Twice I touched her heart
So she cried
Once she cried
And then she cried no more.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
Of human beings
JAZZ HOLE
I’m feeling down today
The perfect mood
For poetry
He’s played the music
So long
He’s lost in the music now
That musician on stage
Is an echo of the poetry
Eating me inside.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije
THE ESSENCE
In seeking Contact with people
Seek that within them
Which is the core of their
Human essence.
There is a moment
Like an electric shock,
When humanity meets humanity
Your cores touch
And so do always your chores –
A kickstart into the Quick
Hearts run like rivers
Seeking the sea. Let it be.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
A LITTLE WEIRD
You have to be a little weird
To be normal
A little fat to be healthy
A little perverted to love fully
A little poor to be rich
And a little me
To be you.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
HUMAN LOVE
Because I love you
I love your scars
Trophies of all your wars
Because I love you
I love your ugliness
In and out of your dress
They make you special
And beautiful in my eyes.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
WEALTH OF POVERTY
They shrink away instinctively
Disgustedly
From the poor
As though poverty were a disease
But even faster they
Avert their thought-sprinkled eyes
Nobody wants to see Shame
The shame mirrored within
Who is ashamed of whom?
Of what?
The rich is ashamed for being rich
The poor is ashamed for being poor
They both are ashamed of being
In the company of each other
One hopes the tides will turn
One fears the tides will turn.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
PEACEFUL SANDS, QUIET HANDS
Sometimes too
It is calm, the sand
A creamy caressing
My regular progressing, breathing
Like quiet sleep at night.
Peace is like that hand
That cool palm upon my racing heart
Cooling cooling me down, cooling
Me down
A very quiet moment
Sometimes I understand
The tracks that tears once marked down
The shifting desert sands – the sands
Shift and shift, but the tracks remain
Visible from my aeroplane
Pain and more pain over and over again
Makes you quieter, richer in the end.
It’s only peace that lasts that long –
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
CONSCIENCE
Brave fool
You spoke the truth
Now it’s fallen off your shoulder
Breathe easy
When you look into the distance
Your eyes aren’t distracted by your thoughts
You see the observant trees
The bird minding its business
For your conscience is clear
Heavy is the hand that holds the knife
That strikes you down
Heavy is not thine heart. It is light.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
SUCCESS AND FAILURE
She had a promising career ahead
Of her but she lost that fire
And whether or not she found herself instead along the way
Is a subject of debate amongst her
Observers. She is different of late –
And then we all sat down and spoke again
About What is truly the Aim of Life.
Career? Money? Power? Fame? Or the search for God?…
Peace of mind? Is it mental and physical health? –
Love? Family? Travel? And experiencing?
Because we all go out the same way we came in
With hearts full of hopes and regrets.
–Che Chidi Chukwumerije.
INTIMATE ENEMIES
A day
Is a long way to travel
A truth
Is a deep lie to unravel
A kiss
Is a message of sorts
Friendship is a breaching
Of the law of torts
Intimacy is most intense
When you and your enemy
Break down each others’ defence.
– Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Che Chidi Chukwumerije 