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3.0k · Feb 2015
Casa
I wanted to give my mom a home, one befitting of her love and kindness, one that would resonate her love and generosity one not made of cheap bricks of clay
A home where no rent is paid cause she is the landlady, one that exude class and comfort at any given time of the day
A home whose roof isn't made with thatch and bamboo that is soon to be ready to tinder or poorly baked bricks whose cracks offer shelter to lizards and rodents as they grow older
I wanted to give my dad a house made only of the finest stones and building materials
One whose landscape when you see will take your breath away and with it's exquisite recreational area

I worked hard to make and save money. I toiled and toiled oblivious to when the nights turned to day
So the best architects for the plan and sketches upfront I'd pay, survey and purchase a piece of land without delay

The foundation was laid, the harder I worked the faster I watched as the builders beautifully the edifice raised
And when I took my mom one day so see the level of progress we had made, she wouldn't stop showering me with thanks and praise
For the hard work and struggled I had put in to see
A house so beautiful a home to them was soon to be

I smiled as I inspected the furnished house as I proudly said to myself surely "This would make the best home yet for mom and dad"

Sweetly I slept until a loud noise startled me as I was awakened to the sound of sophisticated guns and bombs
I feared for my life as I clutched my knees with my arms trembling, my eyes closed, too scared to pray
The uproar was replaced with a disturbing silence as morning came and still petrified by fear I knew I had to go check the place where the house I built for my parents stood even though my life I knew I would be risking. Well, if I didn't I'm certain curiosity would have killed me either way.
So I ran out and called out to an "Okada"
He asked where I was heading to and I said Farin Gada
"Farin Gada, yarinya? Ba ki jin tsoron rain ki?" He queried in Hausa
So I explained to him that indeed I feared for my life but just needed to check the new high rising estate around that area if it was lucky enough to go unscathed.
He stared at me with worry in his eyes and motioned that I hop on his bike.
It was still very early when I got there and I jumped off his bike before he even stopped it's engine and ran to the place where the newly built house once stood like a maniac looking around, wondering if maybe I had forgotten the address to the place I had visited regularly in the last two years or if someone had moved it to a more secure location for me. I broke down. My eyes rained as my voice thundered through the rubble.
"Tashi in Kai ki gida" I heard the Okada man call out in Hausa. "Is no sape por this flace yi hakuri"
Reluctantly I got up moving slowly through the remains of my parents newly demolished home staring back at the place even as we rode away. The place I invested years of hardwork in order to see my loved ones lay in comfort as they stay "secured".
I broke down again when I tried to tell mom and dad the news and all my dad said as he tapped my back softly was, "hmmm... Mu Seyil Nen Rit, for it could have been worse but for God"
I had a lot to say but I was tongue tied. Our rent was due the next month with no certainty of a means to raise the money to pay up cause we had finished "our own house" and I had resigned from my place of work to run the supermarket I had opened beside the new edifice.
We had stocked the house with provisions and resources that won't run dry for months to come, everything was smooth and perfect until the terrorists attacked..
We were back at zero with no deed or title to our family name.
I was back to sharing the toilet with the other room and our guests and had to share the compound with our lousy neighbor who claims to be a "Pastor"
Mom's warm and gentle arms jolted me back to reality as she held me and said " we appreciate the time, resources, love and effort you put into this project" I cried out and said " it wasn't just a mere project mama, it was your home! A token of my gratitude for your love and selflessness and all the sacrifices you and dad made to make me what I have become"
I heard her sigh as she lifted up my face so I'd look into her eyes as she gently whispered to me"home isn't where bur who" a home isn't broken by plenty or lack, rumors or wars...
So baby do you know who my home is?"
I shook my head side to side as she continued, "it is you, your dad, your siblings, my grandchildren and all whom I have come to love.
I frowned, a little confused with some many questions running through my mind then she kissed my forehead and said "Ritjimwa, Home isn't a place where your heart leaves even when your feet does; Home is where the heart is and my home, is right here in your heart...
26022014
17:45
r3d
Some words in this piece are written in a local  dialect common to the northern regions of Nigeria called "Hausa" and "#MuseyilNen" in a dialect called Ngas from  the central part of Plateau state in Nigeria and it simply means "We thank God"
2.7k · Sep 2012
Distorted...
I tried to look without blinking,

I stared uninterruptedly for a long time

It got blurry for a while and it I almost couldn’t visualize for a splitsecond until I blinked and there it was staring right back at me

So I started  drinking,
Wine, spirits and a lil’ liquor,
And with every sip and every glass I still felt my heart sinking from the weight of my troubled thoughts..

Day in, day out I was always caught by myself thinking,
Pondering and wishing everything away..

It was  persistently adamant,
With it there was no going away, no shaking it off, no shrinking, no flinching..

Its sound piercing like tyres screeching,
Its sight gory like stealing in a lagos hood when its punishment inevitably would be lynching
It reminded me of an evangelist preaching,
Its effect was adverse 'cause classes I never attended about it whenever  they were teaching..

I got my self into this mess so I guess its time to stop *******
Brace myself up for some ditching and dissing
I had it, I messed up and now its missing
In its place this monster I have created, I nursed it, I raised it
Now I gotta accept it, live with it and deal with it
Its not just a part of me, its now whom I have become..
It taunts me, it haunts me and constantly reminds me that;
I am a bad habit, I am an addict, I am eccentric, I am a misfit, and I am not going anywhere cause I am unique and I am you..

-r3d-
2.7k · Sep 2012
Grotesquerie
My woe, on this cold summer’s eve’ begins,

It is a story about how my light gets dim,

My nightmare, my foe
dims my light and begins my tales of woe..

He walks into my room after he is left my needs to cater,
my smile gets bigger, my eyes brighter,
for there’s a chocolate in his hand, it makes my mouth water,
I scramble from my bed,
run into his arms
wit nothing but ‘mars’ running through my mind
sure he knows with that my homework gets done in a twitch,
with which
even math, comprehensively my tutor will teach
and this I’d rather eat
than find I, building a sand castle on a beautiful beach.

He’s cunning, He’s witty, he’s crafty,
He says you’ve been naughty
Naughty?
I cried, no! that can’t be!
I’ve cleaned my cuttina,
I’ve washed my socks,
I’ve done my homework and my chores,
How could I av bin naughty?
I queried, as my lips grew pouty.
Nonetheless, this monster is haughty
Moreover, my mood makes him happy.

Suddenly he grabs me and says,
Kiss me on my lips
and it’s all yours to nibble and eat,
I shudder and begin to retreat,
then he calls and coaxes
He breaks into an evil smile
Revealing his teeth like axes,
I get frantic and am about to squeal
Wen he says: Hey! I was just kidding!
Here’s your chocolate, eat and get some sleep!
I mumble my gratitude as my body relaxes
With my treasure in my hand, I get ecstatic.

He leaves the room, without my notice,
only to creep back in, when sweetly I sleep,
peacefully and innocently without defenses.

He leaves the room, without my notice,
only to creep back in, when sweetly I sleep,
peacefully and innocently without defenses.

He climbs into my bed and begins to touch,
wit his hands strong and rough,
he raises my dress,
I flinch, as on my thighs his enormous hands rest,
prepared this tiny frame to soil,
His heartbeat fast against his chest
sets his blood to boil,
His built and domineering figure
upon my tiny frame falls
I wake abruptly
I wail out helplessly to an empty house,
I scream, till my voice I lose,
I struggle, I fight, I kick as his lips he licks
and crushes my pretty ones
In a violent kiss.

Our dogs howl,
My cat meows,
the wind violently blows
in an attempt to carry out my plea to an empty street,
where I live and this monster’s deaf ears fall ma desperate plea

c’mon! don’t be a spoilt sport!
he blurts,
it’s going to be al pleasure.
just but a lil’ hurt
I cried, I pleaded, I cursed.
I closed ma eyes and in agony, I wrothe
right at the time, a rose withers and falls to the ground
only to be trampled upon unnoticed by the soldier whose boots this has crushed,
just as this hurt became intense, my ordeal begins,
uncertainties unfurl
helplessly at the corner of my bed I curl,
as slowly my feelings get numb
and to those hurtful words my ears deaf turn.

-r3d-
2.3k · Oct 2012
SYNESTHESIA
CAN'T YOU FEEL..
The gentle sound of my heartbeat,  suddenly pounding with all the intent of tearing me apart-like a lady having anxiety attacks with no help within reach?

CAN'TYOU SEE
This sparkle in ma eyes, suddenly replaced by the look of fear aroused by images deeply ingrained in my memory, Memories you created that now torture even though you meant them to teach?

CAN'T YOU HEAR?
This melodious tune turned a melancholic symphony created by my wailing n sobbing,caused by a voice once therapeutic now at its faintest sound I flinch?

CAN'T YOU SMELL?
The stench of hatred as from us it emanates and slowly it spreads into ds crowded space we share, as little by little, layers of enmity fills the air we breath?

If all these you knew then your senses would interprete

That at your touch I cower; From a feeling once sweet and tender that now drains every ounce of strength and leaves me without power.
That at the sight of these I choose blindness; Away from the ethereal face that at the sight of, leaves me numb
As to your smell I get nauseous; so nauseous
That I taste the bitterness of heartbreak
And hear the sad music my heart will play at the sound of your heart bidding mine farewell

So please, I humbly plead, let me go!
But if break my heart you must n breach my trust,
Then let all we ever shared be counted a loss and from our memories be swept away like dust,

Please!  Be fair in your dealings with me I plead
Be kind and just...
For this heart has only started to heal,
Please don't let it rot or rust..

-r3d-
1.4k · Sep 2012
The Loop
Swiveling chair
Clicking mouse
Clattering keyboard
Replaced by the steady glare at the monitor until it is naught but a blank stare,
a blank stare that begets a long pause
You wish could last forever with you lost in it;
Lost in your benevolent and untainted thoughts
Before the abrupt jolt out of your reverie
keeps you yearning for the luxury and solitude of your room…
Times flies and it’s almost the close of business
Yet, your table is in such a mess
On it, lies a pile of work undone
Tons that require your expert attention with little time left to tidy up
You don’t plan to work overtime
'Cause if you gambled that, you won’t make it in time to catch the bus
So you pack your bags and hurry down the stairs in time to catch the bus
Thinking of how to make up for the time lost all through your journey home
You can’t help the thought that taunts as it lingers.
Blaming you for leaving a pile of work undone
Reminding you that if and if only you had concerted for just a minute longer
You could have only left behind papers the cleaners can trash with a toss.
-r3d-
1.4k · Sep 2012
I am
I am a Christian
I believe in the supremacy of God
I falter every minute
I discern His love is amazing
His mercies ever enduring
His loving kindness immense
I am unworthy, underserving and penitent
Yet, a dog I am always returning to my *****;
The wiles and guilt I was purged of, the minute before
I doubt him,
I lose hope, I get impatient I fail to recall
I am an integral part of the ore
A metal, a mineral buried in my father, the Solid Rock
He who will break my heart only to remind me that He would always be there to fix it
My catch when I trip and fall
My pain He will soothe only if I trust Him to ease it
In Him, I live, breath and have my being
But most times  in momentary pleasures
I get lost, greed engulfs me and I am limited by lust
I forget the king is my Father and my heart is His greatest treasure
Sometimes it takes a sweeping storm to remind me,
He is my anchor, my lifeguard ,my trust
But mostly He is, I am...
-r3d-
1.2k · Sep 2012
Perspectives
From where they stood
She was a juvenile who needed detention
From where I stand,
I see a lost child seeking attention
From what they heard,
Her words were harsh and threatening
From what I hear,
She didn’t mean for her words to harm, it was a clear case of misunderstanding
From where they looked,
They saw a girl who was overweight and wasn’t easy on the eye
From where I look,
I see beyond her flaws, a loving lady whose deepest feelings have been anesthetized with lies
They said to her,
You are a waste of space, you voice is too husky and you lack technique
I wish I could say to her,
No one else can give the world what you have to offer, your voice is different and your style is unique

Now she feels she doesn’t have anything to live for,
They had assassinated her mentally and she was going to help them physically
She had carefully planned how she would execute her suicide
She was headed for doom ‘cause her fate she let them decide
Helplessly I watch from outside.
Locked out and powerless to put a stop to this
I watched her put the rope around her neck as I screamed and implored her not to.
If only she could hear me, she might have had a chance to see through my eyes that life was hers to live and enjoy, that she had every right to be happy, that she could dare to be different and it was okay for her to dream big dreams even if they never materialized
-r3d-
Life for me is like a box, it can be seen from at least 6 different perspectives and no matter which we may be shoved to, we still have other perscpectives we can choose to see life from..
1.0k · Sep 2012
Incertitude
With us uncertainty is our only certainty
Doubt the bedrock of our surety
We see each other and we smile
But it lasts only but for a while
This insanity our emotion brings that costs us our sanity
It’s like alcohol, our sobriety
We both are big enough we are our own community
As right as this feels, it’s a wrong in our society
We are trouble to them, the sign of a calamity.
So we see in secret so they we would not berate
We love even more sweetly and oh! It feels so great
I respect my love and L’amour this feeling deeply reciprocates
Where this love boat us will take
We have no clue and leave it all to fate
And while we wait,
We'd love, smile, kiss and date
-r3d-
1.0k · Sep 2012
A Canticle
The heavens is your throne
The earth your footstool
Earthlings you molded
From clay and then ribs
You gave us some of your air and the right to breath
All I have belongs to you
From my lovely nose to the marrow in my bones
All these you own
So why do I keep getting your attention?
Why do you even care or bother to take away my fears?
What can I offer you when you have it all?
I know what's right and hear my spirit cautioning just when I decide to do wrong
I push you away
and when I do your absence creates a presence about me
A presence that takes over
whenever I refuse to listen to the voice of my conscience
I try to hide
In my folly I feel wise
Forgetting you are omnipresent.
How beautifully have you painted the rainbows!
You landscaped the earth with the flowers and tall trees
The wild geese and birds you never fail to feed
You whose hands are stretched out towards the earth
On Whose palms I sit
Please don't turn your back against me
It’s your face I seek
I have failed you once again
all my promises to you I am too human to keep
Forgive me Lord
I fail to mirror your attributes though a spitting image of you I am
Please let Momma and Papa tarry
If only till three score and ten
Let them relish for tirelessly they’ve toiled
fill their hearts with foy as their third generation in the arms they carry
You asked that I ask
Cause you are equal and more so greater than the task
One more thing I ask of you
when they you call unto thee
That their exit be as they wish
Most peacefully as they bid your footstool goodbye
You know all things and even before the world begun
It was powerless to hide its end from you
You don’t only know the end from the beginning;
You are the beginning and the end
to my humble plea I beseech you, your precious ears do lend
~r3d~
694 · Oct 2012
Fear...
I can't sleep
The thought of another beside you is like sand in both my eyes.
Feed me with trust, starve my doubt to death.
In the presence of confidence I fear..
The heaviness that comes with it is impossible to bear
Blur these dark thoughts with the light of your love..
Cloud my judgement with the transparency of the words you speak unadulterated and true..
I'm a piece of paper torn in two
Feed me with trust and stick to me.
You are my glue..

-r3d-
459 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 8)
The Challenge
(Day 8)
Family
To me is everything, bloodline, friends who stick closer than brothers, my nieces and nephews I cant help myself but gush about particularly Gracie, Maran Khimwa.
Gracie came to us not only as a blessing but also an answered prayer to her eldest brothers only birthday wish/prayer request the year before.
She arrived the year after exactly two months after his birthday, I guess even “I AM” gives belated birthday gifts.
She came and changed our perception about a lot of things, she strengthen our faith and taught us deep gratitude and love that transcended all the levels we had reached before  her arrival.
Born with some congenital disorders, some of which included;
Holes in her heart, upturned feet, a cleft palate and a tongue tie, still we had no reason to complain and refused to despair because we knew THE ONE whose blessings were incapable of causing pain  how much more adding sorrow.
Through it all, you’d never miss a smile across Gracie’s face, the almost constant ins and out of hospitals for surgeries and treatments resulting from complications and developments arising as she grew, though I write this from her hospital bed, she still smiles through the pain and happily says cheese when she sees me trying to take a selfie with her.

This post isn’t seeking for sympathy but to encourage someone out there who might be broken, struggling with a burden he/she thinks is too heavy to bear or has been overcome by fear of the cares he/she can’t seem to cast.

Please know that hard as it seems, “THE ONE” who has brought you thus far will see you through it all to a beautiful finish if only you’d let Go and let Him for He is God over everything.

With Gracie we had our fears and doubts,
Will she be ever walk?
Will the holes ever close?
Will she ever speak?
These were some of our fears amongst others and we feared to even share them but we never were afraid to tell The greatest Physician.
Now Gracie not walks but runs as her legs keep getting stronger and her gait better with each stride she takes
The holes in her heart? Miraculously closed just before she was getting ready to go for surgery.
Because of the cleft palate she couldn’t be breastfed and anytime she had to be spoon-fed it had to be done with great care so she doesn’t choke or suffocate but now she can not only eat but by herself.
Her speech keeps improving with each passing day and she’s even started school!

Gracie isn’t only an epitome of God’s unending grace but a daily reminder of His unfailing and unending love for us and towards us.
She reminds me to be thankful with that smile she wears like her skin in-spite of all the pain she’s gone through and at the moment is still experiencing.

Every November reminds me of how the Heaven’s deemed it fit to bless us unfit as we are with the unfathomed miracle called “Gracie” & I with another Miracle in my life (I’d save this story for the appointed time).
How our faith was tested, our love strengthened and our bond as a family has fortified.
We learned to join our faith with my sister’s and that’s how we defied gravity as we pulled heaven to earth.
I hope someone has been encouraged & has her/his faith renewed.
If you wanna give up, please know that God will never give up on you.
I hope this story will remind someone that
“GOD IS NOT DEAD”
Salaam!
r3d
11117
13:45

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipreten­dtobe
#realrawandaimple
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr­3d
376 · Jan 2016
S H A R D S
Nothing French but somewhat sensual, surely can't be termed as just a show of friendship
I kept away cause it seemed he wanted more and his eyes spoke of desire buried deep that my smile might have unearthed.

It felt like regret, yearning and fragments of us we forgot to clean up had come to meet
It was a reunion of chaos, torn hearts we hadn't stitched up in time, unspoken feelings bordering on closure

As much as we craved closure, we resisted breaking the last straw and so we walked away from each other, leaving the doors ajar and throwing the keys away as we walked out..
09:15
r3d
18/1/16
363 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day18)
The Challenge
(Day 18)
What is it you stand to gain?
Playing with hearts like cards, is this a game?
This isn’t poker, this isn’t snooker, why you playing with these  hearts as if you’re playing soccer?
This pain my heart can no longer nest
Can’t believe I was a pawn in this game of chess
How did I get caught up in this mess
Believing you were pure good nothing else
Alas you are evil with the “d” I would belittle your cruelty if I called you anything less

Who takes a breastfeeding child from its mother only to dump it in a slum with no one to cater to?

Who cuts open a stitched laceration only to watch it rot so a limb gets amputated.

When did love become so merciless and unkind?

When has God ever played games with His likeness, their minds?

Why say I do before a crowd of witnesses only to act like you don’t behind closed doors?

Why promise forever when life with you makes a visit from death better?

Why pretend you’re gentle a dove,  when you’re a vulture, all claws?

Why wear a robe of integrity when the skin underneath is only known for breaking the law?

What’s the prize?
Why do all these hearts have to pay the price?

Are you ever going to end this cycle
Is this going to be an endless vicious circle?


r3d

#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
345 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 3)
THE CHALLENGE
(Day 3)
For many years I've fought to numb this pain
Each time I see you I break down again
Since that day you vowed you must know me, nothing has been the same...

Today I ran into you again
It's glaring nothing has changed

You are yet to be cured of the selective amnesia you only have when it comes to the sordid story of You & I
Still you can't look me for a micro second in the eye

You still tell that story so well, you must have found a pearl of your version of truth in your haystack of a lie,

Now you even got a daughter and a wife?
Have you really turned a new leaf, started a good life?
Or maybe you're just as good at this as your truthful lies.
I hate myself for letting you leave alive
How I turned a coward at the dying minute
Why I dropped that knife. I should have dropped it in you just above your last rib.

Could it have ended this rife?

Today when I was greeted by your wife
With a cheerful smile and a warm embrace
I wanted to tell her you are a disgrace
Tell her all you'd done but I couldn't, who was I to touch His anointed, a child of grace
I was the unsaved and angry, always allowing the devil to use me as a source of strife.

No one would believe me anyway
Every one I tried to tell in the past shut me up with a stern look as they wished me away.

Why didn't I turn on the light when you said I shouldn't
Maybe the size of that humongous sin that tore and filled me within would have scared me screaming into the night until someone came and told me it was alright but I was tonguetied all through the night

You said it was cause you loved me and I knew love was right
This one time love felt wrong worse than these words I'm fighting hard to write

You robbed me at six,
Of a cradle I was only familiar with yet so much I miss

I still cringe when they talk about ***
Remember, the last time you visited and took my number saying you'd call?
Never again did I imagine for your wiles I'd fall
But I fell for your lies again in desperate hope praying you'd call or text
Saying you're sorry cause you were a mess
But you really are a mess and lies are your emblem, deceit your crest
Do you really have peace? Do you ever find rest?

Look how you walked in today!
Your aunt's favorite nephew whom she had called to pray, unknown to her on her daughter you'd preyed.

Tirelessly for this one she'd waited upon and toiled
And that's the one you chose to soil?
Her essence, your spoil?

Oh Saul! How do you pretend to be a saint like Paul
All you've done is taint that pulpit you climb when you ought to be sent back to the pit from whence you came so maybe your cold heart might get warm from it's heat

I see how protective you are of that daughter you dote
How much this I loathe
The raging anger bloats

And some days I pray that like me someone right before your eyes will rob you and tear her up like you did me
The thought of it fills me with glee

Other days I wanna be there while I wish this dread upon you and watch you plea like I did for him to set her free...

Others days I pray for you
I pray when I say I forgive you it really will be true

But right now
I wanna be your guillotine
I wanna slice you thin
Watch you bleed
Bleed to death as to the vultures your carcass I leave to feed.

For your remains the earth will reject
And maybe even maybe your carcass the vultures and crow might neglect

r3d
17:27
27/10/17

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realrawandaimple
#we­learnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
343 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 15)
I've failed you once again

I really am that wild one that can't be tamed
It's not you this time, I'm to blame

The picture of my dreams are too humongous to fit  your frame

Your excuses have long  become lame
I've found a shelter, a hedge from your cruel reign

There will be a draught from your abuses that never cease to rain
Your insanity got me wondering if I ever was sane
You and I cease to be, nothing will ever be the same
This time I choose me, I have trained hard enough to beat you at  your drain-game

I am the grand prize, I, will I claim

Never again with your toxic love will I remain

I'd aim to  fail you again
This time with showers of love I'd pour on myself to burn out your toxic flames

I"d fail you once and for all, rather than fail  myself
Never again!

What's there to lose when all i stand to do is gain?

I've picked me off of your shelf

This time I'm doing me, stop looking for flaws in everyone else

Find you again, do it for yourself
r3d

#yararewa
#northernstar
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
311 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 17
The Challenge
(Day 17)

The villain was once a victim
The abuser once was the abused
The bully once was bullied
The  hunter was once a prey

These are the ones who neither possessed the will power nor the required support to fight the negative effects of their experiences

These are the ones whose voices were drowned by the screams of stigma

These are the souls left to sail away in the rivers of anger and hate.

Who is to blame?
Society?
Environment?
Religion?
Tradition?
Ignorance?
How do we break this cycle?
How do we end this vicious circle?
The villian, the victim must all be helped.

No one should be left out, all deserve to be helped.

r3d
#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
288 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 21)
The Challenge (Day 21)

Words!
The reason I ended up in this ward.

Words!
The reason I threw away my self worth.

Words!
In whom I hope to find the strength to break free

Words!
The reason I must flee

Words!
In the beginning was the Word

When I was created I was made of God,
I was with God.

A ward of God until I lost my way
With my reckless abandon and the things I failed to do or say

I made a cocktail of truth laced with lies to top the mix
Believing my deceit was made up with just enough wit
With which I could make a deft bargain

With the devil, He said riches and wealth were mine to gain

I took the bargain.
Thinking I was smart enough to beat him at his game
Swift enough to cross the finish line without her burning gaze realizing I had switched lanes

I was rewarded with shame
The excruciating pain
Oh how this became the death of me!

Words!
Rit!
My word!
Not the writ of law
This Rit must be an exception to the writ of law

Words!
STOP! The word that might've saved me from this castle walls.
The ward I war to break free from
Oh! If only I had listened
Listen! Whenever I was asked to be Silent..
These anagrams!
Silent a cause, Listen the effect
I never knew cause the only thing my eyes fed off were the sights my eyes heard on Instagram.

I had taken enough hits
I was deemed unfit
But the comments all read "lit"
No one calls me dope anymore in this ward
You dare not say that Word in here, lest you end up in ropes

280 characters are one to many to say "I quit"

Words sentenced me to this ward
Words showed me no mercy
Words made me
By words, my death I'd meet

r3d

roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
265 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 19)
The Challenge
(Day 19)
“RITJIMWA:
Something good/beautiful, joy has come to them!“
Something eccentric, something whose drama might be considered Oscar worthy, something unbelievably beautiful, something awesome, something amazing... for everyone reading this, you've got to be atleast one of this to someone, you've got to mean more than all these words to a couple of people.to say the least.
So next time someone tries to be condescending or silly, look them square in the face, and then smile and walk away with your head high knowing you're beautiful!
And you owe no one an explanation cause your smile has done enough already.
Remember, sometimes you'd forget but try to remember as often as you can that no one else in the world can offer the uniqueness you've got!

#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
256 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 4)
THE FOIL

He hurt me

The pain was bad

So bad it was excruciating and left me wanting  to return him the favor

Even if it was at least a figment of all the pain he had caused this frail heart

So I started to scheme

I began to plot and I gave it a theme

A theme of revenge

I would reverse time, I planned

I would take him back to 1983

Where I happened at the Russian Vostok Station

I called subterfuge

Asking her to be my refuge

On this chivalry quest

I welcomed him back into my home

And did all that I had done when I had loved him

Only this time I did even more

With a burning desire his heart to freeze

This surely my pain would ease

I thought to myself

After all, that’s what he had done to mine

So I acted like all was fine

Better than it had ever been

I cooked him dinner

A three course every time

I never asked him for flowers or for a dime

I wasn't fazed when he stayed out too late

I just went about pretending to love him

And with such pretense came my fate

A fate once I came to understand I would love to hate

Days turned into weeks

And the weeks became months

It was just a game of revenge

Nothing was going to change my mind

I was a vulture, out to scavenge

Or so I presumed.

As time passed,

I didn’t have to make a conscious effort to pretend

I was slowly becoming all I was pretending to be

I gasped and fear gripped me at the realization

I was a creature of habit

Usain Bolt when it came to running in circles

Here I was back to where it all began

Back to doing that which had gotten this senseless heart broken

With every intent to please

The person whose carcass I had hoped on to feed

I was “She-lock”

I yearned for a pound of his flesh or maybe just a little more

But I had failed like I did the time before

I had become everything I was pretending to be

I had repeatedly caught myself sabotaging this mission

I waltz gleefully as I make his dinner

I find myself deserted by sleep on those nights he came home late from work

I had butterflies whenever I heard him call my name

I had lost once again

I, in desperate hope had fought another losing game

I had fallen, fallen not just so hard but this time I had fallen in too deep

How could I betray myself?

How could I let him defeat me once again?

I had fallen in love with him again

And sadly this time around, he was also stupidly in love with me.

All my plans have been trounced

I never planned to surrender but I have been shackled by the chains of love,

The only soft spot my heart has for his…




#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realrawandaimpl­e
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
255 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 12)
The Challenge
(Day 12)

When you pour the liquid content of a 35cl soda into a 50cl bottle it will never fill it up
If you pour it into a 15cl bottle it will fill it up and overflow.
Same thing with when you pour your love, energies, vibes or share your space, sanctuary and essence with the wrong people.
You’d either end up being too much or never enough.
If this is the case with you please find a way to detach yourself from this person before the damage becomes irreparable.
No matter how much you give someone who doesn’t value you or holds you in contempt it will never be enough.
Save yourself before you start to second guess your worth and shatter your esteem.
The only way to help a toxic person is not to shield such a person but be firm and ensure the person seeks the help he/she needs.
This is a show of love.
Love will always want you to be the best and have the best you can get and not let you plunge into troubled waters while it watches you drown without lending a helping hand.
We cannot give what we don’t have which is why we must always check ourselves and be accountable for and to ourselves before daring to do  same for others.
May the week ahead bring us all peace and fulfilment.
Salaam!

r3d
12:35

#museyilnen  
#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
238 · Oct 2017
The Challenge ( Day 1)
It was the morning joy never came, shame’s flame burned bright like the sun on a Sunday at noon.
Nothing from this day on will ever be the same, nothing will numb this pain.
It was her birthday party, hosted by a group of well meaning friends who wanted to honour her and share such a beautiful time with her and though her birthday was on a Monday, the party held on a Friday night. It was barbecue and drinks then off to dance it off at one of the most popular and populous night club in that city.
She started early before the events scheduled for the day. The time came to boogie down and she was so excited that she mixed all kinds of drinks without thinking of the repercussions. Not for once how much more twice, after all she was a heavy weight with a high threshold.
So, a shot of bourbon, a swig of beer, a shot of tequila salt and lime all taken with hearty cheers.
She flirted with the *****, and when she returned and the bottle was gone she’d *** with tonic, a slice of lemon on the rocks.

She had started indulging long after her peers. I guess the pressure from peers caught up with her just when they were about to give up on her ever joining them on this vice.
When she decided to join the team, she still had control. She always was the one they’d depend on to take them back home safe and ensure no one tries any BS with her clique. This was when she started battling with insomnia and some crazy arthritic pain. So when the meds’ won’t work, she’d chug the bottle of *** or whiskey as if it were water and as if it could quench her thirst once and for all.
For every time she increased her level of consumption the more she wanted to transcend that level with an excuse as a justification for such an unruly behaviour.
“What created such an urge some days”? She’d wondered.  She tried to practice the pause before she drank up all the liquor that helped her drown her cares and fears because she was afraid she might drown in them if she didn't.

She was worse off when she started to work with a company that brews and sells all kinds of alcohol with access to a bar in the office.
You can only imagine what that made of her. I am certain if a light weight drew out some of her blood and sniffed, it would knock such a person out.
Things got worse and each time things  seemed to be getting better. She’d find herself swimming against the tidal waves of sobriety, seeking to safely carry her to the shores, far into an ocean of bottles and a sea of hangover whose storms are best cured by sailing back into the ocean.
After barbecue came the time to go dancing and while at the club, of course more drinks were ordered!
How would they know it was her party if there wasn’t champagne and other bottles on the table? How would they know her boyfriend and his friends were loaded and had the place on a lock down?
Tipsy and happy, she noticed a guy had been looking at her and asking her to come. She totally ignored him.
Later, he came and whispered some obscenities into her ears. She was so mad that she told him off and her friends who saw this happen asked him to go away.
At this point she needed some air, her head was spinning and she felt like the walls of the club were closing in on her. Being badly claustrophobic, she ran out, almost stumbling on herself and found a quiet place to sit.
This was a late bloomer who had always caught up on things late and so she was with the effect of alcohol whenever she indulged, she almost always took more than she could handle at the time, sometimes she felt the effect only but the day after.
She was trying to find her way back inside when she realised her legs suddenly couldn’t carry her weight,
Out of nowhere came the stalker, he held her arm assuring her he was going to help her back in.
That was the last thing she could remember before she felt a weight on her, a sharp pain in her back that woke her up from a stone poking her back and a *******.
Flail and helpless she begged as her speech slurred and realised this person wasn’t going to stop anyway so there was no point pleading.
She gave up trying as she laid there like one paralysed, whose condition had slurred her speech when she heard her name, she mustered her last strength to shout a reply before she saw her friend scream and ask “are you okay? What did he do to you?” He was trying to sneak and run when she caught him and called her boyfriend and a few close ones and they started to beat him without even asking what happened. Her boyfriend held her crying.
She begged him to please let him go, embarrassed, feeling useless and afraid that if more people gathered she’d be stigmatised.
She broke it off with her boyfriend because even when they had normal lovers’ tiff, she’d attribute it to events from the past and he was drained trying to convince her that it had nothing to do with it.
She lost her voice, her pride and her confidence.
She had beaten herself too hard and was still on it.
She blamed herself for how much she had had and all the events that followed and sank into a depression that seemed to spur her to drink more and not mind what might happen afterwards. She was alive but she was done living.
Her smiles became a veil to hide her sadness, her laughter cries for help, her grief so humongous she thought she’d never find relief so reareashe’d drown herself in more alcohol till even the bottles of liquor feared that she’d be the death of them.
25/10/17
r3d
#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realrawandaimple
­#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
Taking up a challenge to write stories about mulyaelf and those I love for the next 31 days. All observations and the likes are welcome.
220 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 2)
There is his cabana
I laid my head on his shoulder
He whispered something to me and it made me begin to wonder
Wonder why something suddenly didn't feel right  
"Did you ever read "Anthills of the Savannah" he asked in his rich textured baritone voice
Jolting me outta my reverie with a tiny shudder
"Yes, but never really found it captivating"
I said
What's your take on the book I queried?
"I never really enjoyed it myself"
I knew he had a lot more he wanted to say to me cause art was always his window
I turned to catch his gaze and said "so spill"
"What?" He asked
"Oh please Harry! Miss me with the BS and tell me what's on your mind"
I only forgot his pet names when I needed to get something outta him
He heaved a sigh, certainly not one of relief
And looked away from me.
"What's wrong babe?" I asked trying hard to conceal my worry

"I'm sorry, this wasn't what I promised you when when we married"
"And I could never love another like I do you"

"What are you on about?" I asked my voice trembling barely above a whisper.


"She's carrying my baby...
I'm sorry but it happened just once and now she's carrying my baby"

"Who is she" I whimpered
Seeing as we never had a child of our own .

Everything inside of me came crumbling down


Minutes passed, the silence was too loud
Almost deafening

I tried to steady my breathing but my heart was beating so hard I feared it might break free from outta  my chest.


"Harry Ese Williams! Who is she?"
This time around my voice betrayed me
And just when he was about to respond

My bestfriend walks in, our eyes locked  and I knew he didn't even have to utter a word for me to know who it was he was talking about.

r3d
10:09

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realr­awandaimple
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
197 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 20)
The Challenge
(Day 20)

Reject me
Despise me
Ridicule me
Dear foe
Compound my woes
I'm in the throes of a reckless abandon
Be merciless, be brutal, this slavery leads to freedom
Cast the first stone, lay the foundation
Let me feel the burning hate in your eyes melt the ice in my soul and start a fire inside
Tell me I won't amount to nothing, tell me I can never be easy on any eye
Say all the nasty things don't mince words, be precise
Hurt me, throw me out
I'd thrive on your rejection, let me strive alone
I need your rejection to be the cornerstone

r3d

#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
195 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 16)
The Challenge
(Day 16)

I'm hungry! Famished! Starving and I don't wanna be satisfied.

I wanna always hunger for more

Yearn for more

Strive for more

Be more

Love some more

Forgive some more

Learn some more.


I hunger for more confidence

For prudence

For divine guidance

To lean on you alone.


I hunger to keep running after you

To bring to life that vision you gave to me

To inspire another

To try again

To breath again

To be great

And to in turn inspire another


I hunger to stand tall

To rise to higher heights after every fall

To look beyond the prison of my mind and to break down its walls

Walls of fear

Of pride, of anger, of hate

And to never get sated till this hunger becomes the death of me..


r3d

#yararewa
#northernstar
#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
190 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day14)
The Challenge
(Day 14)

Come on in
Or get the hell out!

Don't stand in the doorway like a ****** footmat

Say you will
Or say you won't  Keep your "I just mights" to your self so we don't end up having a fight  
Say good morning,good afternoon or goodnight

Say the truth, oh please say it right
Don't lie beneath canopies of lies saying its diplomacy

Your indecision is a decision in itself
It's amusing you don't even know what you're about

Please get out and don't forget to shut the door on your way out!!

r3d

#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
182 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 7)
The Challenge (Day 7)

Woman,
No woe, no *****
Descendant of eve, made from man’s rib
Man of Sand, then the Creators breathe
Not the devil, not to perpetuate evil


Why do you sow discord among yours
When you have been empowered to sew hearts hate has rent with love?

Woman,
Feminine, feline
Made to create, bear fruits
Fruits that nourish
Not to poison another to perish

Woman,
When will you realise that when you tear down one of ours, we all fall down?

Woman,
You’re called;
                          Mother, Daughter,
Teacher, Lover,  Healer, Partner


Not killer
Don’t ****** ’er
Not backstabber

Don’t Torment ‘er
Not Dementor
Don’t mock’er

Not naysayer
Don’t Hat’er


Woman,
When you sit among man and slay your sister with your tongue
Just before you let him see beneath your thong
Do you think he’d treat you as royalty when you can’t practice loyalty?

Remember just as he sat to spew venom about her
So would he with another about you.


Besides he sees you and your sister as same
This stupidity won’t change if you think you’re a saint and your sister is to blame..

Woman!
You are your sisters biggest problem
And  with her lies your solution.

Nothing will work if you don’t agree to walk with her

Woman,
When you stand for one, you stand for all.
If it can happen to one, others can also take the fall.

Woman,
Stand firm so another will have the courage to stand tall.


r3d
311017
17:49

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe­
#realrawandaimple
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
168 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 11)
You left before we could even begin,
A lig ht that shone bright but burnt out too fast leaving me behind in the dark

Ending the thought of a beginning,
Losing a war I thought I was winning.
a beginning whose end was no where in sight

With the words goodbye
I knew we had lost our last chance to try
Try to start
Before we part

You left and you left behind meaning
Meaning than hurts while it's healing

Healing old wounds and piercing through the vessel that blood pumps with a ******'s accuracy making its kills fast and painless

It must have been the way my being your eyes caressed

As your lips took mine in a communion of the unworthy but blessid

Watching you walk away
With the words our eyes held but our lips would dare not say

I knew you weren't going stray
Cause soon again, in your arms my head will find a place till my hairs turn gray..

r3d
16205

#museyilnen  
#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
167 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 6)
The Challenge (Day 6)

A gypsy she was
Constantly tipsy because
Her fantasies paused
The curse her realities had caused

****** Mary was Hersolutiongel before *******
Devil’s cut her femgasm if she ever wanted to hit ******

Always numb
Until after a few shots of bourbon
Wild she’d turn
Haunting her preys with desire as from her touch, they burn
She leaves soon as she ****
Breathless, they lay long after she’s gone
The mystic menace she’s become
Some say, she once was Queen
Whose crown shone bright and her smile a beam
Until her king was slain by his twin
So his throne he would claim

Held down by her guards on his command
She must be his Queen was his demand
She spat on him and cursed his grave
A slap, she recieved across her face
taking her against her will to satisfy his rage
She writhed in pain
Her cries drowned in her drought of tears
He had cursed her with shame
Timid, she’d become imprisoned by fear
Months after uncontrollably she bled
So much her poker faced midwife admitted she was scared
The queen had lost her seed
With which went her appetite and sleep
One day the new king was found dead
His body missing a head
The kingdoms was filled with dread
And the queen panicked she might be silenced so she fled.

A gypsy she became
The haunted became the hunter
The best in the game
r3d
30/10/17
14:15

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realrawandaimp­le
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
154 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 9)
Breath the fire of thy rage
As ye sing out to millions from this stage
Step out from behind the curtains
That threaten to hide thy victories and make known to the world know thy fears
Caress the mic, sing till ye hear nothing
Breath the fire of thy rage  
As ye sing out to millions from this stage  
Step out from behind the curtains  

That threaten to hide thy victories and make known to the world know thy fears
Caress the mic, sing till ye hear nothing
Nothing but sounds that echo as the speakers boom in ecstasy  Dumb to the crowds loud cheers Others dream whilst thou live out their fantasies  
Preach! Speak out! there's a soul willing for thy word to teach
Thou hast become more, more than the sum of thy mistakes
Now success is within reach, and soon thou wilt reach thy peak
All didst they to break thee couldn't do nothing but make  
Make thee invincible  
Formidable
Audible  
Enough to be heard by those mediocrity made lose the sounds of sight and by those whose minds have become too numb to feel...    

r3d  

#museyilnen  
#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
139 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 13)
So I’ve been here wondering what have I gotten myself into?

Sigh, I’m gonna follow through till the last shot drops so I’m not even about to tap out before this is over.
Life is love and like love, it has its challenges, beautiful times, hurtful events, days when you just wanna give up on that spouse/partner/sibling/friend who seems to have repeatedly gotten on your 12 cranial nerves, hurt you on a regular even when he/she fails to realise this or says it’s totally unintentional. Some days the reverse is the case and you are the villain.


Life like love has its phases and some of these most shy away from without realising these are some of the most crucial experiences, these are the moments that shape our destinies, our purpose cause every decision at these focal points can alter a lot about your existence.
There are so many sensitive topics and challenges we face but are afraid to speak out for fear of stigmatisation and also because we would rather not have to deal with the heart wrenching feeling that justice might not be served.

Anger is deadly when it gets the best of you, especially when you lose all control to it.
Anger is mostly abusive if it isn’t channeled appropriately.

Abuse of any kind has an adverse effect on the general well being, growth and confidence of its victims as well as their outlook on life in a grotesque manner that most never get an opportunity to straighten.


Alcohol Addiction among other substances abused are steady on the rise.
These things give us a false grasp at desperate hope/lessness but once the effect of such substances wear thin like a boomerang we turn in to despair like a warm bed after a cold day of hard labour hence using these substances over and over again as a resolve whilst acting irrationally and blaming it on these substances/vices.
Though most times we use them as a subterfuge; unashamedly display behavioural patterns we are too cowardly to gather enough courage to exihibit without these things as happy triggers.
Due to the frequent or constant use of these substances in our system, we depend on their use to get by, but do we really get by, since we take these things till we get inebriated or high to the point that we become a hazard even to ourselves?
Most of the things are resultant effects of causes influenced by choices we make and the impact of such decisions truncate our progress or stagnate it, as the case may be.
If a loved one begins to manifest irrational behavioural patterns; an extrovert suddenly becomes recluse or an introvert suddenly loud and overbearing, please find a way to reach out to such a person to find the root cause of the problem & don’t be surprised if they are aggressive cause it’s a normal reaction with persons battling with some type emotional trauma or battling with any type of addiction.

It could be that someone you know who might have outta the blues started to act funny, irrationally or suddenly wouldn’t wanna do anything or be able to complete simple tasks, though such a one was a go getter before the appearance of these weird behavioural patterns.

Most times instead of reaching out we begin to spread word about how these persons have changed though when we meet with them we share hugs and smiles, some “fiends” distant themselves from such persons and never reach out to find out why the sudden change.

This is not what they need from us as this may push them further into their cocoon.
Hurt and confused persons are usually defensive, they are prone to spewing hateful/hurtful words.

These people need love the most though they seem undeserving of it.
Help a friend get help today.
We all need each other, we all need love, love needs us to show love today, send love and a prayer for clarity and peace someone’s way today.
Help the hurting to heal not to stray some more with the words you say or fail to say.
Love is a verb.

Show love don’t make a show outta love
Share some in whatever way necessary today.

Salaam!

r3d

6/11/17
17:03

#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realrawandaimp­le
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
131 · Nov 2017
The Challenge (Day 10)
Waking up from a sleepless night
Everything around looks just right
Heart's still holding on to you real tight
Head's light
Weary from the battle within
My spirit takes flight
Scared I would never win..

Still your silence screams
Still it feels like a dream
I wake up to type another good morning that never gets sent
I still write all the things I usually say to you when you were my friend

Do you ever pick your phone to dial my number
Then remember that maybe I like you won't pick up?
Do you have sleepless nights, yet dreams about me that mess you up?

This is the worse kind of heart ache
This is worse than a heartbreak
Oh wait!
It is and I guess that's why I've lost weight

I hunger for you attention
I thirst for your affection
I'm tortured by your gentle rejection
Save me, you are my salvation


r3d
17/8/16


#museyilnen  
#yararewa  
#northernstar  
#roadtorecovery #everythingipretendtobe #realrawandsimple #welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d
121 · Oct 2017
The Challenge (Day 5)
Her death sentence was served in a bottle
With every swirl came a count charge
Every swig, a guilty plea

t3d
17:03


#roadtorecovery
#everythingipretendtobe
#realra­wandaimple
#welearnasweteach
#writingright
#firesofr3d

— The End —