The Western Chronicles ... Unveiling Poseidon I

Facing south....my gaze upon the west

The warm rays of the fading sun...

My only comfort in these cold days

Thots of the princess downing our spirits

The final spectacle a distant memory

Then again.....like a hesistant drop of oil on a pristine white veil

Our hearts conspicously stained....our minds weary

Worse still, our strength so not eager to dry clean

Reeling from Poseidon's sudden war

Unexpected.....a lack of anticipation our regret

Then again amidst his turf we stood

How then did this bait elude us?

A peace meeting turned into a death fest

Destruction the only thing not destroyed

Swimming to safety....at least she did

Her gaze upon us that of disgust

The destruction of her alluring shores ours to face

Then again.....the captain set to work

Bewildered...? Yes! But determined still

Till words never heard of but true still come tumbling out

Wondering how this little piece of wisdom constantly eluded him

For perhaps the battle was never with Poseidon

Or better still....

Poseidon is revealed only when he's stares in a mirror....

Tit bits from friends.....

Having lost the zeal to write any more poems (not due to lack of ideas), I have turned to friends who have something to say as well. Reading some of their poems and notes have however struck me deeply. I realised that I do construct my poems in no simple manner, making the meaning or reason behind the poems difficult to decipher and this worries me greatly. I probably need this break now to reassess how I structure my writings so that people can understand better and relate to my ideas in much intimate manner. Nonetheless, enjoy these poems from my good friends......

Tame (By Abi Tobi)

Staring at myself 

Wishing for someone to see 

The dreams in my eyes

Why I can’t I be free?

Let lose?

I want to keep tame

For good name

For good face

And also for pride,

Yes, I take pride in all of me

But am no angel

The right one will know

Could be the devil in the red dress

I know how to get what I want

But I only use this privilege for the right one 

And when I don’t, it is a mistake

Maybe one that had to teach me lessons

soo those dreams in my eyes are special

I pray only the right one sees it

Walking Memoirs (by Chioma Obuekwe)

A soothing breeze of assurance,

surrounds thee like that beautiful romance

underneath thy Veil.

Running along thy memory lane,

behold seasons degrade.

Memoirs of bitter sweet symphony

encompassing thy betrothed yet so painful.

A being that was once so beautiful,

One who I could lay my head

and tell thee of the mischief of thy World.

The analogy of life,

That rose which once brought thee hope,

behold turns it upside down,

Leaving thy virtue so helpless,

Opened with nothing but torn pieces.

Memoirs to keep?

Memoirs to deed?

For as one knows,

So as requiem lives,

Requiem mass in D minor leads.

We'll get there someday!

Growing up can be challenging. The comparisons, the self doubts, the complexes, the fear of failure, the confusion of your desires, and the list goes on. One thing is certain, we all seek happiness and this can only be achieved when we get all we want right? Problem is, we'll never stop wanting so does that mean we'll never be happy? Someone once said for you to be happy, you need to be contented with what you have......so does that mean that we should not be ambitious? For if that is the case, all the yearnings in our heart would be ignored thus leaving us unfulfilled and then again, unhappy! So how then do we get to be ambitious and content at the same time? Well, that is the dilemma of growing up.....knowing how to measure the balance.....knowing when to lose in other to win, knowing which things to let go and which things to hold on to.....knowing when to stop being nice and to be harsh for a change....knowing which motivations are right and which are wrong and yet still, doing all this without losing the plot of who we are or are striving to be. A friend of mine shares her own experience....of rumblings in her head........and she does get the plot in the end.....:)

In Nigeria, we have a saying that goes, ‘It is not only the fox; even the snail arrives at its destination’. Hearing this instantly warms my heart and automatically makes me smile.

Sometimes I think of where I am compared to where I want to be. If only I did this and that and changed this little thing about me or threw away this entire chunk of my personality, maybe I’ll get to that place. It’s even worse when I compare myself to my peers, ‘if only I were confident like Kirsten’ I mumbled this to myself all three years of high school, or, ‘maybe if I were pretty and smart like Deniz’ I would think this and stare jealously at my best friend. Over the years though, I’ve come to realize that being pretty and smart like Deniz, or being confident like Kirsten doesn’t matter. It’s really about being confident, pretty and smart like me.

Even now I think about my career and where some of my mates have gone with their lives. A friend that owns his own business and is doing pretty well at it, or another friend that has figured out how to be fun and adventurous, yet at complete peace with one’s own self even at times of trouble, and throw in the fact that she’s smart, outspoken and is the very definition of power-woman all in one. Yeah, we all have that friend in our lives, the one we look up to and think, damn, where do I keep getting it wrong in my life?

Then I take a thorough look at myself, pick out all the nasty bits that need to go, make a deadly-sins list and hang it up on my wall as a reminder of all the wrong things I believe I embody and it’s just not healthy. Every time I look at this list, I get depressed because I realise that shoot! I committed offense number two on my list, at least ten times today without even noticing it. Although, it’s good to want to mature and grow, I’ve learnt to look at my weaknesses and strengths as the formula that makes me.

Still, I always get stressed out worrying about ‘why it took me two years to get into my program of study while it took others a year only. Now I’m going to be stuck here when all my friends have graduated. Or why did I do so poorly on this exam while others aced it? Why can’t I get a better, higher-profile job like she has? And why is it taking me so long to get in a real relationship while others are already getting married?

I have realised though that everyone has their own pace. The fox may be a fast runner and gets to where it’s going in time, but then so does the snail. It’s slow and just crawls around, but be sure it will get to that party on time! To begin with, It’s all about being fully aware of who you are. The snail knows that it is slow, so if it got an invite for seven pm, it’ll leave the house at two pm, leaving a good five hours to crawl and get there. It has forgiven itself for its shortcomings and now works with it. So when I feel like my life is running on slow motion and I get left behind a lot, I try to take things one step at a time, measuring the time I need against the time that I have. Also, now I try to make a conscious effort against comparing myself to others, because this is MY life so I focus only on the things that I need done to get myself to the place that I want to be; slow or not, I will arrive at my destination.

By Tosin Babatunde

...The Western Chronicles - ....Anxiety II

12 cycles of constant toil
Midnight candles constantly glowing...slowly melting
Our minds torn apart from reality
Immersed in a pool of ideals
Secret and open pleasures forgotten
Constantly chasing the dreams of our future
Hidden patterns and secrets
Old habits suddenly overcome
Time nearly too short
The hope of satisfaction....of respect....of fulfilment constantly fading
Anxiety!

A mission near impossible
Time, beyond a necessity...more like a desperation
Stored wagers continually depleting
A situation worsened by over-bloated egos
Leaving beacons of help "unlighted"
Horrid opinions pondered...yet none exploited
The curtain drawing on an already bleak future
Awaiting the winner of the duel between reason and ego
Anxiety!

Ten cycles already gone atop the oceans
A blissful voyage at first
Calm hearts and minds with candle light evenings atop the deck
Slowly marred by restless spirits
An infectious disease
Driving each to a delirious state
With a short budding period yet a re-infectious capacity
It slowly turns to an epidemic
Thoughts of abandonment pondered by the sane
Only to be infected as they lower their escape boats
A curse of the gods? Maybe.....
A way out eluding the rather troubled mind of the captain
Anxiety!

A mind riddled with different shades of different colours
An open book with unending pages
Unknowingly cunny and slippery
Masking its loving, forgiving, kind and intuitive allure
Driving other minds to frustration
Grossly misunderstood....falsely accused
An exodus started
Leaving it disappointed and disheartened
Anxiety!

...The Western Chronicles - ....The Sea Angel II

Secret trips to the shores
Ancient whispers continually echoing
Promises made remembered
Lots of questions left unanswered
Hope kept alive or purely the curiosity of untasted passions?

In reminiscence....
Hurts of the past relived....scares turned once again to wounds
Minds like itchy fingers
Slowly scraping through.....once again drawing blood
The scent of, attracting her from the ocean depths
Past hungers once again aroused
A stronger mind awaiting patiently
The wrath of the gods fully anticipated

In her enchanting allure she stands again
A lovely being....a beautiful heart...tainted by they chains of the gods
Hers not a battle to begin
Her sheath swordless,  her bow devoid of any arrow
Rather soothing words....soft touches
Silently dressing opened wounds with aloe
Lest they leave behind ugly scars
Quietly erasing the ugly past....
Leaving behind only beautiful memories
Questions answered.....anger lost
The shores shockingly quiet

Certainly not the anticipated outcome
Battle ready minds left stuttering by the shores
Time too short...for the gods once again are angered
Swearing at the boldness of the captain in thunderous bolts
Stirring the oceans....for a storm against the hinterlands
In respect....in love....the rendezvous planned to end
Once again, promises made....
As weary feet scuttle away from the shores
Yet still....a few stolen glances over the shoulder
To once more behold the lovely essence
Of the Sea Angel.