BRIGHTNESS UP AHEAD

There’s brightness up ahead
Curiousity and hope instead
Of shuddering tears we shed
Instead of feet that walking bled
And never a word said.
But now there’s brightness up
Ahead and an overflowing cup
And a loaf of laughter for my sup.
If you look deeply you’ll see it on my face
That my heart was caught by His grace. 

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

SMILING STILL

A heart of gold
And you will walk many miles
In the biting cold
Warmed by memories of smiles
May your heart be bold
And wise to wade through the wiles
And guiles and keep smiling still
As you trudge on up Hurting Hill.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

LIGHT TRAVEL

Travel light
For the road has all you need
But pack right -
The important things - and Godspeed.
Have a good flight.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

DON’T GET LOST IN THE DARK

Don’t get lost in the dark
Wait for the mist to clear
The emotions never speak the truth
They are always informed and biased by feelings
You just have to wait for the mist to clear
It takes a shorter or longer time to pass
Depending on your nature
And depending on the circumstances
Just don’t get lost in the dark.

Azuka Chukwumerije

WITHOUT YOU

The people you expect to be there
Are farthest away when you need them near
The beautiful world is barren and bare
Without you. I need you here
To share with me my hope and fear
And marvel at the sunsets rare
And be my sunrise and midnight clear.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

YEAR OF ACHING

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

PARTY TIME

Close the chapter and move on -
Life is a party. Put your dancing shoes on
And just groove on
Be the life of your own party.
Many invited guests will fail to show up
Don’t worry, the show will still go on
Many uninvited guests will crash the party
And light the show up
Your life is your party and it’s never done Dance on, move on, groove on.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

MY PATH

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

YOU CANNOT

You cannot be a man - or a woman -
And go through the world
Without the world going through you

You cannot deal with people
Without people dealing with you

You cannot tackle your task
Without your task tackling you

You cannot handle issues
Without issues handling you

You cannot finish your mission
Without your mission finishing you.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

IS TIME A CIRCLE?

Is time a circle, not a line?
Does it have a center?
A Center to which we return
When we lose our Center?
A moment in our childhood,
A time from another life,
Something that never changes,
A piece of eternal life.
A recurring dejavu -
I have been here before
And so have you
Like Waves on the sea shore.
The seasons recur for a reason
The past repeats itself intermittently
We come from the Future
And it is waiting for us to return impatiently.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river