#englishpoetry
The Destroyer of the division machine1
Had first to run on the Way of the Cross
To have souls over the long lived ruin.
Robben, Pollsmoor and Victor2 caused no loss
In the Staff Heritage of the Thembu3
Rulers, forever loved by their people,
From whom was learnt right fight ain’t to taboo.
Good farmers’ teeth run right through the apple;
Likely after the Hard Walk to Freedom4
The Son of Gadla and Nosekeni5,
When his Soul flies up to the Lord’s Kingdom,
Glass will keep his body, and not any
Stain will sully the Star of the Nation
Whose Light will shine for each generation.
1. The division machine: The Apartheid.
2. Robben, Pollsmoor and Victor: During twenty seven years Mandela was successively jailed at Robben Island, Pollsmoor and Victor Verster prisons.
3. Thembu: The tribe over which ruled Mandela’s ancestors.
4. Hard Walk to Freedom: In September 1953, Andrew Kunene, a co-militant of his, read out Mandela's "No Easy Walk to Freedom" speech at a Transvaal ANC meeting; the title was taken from a quote by Indian independence leader Jawaharlal Nehru, a seminal influence on Mandela's thought. The speech laid out a contingency plan for a scenario in which the ANC was banned.
5. Gadla (Henry Mphakanyiswa): Mandela’s father; Nosekeni ***** His mother.
Boniface
Jun 27, 2013
Jun 27, 2013 at 8:33 AM UTC
In the darkest places you can roam,
In the coldest waters, far from home,
In the deepest fears you keep inside,
A single whistle I’ll be by your side.
I can wait for months, for years, for days,
Lost in time, in silent ways.
At your first call I will come through,
With all my love, I’ll rescue you.
But if you hurt me, look and see,
The fault will rest inside of thee.
For those who wound what once was true
Regret the pain they never knew.
Jan 30
Jan 30, 2026 at 3:21 PM UTC
Ishq Jab ** Khushboo Se Pur,
To Zarra Ban Jaaye Ayeenah-e-Noor.
Na Jaam Chahiye, Na Mai Ka Sabab,
Gul Hi Hai Raaz — Aur Nasha Hai Adab.
For love, when laced in scent so pure,
Turns even dust to light’s allure.
No wine, no glass, no tavern wall—
The rose alone can make one fall.
So let the lovers understand:
The wasp that kissed her thorned hand,
Did not return the way he came—
He left his name, and bore her flame.
Sep 7, 2025
Sep 7, 2025 at 1:13 AM UTC
Responding to the sunny afternoon,
curtains, breathe in and out of the room,
for a moment I lay, I rest my eyes
and listen to neighbours DIY,
and children's voices lifting stream
playing on joy giving trampoline,
indistinct not much clearer,
are voices somewhat nearer
which, discuss matters of no alarm,
laughter adds to its charm.
Even trains pass at a slower pace,
like the breeze, without clouds to chase.
A magpie's chatter, doves return coo,
and a wood pidgeon joins in too.
Dreamily, creep reminiscences.
Times, difficult to dismiss,
all the ways, perhaps I would
have changed prospects, if I could
have sorted things, when I should.
Still it's not bad, nor is it good.
I just turn away, and let them fall
the past cannot be changed at all,
dismissing them, behind closed eyes.
De stress, maximised,
my negative thoughts, who cares.
Feeling so relaxed, is for me rare,
a difference todays sun had made,
and it's one I so gladly take.
Afternoon
21st April 2020 Michael C Crowder @scorsby
Aug 17, 2024
Aug 17, 2024 at 12:01 PM UTC
For me, writing is
Expressing anything and everything in my own way....
With my heart and soul....
Without any manipulation....
Like the sun came up every morning with a new energy and his ray....
Aug 12, 2020
Aug 12, 2020 at 7:46 AM UTC
No words can explain
what it really feels
Sometimes, silence kills
Aug 3, 2020
Aug 3, 2020 at 4:19 PM UTC
The most beautiful thing about life is,
That life itself is a lie.
That vanishes,
When death arrives.
But still gives you,
Reasons to smile.
Jun 23, 2020
Jun 23, 2020 at 4:23 PM UTC
I can't explain whatever I feel,
It's just that I really want to heal.
There is nothing to hide,
All I want is to get rid of this roller coaster ride.
Where it is hard to survive,
There I am who really want to feel alive.
The one who is looking happy outside,
You won't know they might be dying inside.
If you have nothing for me to teach,
Then darling I really don't need you to preach.
The hardest part of being an adult,
Is that you always need validation which you get from your result.
It's very easy to complain,
What really hard is to explain the pain.
You don't need to apologize,
What you really need is to be wise.
And there we are telling a story in brief,
And a heart full of grief.
If one can ever make you feel divine,
Believe me the pleasure all be mine.
Jun 22, 2020
Jun 22, 2020 at 3:17 PM UTC
Your jurisdiction ends over my veil
You are nobody to rule on my zeal
This limited sovereignty is mine
Where I am free to cry or peal
Don't let your dubiety ask me
If I am leal to your creel.
May 21, 2020
May 21, 2020 at 6:56 PM UTC
***
Wherever you are,
I hope you're doing great
I hope I'm still your favorite
But things have changed.
Our dreams are shattered
Know that I will be better
Our memories?
They'll stick the same
Haunting down memory lane.
***
Apr 26, 2020
Apr 26, 2020 at 5:41 AM UTC