Blog about Art, Poetry and Prose

Blog about Art, Poetry and Prose

Sunday, May 13, 2018

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