WHAT DO YOU SEE?

Walking down the street

What do I see?

Enmity looming the vicinity

No love for the human race

Who pulled the trigger?

Polluting the atmosphere

A world tastefully bitter

Lives darted to early grave

Yet no one damn care

They waited until the night sprawl

And shed flimflam tears

Just enough to fill a tea spoon

Ooh beloved brother

In a world that is on fire

Where will turn to?

When there is no home

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

SUNSHINE

Sunshine on a blue ray

Reflecting on the roses

You touched my heart in a special way

Blew the weary clouds away

You so remind me of a time

I was an excited little child

Chasing butterflies and bees

When I am out picking flowers

Do not let my countenance fool you

Falling in love with you is my greatest weakness

A guilt I could not hesitate

The moment you wrote your name in my heart

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

IF YOU LOVE ME

If you love me

Don't let me go

Because I am from a different tribe

Doesn't mean I can not be part of your plan 

The language of love is the same

Where ever it reaches out to the heart

It might be through a song

Or through a beating drum

Last time I recalled

You are not afraid of making a call

But it seems to be you are selling yourself short

Don't tell me you are afraid of commitment

Don't let me go back home

Broken, sad and on my own

No one can understand

The way you make me feel

Imagine a queen

Walking around with a broken crown

Her world is going to fall apart

Not able to find you by her side

Why do you make me cry?

Why can't I fall in love with you?

What's wrong if you take me home tonight?

In love, relationship don't need to have a perfect start

Hey boy, do not take me for a flirt

Not everyone can control their feelings

All I am asking is to be with you

Please, don't send me back home tonight

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2017

NO ONE KNOWS

No one knows the struggle in my head

The pains and suffering I go through

A friend can only pretend to understand

How much the world evolve around you

The heart is fragile and easily broken

When she is going through a conflicting day

It is frustrating when you are living for nothing

Negative thoughts piercing the mind everyday

Comfort afar off, no one to lend a hand

The little things seems difficult to learn

Life becomes invisible where ever I stand

It is like in the world, I am the only one insane

Maybe if I had painted a picture of a bleeding star

It would have been easier to take away preying eyes?

There will be no one judging my scar

But it is of no use, I am victimized

Please do not have empathy for me

I have got my own share of guilt

Every time I tell a lie, it is because I hated me

Sorry, I never intended to be weak

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

TRUST JESUS

Trust in Jesus

He is a friend you can rely on

The world maybe full of disappointments

He alone is true to His words

He is not self seeking

Envy of your success

You can count on him to protect you

Through times when the sun is gone

Let no one discourage you

That your problems can not be resolved

Is he not the one who raised Lazarus from the dead?

Who heals the woman in the crowd with an issue of blood? 

He fed five thousand, healed a deaf and mute man

Healed the blind to see, cleanses the ten lepers

He walked on the water

To everyone with infirmity He restored

You have got to give him your whole heart

Let Him lead you through the raging storm

And see if not tomorrow by day light

You will be singing a refreshing new song

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

Heritage Bank Poetry Competition is on – #LightTomorrowWithToday

To celebrate Children’s Banking Month, Heritage Bank is organizing a poetry competition for children, with fantastic prizes to be won.

Children (7-15 years old) will write a 200 words poem on “Light Tomorrow With Today” and upload on Facebook to generate likes from friends and family.

Make sure you tag @HeritageBank Ng when posting and use the hashtag #LightTomorrowWithToday.

Top 3 entries with the highest likes will be invited to the Head Office of Heritage Bank or any of its Experience Centers upcountry (i.e. for States far from Lagos) nearest to them (i.e. the winners) to receive their prize.

AN OPEN MESSAGE TO AFRICAN POETS BY MEMBIS GODWIN CHUKWUKAMMA.

Patriotism to irresponsible, dictatorial cum unpopular government is worse than mental and physical slavery meshed together with acute hopelessness.

A poet is expected to be the voice of the people and not romancing and painting the weaknesses of political leaders for social advantage.

Our old elites has failed us enough in governmental representation and now I am glad poetry which is the voice of humanity has come into the hands of young and zealous reformers.

African poets are leaving there responsibility of protecting the interest of the people with morality and are now protecting their own interest and that is poetic selfishness and abuse of poetic authority.

How can poetry change our world and bring the aspirations of our noble critic Matthew Arnold and all other world literary critics into reality with such run away from what should be? How can we all forget about criticism of what is wrong and unjust.

Figurative expressions in lines and stanzas is it poetry? The poetry lies on the theme, the quality and not just the beautification of expression, the poetry is eternal and shines on its own, we must separate fantasy from fallacy, truth from lies.

It is the responsibility of African Poets to build up the falling dignity and morality of this great continent our ancestors left on our shoulders. We are poet, we are the shade that protects the society, we are the hope of the next generation, inspiration to forthcoming art and we must inspire positively.

The dignity and flavour of African poetry must never be lost, we must restore our pride, and together we must change the world if we strongly believe by poetic creed that poetry can change the world, we must make it happen for it can not happen on it's own or with the falling development I am seeing.

I am Membis Godwin, a young fellow, I am not a critic but I believe in Matthew Arnold's poetic criticism and all other world class criticism on poetry, I believe in the future of world poetry, we must not let the philosophical content of poetry die, or the poetry that should be in the poem be lead to rest. We must restore it now.

ALL FOR HUMANITY.

IT IS ALL WRONG

It is all wrong

I could not spend time with you

It would have been easy

If you had told me goodbye

I sit and watch the sunrise

Maybe it would ease my mind

Instead I watch my dreams gone

As an awful day walk bye

I thought in life everyone is a winner

Except the woman who gives up

I know I do not have much to hold

Life is difficult watching you go

I cannot believe your love

Is too good enough for me

You have got to search the clouds in your heart

If there are no more stars

Without you my dream is not real

Where you are is where I want to be

If it is out on the street

It is alright, I can take the heat

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

SOMETIMES

Sometimes I try to picture myself
Amidst life sailing through a subtle river
At times I wait effortlessly
In the mist of a raging storm fiercely totting me

The search for a purpose, seemingly
Endless even unto my dying breath
Several doors broken and severely damaged but not one
When there is a will, a door is left ajar to enter

Maybe the shattered mirror lying on the cabin floor
Same as the one I see in my old coffee cup is
The one build on a fragile wooden frame
Maybe the rain washed
Window blind got entangled in the storm

Or maybe I am just a Polaroid
Living in a state of obliviousness
As I take one step backward to retraced the heart
To find my self
Rain brought traces of hope that I shouldn't lose myself
That the need of self actualization in life is but a strong vendetta!!!

©Akan Udofia ...7th May, 2018

DEAR JOSSETTE

I found out a long time ago 
I was not good enough for you
But somewhere in my heart 
Soberly I hoped it is not true 

Last time I saw you 
I was relieved you are not yet taken 
No one can withstand a thousand fall 
An emotion shattered into pieces 

You are my greatest weakness 
The love I found in you cannot be tamed 
Please Jossette, don't let me go 
I have got no where else to turn to 

I promise to be good lad 
Pick up the groceries, run errands for you 
The love I have for you is real 
It going to stand forever 

 All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia

BLACK SUN

Driven not to stay is compassion 
Happiness out of motion 
Darkness covers the sky 
As tears blot the eye

There is nothing to lean on 
The sun is stolen 
Blood stain lying on the floor 
Crippling underneath the living room door 

I see a lifeless body lying on the floor 
Shattered glasses and weapon of plough 
Someone took an angry knife 
And halted a human life 

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018

I AM NOT FAR FROM YOU

I am not far from you

But pretend I do not remember 

How you make my heart burn 

Fragrance of your love envelope the sky

Sometimes I imagine 

You and I running far away 

Somewhere we can listen 

To the silence in our hearts 

Your smile illuminates the pathway 

To an unimaginable sense of joy

Never will I let your love get stolen 

I will guild her with all I have

Purely and refreshing is the feeling 

Of lying in your bosom 

I am going out to watch the moon 

She reminds me so much of you 

To fall not in love with you 

Is such a dangerous task 

Every moment I touch your pretty lips 

I fall a thousand feet

All Rights Reserved © Akan Udofia 2018