Mind Feed: Long Tail of a Lament
I
Yearning tendrils grasp tepid shorelines
Thirsty reefs pine for lofty tides, soothed by
Crimson-tinged fingers in high-priced forage
Ill tidings brought forth, rage froth in goblets
On platters strewn with hors d’oeuvres of misapplied genuflection
On verge of verve revved to feed minds, rife with imperfection
Share thoughts – imaginations of tuber tendril feast
New hopes march triumphant, then dejected, across barrels
Accursed carbons trickle, wilting in noonday swarm –
Bowing to weight of future breeds, sutured deeds…
II
Learning to sow seed, seasoned grain for latter follies
Amongst imprints of defiled halos, fortunes dwindling
Sad days gone thither, in search of sleepless nights
Forgotten echoes singe ears, cede tears to cleanse souls
Laments of storm petrels ebb, carrion feast flows with abandon
Recklessly; mindlessly heralding basslines of hollow melodies…
Salve of yesteryears yields to festering sores
Nerves grated on stymied shorelines; the priestess caws
Earnestly asking that progenies imbibe hallowed fantasies
Fighting to revive futures buried deep in dilated pupils…
III
Oracles proffer litanies; tall tales with long tails
Funneling destinies, fueling cavernous appetites
But sprinkling droppings as feed for constricted minds
Entice sly hands to grasp high riches; redeem futile dreams…
“Shine your eye! Blow your trumpet! Snatch your chin chin!”
Urchins’ tumult heralds galore, lions stoop to mental purrs
58 guns salute anniversary of empty barrels; as soundlessly
Around and about, the Niger – in trauma – slumbers unremorsefully…
——————
Spirit of Life’s Rhythms
I
And the beat goes
On and on and on and on
Regales of mendicant tongues
Echo, till whispers are formed
In disparate hearts kneaded
To lull desperate callow minds
Beat whirls in aural eddies
Swirling like aperitifs
Drying in acrid passages
Of connoisseur’s olfactory
II
And the beat flows
As shallow spirit is egged on
Arabesque cadencies surging
Ambrosia for avid pantheons
Urging, like mountebanks in heat
Lulled by a beat, purging moral fardels
Spirit throbs – life’s auguries
In revolving paces, urgent like
Orie to Nkwo to Eke to Afo, then
Orie again – jaunty market sequences
III
And the beat grows
Past sky’s jaundiced brim
Halo frames the ambuscade
Of life’s valiant resonance
Throes from the molten core
Ani – sprout of earthen lore
In the sunken eerie glow
Ethereal dance on moonlit rim
Over and over, words lay down with
Ikoro – anchor of life’s rhythms – songs flourish
——————
Sung Proudly (B.I.E.F.H)
I knew when
Timid beats murmured in hearts
Swollen from trysts with stolen glances
Met and held, with sultry-eyed stares
Gazes caress, apace to insatiable encores
I knew when
3am bathroom break debates
Led down surreal windy lanes
Rife with Hellenic mythologies; littered
With enchanted tunes, in a pod of desire
I knew when
Idle mindless cares
Yielded to fiery passions
Lit by sparks of embellished jaunts
Reincarnated; as nubile contests, hum
I knew when
Ex-commitments frittered
Away, from knotted fate-lines, as
Wanders lusted afar, with lore of what
Our ever after forever story could be
I knew when
My heart betrothed duty
But skirted final soul dance
Sashaying instead to old flame
Watershed of life, relishing un-regret
I knew when
My love could live, not
One more moment, desolate
Wondering, twirling, prodding
Plodding through inane obstacles
I knew when
To find you; pride wallowed
Down in my bowels, my heart – unreal
Bid me to find you – Queen Enchantress
Proudly, co-sign; the best I.E.F.H, for real…
——————
Poems © C. Uche Onuora
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