Garden Ground Poem by Thabani Khumalo

THE GARDEN GROUND THAT BURIED GOLD.
THE MAN; HE DUG IN SEARCH OF GOLD,
AFFLUENCE ADEQUATE TO BUY A WOMAN’S LOVE –
THE LOVE THE WOMAN HAD SOLD FOR GOLD.

HE, ONE DAY, HEARD HIS FATHER’S VOICE
WISPER AT HIM WHERE HE BURIED GOLD,
BENEATH THE LAND HIS GRANDPA LOST
BEFORE HE WAS HIRED IN A RESTLESS TOWN.

THE MAN; HE DUG FOR THE GOLD HE THEN KNEW
AND AT LAST HE HEARD A WHITE MAN’S GUN
AND ON HIS GOLD HIS CORPSE DECAYED.
WHEN HE DIED, HIS CHILDREN STARVED.