If I Should Cease To Be Me Poem by John Sensele

If I should cease to be me
The rose of my raison d'etre cries and dies
My pair of care and fairness from me shall flee
Above all, my conscience shall fly the netherworld skies.

If I should cease to care for my nation
My sense of patriotism shall lose its way
My love for Zambia shall suffer obliteration
Above all, I should shrink to my knees and pray.

If I should cease to shower love on my partner
The core of devotion shall desert me through despair windows
I shall secure no suitable succour through a retainer strainer
Above all, hollows and sorrows shall sweep my doors and floors.

If I should cease to feel a sense of shame
The pinnacle of my personality shall ring hollow
I shall shoulder a plethora of bloated blame and nonsense name
Above all, stigma and sufferance shall follow.