a tribal totem
power animals honored
cherished spirit guides
bear and little moose
pintail duck deer cardinal
heartfelt ancestry
As some Indians
(dot, not feather)
go to great lengths
to ingratiate themselves
by obsequious behaviour
(bob your head if you agree with me)
could it be the origin
of the expression,
'To curry favour'?
Tho' hunger knows no bounds
forget the fatted calf
despite the nation suffering
from starvation by more than half
they'll curry a horse
but not a cow
those bovine ungulates
are holier than thou
Across the city the emperor called
For recruits to join the legions
Travel to new and strange lands
And conquer for covetous reasons
As sun beat down they trained their men
To fight for colonisation,
Taking with them skills and knowledge
Introducing urbanisation.
Past mountains, lakes and plains they marched
Battalions stood United
Crossing countries, rivers, sea,
Arriving uninvited.
Invasion, yet they brought with them
Progression, innovation;
Technology since lost in ages dark
Transforming a whole nation.
Roads of stone, heated floors
Domestic sanitation,
Walls dividing tribes and clans
Fuelling aggravation.
Yet Britain’s climate, wet and dour,
It’s warriors and chief,
Sent Rome’s great fighters fleeing home
Struck dumb in disbelief,
That this small nation could be such
A hostile, retched place,
And Rome needed protecting
From the Jutes and Angles race.
So after Constantine’s withdrawal
Britain re-emerged anew,
Rebirthing of a greater nation,
Than the one the romans slew.
Left behind their legacy
Culture, architecture
But no longer an unwitting, oppressed,
Out-posted prefecture.
Time is different in its fulfilment
Yoruba status is unique in its path
Western education isn't enough reason to activate its abandonment
Black soap is good for bath
Worthy is informal education
Which equips the brain scans
I am made unique in its adaptation
Well enriched in the history of my clans
Face of the earth
Mask of heaven
Ritual to death
Done in seven
He was not arrogant, but he was proud.
A protector, a good listener, a wise man.
He watched and waited, did not rush.
The best tribal chief we had ever seen.
He did not take sides. He listened.
He let everyone speak.
His heart was full of empathy.
But he was no push over.
He was a man who heard.
He listened to his heart.
He was a listener.
The best tribal chief we will ever have.
Once jailed and bailed
Virtually mental saw scaled
Angry aggressive and hyper
The crotalinae hypnotic striker
Cold blooded terrestrial Sanseki
Whitish echis carinatus sochureki...
Life is a game with snakes on every level..
Wearing our tribal skirt
I’m reminded of my grandmother
who has bequeathed me rich distinct cultural heritage.
Adorned with our traditional costume
my heart is pleased, imagining my Lola*, my Mom’s mother
smiling delightfully, beholding her granddaughter proud of her roots.
Midst the nostalgia brought by such clothing
I see myself beside Lola’s bedside, listening to her
as she would vividly narrate heroic acts of fellowmen during the war.
Having in my possession a so-called “heirloom”
my gratitude to Lola is intensified through virtues instilled
by Mama, reverberating with, “I learned those from Nanang**.”
Praising God for His blessings
I’ll value the piece of treasure I inherited
my Lola has passed on, along legacy of a good name.***
*Lola-the word we use to address our “Grandmother”
**Nanang-My mother’s term of endearment for “Mother.”
***Proverbs 22:1 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.
March 15, 2021
1st place, "I Remember" Poetry Contest
Sponsored by Malabika Ray Choudhury; judged on 3/17/2021.
I fell to Earth , one of many with an army to begin the mission of hope, that their is a future here on Earth , listen to her heart beat ... Our Rainforests are burning , our church of medicine , without our heart of our eco system there will be no Earth for Heaven...
I hope and pray that quantum sparks a thought and asks the question soon ... there’ll be no quantum to discuss if we can’t see the moon.
Did Jesus choose his avatars to be connected to the cross ? Christ Consciousness is a choice .. free will I believe , it comes at a cost .
I am looking at the world through the eye of a lens and am concerned about what might be coming through me garden fence ;
Being a countryside tribal witch, a matriarch of hedgerow craft , I listen to Mother Earth the rumblings of her wrath ... The Lens I see in my reality , the question I then ask ?
Who are the avatars did Christ choose in his teaching class ?
My tribal is my life
That i recognize
My family is my love
I just can't live without them
I can't live without their love
I have mother
Who is angel
I have a father
Who cares for me a lot
Connects my heart to family
I have a younger sister,
Who loves me to the core,
I am very blessed to have such a family!
I don't recognize
What would i do without them
I love them so much
I recognize that I always love
My family is my tribal
I love them because
They really make me whole!
Wrapped in crisp white sheets, happily protecting themselves,
Brown tribal Amazon butterfly trees, release pink and white faeries.
Promoting sun's sweetness, nourishing spring's sweet song,
Delighting angels, who are waiting, to collect them into heaven.
Making spirit proud, with their wide open love fingers,
Warming up verdant grasses, gentling the sleeping flowers.
Brown tribal Amazon butterfly trees, protect the gentle growth
Of a pleasant and notoriously beautiful garden, yet to appear.
People pledge fealty
To nations in tribal belief,
Waging wars of power and greed
Plant the xenophobic seeds,
Right wing, left wing same old thing
Lends itself to being extreme,
I won't let this divisive nature define me,
It's the cause of humanity hating,
It's the reason for the fighting,
Over power and territory,
Over old religious stories,
In the name of valour and glory,
Same old ignorance it just bores me,
Lie about the wars causes
No cause is can justify genocide,
Or oppressing other peoples lives,
No cause can make death legitimate
There is no honour built from hate,
You can keep your violent ways
Left wing, right wing all the same,
Religious dogma always to blame
I won't partake in your tribal games.
Young the tribe with
all the caring of the wild,
consume the weak,
dance to the beat
of bone sticks on
drums of skin
asked,
“will you let a blue boy in”?
He enters
wheeled in, in his cage
built of love by caring hands
and mourning eyes
seeing beyond panting breath
through purple lips,
they squint at death
which this tribe knows
in tiny form
they slay in games,
"sans" empathy
and weak defame.
Envious of wasted care
on one who is not of the tribe,
the hunted not the hunter he,
no warrior to play beside.
He stares ahead to some far place
where the sun’s warm
on straight smooth limbs
where he is prince of
strength, and loved
so there’s no fear
of tribal spears.
Soon he must go,
short winter day,
leaving a star
to light a way
away from dance
with bone on skin
to let the beat
of conscience in.
.
The tripod stand of the three major tribal
domains;
Stands forged by force in 1914 by the
British ambitious chains.
These stand's can't be undone now without
rocking the pot uneasily,
Unless broken into pieces, they are already
knitted, though unequally.
United we stand Nigeria, divided we fall,
Nigerians, hold refrains.
How much longer
Language vs world
Culture vs world
Economic vs world
Appearance vs world
Religion vs world
How much longer
O why do you walk through the green fields,
Are you looking for something special?
O young tribal lady don't you need any windshields?
Why do you walk through the green fields,
Is it for the purposes of agricultural yields?
Why are you shivering?
O why do you walk through the green fields,
Are you looking for something special?
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