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Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
I am a white African. Contradiction in terms? I think not. Sometimes my blog will be serious; sometimes sad; sometimes irreverent; sometimes witty; always my truth simply written.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

SILENCE IS GOLDEN


Why are you silent, vuvuzela?
The sound of your busy buzzing
inside the huge stadia
just a ghostly whisper.
You quit when Spain won.
Loudest voice in
Africa’s
World Cup
hushed.


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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

SWALLOWS

as winter draws near
their instinct is to fly south
chasing the summer

OR

as winter draws near
they instinctively fly south
chasing the summer


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TOKOLOSHE

(pronounced something like “tore-kore-losh-ee”. This nonet is written about the fabled little man whom many black South Africans fear - possibly more than death itself)

Tokoloshe! Zulu warrior,
why is it you tremble in fear
when you hear “Tokoloshe”?
Surely he is not real,
this pint-sized zombie
with gouged-out eyes
and power
to kill
you?


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Friday, November 19, 2010

WHAT???

Stranger things happen
than fish raining from above-
flying cows sank ship!

A fun haiku on a serious topic for Haiku Heights #18...


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Tuesday, November 16, 2010

I SEE IT IN YOUR EYES

Your eyes
betray your soul.
You think I am shiftless.
I know that work is scarce, as is
mercy.


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My husband actually wrote this cinquain for me at a time when he was unemployed and I was giving him a hard time about it.

Monday, November 15, 2010

MOLTEN

bright summer sunshine
shimmers and slips like gold silk
between the green leaves


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Thursday, November 11, 2010

CHRISTMAS CAROLS


This poem was inspired by true events.  On Christmas Eve 1915, a peace overture came from the German lines. On Christmas Day, after a night of carol singing, Bertie Felstead, a private in the Royal Welch Fusiliers football was produced from somewhere – though none could recall from where. "It wasn't a game as such, more a kick-around and a free-for-all. There could have been 50 on each side for all I know. I played because I really liked football. I don't know how long it lasted, probably half an hour." recalled that feelings of goodwill had so swelled up that at dawn Bavarian and British soldiers clambered spontaneously out of their trenches.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_truce 

CHRISTMAS CAROLS
Brothers-in-arms crouched low in the trench,
worn faces streaked with God’s earth.
Uneasy silence infused the dawn
of that day celebrating Christ’s birth.

Raised on the wind, across ‘no man’s land’,
voices carried a well-loved old tune.
Awe-struck allies listened to the choir
as the sun took the place of the moon.

A man hidden in a narrow trench
threw his baritone into the fray.
His brothers-in-arms each found their voice
singing carols on that Christmas Day.

It wasn’t long before men stepped out,
to meet each of the foe face to face.
That Christmas Day, in nineteen fifteen,
‘no man’s land’ was a sociable place.

Photo’s of loved ones proudly displayed
amidst laughter and good cheer all round.
Then, hearts heavy, as the sun sank low,
all crept safely back into the ground.

At midnight the truce came to an end
and the battle raged all through the night
while the cold air resounded anew
with the sounds of a bloodthirsty fight.

On either side of that ‘no man’s land’
brave men’s lives were surrendered too soon,
their inert bodies with shattered limbs
kissed by the sun that replaced the moon.


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Even though I am not 100% happy with the structure of this poem, I am posting it on Armistice Day, in memory of all those who have died in any war so that we could be free.

FRAGILE

soft wings
fluttered gently,
yet so persistently,
against the scorching hot light bulb
‘till death.


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Wednesday, November 10, 2010

NKWE YA GAUTA

she clasps the medal -
reminder of that dark day
when fear made her brave


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NKWE YA GAUTA means GOLDEN LEOPARD and is the name of the highest order given for exceptional bravery in the South African Defence Force.

ADDICTION

Craving
my dear friend coke
to satisfy my need
for something sweet, cold, and oh-so
fizzy.


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Just a bit of fun by a genuine coca cola addict....

Monday, November 8, 2010

HEAVENLY CHORUS

Take me
to passion’s height;
to my earthbound heaven;
where my body will sing a song
of joy.


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Saturday, November 6, 2010

JACARANDA BLOSSOMS

Violet and blue
drift upon the breeze. Twirling
and dancing snowflake petals.
Soft blossoms nestle
against inclines, forming bright
ski-slopes on a summer’s day.


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Friday, November 5, 2010

PRIMAL

dark midsummer night
naked mystic made magic
beneath bleeding moon


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RAINSTORM

nature’s rock concert –
violent jagged strobe lights,
drum-rolls of the sky



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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

BASIC INSTINCTS

Quarrelsome chatter
draws me outdoors to observe
three noisy sparrows
angrily fluttering wings
in a timeless mating dance.


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TRANQUILITY

Bubbling stream in peaceful glen;
soaring bird – freedom its cry;
soft leaves whisper and rustle again;
dappled sunlight – gold from blue sky.

Snow-capped clouds embraced in blue;
rainbow flowers – wild and free;
majestic mountains with hazy hue;
busy buzzing – solitary bee.

Long grass bending on the breeze;
time-worn rock – forever there;
beauty of nature sent to please;
God’s bountiful gifts – everywhere.


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Tuesday, November 2, 2010

HEATWAVE

mercury rising -
merciless life-giving sun
endangers all life


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Monday, November 1, 2010

SIXTY-FOUR CHRISTMAS WISHES

The children’s eyes were bright with joy
as each surveyed the brand new toy
they’d found beneath the Christmas tree
after Santa’s mammoth spending spree.

He’d given a book to clever Jane
and Ted had found an aeroplane,
while Susan’s puzzle was just fine
and Randy’s train was made of pine.

Raymond got a board and chalk
and Jen’s new doll could even talk
while Simon’s yacht could really sail
and John’s cop car had a loud wail.

Every child of the sixty-four
swore they’d seen Santa at the door,
tip-toeing quietly as a mouse,
carrying a sack into the house.

With faces aglow the children agreed
Santa had been very kind indeed.
Then, as one, their eyes grew sad.
They’d each asked for a mom and a dad.


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