Poetry, Me And Freedom Poem by Deluke Muwanigwa

Poetry, me and freedom.

I am not alone in my life
I have siblings, kids and a wife
Even so, i walk alone in the wildernes of my mind. From birth i been trudging the interminable path to nowhere. I m not even sure whither i go. The path meanders down vertical cliffs, worm infested swamps, viper ruled jungles and even deserts without an oasis. All in my mind. I trudge on to find solace. The only place i am free. The only place i can be me. That place is poetry. With poetry iarrive.

They told me to be an engineering professional.
To study hard and be a professor.
So, i wasted my life with Pythagoras, La Place, Isaac Newton, and Albert Einstein. Kudos to these big minds, but they have brought more rumination and misery to my mind. Their complicared equations dulled my eloquence. Melted my snapses where verbal accuity resides. I should have sparred with William Shakespeare in metaphor without shaking the spear. I should have polished his shoes and helped to feed cannabis in his pipe. I should have jousted with Achinua Achebe and learned his literary aptitude. I should have helped Achebe educate Africa so that things don't fall apart. In their scholastic virtuosity lies my psychedelic consummation. Pure ecstasy. My solace. The only place i can be me. That place in poetry. With poetry i arrive.

They say "In the beginning was the Word"
The word creates and influences the world. My restlessness stems from not having the Word. The wherewithal to wield it to maximum effect. I will never be like the poets of yore or the great contemporary writers and scribes, but i can write my mind. For, when i try to speak, no one listens. I try to write, no one reads. I try to protest, they say i am a rebel. I try to explain, they shout me down. I found the keys. The keys of freedom. I have found my solace. The only place i can be me. That place is poetry. With poetry i arrive.