I dreamed there was a poet
A man who loved words and rivers
I dreamed him--no one on this earth,
On this hard, heavy earth,
Writes like that, smiles like that
Brings joy and tears like that
I dreamed he carried a thousand scrolls
Piled in his arms up to his brain
And he began to give them to us
But after a precious few scrolls were unrolled
A trumpet called, and he turned away,
And the remaining scrolls became a rifle
Thunder roared, drums pounded
me awake, and he was gone.
-
Author:
jarcher54 (
Offline) - Published: October 22nd, 2020 02:26
- Comment from author about the poem: If you are following the compelling developments around the world, you are no doubt aware of the anti-police and military-brutality movement, and its violent suppression, in Nigeria. A recently registered member of MPS, Ifeanyichukwu, has posted several compelling poems composed in the midst of this intense setting. This modest, inadequate poem of mine is to honor his late uncle, the warrior-poet Christopher Okigbo, who sacrificed his life in 1967 in defense of Biafran independence and dignity, cutting short his promising career as a poet who could bridge the gaping gulf between cultures, times, and nations.
- Category: Reflection
- Views: 110
Offline)
Comments12
And still the drums pound.
Impotent as I am in this struggle for human rights i am supportive. Many opressive regimes have been contested and replaced in my lifetime. Let us hope that the succeeding regime is more "of the people and for the people".
An excellent tribute to a poet of the people.
I second everything that Dusk Arising so eloquently stated,
a great service you have done in penning this write to highlight a cause and suffering (I assume) you are far removed from - here be pure empathy, exemplified perfectly!
Ifeanyichukwu (Have I spelt that correctly?) is a great poet and deserves recognition. This is a super scribe on the same subject matter - great work jarcher.
I wanted to put in a good word for our MPS contributor as well as call attention to what is happening in Nigeria and honor Christopher Okigbo, with whom I was slightly acquainted, since he was a friend and colleague of the better-known author of "Things Fall Apart" Chinua Achebe.
Wow - true tribute:)
Wonderful words about a fine person. Like d a, I too have seen many oppressions in my life , one day the will of the people will maybe come to the fore.
Andy
a fine poetic tribute .. I have certainly learnt something from you today .. thank you .............
I was born there so i find it more concerning and interesting. You wrote a great fab thoughtful tribute chronicling his life stages from poet to war. Kudos.
Plz do read and comment my newest poem too.
Thanks for reading... the recent troubles with government violence against young people and protesters in Nigeria jolted me back in time. As a teenager I followed the Biafra suppression closely and later read about Okigbo. I will definitely revisit your poems... I have read a few and truly appreciate them.
So what is your ethnicity, im wondering? I mean you don't look Nigerian and the dp pic is vague so i can't be sure if you are a poetess or poet. Best wishes,
Haha... that pic is from about 1970! I was about 16. I was climbing in a tree at a small picnic with friends. I am a pretty typical American man. You would call me white, in Texas we say Anglo, but my family is very diverse. My mom's mom was born in the Naples region and her dad is from Chile. My dad's family was poor working class in the American Mid-West, he was the first to go to college. I have always thought of myself as a world citizen, and follow events everywhere, reading from papers (on line now days) everywhere. Biafra was an international story when the civil war occurred. I am not ego-centric or nationalistic in any sense. Am I a poet? Well, my house is full of poetry from all over the world, but I have so little time to compose the way I'd like to. I am more a lover of poetry.
Nice work.. sophisticated....
Wonderful and inspired.
A powerfully written sonnet here jarcher54, written in a masterful tone, and is also a great tribute to Christopher Okigbo, let's hope an actual change for the better can occur, to fix certain messes, that are happening too frequently, all over the world.
Bravo, and I hope that all is well!
The evolution of social progress is so slow in comparison to technological accomplishment. This gulf has created a threat to all of humanity. Such a beautiful yet fearful dream. It appears that Hermes left only some of his scrolls and the progress of the human soul for peace and human rights is up to us to discover.
I think this is better than good. There is a poetry group called "Rattle". You can find them on the internet. They publish poems and award prizes. I hope you will consider sharing this poem with them.
To be able to comment and rate this poem, you must be registered. Register here or if you are already registered, login here.