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

I DREAM EVERY TIME I FALL ASLEEP

I dream every time I fall asleep
And it’s always one adventure or the other;
Conversations with beloveds I keep,
My best friend, my father, my brother,
And strangers too with whom I laugh and weep
And fight and love and comfort one another;
The dangers are real, the emotions are deep,
Every fear, every tear, every worry and bother;
At times I weightless fly, or I burdened creep,
Through encounters that liberate or smother,
But I’m always conscious even in the Deep,
As awake as a baby born out of its mother.
For I have vows to keep and sowed seeds to reap -
And before it gets lighter it will get darker -
And miles to go and never really sleep.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river

YOUR LADDER OF POEMS

A poem at a time
Gradually I climb
Out of my well of wishes
Out of my well of clichés
Out of my well of unbeing
Into my wellbeing.

Don’t let the machine write your mind
Think for yourself or you’ll grow blind
What you seek is what you’ll find -
Moving on, don’t leave your true self behind.

AI might be the future’s tool -
But stay human and don’t be its fool.

Che Chidi Chukwumerije
Poems from the inner river