LIFE                    

Like the sun

I arise

Like the sun

I go down

And hastens

To the place

From where I arose

I am life

That distinguishes

Animals and plants

People often wonder and ponder

Where I belong and how I came

Some doubt my existence after death

Nevertheless I maintain my cool.

I am life

That all aspires to have

Even when death comes calling

Humans still struggle to have me

The rich struggles most

But it is harder for them

Than it is for a camel’s head.

Through the eye of a needle

The poor do the same

Hoping to attain greater heights

I am life

That the rich wish to have all alone

Their wealth cannot buy me

When my sister death

Comes like a thief

I am sweet and bitter

I am eternal and brief

You can have me eternally if you

Know my secrets

”Love God, neighbours and thyself.”

FASHION

I have been from time immemorial

Not much has changed about me

Except a little modification here and there

I am enduring!

People care much about me

They follow hard after me

All in a bid to belong

In any society I find myself

I breed different classes of individuals

Many have gone nuts about me

With their hairdos like a porcupine

The nails like that of a tiger

With odd paintings

The mouth with variety of colours

The ears suffer from dangling ear rings

Check out the ‘apoola’

The skimpy things

That reveal dirty arses

And muscular thighs

The ‘tops’ that reveal

The pubic areas and annoying bellies

The Adams are not left out

Some go on dreadlocks

Some on very bushy hair

That reminds me of the globetrotters

Or better still, a golliwog

The timberlands that make one

Go-oosh at the slightest march

The baggy trousers and Fela shirts

That makes them look like a cartoon piece

I wonder why people

Have gone nuts about me

Why am I subjected to such ridicules?

Why all these hullabaloos

I wish they stopped it!

MISTER TEACHER

Where are you Mr. Teacher?

Dead or alive?

Awake or in slumber?

Wandering or at home?

Answer me, Mr. Teacher.

You, who are supposed,

To preach the gospel of morality

Preach that of immorality

You, who are supposed,

To work with every dedication

Now work with nonchalance

You, who are supposed

To be a builder and moulder of personalities

Are now a destroyer and demolisher of personalities

Mr. Teacher!

Your reward was said to be in heaven

Is it now on earth or in coven?

Marks you now award highly and indiscriminately

When payment is made highly

Handworks or crafts for primary school pupils

You have turned into money

Hard work for you is a thing of the past

Students no longer work for their success

Why? Because Mr. Teacher supplies answers

In the examination halls

What we witness now is organized expo.

Mr Teacher!

Your interest now lies in organizing lessons

And in the “special centers”

Where huge sums of money is paid

Students are no longer taught

Money is paid while answer are already made

Who shall fight this battle?

Mr. Teacher, do you know that

A lazy teacher breeds a lazy nation?

A corrupt teacher breeds a corrupt nation

A disciplined teacher breeds disciplined citizens

A hardworking teacher breeds hardworking citizens

A diligent dedicated teacher breeds dedicated

And diligent citizens

A productive teacher breeds productive citizens.

Mr. Teacher, tell me

Why have you chosen to abandon God

Who made you what you are

Why have you forgotten that biblical injunction

“Store up your treasures in heaven

Where they will not rust”

Look back to the yester years of your profession

And do something positive to bring back the

Teachers’ lost  glory.

THAT ACCIDENT                    

The screeching of the tyres

The collision of two

The somersaulting

The shouts from both ends

The thunderous landing

The cries and the pains

The blaring of the ambulance

The transfer of the victims

The news brought home

The trace to the hospital

The waiting by the bed

The fervent prayers

Eight days in comma

The still lying that perturbs

The occasional jerks

The contorted face that expresses pain

Looking at nothing in particular

Just gazing into the air

Alas! The inevitable!

Not a word to and fro

My world crashes

Wish it were a dream

But no! My beloved is gone

Gone forever!

Snatched away

Snatched by that accident.                     

DEATH

Oh Death! Who are you?

Speak out that people may hear!

You were thought to be good and loving

Little did I know that you bring

Sorrow too many and no joy

Oh ! How people dread you.

Oh Death! Who are you?

You bark like a dog

And roar like a lion

Your actions, like the sting of a scorpion

And your song, like the bite of the serpent

Oh Death! I took you to be a friend

When I thought your mission brings eternal rest

Little did I know how foolish I am

You take and keep on the fence,

Neither in the globe nor in heavens above

Justice delayed is justice denied.

Oh Death! Who are you?

You visit the joyful

Among the afflicted you are found in oblivion

You dare the rich, ignoring every bribe,

Gratification and security

The poor, you increase their sorrow

You sharpen, your sting at the peak of merriment

And at the peak of sorrow, you sleep eternally.

Oh Death! Who are you?

You make on the faces of those you visit

A gully to bear your waters

Your visit is always a dark funnel

Your visit marks history

It makes me behave and cry like a baby

To the children, your visit is an enigma.

Oh Death! Who are you?

You claim to be victorious

In every battle you have fought

Your type of victory is found in the oblivion

You have neither friends nor relatives.

Oh Death! Your sting has disappeared

You have lost your victory

Oh Death! You are a loser.

He has come to cleanse my face.