AI Cannot satisfy The longing for reality The thirst for humanity It can only replicate duplicate Reiterate concentrate elucidate Our past in all its profusion The sum of all our confusion Neatly packaged in a way That appeals to our Today But it will not give us anything new. The future is still the spirit’s purview. If we want the new then we must Do what we have in the past Always done to grow: Let go of the past. Raising the intuition above the intellect We much reach deep within our depths And pull the new out from ourselves Because there is a magic that flows from Above Into our Intuition, our secret treasure trove. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
Of human beings
DON’T BE DISTRACTED BY INSULTS
Be ready to forgive insults Even before they come Knowing they will come From children and adults Who are a part of your way For this too is a part of the way You must travel to get results. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
COME CLOSER
I don’t like to get too near to people Because it pushes me far away from them; When you get really close to the moon, You see a gloomy rock, not a glowing gem. Yet, courage!, wanderer, be bold of heart! One who will find must seek everywhere, Must brave the ugly to discover deep beauty At the core of the things we love and fear. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
THE LIVING DEAD
I see dead people They don’t know they’re dead Their physical body is still living And has not yet been shed They walk and they talk, They laugh, weep and they smile They occupy all walks of life And don’t always seem vile Their mind silences their heart Their intellect dulls their intuition It seems insignificant But it’s at the root of the human condition Listen to your inner voice Don’t leave everything to your head Or you’ll be walking with the living And not realise you’re dead. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
IF YOU LISTEN
You know? If you listen to a Person talk You will see the person’s mind walk A thousand miles with each word Mountains they climb, rivers they ford A world will open up like a magic book The more you see the less you look The flowers blossom into new thoughts Don’t think too hard, just connect the dots You know? Just flow. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
I HURT BADLY
There are pains I could bear When I was younger Which I cannot bear Any longer When I was younger, I was tougher My heart could recover Now I’m older, I’m harder No longer a bender, now a breaker No longer a healer, now a hurter So I don’t engage Unnecessarily, I don’t bother I just turn a new page. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
THE MAGIC MIX
The world is so varied So many different types of people The mix makes the magic Each world as distinct as it’s equal The human spirit, what a strange species That God created and sent to Earth Further than the imagination can see Diversity and depth without dearth No one person, no one tribe No one nation, no one race Can bridge alone your great divide And still your thirst for a homely place Only all of us together can Not all at once, for we are separated But by going from human to human With an open heart from land to land Will the segregated inside you be integrated. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
JEWELS AND THORNS
Somewhere it‘s day Somewhere it’s night Some hearts are sad Some with joy bright But even as the world Continues to spin The happy turn sour The sad grow a grin Sometimes you’re glad Sometimes you’re down Jewels and thorns Adorn the human crown What makes us human? The ability to weep And then laugh again For our heart is deep. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
THE OLD IN THE NEW
Every new thing you meet Is an old thing to someone else What to you is a new beat Others have rocked from ever since Your new love is someone’s old flame Burning low but burning still Because people stay the same Captive to their former thrill Battles you assumed were done Suddenly resurface demanding review Friends you thought were long gone Suddenly come again to protect you Nothing you meet is new It is old to someone and to itself It might even be old to you But you simply don’t realise it yet. Che Chidi Chukwumerije Poems from the inner river
Che Chidi Chukwumerije 