W- what is it with our tongues, Sierra Leoneans
A- Always spiteful in political discussion
R- Ruthless in our quest to win.
O- Oh, if only we knew that silence could avert
F- Fires sparked from heated tones.
W- Words can wound and words can heal
O- Often, Sierra Leoneans ignore that
R- Reason can be lost in angry tones.
D- Respite meaning well, a harsh tone can spoil it all.
S- So, seek to listen, and avoid the war of words.
Pappou, means grandfather in Greek,
He would listen carefully then speak,
Cleanse yourself first and heal,
Any rifts or wounds that gnaw.
Chose wisdom over wrath he’d say
Your time to fail, he would explain,
Will be entirely of your own choosing.
So open your minds and listen,
Understand your words,
And keep improving.
Don’t waste precious words, like snow
Falling in the desert,
Or as the claws of barren branches
Reaching out from a lone tree
Just prepare yourself,
To be body, mind, and soul free.
A war of words can be intelligently
Won, Without any snapping or
Or fighting back,
For then you loose the track,
By fighting back,
So keep on the track,
And you will victoriously
Have won this war of words.
One more thing, before you speak,
Remember my grandfather the Greek.
No dear, truth’s no slave to discovery,
Nor needs an innovative creator,
Nor in you a path-breaking inventor,
It being no fiction nor a story,
Forget it then, truth can’t be created
On a blank page of your mind's spare diary,
Conjured up nor cooked nor conceived in head,
O to write later its obituary.
It shall show up one day, light up a torch,
And all your dark lies shall show up in light,
One spark of truth’s enough all lies to scorch,
Your untruth’s when buried under own blight,
Till that day, here’s my signal green from red,
Why spoil today’s joy for tomorrow’s dread?
________________________________________
Tongue-in-cheek, Sonnet | 05.04.2005 |
a trijan refrain
Demagogues fighting in a war
spar to find the liars.
Though it generates some rapport,
toleration backfires.
Demagogues lose in false debate.
Speak up, strive to keep the facts straight,
demagogues, fight!
Demagogues' fight
hopefully ends in Truth’s checkmate.
Demagogues fighting for their lives
honesty clears their names.
Distorted data only drives
to falsify their claims.
Truth’s checkmate dies in deep despair
till forthright courage dares to care
truth’s checkmate wins.
Truth’s checkmate wins
the victory is answered pray’r.
Demagogues fighting could conclude
words divide wrong from right.
Grace and mercy grant latitude
if truth has won the fight.
Unanswered prayers we abhor;
integrity accounts for more
answered prayers.
Answered prayers
finds demagogues winning word wars.
February 25, 2020
a demagogue might be a person running for office
or a ruler already in power
Mine's bigger than yours
I shout louder and longer
Jump-in interuptus
deterent be damned
I'm gonna have my say.
Mutual self-destruction
is on the cards.
Attrition balition,
siege swarming,
your flanks are weak.
You're not listening, are you?
Verbal warfare
it is everywhere
you have something to say?
Wrestling with his conscience
Abstaining from verbal exchange
Regretting his words
Offended by obscenities
Forgetting his ticket
What is happening now?
Obnoxious little men
Rallying in no mans land
Dire Consequences
Spasmodic verbal abuse.
Related to the football match:
truth remains aloof
it flatters both friend and foe
each agree to lie
as i walk by
i could eye to eye
contact
they were back to back
saying this
you couldn't miss
all you herd
it was a
WAR OF WORDS
The sound
Comes like a sword
Drawn by the
Coward villains of war
The bad guys
And they are trying to kill me
Draw the first blood
The shinning blade
Is pierced into my brain!
Shattering the thoughts I had of her
Something,
May be red in color
May be white
Flew like
The fountain that
They were fighting for
And I wondered my way to
The place that I shall call home
From now on
What was I doing there?
Words clamour within
A maelstrom of verbal might
Fighting those without
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