Of Leadership

RE-CODING MANHOOD

~ Che ~ Leave a comment

I never again want to be that man, the one that a woman is lying to another man in order to come and spend time with me. Because I will always think of that other man and know the excruciating pain he will feel if he ever suspects something he cannot prove. And if he doesn’t suspect anything and thinks he is with a loyal partner, then I will be the one to feel the excruciating pain on his behalf. I never want to be that man, the one that encourages or condones a woman lying to another man in order to come and spend time with me. For humanity to grow, the code of manhood has to change and become noble and knightly, boldly honest and full of dignity. I want to be the man who speaks the truth and to whom the truth is spoken. Any woman who deceives someone else in order to come and give herself to you, is not a good woman. She has given you a poisoned chalice. Be a man whose most intimate communication is truth, who speaks truth and to whom truth is spoken. Re-code the manhood within you, so we can lift up this world again.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Undulating Plains

NICE PEOPLE LIE TOO

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
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

THE POWER IN THE COURAGE TO BE TRUTHFUL

~ Che ~ 1 Comment 
Truth is so powerful. There is almost nothing
That you cannot forgive a truthful person.
It’s a strange phenomenon. What is hurting
You is healing you, is teaching you a lesson.
Even while suffering, you can’t stop trusting.

Something about them awakens respect in us.
Truthful people fascinate the coward in us,
Inspire the warrior in us, touch the human in us.
In the depth of their sin, yet they carry the cross.
Even at their worst, they’re still the best of us.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

SHARE YOUR LIGHT

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
Sometimes it‘s just a word that’s missing
At the right time and everything goes wrong
Hurting sounds like hissing
Caring sounds like dissing
Whispering sounds like kissing
And confirms what you knew all along.

But someone will cross your path today
Who needs a smile
Someone crying for help will be in your way
For a little while
Just a word, a look, a smile, a friendly touch
Will help them another mile.

Share your night and your fright
Share your might and your right
Share your sight and your insight
And share your plight and your flight
Share your fight and your bite
Share your height - and share your light.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

HAPPILY

~ Che ~ 1 Comment 
Happy wife, happy life.
Happy Ex, happy Next.
If you don’t want stress,
Spread Happiness.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

SPEAK YOUR MIND

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
You need to speak your mind
Or you will not be free
It will eat you up inside and grind
Away at your sanity.

Say what you really believe
Articulate what you really want
Your Inner piece shall grant you reprieve
When people’s reaction be blunt.

Truth is better than art
Honesty shines brighter than beauty
Your inner voice wants to chart
A path to peace of mind and to Liberty.

Speak your mind before you die.
If your heart moves your mind spiritually
Speak your mind unless you’ll die
Literally and figuratively.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

DON’T BE DISTRACTED BY INSULTS

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
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

IT TAKES A NEIGHBOURHOOD

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
I like them both
The two sides of Black
The one that is woke
And the one that looks back

I like both of them
The two sides of Black
The one full of flame
And the one that’s laid back

I like the Black that plays
I like the Black that fights
I like the Black that prays
I like the Black that delights

I like the Black that segregates
I like the Black that integrates
I like the Black that separates
I like the Black that tolerates

It’s all Black and it’s all good
It takes a village and a neighbourhood.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

ONCE WE WERE LIGHT

~ Che ~ Leave a comment

Once we were light
But the world weighed us down
Drowned out our cry of resistance
And put a bandage over our eyes

A desperate cry for help
Before we fell silent
And started to look silently at our children
The way once our parents looked at us

Now we know what they were thinking:
Retain your magic! Retain your lightness!
Even as they said to us worriedly:
You have to learn to fit into the system –

Knowing it was not the way
But knowing no other way
Or knowing it but not having the heart
To push us off the cliff –

Because not everybody grows wings
When falling through the gap.
The generation gap.
Now we watch our children worriedly

Wanting them to become like us
And wanting them to stay themselves too.
Once we were light
But the world weighed us down.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije

USING SELF-CONFIDENCE

~ Che ~ 2 Comments

The most powerful thing you can give people is confidence. Self-confidence. But some people, once they have it they turn around and use it against you, who awakened it in them.

Next time, you feel like leaving people wallowing in their pitiful inferiority complex.

But a part of you still goes ahead and keeps on strengthening people who need it everywhere you meet them. What they later do with this strength and self-confidence is their business.

You have done yours.

– Che Chidi Chukwumerije