Augustine Yirideme

From the horizon of the scorching Sahara
With blindening dust, to the arid Savannah,
Across Paga, Poyentanga and Gambaga,
Through Kokoligu, Pwalugu and Bunkpurugu;
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We've come a long way
And shouldn't our gains betray
The price we're prepared to pay
The peace we'll make stay
...

Hail ye all the God of Elijah,
He who answereth by fire
Commander of the host of Israel,
My God He is for real
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Before you act
Or even react
Before you respond
Or do or say a thing
...

You're eating bread,
Fried yam or something similar.
It starts to choke you.
You feel like a construction grader
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I may not have a dime
But for that which isn't mine, I ain't got no time
I may not get to see the Nile
In my backyard no timbers pile
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Up and above, the blue sky
All around butterflies fly
You ain't got no reason not to smile
Even if you've got to make another mile
...

Chilly Harmattan weather here in T-city
But I know just how to feel easy
Give me some warmth,
Thou Cymbopogon Citratus
...

In the stormy ocean where feet fail
With faith in God you'll prevail
His mercies will see you thru' your sail
Be strong, you're not gonna fail
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A certain uncertain certainty
Making it feels sometimes like you know
But then something prompts and pricks
As the clock still kicks and ticks
...

You write little pieces of poetry for public consumption
Some of your readers commend you; you feel encouraged to try and write more
Then you discover a website where poets post their writings for peer and public review
You find there names like Maya Angelou, Pablo Neruda, Langston Hughes, Edgar Allan Poe, Rudyard Kipling, William Ernest Henley and many others
...

After a long wait I did spy.
From the horizon and the sky,
A new day breaks forth and dawns.
Great hope in sight after a night of frowns.
...

Eve had yielded to the serpent's deception
And Adam had succumbed to his wife's suggestion
Both drowning in their own guilt and shame
And burdened by their own nakedness,
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Then came Sarah's turn
God's angels visited her at her tent
Good news they bore
For she who never had a baby born
...

Then suddenly disaster struck!
On the blindside of VRA, GridCo and ECG,
The lights went ‘dummm'
But the ‘sor' never followed… sad!
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Who'd pass me some cold patch?
Under my mat the ground seeps
Just like good old thatch.
Chilling waves oozing out,
...

Let the storm rage its worst,
And the earth quake and burst
Let the mountains shake and rock and crumble
And the trees, let them somersault and tumble
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The economy, heavily dollarized
Our independence celebrations rather militarized
Our politics and politicking dangerously polarized
An exploitative industry of mobile telephony
...

Haven't we seen and heard it all in this plantation? See, from the era of grand-naana's exotic Jacuzzi and IDcuts through the season that was so agronomically conducive that even cotton managed to grow some rice in Aveyime. Then came the dispensation of the mysterious yajzical twins in the same decade when helmets were forbidden at HIV conferences; or were they ignored? i don't know.

Now, around the time that adam was busily inventing corruption, some castle gatekeepers were said to be having fun back-kicking things against the walls of a certain hotel the vibration of which generated a melodious musical note that goes like waaaa….waaaa….waaaa.
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For every blessing you brought
For every lesson you taught
For all the love and friendship
For the blessing of family and friends
...