Diminished Principles

By: Kingsley OkaforIgwe        

Daytime Friend.



A friend in daytime,
Foe in the night
Comforter of the day
Oppressor of the dark.
Seven times you hurt me,
“I am sorry,” you said.
I’m sorry my friend, it’s hard to believe.

You plot against me,
You smear me,
You said you love me.
It’s hard to believe.

You fight against me,
You assail me,
You hide in the dark
And mock me.
You haunt me in the night
and sympathise in the day.

O my friend, it’s hard to believe.

Daytime friends,
Nighttime foes.
Daytime my ally
Nighttime my foe.
In the night, you struck me-
You split my heart.
In the noon, you were crying,
sympathizing with me.

O my friend- O my false friend-
O my false friend, it’s hard to believe.
You plot against me
You smear me
You wounded me;

But you are my friend- you claim to be.

I Thought.


In a quandary,
I thought you would protect me,
vindicate me
but how things look now,
it seems like you’re one of those
hesitant activists.

Left high and dry
I don’t know which path to follow
frustrations cloud upon,
I approach you,
You forsake me – you leave me
weeping until I go down in despair.

I thought you would preserve me,
would salve my scourge wounds.

All along I can hear you campaigning
about rights and humaneness:
You said we couldn’t live without them
Every smitten heart shall be comforted
Every displace person shall be shielded
Every oppressed or terror-stricken person
shall be reassured.
You said so.

But you did deprive me of those rights and left
me to sink in desolation.


Too Late to Whimper.

He offered fowl and kola
to the Oracle with hope of leniency.

With brute force he oppressed the poor-
With no sympathy he governed many.
And then retribution fell upon him:
He offered Kola and sacred chalk,
He offered with hope of atonement.
These things he offered to save his life.
Purify and cleanse me ! “Oh great One”, he said.
“Purify me, forgive and pacify me, for I am
passing away”.

With the fullness of his wealth,
He oppressed the poor
In the fullness of his authority
He destroyed many souls,
For his wealth he left many smitten hearts to bleed.

Tears from smitten hearts tore open
the ears of heaven.
The anger of the Holy One prevailed
and nemesis befell.

He offered fowl and kola,
He offered palm wine and sacred chalk-
“Cleanse and pacify me for I am no longer at ease”.

The anger of heaven is ever fierce.
The wicked shall never go unpunished
And no oppressor shall be sanctified.

Copyright © 2004 Kingsley OkaforIgwe