circles tight,
A ring of warmth against the night.
Her brush is draped like silken thread,
A pillow for each tiny head.
With silver tongue and patient grace,
She washes every fuzzy face;
A rhythmic stroke, a tender sweep,
To lull her restless kits to sleep.
She nicks the clay and clears the air,
The mistress of her earthen lair.
When hunger nips at bellies small,
She answers to their whimpering call.
She leaves the warmth of huddle and home,
Through silvered wilds and woods to roam.
She answers every hungry need,
And gives her waiting kits a feed.
But if the heavy foot should fall,
Or shadow loom against the wall,
The mother transforms—sharp and keen,
The fiercest flame that’s ever been.
With bared tooth and a warning low,
She stands between them and foe.
In golden coat and eyes of fire,
She is the shield, a mother’s desire.
Until the stars begin to pale,
And dawn unfolds its violet veil,
She keeps the watch, the sacred trust,
Amidst the roots and cooling dust.
The Moon plays a cello made of blue cheese,
While comets dance tango with the cosmic breeze.
They bow to the planets in top hats of gold,
As the stardust serenade starts to unfold.
Pocket-sized nebulas hum in high C,
Pouring silver syrup into the Milky Way tea.
The Big Dipper ladles out shimmering dreams,
Sewing velvet night with neon light beams.
Orion’s belt buckles, too tight, snap in two,
Sending pearls of wonder directly to you.
The meteors giggle in bright, sparkling showers,
Waking up sleeping, astral sunflowers.
Shh... hear the dust particles sing in the dark,
A quiet, bright song of a shimmering spark.
The silence is dancing, the stars are in tune,
Serenading the world with a spoon and a spoon.
So catch all the dust in your pocket of sleep,
Where mysteries slumber and gravity’s deep.
The serenade ends when the purple dawn breaks,
And the sun eats the stardust, for goodness’s sakes!
I ran out of writings
Back in my shell
Counting the seconds
When I will hear her nocturnal voice again.
The hush of midnight settles upon my skin,
Windows flicker with distant city light.
Alone, my thoughts begin their silent spin,
Shadowed hours stretch deep into the night.
Windows flicker with distant city light,
A gentle echo of lives beyond my view.
Shadowed hours stretch deep into the night,
I gather quiet truths the darkness drew.
A gentle echo of lives beyond my view,
Soft footsteps fading on forgotten ground.
I gather quiet truths the darkness drew,
Solitude’s embrace is where I’m truly found.
Soft footsteps fading on forgotten ground,
Alone, my thoughts begin their silent spin.
Solitude’s embrace is where I’m truly found,
The hush of midnight settles upon my skin.
Fireflies with green heads and purple eyes
insects that illuminate our skies
We watch as they glow to attract a mate
Beautiful creatures float in air like lakes
They live for a few weeks in summertime
Vision they have is great with five eyes
They are nocturnal sleeping during day
In grass or dense plants burrowing away
Fireflies with green heads and purple eyes
Mysterious insects that illuminate our skies
We watch as they glow to attract a mate
Beautiful creatures they float in air like lakes
They live for a few weeks in summertime
Vision they have is great with five eyes
They are nocturnal yes sleeping during day
In grass or dense plants or burrowing away
It’s a mystery to me how they light up
Just as you and me do seeking love
Their light emitting chemical bright as star
Attracts a mate and grace from God’s heart
Little floating mystery with such a beautiful light
Eating nectar creating a perfect peace at night.
12 a.m I remove the mask
and take the night.
With open eyes and ears
I take in nights delight.
Second story high,
window shadow puppets stir.
With gestures of fists locked in a loving embrace
to the amateur.
Up above, the whirley-birds
shine their lights.
A perp to peep. A monster to catch.
A search now that’s taken flight.
Smells of diapers
and empty liquor bottles of cope.
Trash lined the streets
where one leaves their dreams and hope.
In the exchange corridor
transactions are being made.
The amount of ones happiness
dependent on the bens being paid.
A late bus appears, leaving one behind
to make her way
To several children left crying. Alone,
to fend through their day.
There’s a kinship to the night
and those who are in it
No judgement from shadows.
No confessions to submit
Just slip away as
dawn makes its way.
Begin the day,
along with its own fray.
A cascade, shimmering, of rivulets that undulate,
Metaphor thalassic, richly blending at the pate.
Each silhouette of vitality, speaking with gentle weight,
On shoulders resting, an adornment, delicate.
Where inky depths meet sun-kissed golden thread,
Fair skin and russet lips, a harmony well-bred.
On sloping lids, where emerald hues are spread,
Completing thus, a visage subtly, richly said.
Every filament, a void of deepest night,
Pupils widen, mirroring its stark, endless plight.
Heartstrings tugged by fur of shadowed fall,
Where a blue throb pulses, binding all.
moon-flame s p
i
l l s
rose s p a r k s
c l u
s t
e
r e
d
in caviar
s w i r l s ~
nocturnal nectar
Harsh clamor gives way to bright ethereal sounds
Night's gothic shadows shift to warm golden bliss
A sense of a pending sweet tryst abounds
As love clings to love in this nocturnal kiss
half of two awake
silent annoyance at night ~
prolonged loud snoring.
His thoughts mimic
millipedes, wandering
aimlessly throughout
his nocturnal mind
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