And I Sang Hosanna to God

She has a sign on her wall
Stop and smell the roses
knowing you owe
a debt of gratitude for the gifts
so plenty, oh many.

I looked round and saw no rose

She was the only rose by her wall

She has a sign on her feet
Drop in quietly without noise
Inside you can juggle six not ten times
Repeat, once again, only six not ten times
I’ve got no time to waste, I dropped in

I smelled the rose and I juggled not six but ten times

After the water she wants me to drink

I sang for the first time Hosanna not six but ten times

How do I love you?

(For You, on Mother’s Day)

Since the morning of that day we met

I’ve seen the moon refusing to set
Nature itself has declined to go to bed

I’ve seen the rainbow play long on the sunlight,

As if there is something going on in the universe.

They all saw our love as supreme in the veldt.

Ever since we met, I’ve told myself,
You will forever find me waiting for you,
Painting pictures of us on every single moment of time
I’ll always be joyful with you and no one can understand,
Why I love you so much since the morning we met.

Each day, I see minutes take so long to drift away
They just want to catch a glimpse of us in love

And dream of a season like ours when they’ll know love
Let them wait, when in the evening I fly you in velvets
They’ll stare at the ceiling of the sky and smile at us.

I’ve promised myself that wherever I'll be

I’ll let the sun of an unequaled love shine on you
We’ll carry that forgotten fire of love across the universe
To kindle yawning spirits with the language of love

Which you taught me since the morning we met.

The Determined

Whether you start at dawn or in the evening

It’s your own set of sails and not the gales
that tell the voyager how to paddle the boat.

It’s always the prize that rips apart the brave
and when you find out why old words die out on the tongue,
you’ll learn to let new melodies break forth from your heart.

Like the twisters of the sea are the whirlwinds of fate
As we journey through life’s alleys; it’s the aspirations
That decide the goal and not the calm or the tears

Left too soon

Like a comet blazing across the evening sky, he was gone 

before we could raise our heads up.

Like a rainbow fading into the twilight;

he was gone before we could blink an eye.

Like a star shiny and sparkly, we lost him
before his splendid light shone brightly on the horizon.

We saw him like the sunlight
on a cloudy afternoon, but he was gone before his sun set.

What is life if not like a castle built upon a sandy beach;
or like a perfect flower, that’s just beyond our reach?

Are we born to be here today
only to be gone before nightfall?

Or like sunset we die with the rising moon
so as to be born into a Glory before morn?

Gone too soon before we could girdle our loins
and for our goats to grow beards.

Where is the Love?

How do we go from here to love

When violence wrecks our nations
When indifference is the gain of pledges

How do we go from here to cherished hope

When corruption is the order of the day

Around us are war, hunger and destructions

Everywhere unity is just a word on lips

And grinding of teeth the order of society

Where is the love when mothers nightly cry

And the bereaved can’t be comforted

Around the world I see countries

And families torn apart by war and strife

I can’t see peace when the people are not free

Where is the love that blows in the gentle breeze

That every soul can breathe a sigh with smiles

Where is the love when children disappear
And fathers are lost in deep agony

Where do we go from here to hope

When darkness becomes our companion
And our land is watered by bloodshed

Where do we go from here to love

When the land is uncertain of what next to come

When the haunting past storms into the present

And the future mourns of its failed mission
Can we find love again before hot sun overwhelms us

Where is laughter when defeat is our destiny
And how can we get to seasons of hope
When the sun sadly walks us by to its place
And our tears become the cloak of our existence
Oh Lord, where is the love they promised

My Love and All

Last night I fell asleep
And saw you dancing in my dreams
Just like the autumn leaves
Have fallen for you, all for you

And you changed my life
You changed my ways
I don't even recognize myself again
It must be a reflection of you, that made it

I can't remember the last time I felt love like this
I can't imagine living life without you by my side
Day after day you find a way to make me cry
Really, I can't remember the last time I felt love like this

My arms still hold you tight like in my dreams
I want to keep you warm in the coldest night
Where my hand would pull your hair right back

Away from your eyes for you to look into my face

If I knew just how to do it, I'd hang the moon,

And the stars around you to adorn the horizon
But I couldn't make it more beautiful than you
Darling nothing compares to you, my love and all

Where I Come From

where we come from, joy
floats around us like clouds
the way leaves rustle in the breeze
and love and beauty swing in our embraces
and smile with all our senses from sunrise till sundown

where I come from dreams do not rest on fences
when the cock crows the young and old rise
take to the road with sparkling powerful arms
songs work-songs harvest-songs and jolly-songs 

hold us tightly in fragrant dances
and kinship are to us scents of magnolia and frangipani
and rituals of the elders look toward the skies
from where cometh our Help of Ages

where I come from on every village lane

and on footpaths you could see something lovely

you can see our children's smiles white and glistening  
young girls in braids as precious as gold 
the swing of their hips the rhythm in their gait
the smile on soft-brown cheek and the movement of the eyes
leave the lanky brother in the heat blowing kisses in the air

once I heard low bass voices crooning

on a Saturday afternoon when the Rainmaker

came out of the forest with the Dipo girls

the magical flowers of breasts lost many in the garden of chimera
and they disguised their racing pounding hearts
in the melody of the music in their heads

strangers who won't be for long be spectators
left with their manhood shooting loudly ahead of them

where I come from are many things to sing about
not these hard core blues low bass voices crooning
nasty cruising thoughts on corrugated Freeways 
turning nouns into verbs and fetching dreams
strewn with bones that melt melodies to huge fires
but with my smiles and deep dark eyes

I’ll continue to see there's so much to life than gold teeth

For a Friend

seeing the sun rise with glow this morn
its rays dancing among the leaves in the grove
I saw my tears dry like dew on village lanes
and for once, I found again the lost smile
that was missing for a long time

seeing the moon with the choir this night
this heart holds hope like a rock
to see this old heartache in love's cradle leave

maybe I no longer will cry at night
as if all my dearest friends are gone

Let's Get on It

One day when time races against us

And your legs can't work like they used to
And I too can't sweep you off of your feet
Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?
Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?

So Darling, let’s get on it now
Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Place your head on my beating heart
That’s where we found love the first night

Time waits for no one in the world

So when my hair's all but gone and my memory fades
And you no longer can remember my name
When my hands too can't play the strings the same way
Let me know if you will still love me the same

I love you because our souls never grow old,

They’re evergreen and I’ve buried your smile forever
In my mind and I’ve kept in my memory how we fell in love
Maybe it's all part of a Divine plan that we fall deep in love
That’s why I fall in love with you every single day

So, Darling, let’s get on it now
Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Place your head on my beating heart
That’s where we found love the first night

Yours Only

When the Sun rises today

I want to be the Smile on your face,
The First thought that comes to you,
I want to be the Joy in your heart
When you walk through the day.
I want to be the last voice,
the only Laughter, the perfect Kiss,
In the comfort of your arms.
I Want To Be Yours, and only Yours.

If I could be any part of you today

I would be your Tear,
To be conceived in your heart, born in your eyes,
Dance on your cheeks, fall on your lips

And Die in your bosom.

Just to Be Yours and Yours only.

I want to hold you tight.
Kiss your lips, and hug you forever.
I want to make you feel wanted
I want you to feel my love and Call you mine.
My sweetheart, my Only true Sweetheart.

THE STORM OF LIFE

Into every life a little rain must fall. How we deal with that rain is what determines our future. Sometimes humanity shines brightest under inhumane conditions, because from nauseating humus springs the most beautifully flourished lilies of our valleys. So, when the storm of life ravages through your world, you must not throw in the towel and give in to tears. Instead, reexamine your steps in life and chart a new roadmap for your existence. Remember, our life is an accumulation of our past, both good and bad. So, too, is the way we see it. That is why an unexamined life is not worth living. At times, we all search for meaning in our lives, often in vain. Perhaps the answer is not to find meaning, but to give it, its meaning. I say this because, life is filled with choices, and where we call "home" or your “workplace” is just one of them. How you design your house to be a home to fit your lifestyle, your taste and stature or personality in this world is your own choice. In making or redesigning your “home,” remember in times of desperation, what we seek cannot be easily found. It is in those desperate moments that our lives move from dreams to nightmares regardless what we do. But then, we must not be discouraged. We must just make anew each day of our lives by brightening each corner of it. Have you noticed that life doesn't just exist? By definition, it lives. And that inevitably means growth. Above all, be yourself. What we call life is a long series of discrete events, all leading to one all-important discovery. And what we call misery in life is relentless until you seek to silence it by finding harmony within ourselves and the world around us. I have come to believe that we are often shaped as much by the pain in our life as well as by the joys. And your pain, no matter how real, is but a small drop in an ocean of all miseries. So, set your eyes on tomorrow. And note, if life is like a rose, then what about the thorns? So, cheer yourself up. No one will do it for you. Let us pray.........

My Prayer

long as the morning sun rises from the east,
the Light that wakens man and beast
the Hand that pats the shoulder

and restores light and hope in every soul
the Arm that darkness can never deface
will take man through another day
draw his soul from every slumber
walk him through every burning wood
He will tender the furrowed cheek
brace the weary soul
to catch the dew of another dawn
He will nestle the broken-hearted
bathe the despairing in the warmth of hope
till there are smiles again
like the petals of a morning flower