I was there
when he chased
and she outpaced
leaving his heart outraced
a feeling Phil Collins couldn’t erase.
But no trace
of the lost race
could be placed
on his face…
I was there
when he played the game
to win the dame.
It ended the same
but with less shame.
Another’s the dame became
and no one was to blame…
I was there
when the lucky brute
won the loot
by staying put.
What a beaut’,
So cute…
For them I root,
My vuvuzela I hoot
and toot
and hoot…
How I’d love to pour out my heart!
To explain the facts as they are
With enough tact not to scare.
I’d love for my confessions
Not to give the wrong impression.
I just wanna get it off my chest;
This nagging pest
So that I can rest,
Lest my heart break from the burden it bears
But my calculations and computations
Of the possible conclusions
To my heartfelt revelations
Give probable situations
That are far from the solutions that I seek.
Awkward meetings, tense conversations
And the worst of all
Rejection
Man’s greatest fear.
So I bear this burden a little longer
Waiting for the perfect time
The perfect place
The perfect words
And the perfect way to bear the facts
Hoping that my heart can endure
Without bursting at the seams..
If only it were this easy;
“Lady, can I call you baby? (call me baby)
Baby, can I get your number maybe? (maybe…)”
A few lines, and in the twinkling of an eye,
She is yours, for whom you’d die
But no, you must cross treacherous rivers,
And like Tekayo, eat livers,
Before she even looks at you
Then you have to race her
Chase her
And hopefully outpace her
Before she smiles
But there are yet many more miles!
You’ll have to leave her to shower (you’ll have worked up quite a sweat!)
And believe that your flower won’t fret
And hope she’ll still be smiling when you’re set
After that there’s the dance
One woeful prance
And that’ll be your last chance
She’ll be gone without a second glance
So mad respect to he married 25 years,
For what he’s been through to get his dear…
I was passing by when I saw it,
The chassis crumpled and the windshield in bits,
Luggage strewn all over the ground,
The locals claiming them as “lost and found”.
A couple of women in tears,
Hoping that their worst fears wont be realized
Praying that their dears who were hospitalized
Wont have the increase of their years paralyzed
A flat tire said it all;
Overspeeding and bad luck led to their fall
Many spectators watching the show;
No helping hand
No used tear gland
Just empty stares observing the flow
I left, duty called;
A bash couldn’t be stalled any longer.
I passed by two hours later,
No sign of a disturbance remained
Like dust after it’s rained
But… are the women’s hearts still pained?
Were they cleansed by the passing rain
Or do their hearts still bear a stain?
Who will see their pain
When to wear a plastic smile they strain?
Will we spectate from afar, our hands refrained
Or will we reach out, unreserved, unrestrained…
The seconds turned to minutes, which then turned to hours,
And the rose seeds he’d planted were soon blooming into flowers,
As he patiently waited for the reply to his text,
He knew it by heart, tabulated and indexed.
For it’s never easy conveying a thought,
Retaining its beauty, not portraying a retort;
Cramming it all into 160 characters,
Not ignoring a word of parameter!
So he labored over his modern-day missive,
From start to end, it was simply impressive.
And so, breath bated, he waited
For the response he so highly rated.
All of a sudden, his phone did ring,
And in perfect synchrony, his heart did sing;
So expectant to read the reply,
That across the keypad his thumbs did fly;
Only to find that it wasn’t she,
‘Twas from Shiru (or was it Wangeci?)
Saying something that didn’t really matter,
So he didn’t waste time reading through the data:
“I can’t handle this now, maybe later,
I have to attend to things much greater.”
And so he returned to his wait
For the reply, so good, so great:
Watching the seconds turn into hours,
Gazing at flowers in rain’s cool showers,
But as time defied him, refusing to fly,
Nimo waited patiently for his reply…
Waiting for the minute hand to point to eight,
Hoping that Mummy would not be late,
Squirming, fidgeting, like little boys do,
When Mummy’s told them what not to do:
“Don’t play in the house, just sit still and wait;
No snacks before dinner, wait until eight.”
Sighting a 20 bob in plain view,
Scheming to dash out before Mummy knew,
Some cake to make the tapeworms sing,
And Mummy’d never suspect a thing!
Remembering that it’s wrong to steal,
Knowing the guilt that he’d feel,
Resigning, therefore, to his fate
Sitting still to patiently wait,
For his scheduled evening date
With Mummy and her meal so great,
Waiting for the minute hand to point to eight,
Hoping that Mummy would not be late.
Why this feeling I feel inside?
Why this feeling I try to hide?
A señorita who’s on my mind,
Gold from head to toe with a soul so kind,
A fine summer wine that’d be divine anytime,
Which is why with her I’d like to dine!
Heart, this surely is a crime,
To love that which cannot be mine!
Why, oh why, how can this be?
Why does my heart do this to me?
My heart is blind; for it can’t see
That I can never be with she.
I thought my heart was mine to give;
Who I want, to love; with whom I want, to live;
Is it still true for my blood pump?
Or is it hers, to love or dump?
Decisions to make, they fill me with fright
And no help from my heartstrings, wound so tight,
I’m sure of this though, sure as night,
Treat her with respect and it’ll be alright.
Her presence still taunts me, plain in sight;
And her kindness still haunts me, bright white light;
But I’ll seek God’s wisdom, that’s for sure,
And by His strength I’m sure I’ll endure…
Silently it eats me, painfully it lays me to waste
tragically it tears me apart, repeatedly it stabs at my heart
am i insane? is there anything i stand to gain?
do i have to suffer this pain, for something so seemingly inane,
yet my turmoil grows bigger, with each passing moment,
my hunger burns brightet, with each burning thought,
of this jewel so near yet so far
And why does it shimmer so bright when i stare
why does it mock my longing glare,
why does it refuse this love i want to share,
why does it increase this burden that i bear
Yet for it i will gladly bleed myself dry
yes for love i will move on without a sigh
yes i will cry but not tell why
for i cannot scare my jewel into dimming out
i cannot risk her smile turn into a pout
for i cannot let my jewel out of my sight
avoid me due to her fright
i would rather bleed, stay with my need
and from my unending torment feed
than lose my jewel’s sight, the beauty in her stare,
the fire in her glare, the gentle smell of her radiant wear
yea, let me joy in my suffering
for this is my love’s offering
to rejoice in her temple of love’s misery
Silently it eats me, painfully it lays me to waste
tragically it tears me apart, repeatedly it stabs at my heart
By Samson Mbugua
Things aint always what they seem,
What looks real may be a dream.
What today looks dull and drab,
May tomorrow turn out to be fab.
For a long time I’ve known this fact,
That a lot in life is just an act.
But I realized recently,
An item in plain sight to see
Made a fool; the fool was me.
When I was but a wee lad,
Playing daily in the sand,
I chanced upon many a stone
All quite hard and dry as bone.
Since I was a boy so wee
With open eyes, I did not see
Till one day, many years on,
As fate would have it, I chanced upon
One of these pebbles from years gone.
In the light it gleamed and shone.
Then I realized, striken with awe,
(And, for the first time, my eyes saw)
This stone I played with in the sand
Was not a usual pebble so bland
In the light the diamond did shine
Hard as nails, fine as wine
Long ago, ’twas mine to own,
Long ago,’ twould have been my pawn,
But today, a queen she is,
Traversing wherever she please
I take heart, not all hope is gone,
For this long war can yet be won
I may have overlooked the facts
Coz in my eyes were cataracts
But now I clearly see the gem
I also see all of thee,
Who, like me, did not see
And they all want her to be
The centerpiece of their crowns
An adornment on their gowns.
If fate say vict’ry wont be mine
At least I saw the diamond shine
I not only know wot it should be,
But now, this fact, I truly see
I thank the Lord for this chance
On this precious gem to glance
Before mine eyes be weak and frail,
Before the day my sight will fail.
What is man without air,
Freely flowing everywhere?
That’s how I feel when you’re not there,
The pretty one for whom I care.
I feel my heart would burst and tear,
If, into your eyes I could not stare,
If every minute I could not share,
With my cute sweet teddy bear!
So please heed my simple prayer,
Please don’t leave me, do not dare!
For like a throne without an heir,
In a kingdom in despair,
My heart would crumble, worn of wear,
Or simply shatter on a stair.
And so I ask that you be there,
So I can breathe a little air…
The Balcony 