LOUDTHOTZ POETRY OPEN READING SEASON 14 EPISODE 08 - STRINGS EVENT

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POEMS READ AT LOUDTHOTZ POETRY OPEN READING SEASON 13 EPSIODE 5 - SELF

WINNER POEM OF THE MONTH

I AM YOU – (poem of the month)

(a self-adulation series)

I am you

a steward of

time

 

and

that privileged vessel

called by nature.

 

I am you

a worthy whole of humanity.

 

We are more

we give lives

to the voices in our heads.

 

We are more

we birth lines

that glitters in your nights.

 

I am you

the curious wanderer

at home at every fort.

 

I am you

the reflection

of the sun when days are dark.

 

I am you

the golden ribbon

that beautify the moon.

 

I am you

in your burden

and joy of pulling through.

 

-Amami H.

 

////////////////////////////////

 

I AND MYSELF

Greetings my fellow sojourner

I guess that will be the greeting

Of the sun to the moon

In their cycle of give and take

I is, me that refers to

My head

My brain

My body  

My leg

The gift

The tool

Then who am I?

Where do I come from?

Why am I here?

And where do I go from here?

Questions that need answers

Indicating the binary state of existence

The Creator and His creation

The conscious and unconscious

I and my bodies

 

I have wondered

Yes! I have

This I, the self

Like seed must be fed

If it is to grow

Now what do I feast on?

What you sow in the table ever laid

 

Ifeanyi Okwosha              

 

//////////////////////////////////////////////

SELF

My knowledge of self 

Has fallen like a pack of cards 

That we keep the worst part of ourselves to ourselves is not a well kept secret

And when we say we don’t really know a person

It’s true 

Even a person doesn’t know himself 

Not fully

Not completely 

And

It’s because self is always evolving 

We morph into various versions of our selves as life presents us with experiences 

We keep the ugly parts hidden

Careful to flaunt the beautiful parts

We elevate our best sides

So that we can be thought worthy of love

eni a fe la mo

A o mo eni to feni*

Loving is harder because we never know who our bedmate truly is

A mind boggling thought if it is dwelled upon 

The core of self is vulnerable 

We only let our guard down when we trust

Even then we keep a little part of the unknown deeply buried

We chase validation

We fear rejection

To acknowledge self is to look yourself straight in the soul

And realize that you are just an imperfect bumbling unfinished 

Product

A work in progression 

A human just

being

 

 

Kemibon

*we know who we married but we don’t know who married us

 

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////

 

CIRCUMSTANCES OF REALITY CHECK

When you walk alone, on this earth.....
There you know who will comes and stay;
There you will know those who entitled to the course ;
Sometimes you have to run and see ...
Who runs to see what the cause ....
But the sweet sour response is that ...
At times , the ones we tend to see
Are busily waiting for where you will land
Or surprisingly there will be no one.
It is just yourself and self again.....

When you are left alone in the middle of the sea.....
There you will know the real fisher’s after you ,
There you will know the sharks and whales ;
There you will know those will come to your rescue ,
Those who will come with boats
Those will swim to your end.
But to your beautiful eyes;
Those you are expectant of
Are coming down with
Hook and line
You will know you only
Have yourself and self again ......


When you are left alone to fly,
There you will know those who are going
To pray for the sun to shine severely
There you will know those who.....
Will pray for your safe landing
There you will know those who are going
To shoot you to die.....
But to your smile
You will know your loved ones...
Are the ones who are secretly
Plucking your wings
Even getting your wings wet;
You have one true friend;
It’s just yourself and self again ......

When you are left alone in the darkest place
There you will know those who will come after you ;
There you will those who are going to shout
Your name ;
There you will know those who are going to
Lit up their lights to find you
But to your eyes
There will be no one
Not even the one who promised you
Security
It just you and yourself ........

When you left alone on earth ....
When you are left in the middle of the sea .....
When you are left alone to fly ....
When you are left alone in the darkest place ....
Be expectant of yourself rather than anyone
For this chess we all are playing ;
Is a closed but opened book.



Aba Absolute

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////

A SIP OF RIO 

 

I've told my story a thousand times

Didn't you read between the rhymes?

The lines you adored

Full of hints I poured

Into covered urns

Exposed my world

Go back and lift the cover

And you'll soon discover

Right there on your bookshelf

A story of a story within itself 

My dreams and cares

My hopes and fears

Hidden wishes

Favorite dishes

Everything

Yet Nothing

For I kept the key to myself

Which means to find it

You must be smart

And understand abit about my heart

But it's right there

In full glare

For the world to see

Everything you need to know about me

Bon appetit

 

 

Erhio

////////////////////////////////////

WANDERER

They said time heals,

but pain is my nurse.

tired and panting like a chased dog,

I want breath as a baby wants milk.

How long shall I wait for the peace I crave for?

time will be the judge.

"Time?" I asked being curious,

Time is a liar deceiving most of us.

 

How long shall I be a wanderer?

seeking home like a lost child.

I feel hopeless like a desert that can't have rainfall.

Again I hope time will bring fortune,

but it is bringing torture,

I want break from life.

my strength is passing away with cloud.

 

Time is my oxygen,

but I have no idea of what is left.

how long shall it take to reach home?

only time could tell.

but I wonder if the oxygen remaining shall be enough to reach home.

 

Whatever the amount that remains,

I shall find a spot to take break from life troubles.

who knows someone might find me there and take me home.

and if not, I shall rest peacefully,and lie at a nearby spot just a bird does in its nest.

I worry myself not about what time brings me.

 

Elijah Akinboade

///////////////////////////////////

YOURSELF

Don’t do this to yourself.

Don’t let this flood in your eyes wash away your joy.

Trickling down your face, with your pain afloat.

With the watery caress of a broken heart.

Let’s sail back on memory seas, we’d berth where you were still yourself,

When your smiles lit the dark and your laughter serenaded our ears,

When you silently danced in the joy of your solitude.

But now, you’re crowded with sad thoughts that have left you lonely.

Don’t do this to yourself,

Don’t shield yourself from a love that’s armed with fulfilled desires,

Let me shower you with affection to wash the pain away

And watch as happiness flows in again

Bayo

////////////////////////////////////

SELF:

 

The selfie stick as a fashion accessory.

Failing that, the hooked hand that can click from any angle and post directly.

 

A sign and symbol

of this narcissist age;

this controlling zeitgeist.

 

The self- Id, ego, superego.

 

The conscious.

Self- conscious.

Subconscious.

Unconscious.

Super conscious.

 

Enlightened, illumined, energized. 

 

The self as a reference point-

my truth; calling things that be

as though they were not, 

in inverse faith- fluidity and relativity

in one fell swoop!

 

Overturning sociocultural

order on a puff of smoke,

a river constructed of spittle.

 

Self image.

Self awareness.

Self aggrandisement.

Self expression.

Self indulgence.

Self referring.

Self actualizing.

 

Give me, give me,

give me, my name

is Jimmy.

 

On to the point of opportunity

riding a dangerous wind.

 

The point at which the self surrenders, yields, submits and enters into the seventh day Sabbath rest of the Deity

 

Andrew Whyte

///////////////////////////////////

 

THINGS YOU WILL MISS 

It’s not love if it doesn’t hurt

Real love is when you stand at the jagged edge of hope,

Sometimes you leap, sometimes you don’t

Sometimes someone catches you

Sometimes you crash

But Self-love is like when everyone is an alien

and you are space, everyone is distant from you

Though in space you never run out of things to discover

But then, you will miss the weight of things

You will miss the impact of things on things

You will miss the sun bathing of the tropical sun

In the smile of others

You will miss the sunrise of friendships

Because you are cocooned into yourself

 

Chisom

 

 

 

POEMS READ AT OUR LAST POETRY READING, LOUDTHOTZ POETRY OPEN READING SEASON 13 EPISODE 1 ALPHA

 

Abdul-Mumin Abdul-Quadir

(Writeous Sage)

ALPHA – (Poem of the Month)

 

We lookup                     

Unto thee

As we set foot

Into another journey

 

Hope greatly

For a no beta

That is better

 

We pray thee

Not to be game

For gamers

in gamma

 

Guide us through

Let's make it mega

Before omega

 

Abdul-Mumin Abdul-Quadir

(Writeous Sage)

 

///////////////////////////////////////////////////

 

ALPHA THE BEGINNING

I am Alpha can be the beginning of a sentence with different meanings

One word like many that wears different caps

Which cap will adorn this white ocean

As we navigate with one of the most powerful instrument

Will it be the beginning of all beginnings

The dominant cap

The one that denotes excellence

We may choose as it moves us

But all are within time

Time

Standing still

All is in motion

And yet

Time is still

As we write within its canvas

A concept eternally unchanged like eternity

Like

Love

Truth

Justice

Cycles spiraling and meshing into one another

Beginning of ends and end to beginnings

The daughter completing a lap round her mother

Who gave her warmth

Each his own race

We run individually but together

Writing new stories and ending others

 

Ifeanyi Okwosha

//////////////////////////////////////////////

YOU'RE NOT MY ALPHA

 

You're the first of all things

And the last of no thing

Breaking through thick flesh

Letting blood gush out.

 

You're the first of all trash

And the last of no fears

Being crazy makes you norm

Piercing through the night

 

You're the first of all giving up

And the last of no persistence

Squeezing tightly any chest

Falling right before dawn.

 

You're the first of all lapses

And the last of no power

Enough reason to change time's course

And redefine true essence

 

Strike the shepherd

And the sheep will scatter

Not for the shepherd

Who runs at the sight of a wolf.

 

You're not my alpha.

Not my first, never my last.

 

REHTSE Thinks out

 

//////////////////////////////////////////////////

BEYOND OUR BODIES 

 

Out here

on this sombre bridge

we walk on edges

holding barns that never get full of deposit

 

Of this menace

we talk to spirit 

casting petition 

with whiskering hope 

that our rendition will plunge the heart of gods

 

We live in partition (day & night) 

rising up like apparition 

in the bid to forget the nightmare of our doom

we lose count of times the spirit smiled at us

how can we bear this earth song chiming fire at us? 

 

Of night and day, we scavenge in the wild

counting our bodies like pennies

that never seem to ease off our messes

the odour of the earth with its blandishment woo us to a mime. 

 

How shall we with this

escape the plunders of the earth

that  siege us into walls

that memorize us  into frames like artefact and all we do is watch unable to react 

the earth is a whore 

that tame us on tongue with rancid taste of desires

 

Out here 

on this sultry land 

we walk on sand

holding barns that never get full of deposit 

 

Of this adventure 

we are whittled down into silence

peeled gradually into our own decay. 

 

& of this body 

we become flaccid

unable to survive the choke slam

& like ash

we evanescence out of earth's mirror

 

THE PEN HEALER

 

/////////////////////////////////////////////////

BEGINNINGS

 

It starts

 

With the giggles and chuckles over falling leaves

Open doors filled with reluctant feet

Offers that pour in like rain into a well

Little gifts that make some eyes squint and others swell

The messages and massages trailing your every move

 

Mars

Malteses

Twix

Snickers

Then boom ...

 

The complaints about bottles and plates

The gate still open at past eight

Forgotten dates

Excuses about whales

No sales

No goods

Just screams and wails

 

Bounty

Ferrero rocher

Hershey's

....it begins

 

The dangerously worded swords

Changed clothing with less wool

Third parties

Files and suits

Lies and red eyes

Pacing and Spaces

 

One wonders where crushed dreams began

Memory lane filled with pain

Broken rose glasses see clearly

What foggy thoughts distort

Dark clouds reign

Yet after the rain

The sun shines

And one sees a rainbow

With a cool vibe and brown eyes

and a gorgeous smile...

It's a new beginning

Again

 

 

Erhio

 

//////////////////////////////////////////

IF

 

If family comes first

Even if they treat you last;

If you can make peace your master

And not be convinced otherwise,

If you can use your gifted hands

To sculpt stars from ordinary people

And still not be a braggart;

If you can lead and serve a pack

But never be a sucker for their pain;

If you can stand firm

And not be shaken by fear

In your pursuit of a honourable life;

If you can face challenges head on

And not lie down like a log;

If you can rise and dust off yourself

Instead of hiding the dirt under a mat;

If you can mind you business

And not be intimidated by another person's success-

Then you're a big deal!

 

Linpoet

 

/////////////////////////////////////////

ALPHA

 

I am the master sculptor faithfully known and felt

Daily the tides took turns

to eternally prostrate in reverence of me

In me your insights are complete

 Listen to the winds blow in adoration,

 Mellifluous songs of praises in hallelujah choruses,

In appreciation of me

I am He whom your subconscious in earnest loves

 

 

I have listened to the sound of my prowess

and caressed the babes of my youth

In the plains of my sight,

the cubs of my loins paid obeisance

to the innocence of time

As the youths of time pay their wages to me in full

 

Olumide Soyemi

///////////////////////////////

UNDERSTANDING‌ ‌THE‌ ‌ALPHA.‌ 

‌

Understanding‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha,‌ ‌

Is‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌of‌ ‌understanding.‌ ‌

Having‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌knowledge‌ ‌that‌ ‌all‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌ends‌ ‌

is‌ ‌to‌ ‌take‌ ‌life‌ ‌easy‌ ‌for‌ ‌nothing‌ ‌lasts‌ ‌forever.‌ ‌

 ‌

The‌ ‌end‌ ‌is‌ ‌more‌ ‌important‌ ‌than‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning,‌ ‌

But‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌of‌ ‌all.‌ ‌

For‌ ‌this‌ ‌shall‌ ‌blow‌ ‌my‌ ‌horn‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌head,‌ ‌

Singing‌ ‌of‌ ‌his‌ ‌praise‌ ‌among‌ ‌men‌ ‌

For‌ ‌he‌ ‌the‌ ‌creator‌ ‌of‌ ‌all‌ ‌creatures.‌ ‌

 ‌

I‌ ‌shall‌ ‌give‌ ‌attention‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌of‌ ‌my‌ ‌life,‌ ‌

But‌ ‌give‌ ‌more‌ ‌focus‌ ‌to‌ ‌how‌ ‌I‌ ‌want‌ ‌the‌ ‌omega.‌ ‌

For‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌end,‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌matters‌ ‌less,‌ ‌

And‌ ‌what‌ ‌matters‌ ‌most‌ ‌is‌ ‌how‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌is‌ ‌metamorphosed‌ ‌to‌ ‌omega.‌ ‌

 ‌

If‌ ‌the‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌of‌ ‌a‌ ‌man‌ ‌starts‌ ‌with‌ ‌night,‌ ‌

Surely‌ ‌the‌ ‌omega‌ ‌might‌ ‌be‌ ‌with‌ ‌bright‌ ‌day‌ ‌light.‌ ‌

So‌ ‌I‌ ‌shall‌ ‌pay‌ ‌attention‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌lesson‌ ‌alpha‌ ‌comes‌ ‌with‌ ‌as‌ ‌a‌ ‌gift,‌ ‌

But‌ ‌gives‌ ‌more‌ ‌focus‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌end,‌ ‌ ‌

For‌ ‌hopefully‌ ‌I‌ ‌shall‌ ‌wine‌ ‌and‌ ‌dine‌ ‌with‌ ‌joy‌ ‌sitting‌ ‌by‌ ‌my‌ ‌side.‌ ‌

 ‌

The‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌end‌ ‌and‌ ‌the‌ ‌end‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌

For‌ ‌dust‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌beginning‌ ‌of‌ ‌a‌ ‌man,‌ ‌

Dust‌ ‌shall‌ ‌he‌ ‌return‌ ‌after‌ ‌his‌ ‌stays‌ ‌here‌ ‌on‌ ‌under‌ ‌the‌ ‌sun.‌ ‌

Akinboade Elijah Akinlolu

////////////////////////////////////////////

ALPHA

 

It is not the first and, it is never the last 

Neither the strong, nor the weak from the past 

It is standing stall amongst those that stand high 

Being deeply rooted in depths so far down, 

Stretched to foundations of formidable facts

 

Venturing visionist far from voluptuary vices 

Creating openings out of unseen closures 

Exploiting negativity to push forth optimism 

Purpose built and resolute to the very end 

A player of circumstance just to suit his role

 

A base of strength to those who share the vision 

Breaking through strongholds of others failures 

With determination drowning out unseen fears 

Leading with traits of a perceptible mandate 

It is what separates what is best from the best

 

Drowned out weakness by eyeing the prize 

Knowing what he is, what he stands for 

The genesis of and end resulted decision 

Accepting the impact of impaired decisions 

Fully overwhelmed by unique power within

 

Richard Oyibo

/////////////////////////////////////////////

 

ALPHA.

 Alpha, 

The first, the best,

The beginning and the end.

 

Alpha,

The first, the last,

The origin of life.

 

Alpha,

The first, the sun,

The keeper and sustainer...

 

Alpha,

The first, the blessing,

Without beginning or ending;

One without a Father,

But Fathers all and sundry;

In joy, love, peace,

In progress, prosperity keeps,

In good health and cheer...

 

Alpha,

The first I see when I awake,

The light I see and await,

The love I'll taste again, no albeit,

The one I'll see again to praise,

When I am reborn for real to stay.

 

Haiku Ode to Alpha,

 

 Lucy Akata.

/////////////////////////////////////////////

ALPHA

Started with alpha all the way to the delta- neither Mississippi nor Niger-  

and now we are sitting on the omicron which unlike earlier incarnations does not have a crown.

 

And now we have the Marburg

which thankfully is not a Greek alpha beta but

unfortunately is named after another now to be historically lampooned town- wuhan comes

to mind!

 

Even the Spanish flu from Kansas

a thing which the Americans were happy to bury under layers of copy!

 

This is no alpha

It isn’t the first but it’s certainly mega

in its implications. 

 

Alpha male to Haggard’s Ayesha,

she who must be obeyed,

who is obeyed and who in the words of lady B,

rules and runs the world either by rocking the cradle or suckling the

man in the other place even if there is no ring on it

 

Putting him on the seat ex cathedra and seating there with him.

Increasingly seating there without him

Garnering most of the fleece that certifies the possession of a brain 

 

Andrew Whyte