Why do we hurt the most The people whom we love the most And who love us the most? Why do we push away the strongest The people who pull us the deepest? Why do we understand the least The people who understand us the most? Why do we lose Those who have found us? Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
Of Conflict
PAIN AND GAIN
Without the pain My life would have been so empty, My spirit’s real gain Are the lessons and they are plenty. It is really possible To lose a person and become whole, It is really possible To lose the world and gain your soul. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
DIE HARD
All the things I thought would kill me, Didn’t kill me. But they sure did hurt… They hurt like hell for a long time - But they didn’t kill me. They made me wiser, stronger and sadder; But in the end I’m still me. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
A PART OF YOU
Sometimes a part of you Can live outside of you And run away from you And refuse to come back to you And will ignore you And will not recognise you And will reject you And will hurt you And will avoid you Because the reason why It is living outside of you Is in order to find itself And fully become itself Through struggle, experiencing and reflection Uninfluenced by you In order to one day be able To complement you And be complemented by you. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
MAY YOU
May you grow Like the flowers you love so much May you sow Seeds of fruits that nourish as such May you glow Under the purity of a true lover’s touch May you know Honesty to which you can safely clutch. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
WRONG AND RIGHT
How can something so strong be so wrong? Go so wrong? We don’t belong to our emotions, they belong to us, but our devotions are more accurate and honest, what we long for the strongest. Pain brings so much blessing to every soul that learns its lesson and undergoes transformation, maturation and the realisation that it wasn’t wrong after all, it was a strong and jarring Call to wake up before you fall. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
PEOPLE’S SIGNALS
Pay attention to the signals That people give you; Take them seriously - The signals won’t deceive you. No one says everything; They leave it to you To figure it out if you’re smart And paying attention too. And above and beneath it all Your own inner voice Will analyse the signals and more And make its own choice. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
NICE PEOPLE LIE TOO
Nice people lie too And when they do They defend it with determination For fear of losing their reputation. Once you start with a lie You have no choice But to continue to deny Using your false voice And you become hard And you become cold And you put up your guard And you grow old It was worth it, I guess, To have wrongly said Yes - It would be sad to have killed your soul For nothing, and miss your true goal. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
MANY STORIES
You have enemies you don’t know, They get to your friends behind your back. Those friends whose friendship was hollow Succumb to them and join in their attack. You have friends you don’t know, They‘re there for you when you need them most. They fight your fight, share your sorrow, Rejoice with you, sometimes invisibly like a ghost. You are not and never alone, You are a part of many stories and memories; Your life is an enrichment of someone else’s own And is enriched by others’ and their testimonies. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
BE HONEST WITH PEOPLE UPFRONT
Be honest with people upfront. Because they are giving you their all, hoping you will accept it and believing you are the one. If you know you are not available for them or they are not what you seek, don’t let them plant their garden in your backyard and enjoy their fruits for a while before brutally uprooting them when you’ve had enough, or when they now want to enter the house, or when the one or thing you really want shows up. You cause a deep pain in the universe and open a wound in their hearts that will bleed for lifetimes thereafter. Be honest with people upfront. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Don’t say things you don’t mean or that aren’t REALLY real. If it’s not what you really want or if you’re not really sure, say it truthfully, keep your distance or break it off at once. You will gain a friend, and respect, for life, down the line.
Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Undulating Plains
Che Chidi Chukwumerije 