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Best Poems Written by Nailah Kanyingi

Below are the all-time best Nailah Kanyingi poems as chosen by PoetrySoup members

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

AMINA

Ameituliza nafsi yangu
Mkuu wa yote duniani
Iwapo nitapoteza njia
Najua penzi lake 'tanipata
Anivite kwake, aniite wake

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

I Have a Voice

I have a voice 
But they no ears for it
I have a voice
But they no love for it

My thoughts are like ticks on a rhino's back
Only fit for the birds of the air

If only I were a river 
I would flow to my heart's desire
If only I were weed
I would wander to wherever my roots would lead

Instead, a currency of exchange I was born
With shackles the weight of boulders on my feet

I have a voice
If they will not hear me shout
They will hear me whisper 
Into their ears I will plant my freedom 
And run myself hoarse before I bow in defeat

Enough is enough
I have a voice

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

The Girl in the Mirror

I look in the mirror
There I see the prettiest girl in the world
For all her curves and edges
She sure is a sight for sore eyes

She knows her beauty is a weapon
The sharpest she could ever wield
Certainly mightier than the pen
Sharpened only by her brains

She is a force
Defeat a distant acquaintance 
Nothing that stands in her way
Ever lives to see another day

Brick by brick
This girl built herself up
With help from passers-by
Who didn't know it was an empire they helped build

The girl in the mirror
Is content
In a shoebox in the street 
Or in her mansion up on Wilbery Street 
Cause she got that inner peace

Rosè on the roof
Designer handbags year-round 
The newest wheels in her driveway
Is the only way she rolls

Prayer sewn to her side
Jesus tattooed on her heart
The Holy Spirit her only confidant 
Her faith her foundation

The girl in the mirror 
Thinks of her faults
Like brush strokes of an artist
Perfect in their imperfection
 
She is a masterpiece
No need of change
Rich in health and in wealth
Gorgeous on the inside and the outside

The girl in the mirror
Is the best part of me
I feel lucky to know her
Maybe one day I'll get to be her

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Wedding Vows

I promise to love you
Love you with a love so strong
No mountain, nor hill, nor forest
Could stand in our way

I promise to cherish you
Cherish you like a man in the desert 
Values every drop of water
Because he knows how precious it is to him

I promise to care for you
Care for you like a mother hen 
Minds her little hens
Who she would die for without a moment's regret

I promise to love you
With a love so strong
I promise to cherish you
Like you were my only hope
I promise to care for you 
For you are my home

But you must remember
None of this is forever

If Love's death comes to pass
Before Death comes between us
We will be forced to go our separate paths
For I'm only here till Love's death do us part

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Tattoo Deportation- Inked in Chains

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Keeps me focused
Keeps me grounded
Keeps me present

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Takes me farther and farther away
From everything I have ever known
Chained up like a worthless dog

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Reminds me that rebellion
Always comes at a price
You just have to decide if it’s worth the prize

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Tells me that my fight is far from over
The war not nearly won
Whether I’m protesting from my backyard or someone else’s overseas

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Fills my heart with pity
Pity for a society
Too at peace with being alive but not really living

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Makes my whole body tingle
My life sentence stinging and burning
As we near my new home

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Makes me hope
That the words scribbled on my torso
Inspire others to likewise pick up their pens
I am told it is mightier than the sword

The sound of wheels on tarmac
Places courage in my veins
A man who has lost his freedom
Has no more to lose than himself

The sound of wheels on murram
Tells me we've arrived

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Harvest of Wisdom

Before you get married, my child
There are a few things you should remember
The most important being
To always tend to your farm

You should look for a tool
That makes you sing for all its worth
That doesn't break when the ground goes hard
And is as light as if it were part of your hand

Be careful not to pick
A useless for its beauty
Or a worthless one out of pity
For it's the sharpest you'll need
To cut through the weeds of life

Beware, my child, of over-friendly neighbours 
For their shoes are laced with weeds
And their tongues are laced with lies
Which will sprout in your farm 
And bring you much harm

They will try to rob you of your chosen tool
With the allure of grease and oil
Be ready to fight their deceitful charms, my young
And keep your tool steadily at your side

A time may come
When the rains refuse to fall
And the sun blasts you with all its got
For even the skies will envy your work
And wish to dampen your hope with rust

Have patience, my lovely one
If drought takes root in your life
And use your spit if you have to
Nothing is forever
At the end of day, night surely comes

Pray that your soil is always fertile
So that many good crops you may grow 
Make sure to sing their praises for all to hear
How greatly this child of mine has been blessed 

Take good care of your tool
And learn to work with it side by side
Polish it every night
Clean it when it gets grime

Be cautious, my little
Working in the farm takes a toll on your body
It will leave you with scars from moiling and toiling
Open your heart and let it take freely
Till you're sapped dry and it's healthy and breathing 

When you get married, my child
Your farm becomes your life
Guard it with all you have
And the tool you choose
With every fibre in your being

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Reflection of redemption

A thief, a murderer, an arsonist
Before all these I was someone’s child
An embezzler, a liar, a con artist
Before all this I had big hopes and plans

Yes I did it
That I don't deny
But what gives you the right to decide
If I'm worthy of my life

Pretenders are worse than murderers
Yet you sit so highly on your horse
Perched pretty on your saddle
I, not worthy of the scum on your sole

Throw stones and leave me for dead 
Like you've done so many others
What goes around comes around
Soon it'll be your glass house

There goes the bell 
It's time for the daily head check
Let's see how many of the ones you condemned 
Have found their way to death

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Oh To Be Loved By A Man

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man who truly cares
A man who all my sorrows will bear 
A man to cry to in times of despair

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man who is true to his word
A man who is bound to his vow
A man in whose strength I can rely

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man who makes me feel safe
A man whose warmth is a welcome embrace
A man whose every word is laced with grace

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man who doesn't falter when i go wrong
A man who doesn't shy away when i stray
A man with principles as mighty as his build

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man whose being i know inside and out
And yet have so much more to learn
Since he is like the seasons that change 
But have a way of remaining the same

Oh to be loved by a man!
A man, my man, my Christ
A man who died for me
And would do it again in a heartbeat

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

I Cried Out; Attempted Suicide

I called out to Death
And Death answered me
I cried out for his embrace
And he comforted me

I poured my heart out to Death
And he invited me to dine with him
For the two months I visited Death
I was at peace

I danced with Death and I felt free
Oh how i wished to dance with Death for all eternity!
To be one with him and to live with him
But alas, 'twas not to be

For the two months I was Death's guest
I never once thought of the ones i left distressed
Death had given me an escape from the mess
But looking back now 'twas not for the best

Through my waltz with Death
I caused more harm and no good
Never once looking back
Regret, a foreign taste upon my tongue

Now, Death's cold kiss is engraved on my neck
A reminder that dancing only leaves you with sore feet and a sore neck
A mark I will carry
Till the end of my days

My health, in shambles
My relationships, beyond repair
My self-esteem, in the gutters
And still all I can think of is 'my'

I have caused more harm than good
And learnt that dancing is best left for those called to dance
For I cried out to Death
And Death answered me

Details | Nailah Kanyingi Poem

Fractured whispers

Crack!
It was the first time I'd heard
The sound
So hauntingly beautiful
So painfully pleasing
It felt like 
My lungs were giving out
Like towers of melodramatic dust
Crack! Crack!
The faults spread out all over
A mosaic birthed in the process
Mismatched pieces
Of love and hate and need
Scattered in my chest
A kaleidoscope posing for a heart
Slowly my ears fall in love 
With the haunting warning sound
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Third time's a charm
The pain in my skull
Throbs in rhythmic sync
With the one in my lonely chest
An addictive melody
Like the ticking of a bomb
Cra-!
My battered tattered heart
Has given more 
Than any heart should
Yet
My only regret
Is not having any more
To give away