Tempt Me Not On Tree Tops Poem by Sarah Mkhonza

Tempt me not on tree tops,
For I will break my legs,
When the branches gives up.
For branch and bramble
Break the legs of a want
Wit, that clambers to destinations,
Of love unheard of.

Tempt me not at the bottom
Of the lake, either for I
Hear they drown those who
Cannot swim like frogs.

But tempt me on the banks,
Of a river for I will look,
At your shadow in the water,
And change into a pebble,
And youpick me up and throw
Me, on the other side where
I can watch your strong arms
Fight the downstream current,
And get you where I stand.
This victory so fiercely fought
For tells the two of us we are
Two fighters who won against
All odds. For it is the how and where
And not the why, that speaks wisdom
Between me and you from now on.

Then I will clamber down knowing,
I did not ask to be tempted like
A nun in the habit of wearing signs
That sing my victory before I have
Run the race.