POET FROM KENYA by Henry Thiong'o

I searched my eyes Stared into them And saw nothing, but: Darkness I felt cold, Inside I felt pain A pain the eyes hid. My eyes lied, But my heart spoke. I quaked under the pressure. I sobbed in my mind. Concealing the hurt inside, Burning me with rage, Still my eyes won’t tell. Brave, they look on. Occasionally threatening to falter, But still the dont tell Stay strong you are a man they comfort me Do not shed a tear. Never show fear!

Beyond those hills In the lands beyond Is where I head From today I am dead I died when I woke up. Do not wait for me I don’t know where I go. Fate shall be my guide Faith my comfort Bury me in your hearts I know that it hurts, so Pray that I resurrect again So we can be one ones more But, for now adios Mourn not Until I rot Yester night I gathered courage, Bravery and put them in my bag I will carry them wherever I go So long Till we meet again But for now let me soldier on I am at war with my self Like a soldier no retreats no surrender Am on the battle front The prize is my destiny And I will fight Till I have it with me

She moans, she weeps, Until she falls asleep Her body slumped in a heap Unable to contain her lean body She is mourning Nightfalls and comes morning No one comforts her She lives alone and far Now that her son is gone She has no will to go on What’s the need in living? When her pride and joy Her son, her little boy Left for the underworld She finds no need for this world All she wants is to join him To kiss, tickle and cuddle him To fill the warmth of his breath Next to her reaching for her breast She yearns for his tender little eyes So calm like a starry filled night sky He was her pillar Emotions begin to fill her. Her motherly heart can only take so much She makes her way to the church With one last breath of strength She mutters a few words to God “Dear God, My lord. Forgive my sins How have you been since? It’s been long since I was here. I know you alone my problems can hear My heart is weak and my will dim Anger fills me to the brim. Many a...

Deceived by my eyes and all I was told I should see, Opinions not mine, the person they taught me to b, One night in the dark, a vision of someone I knew, And in the darkness I saw, a voice say, I'm you. Inside me a light was turned on, Then I was alive If you close your eyes your life, a naked truth revealed, Dreams you never dreamed, and scars never healed, In the darkness, light will take you to the other side, You'll find me waiting there, You'll see if you just close your eyes, Hearts uninspired, trapped inside somebody's dream, Too close to the fire, yet cold and numb with the pain, But the fever has broken, and the river has run to sea, Washed to the ocean, and saved by a voice inside me. Inside me a light was turned on, Then I was alive If you close your eyes your life, a naked truth revealed, Dreams you never dreamed, and scars never healed, In the darkness, light will take you to the other side, You'll find me waiting there, ...

She is heavy laden Her womb beginning to show She has added on more weight She tires quickly She is young This is her first child For an African woman It would have been a happy moment But she is sad She grieves her lose in pain She lost her virginity She was pure and unblemished She was sacred almost holy She knows not what she bears She fears the worst Still hopes for the best Her name is Africa The pain she goes through She was raped by the world Devoured to her very being She lost it all to lust, Greed and selfishness All she held on to, Her values, principles and culture In her womb she carries a reminder Of a childhood scathed Of a woman scorned That of womanhood mocked

I died in my sleep Woke up in my dreams I walk on my hands Dew brushing my feet Singing but uttering no word I was murdered Buried in my head Right there on the bed Then a voice said Bury him his dead Welcome to hell All is well Heavens open your doors Now I know what it feels like I have learnt my lesson Under the scorching heat I acknowledge my sin The flames whispered to me Begged them to let me free. God please hear my plea. In the stillness of the night. A soul is saved.

spreading Across the ridge Under the bridge Over the hills and valleys Further than the scope of eyes Extending majestically and proud Across rivers and lakes So beautiful and elegant Covered in plush green Swaying in awing admiration Stretching at dusk and further at dawn The sun setting on its path Rising at its footstool The wind worships The sun adores Gazelles and antelopes giraffes and elephant Strutting back and forth at your bosom. Am lost in your beauty. A perfect picture Fitted in by steady arms A work of art Carefully drawn

He milked the bull He was a fool Life taught him that A lesson well learnt He lies in the shed crippled The truth hard to grapple He touched a burning flame Now he's unable walk, he’s lame He licked the wounds of a dying lion Oblivious that its never dead until its dead Licked the embers of a burning savanna Fiercely filled with rage

Darkness in light that is all I see. A shadow Hidden in between, Silence, a voice waiting to free. The air pregnant with intensity A breath of fresh air, Freedom free in the air. The eyes in my mind blinded Darkness, the only thing visible. Perhaps it’s the suppression Or even the oppression. Days of cold anxiety engulf Seated close to the fire But shivering like its already winter Death looms the air Blood choking the ground Gunshots startling ancestors Smoke clouding the skies Cries of innocence infinite Songs barely incoherent To Freedom we are bound Behind bars of scars,bleeding wounds Oozing years of desperation, Torture, pain and submission You alone can deliver From a world of torment A world paralyzed by hunger, anger and selfish quest The dead awake to bury the dying Those alive living only for the battle front. they fall in numbers, Overwhelming the battle field. Freedom, to you we’re bound If not, then death be it No more shall we be slaves. ...