I Dream I'm Leaving

I dream I’m leaving

Not in haste or any strain;

Life I know, is an art of weaving

And winnowing of holy grains.

This glaring path has me poised

Upon the needle’s agile head…

And my words, all composed

Of songs and ditties yet unheard.

If I should proceed to snuff the flame

Or pick all roses within my frame -

Leaving nothing for heaving ones

Who in their muddle,reach for doves

What would the rainbow say?

"Surely my dear, you must stay'!

By

Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

Lotus Blossom

It is there....

Always there

This happiness
That eludes the quest;
And burdens the heart
With loads of care.
But it is there, always there -
Soft breeze
Blowing in the air.

It is there
This happiness 
That brims;
Always there 
Tucked in the stillness
Of each moment's pulse.
Do not wait for the rain
When seasons strain. 
If you water your garden 
Your flowers will bloom.

It is there
This happiness
That fleets, and flutters
Like a comet's trail
Or dancing dunes
In desert scape;
But it is there - always there:
A blessed assurance... .
In the cry of a newborn,
In the life that's just begun
As in the rising of the sun.

It is there, always there -
A fountain of cheer....
Even when the curtains fold,
And the swan sings an awful song.
There is light even in darkness.
A reason to smile amidst a storm.

By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

Code Blue

From the death of night awake and free

Roused by songs from sweet pine trees

While strokes from ledgers urge me on

With anxious steps I hail the sleepy lawn.

Beneath my feet the green of day -

Lush nature's carpet softly lay

Sodden still, by breaths of morning dew

As grey dawn fades to skies of blue.

Further and further forth I must go

To the streets and places that I know

Where man to man I'd joust and play

And count my tokens at the end of day

By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

Anticipation

" Total Eclipse Of The Sun "

Fourth onto this day I stand
Eye witness to ancient mystery
Of cosmic proportion -
How good it is to be alive !



I see caravans - legions of revelers
Heading north , to the mountains close to the sky-
Far from the city's heckling pulse.
While I , upon my backyard lawn await,
Content just be - a witness close to home.

Slowly the hours ply with diurnal bliss
Seamless yet charged with anticipation -
Of a phenomenon so rare - so divine ....
So charged with spiritual contagion.



The orient beam , my morning eyes affirm
Plotting his arc in usual form, but on this day
Somewhere past noon , a change will come.
Gradually , then suddenly the sky will cool
And from light onto darkness and back to light...
Upon all senses, the Sun a trick would play.

Two nights in a span of hours -
One long , the other brief yet spectacular
Confounds the rhythmic flow....
And defies current modes of reflexion.

Of what use then is it , to burden the soul
Seeking to comprehend the mystic sort ?
Some  may dance and chant ,
And invoke spiritual aspects of every hue;
But I , in pure reverence of the Almighty -
Content I'd stand - In the presence of it all .

By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

Daily Commute

"Middle Class Blues "

Burnt toast ....
Hot coffee -
He's off to work .

Cars honking ....
Snail pace -
Quicksand ahead !

Zombies peering...
Through cracked panes -
American workers robbed of sleep !

Mortgage - car notes ...
Vacation bills from years gone by -
No pretense, a man's got to work .


Taught nerves clutching wheels...
Obscene gestures trading place -
Bang - bang bang !
Crimson tide upon the dash .

This no way to live or not....
In a land where dreamers dare .
Has the dream catcher lost its charm?
Life on the pulse, must be a hard shelled nut .

By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

SANKOFA

Restless spirit of impetuous youth-
Seeker of fortune in alien climes;
I’m lost, stranded in this metropolis-
Caught in a labyrinth of churches
And stone faced structures with-
Gargoyles giving me the evil eye !
So far from the ant hills of the savannah;
Far from the Kilimanjaro from whence
The Blue Nile flows…..quick – quick!
I need a drink of palm wine and kola nuts.

I’ve drunk from the Thames….
The Seine – the mighty Mississippi;
Been encoded with lore I shudder from.
I’m lost neither here nor there-
Curious being I’ve become – bat like….
Neither bird nor mole.

Spirit of Sankofa, where are you?
Sacred compass – my guiding light,
Show me a sign; let it rain – thunder –fire
Let your hurricanes crash  these shores….
Unleashing waves as high as Mount Cameroon;
And when night falls, and all is calm-
Spirit bird of the great oracles;
Whisk me away to Mali……
Where I can immerse my soul into
The mystical lore of the Timbuktu chronicles.


By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©

Transcendence

"Uncommon Wealth"

Morning light has made it clear
And in the dew pond my soul is cleansed
Suddenly , certainty informs me thus :

I'm a wealthy man,without coffers of greed.

How blessed to see layers in air.... 

Soul of the mountain my friend at last ,

A statue no longer, my keenness brims.

Like a river , the journey's been long

Yet blessed with lessons from the source.

My path , my journey  to me belong

Freely, realms of realms I now embrace -

Unabbreviated by time , untethered by turf.

My pockets are mute, my spirit ablaze
I'm a wealthy man , without coffers of toil...

And worldly angels, look on perplexed !



By Hope Kalé Ewusi ©