nigerians.biz : Nigerian poetry

Poetry > Gallery > Nwogu Gabriel Chimaobi

Nwogu Gabriel Chimaobi

Legend

Navigation buttons.

To this pheasant
Children of the South
To this illusion
Litany of errors
Shogo odi
Through salt and thyme
The saying of ifs

To this pheasant

Had i but hours enough and dime, this pheasant pal were no cry. We could down trod all the rough way to chat, laugh, cast our flesh long pain. then by the road, street side, tomorrow leave by-and should time of the uppest cloud snarl, I would flee it to my crib, before the fall. and should it for fun feel furious would write fall by fall to calm cloud, pheasant vexed.

Children of the South

We leonine children of the south
     thus left to languish in the sun
Tattered and torn,
     our apparel worn seem to cry.

Neither kill nor steal had we done,
     nor flying to frigging places
Padlocks hooking doors after gates
     did keep our legs and freedom locked.

See how children and chicken trod
     at mad's behest or so we sang
Hope filled chants for dad's return
     to lease our burdened, bandaged limbs

We leonine children of south
     feared the order and not the jump
Even if open our gates did lie
     indeed the order would haunt us down.

To this illusion

There's something about your eyes that gives me the shivers. Maybe its the lashes that beautifully slide down to match its darkened end. Or perhaps its the curve of your lips perfectly complimenting your whitened smile. Or is it my sight that brings me deception? -No. This eyes of yours is in me and i know no peace. But if it be that i am asleep -Mother do not wake me. Because i am afraid and i fear, that i may rise to insanity, to disbelief and eternal despair. Cant you see mother! Look, watch, see as the sparkles from her dark eyes charm my soul. Or are you now blind! Or perhaps i am already going mad. Should i buy you a rose beauty, or should we lie by the pool side. Should i bring you a drink or should we go to places where no bird nor beast breath. Where no soul shall spite us. That i may stare into your eyes and wonder to eternal bliss. What is this again! See how your lips have rebelled and now all i want is a kiss...

Litany of errors

Love is pretense. Love is weakness. Love is foolishness. Love is unrealistic, pathetic and materialistic. Love is an illusion, a hallucination and a deviation. Love is an emotion mistaken, a fantasy pitified, a goodness distorted, a psycho-exaggeration. Love is just strange, just a cage and a stage. Love is an impossibility, infact... Love is fake.

Shogo odi

Shogo odi came to our village, and now. They said our herbs were useless. So the dibia carried a stethoscope. They said our town crier was a moron. Even the king now dials a number. They said our dressing were costumes. Only for Nkem to wear bikinis. They said our food were concoction. After mama gave them egwusi. Shogo odi came to our village, and now everybody is going nuts.

Through salt and thyme

And so it came to be. Through the fingers that cleansed me at my birth, through pepper,salt and thyme. That the pot so treasured by my brother's gluttony, lusted for by the lips that kissed my dimpled cheeks. Has come to lay by my feet. And cursed be these trespassing ants, if their greedy and agile limbs dont cease to dine from my mother's pot.

The saying of ifs

If money were insanity, men wud be imbeciles. If beds were coffins, only carpenters would sleep. If corpses were papers, dustbins would be everywhere. If sex were surgery, whores would be midwives. If wishes were chickens, even vegetarians will dine. If NEPA were torch lights, we would walk on batteries. If food were faeces,i might begin to fast. If women were wine, ofcourse men would be drunkards. If make-up were cow dung,women would stink. If life were one big loaf of buttered bread,bakers would be gods and bakeries would be altars. And if you were a hot peppered grilled chicken, i would surely eat you.