One of my favourite people on the Twitterer [and i do have a lot, but this one stands out] is my friend Ekta Somera. She is both an exceptional talent who has released a book called 'Made in Poetry' which i reviewed over here, and a second book, Twenty-Two, which i am still to get my hands on. But also finds the time to design, collaborate on and release The Paper Trail Literary Journal, [...]
This morning i got a little inspired and wrote a poem on the Twitterer that goes a little something like this: WE BUILD A COUNTRY we build a country not by voting or protesting or even trying to hold leadership accountable although all of those might be important and deeply necessary rather we build a country by showing up actively loving our neighbour (All of them!) building bridges and longer tables! = [...]
The first time i met Ekta Somera was on the Twitterer [as @madeinpoetry]. The second time was in a mall in the Chatsworth Centre Mall after she had just been finished being interviewed for Sunrise FM radio.Ekta very wisely brought her dad with her [cos you never know with meeting strange old white men who you connected to on the internet]... and i brought my mate Dreadlock Mike [cos you never know with meeting strange [...]
Electoral quicksand Dragging me under So slowly it is barely noticeable Political tricks and Hypnotic suggestion that only Two paths lead safely away One that has been walked on For years and does well (for everyone who possesses shoes) - - While the sharts of class Continue to slice the defeat Of those whose homes Have just been repossessed to the back of yet another Public Protector vehicle To ensure they sea this point [...]
underneath my skin your words crawl desperate for some rotting flesh to devour but finding none they return to you and feast away on your disconnected soul comforted by the familiar stench they recognise as home
I don't see race, but I feel it Crawling down my skin As the glance declares I'm sin I don't see race, but I fear it Coming for me in the middle of the night Armed with the sharp unforgiving Edges of the questions aimed at me Asking how I managed to keep my Head buried in the sand for so long While those on the surface Were the ones suffocating for lack of [...]
black lives hater? black life shatter! break lives: master? broke lives: martyr? all lies matter! small lies matter? all lines matter. aligns matter.. align mantra... all in may turn later = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [To read the best poem i have written in a long time, called Just Us click here]
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = [For another poem titled Assumptions, click here]
A black man and a white man Step into a room together And ever so carefully Peel off their skin Folding it neatly Over the back of a chair Before taking a seat Directly across the table from one other Staring deeply into the other's soul A blood sample is taken from both men Two vials of the deepest red Placed on the table in front of them Followed shortly by a set of [...]
i wrote a poem this morning considering how the same words coming out of different mouths can mean a variety of things. Different worlds, even. [For another poem i wrote a while back on 'Whiteness' click here]
