Of pain

EACH ONE HEAL ONE

~ Che ~ Leave a comment

We all have that one person who we don’t like to think of, but who we also never forget. That one person, the thought of whom causes us so much pain and anger. That one person who hurt us, or deceived us, or betrayed us, or belittled us and made us feel so small, or took advantage of us, or kicked us when we were down and weak, or made a fool of us, or stole what was precious from us, or led us astray, or lied against us, or harmed us.Maybe it was that one person who we trusted deeply and who betrayed this trust. That one person who left a permanent scar in our heart. We all have that one person who we don’t like to think about but who we also never forget.

And that person also has the one person who they don’t like to think about but who they also never forget. And so it goes round and round in a circle, and we are all locked and connected in a net of pain and disappointment and bitterness and betrayal and memory and hurt. And regret. No one is spared, no one is innocent, no one is free of pain or of guilt. We are the ones who teach each other the lessons of life and of the vagaries of the human heart. We are all we have. Those that hurt you and those that harm you and those that heal you and those that hug you and those that have you are all the same people. Everybody has touched somebody. And everybody has been touched by somebody. Each one hurt one. Each one heal one. Forgive, and move on.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Undulating Plains

YEAR OF ACHING

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
What a difference a year can make
Depending on the path you take
The pillars you shake
The bonds you break
The demons or the angels you wake
And the thirsts you slake.

For whose or for what’s sake?
For something real or for something fake?
Some say the heart is a lake
Beneath its surface there swims a snake
Your happiness is at stake
And yet all you seem to do is ache and ache.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

WHERE THE HEART BELONGS

~ Che ~ 2 Comments

Someone who doesn’t take you with both hands, willingly and eagerly and totally, that person is not your home, nor you theirs. No matter how much it hurts, tear yourself away from them and move on.

Wounds heal with time.

We live in two worlds simultaneously. The one world is politics and society, is work and recreation, is projects and ambitions and all kinds of responsibilities, is ideologies, and is even family too sometimes. This is the one world, in which we chase achievements.

But there is another world in which we also live. It is deeper, is more subtle, more intense, quieter, and often very invisible. It is the loves that come and go; the tears and longings that burn our hearts; the seldom laughter of genuine joy; the raw friendships; the secret passionate love affairs; the intimately guarded happy home; the given trust and the broken trust; it is the real us deep inside.

We live in these two worlds simultaneously. And then time passes, and we die. And our obituary is full of what we did in the one world. While all our memories from the other world depart with us quietly in our hearts. And in the hearts of those who shared it with us.

Wounds will heal with time. But, while you’re on that journey, don’t go to where your heart does not belong. Seek your happiness in being true to yourself, always.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Undulating Plains

WORDS WORTH LITTLE

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
What are words worth
On this lonely earth?
Actions seem more honest
But they also lie the best.
You don’t know what to believe -
Even silence too can deceive.
Only what you intuitively perceive
Will in the end be your reprieve.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

THE EARTH SCHOOL

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
There are some people
Who just don’t deserve good people,
Yet good people will be meet them
Because they’re a part of the system;
There’s nothing you can do about that.

As long as you walk this earth,
You deserve every experience you get;
You signed up for it before birth
And now you have to run the gauntlet -
There’s nothing you can do about that.

Welcome to the school of maturing,
Of pain, temptation, of debt incurring -
But you CAN conquer after long enduring.
Now I don’t know if you find this reassuring,
But there’s nothing you can do about that.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

MY PATH

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
I‘m just on my lonely path
But very few people know
And even those that know
Still don’t really know
Because how can you know
What I don’t truly show?
The nature of my sorrow
The depth of my flow
For I still have many miles to go
In my search for tomorrow
And only I truly know
The loneliness of my path.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

A LITTLE HAPPY EVERYDAY

~ Che ~ Leave a comment

Sometimes you love someone, but the person loves someone else. Or the person simply prefers a lifestyle different from the one which a life with you would have to offer them. So they choose or go after someone else who, or another path that, can offer them that lifestyle.

Being that the aim, the very aim, of life itself is Happiness, this experience of rejection cuts to the very heart of the essence of existence. The hurt can kill the soul. It makes people reappraise themselves, question their worth and even find fault in their own fundamental character. Yet, while self-examination is healthy, so also are self-love, self-understanding and self-acceptance equally necessary.

When trapped in a spiral of self-abnegation in which one no longer recognises oneself, It then becomes imperative to awaken, within one’s consciousness, a new narrative of life and of self in order to find the path to a new source of joy, as a new person. To outgrow the self-image that traps one in a cycle of pain, perhaps even to shed certain traits, and to learn to see oneself, one’s path and one’s Why with fresh new eyes. To find a new understanding of the purpose of life.

This is where the concept of never giving up comes into play. Every morning when you wake up, strive for joy. Be prepared to let go of those thoughts and those beliefs that weigh you down debilitatingly. Be ready and able every day to try a new path, a new thought, until you find the exit – and then you can take flight again.

Life is a jigsaw puzzle. Many parts fit, but many parts don’t fit also. And you have to move the pieces about in your heart and in your life continuously, often, and courageously in order to slowly put your answers together.

And, as you stride on along this way, try… try to be a little happy every day. In the end, that’s all you have. That’s all we have to share with one another. That is our humanity.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Undulating Plains

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

HURT

~ Che ~ 1 Comment 
Love hurts.
Life hurts.
People hurt.
People hurt people.
And hurt people hurt people.

And when it hurts too much
People begin to avoid the touch
The inner touch
Sometimes they permit the outer touch
But only perfunctorily as such
Because even it hurts too much.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

COMPLICATED

~ Che ~ Leave a comment 
They will hurt you
It’s what they do
When they feel attracted to you.

Do they love you? It’s hard to say.
Do they hate you? It’s hard to say.
What they feel is hard to explain
But it will cause you pain.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river