POEMS READ AT LOUDTHOTZ POETRY OPEN READING DECEMBER, 2012

THOSE NIGHTS (BEST POEM DECEMBER, 2012)

(…reminiscing the open readings at loudthotz.)

O! Those nights when we gather,

from all works of life coming together

to worship in the labyrinth of time

eternal;

to share moments sublime

and express holy desires in ways most carnal.

Brethren

bond by the lead blood flowing in the veins of the pen,

that with which we re-write destiny;

yea that modification of a fusion of ink pots and the feathers of the sacred hen,

those with which sages of the past punctuated eternity.

There we get lost wrapped in each other’s embrace,

planting holy-kisses on each other’s face.

Soon our lips some rhymes and rhythms begin to gibber,

blustering beautiful blasphemies,

pervert prophecies

of fickle fishes drowning in oblivion’s river;

or of pregnant men bearing abominations soon to deliver.

And to all these frank facades and fallacies

the universe’s silent listeners restfully roar;

Hal-le-lu-jah A-men, A-men Al-le-lu-ia, Le-lu-ia A-men!!!

O! Those nights

when just after the twilights

we gather in the mahogany temple of Mary’s holy land,

to perform with the wits of poetry

the magic of alchemy;

transforming gold from mere sands.

And minstrels make for rabid nuns

faithful husbands,

who with words and not big guns

redeemed them from the curse of their sanctimonious celibacy.

Our minds carryout the copulation rites,

the ritual of iron sharpening iron to blunt ecstasy,

and our spirits soar on the wings of sprites,

as angels of hell and demons of heaven echo alike in one symphony;

Hal-le-lu-jah A-men, A-men Al-le-lu-ia, Le-lu-ia A-men!!!

We drown the deer,

drinking our most solemn fear,

sacrificing upon the muse altar

our inner children most dear;

praying penitently in modern metaphoric mantra,

hoping that the deaf gods will hear.

With the forgotten vowels of the lost alphabets

we wrought marvelous miracles, not some abracadabra.

For instance we let the sun rise from the west where it sets,

with verbs we heal mortal sores

and expunge from troubled souls obstinate daemons

acquired from long fought wars.

Soon the blind seers

learn anew to see,

the long bond explorers

find new courses to explore,

again their wanton feet roam boundless and free;

and all species

evolve from frailty to immortality,

as we all men, beast and grass to our maker chant aloud in rhapsody;

Hal-le-lu-jah A-men, A-men Al-le-lu-ia, Le-lu-ia A-men!!!

 SOONEST NATHANIEL

RISE FROM THE DEAD

Rise from the dead I call on you

Rise from dearth I command you

Rise from the strength of death I say to you

Rise from the flame a sphinx

Rise from the phlegm that you are mixed

Lies have been sowed in your name

Lice is now on your head

Rice is now a prize on your head

We now speak to a shy moon

We now speak and people swoon

We have bought our voice back

With our sweats and bloods

Shout to nations like dogs bark

And shout hell too on our lords

We are now worthy of your words

We now have your words like swords

And if by this moon we become vanquished worlds

It would be that you came late

And in our hands we held our fate

And it would have been a forever wait - chisom

Pears of love : poems

Pears of love

Pears of love

As it appears to be like avocardo pear

So does it bears the fruits of love

It is the the ears of the wind that spears the seed

As it gears the engine of a champagne pear

Pears of love

Pears of love

As man was made to be pearsed of love in the heart of woman

So does it swears the oath of assistance

It is the shears for the gardener course

As it disappears the hatred from the heart of man

Pears of love

Pears of love

As it rehears the roots of the stem

So does it overbears the branches of the trees

The reward wears the outlook its trees

Pears of love

Pears of love

As it outwears the forces of nature

So does it rears the teeth of the earth

As it smears the oil substances of the earth

Ubonabasi Ekpo

08.08.08
The poet in me is hiding. The ink
drying up. Exorcised,
I stand aloof watching her walk
down the stairwells of her adolescent grave.
Withdrawn like black coffee
No sugar. No dream.

But suddenly sunshine begins
to grope into my bedroom
And then I realise I'm not
so far from home anymore.
The seeds that were sprinkled
by the rocky wayside
didn't get pecked
to death by those wayward chickens.

And now the plot thickens
Rum and brine
Tabularasa.
Adrenaline, candle wax and smoke
My heart quickens.

The seeds that were sprinkled
by the rocky wayside
didn't get pecked to death
No, not by those chickens
those wayward chickens
And now the plot
thickens...

An. N. Amos (August, 2008)

OKADA: Horse-Warrior

Horse-warrior of a hundred spokes,

spilling sour smoke into the mouth  of your foes,

Chanting *"won bi won da" to the wind's eardrums,

as your teeth echo the humming symphony

Hail *Okada,the small mouth that swallows

a thousand wraps of Iyan without drinking water-

your twin buttocks desecrate the silent prayer

of the street hawker below your cyclopsis ,

Hail Okada, *Bashorun of Lagos roads,

the spirit that rides the rider to slice

through opposing lanes,

Hey!  Hey!! Hey !!!

like a mad eel, you snake through traffic

to chest the crest of the finishing line

  

*Okunrin Meta Ni Hun !

Warrior-Horse of a hundred spokes,

breaking laws, bones and time zones. - OMOYENI

 BE.. 

 Oyindamola Fakile

Its open sesame

to all the dreams

I dreamed I’d be

Its unleash the locked up

bleach off the hold-downs

weigh my thoughts on flights of wings

that flutter free

that mutters yippee

at last I can…

be...

Its push forward

exhaust the exhaustion

to try all

and test all

and keep all

that I’ve learnt and apply all

that my life’s lesson

strengthen

bolden, oh so golden

that I can finally

 be…

Be what I was finely finished for

from the onset

be all that my essence gasps for

be-coming every little tiny

dream that made my little girl-eyes sparkle

be-coming the reality of the urges that nudges me in

the middle of the night it purges through

Like catharsis I’m ready to be purified

All my inhibitions fried up

Simmer in the oil expression

Till it grants me to come

Till it grants me to groom

Improve, refine, polish, style.

ME

Till I BE…

November 8, 2012.

TWENTY TWELVE

The year twenty twelve would not be forgotten in a hurry

For it brought in its wake joy, pain, celebration and worry

Our Leaders deeds left us feeling battered and sore

As the words of our Anthem came to life once more

A feeling of liberation was felt from shore to shore

but alas the nation now seems beyond repair

But despite the pain, disasters and feelings of despair

We courageously end the year with pomp and cheer

For no matter what… we give thanks for being here

Yes twenty twelve was a splendid year

But what really makes it a very special year

Are the memories of all that we have shared

A whole month described as barely four weeks

Simply because there’s a themed deadline to meet

Looking back now we had so much fun

Being able to share thought s with everyone

Atilola’s poems came straight from the heart

Akeem’s poems always seemed so smart

Maureen tended to add a double meaning to her flow

While Micheal made concepts bloom and glow

Now while MacTaiwo aimed at making your skin crawl

Ifeanyi always brought serious matters to the fore

Kemi’s  poems were sweet and nice

Dr Jeebs gets you thinking twice

Wome always brought out her charm

To Soonest a little education could do no harm

Marilyn always had a story to tell

And I liked to tell stories as well

Philip has been quite the sage

 And Chisom the king of the stage

Yes we did have quite some fun

Apologies I couldn’t name everyone

And as twenty twelve comes to an end

I smile because I know you my friends

Have so much in store ahead….

Obodo Erhieyovwe

December 2012

AH-MEN

Pretty please let me

Let me be the one to tell you the story of

He who dared to love she who must be loved

He who dared to love she who must be loved

Was an artist.

Now I don’t really knows the sequence of events

 That led him to this damsel who must

Be loved.

He was just an artist you see

And sometimes when talent had mercy on him

He drew a few decent paintings

When he asked for her hand

He was drunk, you see

Drunk with the splendour of her

He did not know when he spewed

Words like

I love you

And

Let me grow old with you

She

Who must be loved

She

Threw her delicate words back

Be my man

And

I want to grow old with you

So started the romance

She the woman who must be loved

He  who had dared to love her

All he had to do was adore her

And adorn her

With words of praise like

Ololufe and

Eniokanmife

And paint her world with

Colors and fabrics of love like

Red and silk

Blue and velvet

Purple and satin

She demanded love

In art and beauty

And she who must be loved thought

That he who dared to love her

Would love her

but At this he failed you see

And that is why

This story is being told

Amen.

Kemi Bon

My Thursday Friends 

I wondered through the day

Now is night and I still wonder

Will I come through with this?

I have been in this position many times

But this was different

Divided into many fragments

My attention all called for

Will I chip in my bit?

For the love I have

Oh it's been a tough period

When time stands still

Oh my love will it conquer today

For one more to share

With them so dear to me

 Now I believe

Ifeanyi Okwosha

MOON WALKER

Champagne when i thirst
I own space like a life-long property
Not me propiety
But me witty
I am King of Kings
Ngozi ama Gozi
Blood in my flute wine
Flesh in my plate dine
I hate
When i no-great make my dreams
I see me see verb
No me no complete sentence
Mactaiwo oluyomi the great menance
Emperor of the earth where sun never sets, never sleep, never say no
All things new me
Become no dew me
Dawn only
No night
No slumber
Mactaiwo Lion of Magrib
Giant of Entebe
Hope of Good hope
Snake of the Sahara!!!!!!!!!! - Mactaiwo oluyomi

 Lingering Memories

For every hand seen, we expected fingers

For every love that was, there are memories that will linger

When death came to that singer

We played her songs, neglected her daughter

For every girl that passed

There exists a verse

Which sparks off scenes

Plus those unforeseen

Wrongly forecasted

Now remembered in past tense

Sometimes with smiles, some others with winces

There were times when refusal greeted space measured in inches

For the girl, with memories she cannot delete

Links which leads back, which dominates thought but is concluded as obsolete

For the friendship which went sour

When love dared to strike the hour

For the one whose hands were held

While the shores observed and agreed that this is a spell

For those moments when the sun burns the heart

And words which emanates from all smells like a fart

For the girl too lazy to think

And taught by friends to sting

For the one who stole a heart

But turned hers over to wads in the hands

For the one who loves to caress the head before reaching down

The one standing beside in the photos seen in town

And then there is you

Fresh-faced youth

Tongue taught by thoughts, so words come with a sweet taste

So others are seen as governed by haste

Let loose thoughts about what could have been

Had these affections brought forth a ring

As years continue the journey and we are by the fact getting older

Y’all have remained a part of the folder

Corrupted but still usable

Dumping or getting dumped, someone gets to act the vegetable

Despite the metal on your fourth finger

There are parts of the past, y’all still wished lingered…

Akeem Adetayo Oyalowo

December 12, 2012

Maze of Greed  

 Dear Professor Greed,

I wrote this poem for you
Thank you for making my life this way
You ruined me completely
Yet, you would still not leave me alone
I should have never let you into my life

Dear Master Greed
You visited me when I was only two years of age
You made me want more and more food
It did not matter if I was filled to the brim
Till I blew up far more than my peers
Everyone taunted me with hurtful names

Dear Gangster Greed
People told me to do away with you

They pointed out that you were not good for me

You would only lead to my downfall
But you lied to me, saying you were my best friend
Telling me stories of how you'll make me rich
How I'll have the whole world if we walked together
How you were going to give me contentment
Haaa, You? Give contentment? What an irony

Dear Mr Greed

I fell for your lies
I went everywhere with you
Using you as my weapon in all transactions
Making sure I fed you in business deals and financial deals
The more I fed you, the bigger you grew

The bigger your grew, the more you wanted

Dear Doctor Greed

The more you gave me

The more emptiness I had

You lied to me, you never kept your promises

You gave me all I could ever dream of

But you took everything that mattered away

Dear Professor Greed,
I want to love to hate you
But I can't have enough of you
So please, walk out of my life

And never ever return again

-- 
Best Regards

Atilola Moronfolu