Shake The Gourd Poem by Felix Bongjoh

(i)

Dragged Wind
and wobbling gale
pass the baton
to each other, rattling

through stiff dry
stems and withered
plantain leaves,

broken flying
petioles through
swinging grasses

standing firm,
gripping earth
granules and pebbles.

In the whistling
wind steering tap-
dancing legs,
corn and bean grains
also rattle in gourds

leaves and aluminum
roof tops seizing
a drummer's hands

to thicken the voice
of maracas,
joggled shaker gourds
swelling legs
to rattle with cowries.

As grasses and stalks
rattle-talk
to each other, so do
gourds filled
with beaming grains

pulling in cornfields
and creeping beans
spilled from
rattling, shuddering
and waggling pods.

(ii)

The dance is rattle,
bass and tenor voices
of shaker gourds

rattling with gods
above and high above

storm-broken skies
hoisting flags
of cracking,
tapping sounds.

Shake, shake, shake
and rattle
the shivering gourd,
as feet stamp

earth to make it
quiver with roots
and flutter with fleeing
birds in dry rattling
cornfields.

(iii)

Shake the gourd
to lift wind-tilted
corn stems
still rattling in their
dry tapping leaves.

O maracas,
you rattle life out
of dancing folks.

You ignite
flames in their
legs and feet
to lift them
to sky's breaking glass.

And as all else
breaks loose,
we ask queen to shake
her gourd louder
than everybody else's,

but as she lifts
the pith lid
off the gourd's mouth,

a snake uncoils
itself, jumping out
with wings
rolling off the yard
in an eyeblink,

everybody rattling
the maracas
in their inner bowl
full of gripping
stony crab hands.