Lamentations from the Womb

Mother, dearest mother,
Here I sit in your womb.
Mother, dearest mother,
Yet I wish it was my tomb.
He raped you that night,
And planted his seed.
I am a product of your plight,
Forever a sign of that deed.
Will I not forever be a marker,
Of how he destroyed your soul?
A memento of times darker,
That left you forever un-whole?
That’s why I’d rather not be born,
Into a life unloved, dark and torn.

Mother, dearest mother,
Here I sit in your womb,
And wish I would smother,
Than be born with fake aplomb.
You smoke, sniff and inject,
Poisons day and night.
You are but a reject,
The streets your only right.
What awaits me is an ordeal,
Of cold homes with no love.
A terrible fate with a tight seal,
One that fits like a glove.
That’s why I’d rather not be born,
Into a life unloved, dark and torn.

Mother, dearest mother,
Here I sit in your womb and wait,
Mother, dearest mother,
Do you feel the burden and weight?
Are you really ready,
Ready for me in your life?
Will your love be steady,
Or will I see only rancor and strife?
I sense the unwillingness,
Then you are just fourteen.
I feel the uncertainness,
I was totally unforeseen.
That’s why I’d rather not be born,
Into a life unloved, dark and torn.

Does anybody ever ask us,
Find out if we are so inclined?
We never get to discuss,
The lives into which we are assigned.
We often do not care for this world,
Full of so much strife and hate,
Into which we are hurled,
After that nine-month date.
If you say this life is a gift,
Why fill it with so much pain,
And set us in it adrift,
With no cover for the rain?
That’s why we’d rather not be born,
Into a life unloved, dark and torn.

©️Nana Dadzie Ghansah – May 20, 2019

The Noblest Virtues

Several things inspire me to write poetry. Some of the most powerful are images – paintings, photos, even a scene from everyday life or nature.
A few weeks ago, when I saw a painting by Yaw Safori, an amazing Ghanaian artist, the words came tumbling out. He has kindly allowed me to share the painting titled “Noblest Virtues” and my poem.

The Noblest Virtues
A Poem inspired by the eponymous painting by Yaw Safori

Peel back the layers,
Of color and strokes!
Beneath the layers of oils,
Pilled mindfully on canvass,
You’ll find me.

This unkind world,
Has forced a shield,
To grow around the soul,
That lets in no light,
That leaks no tears.

Yet below the hardness,
That bares its teeth,
In pointed defiance,
With steely defense,
Lies a lake.

A lake in which swims,
Love, care, and affection,
Wisdom and determination,
Truth, dignity, and purpose,
Courage and selflessness.

A lake!
Full of the noblest virtues,
Is what you’ll find
If you peel back the layers,
Around my soul.

© Nana Dadzie Ghansah 2018

 

The Eternal Warriors

I discovered the work of the incomparable Ghanaian artist Edem Dedi through a post by Whitney Hammel. Since then, I have been hooked.
One particular untitled piece of his struck a chord in me. I contacted him. He said it was inspired by a picture he once saw.
I told him his untitled painting that was inspired by a picture he once saw, had inspired a poem. He allowed me to post the painting and the poem.
I call it…

The Eternal Warriors
Inspired by an Untitled Painting by Edem Dedi

With the signature helmets on,
Those with the pointed horns,
They come prepared.
Loin clothes tied,
And bras strapped on,
They are ready to go.

Cocky and self-sure,
They stand tall and unafraid.
Hesitant yet quite curious,
Their minds search and ponder.
Patient and open to all,
They are adventurous and brave.

The blotches of color,
Dancing across the canvass,
Are as diverse as their roles.
Each day they fight —
For themselves, each other and all women.
For their families and their nation.
They are forever the Eternal Warriors.

© Nana Dadzie Ghansah 2018

Don’t Call Them Bankers

Don’t call them bankers!
They are just mean old fraudsters,
The Yankees call them banksters,
Plundering deposits like mobsters,
They are nothing but tricksters,
Belong-behind-bars gangsters!

Don’t call them bankers!
They are unrepentant scamsters,
Egomaniacal, selfish hucksters,
Selling pain like quacksters,
Full of sweet lies like shysters,
Belong-behind-bars gangsters!

Hey Mr. Banker!
The pain you caused is monster!
This nation you do really pester,
Seek to plunge into a disaster,
You must really be a doomster,
Behind bars you must, you gangster!

© Nana Dadzie Ghansah 2018

The Day the Dogwood Blossomed

That Spring morning,
When she returned from her run,
She saw the Dogwood had blossomed.
White petals sprinkled among the green,
An explosion of life and beauty.

She marched into the house,
Ready the news to share,
But the look on his face,
Said all was not well.
His announcement sunk her heart,
Froze her in place as he walked out.

Thus whenever Spring rolls around,
With the songs of birds and the butterflies;
With the white petals of the Dogwood
Sprinkled among the green,
She feels not the beauty of new life
Nor the pulse of a fresh start,
Then all she can really think of
Is the day love walked out.

© Nana Dadzie Ghansah 2018

 

To Spring

Like Odysseus’ descent into Hades,
The cold of winter enveloped us.
In the Underworld he talked to shades,
And so realized this life is a plus.
The painful bite of Jack Frost,
The lifelessness of the chill,
Reminded all of warmth lost,
As life became bleak and still.
Thus when the blooms reappear,
And rain and mist fill the day;
When the birds fill the air with cheer
And the sun’s call to smile we obey,
Then as Odysseus hailed life on returning,
So do we rejoice on Spring’s new dawning!
© Nana Dadzie Ghansah 2018

 

From that Cave to the Cave

World Poetry Day!

To commemorate the day, I present:

From that Cave to the Cave

I was pulled out of a cave,
Screaming my head off
An unknown future to brave
Seemed to me quite tough.
I crawled into the bright light
Till I finally found my own path.
Sometimes all seemed right
Until one faced it’s deep wrath.

A dear, loved one I found
Other loved ones we made.
To the top I was bound
My star would never fade.
Then the body began to crumble
As Time it’s ugly head reared
Quietly into another cave to tumble
As Life from me finally veered.