Root Poem by John Chizoba Vincent

Ogbuefi my great, great grandfather begat
Ifegwu, my great grand father and Pa Ifegwu
Begat Agwo, my grandfather whose sword slain many at the battle of the Mosanga.
And Agwo begat my father Ogbu- john
Who showed us common theme of endurance,
Hope, faith, sacrifice and deep abiding love
That stand ever rest on our roots of great sterm and branches and fruits.
In elughu Nkporo, he took us along with him
To the shrine,
He initiated us to the gods in the family compound,
We face the brutality of life itself;
Abuse of the paternal home and we triumph.
Prejudice that our forefathers and matriarch endured,
Our root was of hardship and sorrow with mother earth barking behind us as though we are lost children.
We fall so many times but we stand again,
We have been very deliberate in preserving
The family stories, orally told, along with
Artfact, stiffened around our long Giraff neck,
We cherish family name and, we value family and;
Never want to loose sight of all that had been overcome in order for us to be positioned where we are presently.
We can't abandon Nkporo okwe, where our source is, we will stand to enjoy the nourishment and satisfaction that root provide for other branches,
We learn to honour the family traditions
We were taught to uphold the family name
Where our lives are planted since the days of Adams.