Poem

Heroes Day

Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, some, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” (William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night)

But there are thousands and thousands of unsung heroes , in life, whose greatness is never recognised. Recognition, it seems for the sake of convenience, must be directed to a few, even though honour is due to many.

 

To read about great men and women of past ages,

Their whims and wiles and deeds beguile

Such curious excitement they afford,

But more exciting and inspiring to know.

Great men and women in the flesh

In your own days,

 

To shake their hands and look them in the eye,

To know about what make them tick,

To see them on television alive,

To feel the timbre of their voices,

As they rant or rave or quietly pace

Live and direct to your face

 

Such inspiration to derive

So much we inherit in our days.

 

Good men and women,

To see and know them in the flesh

Not buried in some dark crypt,

Is a life’s experience

You can only have but once

In your days to see them,

To feel their warmth in your own being,

To see fire or benevolence in their eyes;

 

It is tragic that the great die,

Whom we know and feel;

 

We ought to revere their noble lives.

Wonderful and inspiring moments then,

To clasp their hands and touch them,

In our own emerging times.

 

– Oren O. Cousins

 

Prisoner of Love

Condemned he was behind and within bars of iron

In a condominium of rock and limestone

He would smile while others raged

Contented in his cage

Was it in shame

He often called her name?

Or might it I ponder

Be the other side of the insane?

Within this Apartment

We shared and talked of love

And life without parole

Bars of iron

He would say, remind me of the lie

That love dies

People die, but love never dies

It’s a continuum

Encrusted with virtues

Some wise, others refined

 

She wanted to go to College

I wanted Marriage

In anger and frustration

I walked away

Picked up a stick

And flung it hard and high

The light wire got in the way

A boomerang was on its way

Toward my love

A shout as I ran toward her

She held her ground

I was a step too late to save my love

She hit the ground

A gash and broken skull; she bled

And was dead

Guilty I said

 

They all tried to save me

But I knew freedom was my enemy

In this condominium of rock and lime stone

I am free to be me

To love her as she loved me, He said

Her last words were

“I love you”

And so was his.

– Lennox Washington Taylor

 

Woman (To Every Woman)

Bitch; Slut, Eve, Delilah, Vixen; Mule;

Virago, Tigress, Witch, Wretch, Mule, Whore;

She Lion, She Wolf, Tigress Jezebel,

She Devil, Empress, Saint – Is She?

 

Must she be rich or poor, docile and humble,

weak and willing;

Married or shy, single and chaste;

A virtuous virgin, religious and respected;

Faithful and friendly and happy with her lot

to be deemed a decent Woman?

 

Does she have to be black or white,

yellow or brown,

Fat, rotund, or slim and trim,

Short or tall, petite or pleasingly plump,

A healthy and fertile, seductive

and a sexually active, breasted mother

to be a full Woman?

 

Is there a different set of rights and wrongs,

Do’s and don’ts by which she is judged

Just because she is a woman, a woman, a Woman?

Does she have to be educated, extroverted, elegant,

intelligent, independent, industrious, flashy, free

famous, flamboyant, confident, liberated

and produce 100% more than her

male counterpart to be accepted as

a successful Woman?

 

Must her skin be jet-black, purple-black,

brown-red, bronze-tone, honey-tone,

ivory-tone, yellow-brown –

to sound a pleasant undertone

and be painted a dark and lovely Woman?

 

Does her face have to be round, long, oval,

square or heart-shaped;

Her eyes brown, blue, hazel or grey;

Her nose straight;

Her lips thin, soft, luscious and inviting

Her teeth white;

Her hair brunette or blonde,

and boast a 91-61-91 centimetre

figure (with appropriate height)

to be seen as a beautiful Woman?

 

Dubbed cute, pretty, ugly, beautiful, beef,

shrewish, sexy, seductive, sweet, sensitive,

charming, neat, nice, tender gender …

… she is loved, cherished, chased, caressed,

hated, ill-treated, beaten, broken, bruised,

wooed, worshipped, adored, used, abused,

driven, dumped, raped, refused, respected,

victimised, exploited, jilted, stepped on

(and more) …

 

And yet,

YOU blessed being,

The equal half of humanity;

The nesting womb of life –

Endowed with strength and

Powered by courage,

YOU are WOMAN –

Mother of man and God enfleshed!

– Errol D. Bean