Are your feet sore Africa?
The many miles you walk
to feed the children
meager amounts
spilled forth from
the wombs of sickness,
mothers of tired want,
the fathers of no belongings
I can carry you a short while,
hold you on wings that a falcon provides
An eagle who soars with blinded eyes;
he cannot scratch the sand to find water
yet he can enlist our feeble cries,
hear our prayers and give us hope
It is turning dear Africa,
deaf ears listen once more,
momentum moves us forward
to the blazing pink
in a flamingo's beak
all your beauty not trodden on
will rise again one day,
the many miles you have sacrificed,
children returned to your soil,
they will be heard by me
and thousands more
you are not alone
In a list
A contest entry
- Surge et Ambula [ get up and walk] by Peteskid.
1800 points, ended May 28, 8 entries
Honorable winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
What did you think
Comments
1 - 10 of 10
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Wow. Quite moving.
You vision this human plight deeper, and more than a simple topic of the day as is so aptly conveyed in your verse.
I am learning - and so humbled here. Excellent! ~Pamela
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Thanks Pamela, I guess because I have stood in their shoes and seen it with my own eyes, it finds a way to express itself very personally. I have never thought of them as a charity case, more a justice issue, where the free world gives them a chance to trade and deal and work with them, pay them a fair wage that they can feed a family. Some Africans are only paid 30c an hour, how does anyone expect a family to live like that. It goes beyond anything, even the Geneva Convention, human rights and any other document that has been written, but because the majority of the country has little wealth by way of oil, the rest don't want to know. The blood diamond trade is also abhorrent with a lot of the major jewellers dealing in human misery by buying diamonds from these countries. These are a gentle and simple people who love their land and want the right to live and work it as they see fit, without a corrupt government trying to keep them in chains...I had always thought slavery left when Lincoln freed them...but some over their are still in chains whether we see them as real or not...lol sorry for rambling but I do have a passion for these people and I cannot stand to see them forgotten. Love, Chez
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No ramble at all. Look at all that I have learned from a relatively short comment. I am the better for it I hope. Thank you. 
I still know so little due to lack of exposure. Thank you again. ~Pamela 
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You grasp
the pain of Africa so well. There is a tear and a cry in your words. You have chosen your words well, although I think it is because of your love for Africa and its people that the words flowed - rather carefully chosen. There is life and there is message in your words. Best in the competition. Frans
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You are right dear Frans, the words for Africa pour out like a cascade from the waterfall, I do not have to think of them, they are inside me always. Love, C
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yes this is a voice of a poet urging for a better day against all of the obstacles and difficulties, hope, and persistence an undeniable will to be heard, so that so many lost, so much sacrifice will bring change...excellent. Thank you for this fine entry into the contest and best of luck in the judging...PK
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This is really beautiful. Mentioning the "children returned to your soil" was very effective. Good Luck. This is a very warm and personal look at the subject.
~ Joyce
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Oh Joyce, this subject is one that is so close to my heart, for I have stood in her and seen the suffering and the sadness, rocked children to sleep in an orphanage in Botswana until they died or slept soundly. You see, they accept both with grace, they accepted my hand with a smile and no tears. Africa will always have a piece of me. Love, Chez
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If ever I've seen a person in whom Africa truly lives in all her beauty, as well as someone who hears her every cry, then it is you, dear Cheryl. Your heart truly shines on this page and you make thousands more hear Africa's drum beats. This poem just makes me feel so warm inside on this autumn morning in South Africa (where it's still dark, lol). What a light you are. I salute you for writing this, but especially for your generous and caring heart that dances upon this page as the pink flamingo background!!
~ Nicolette
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They say an elephant never forgets...but this wee Aussie cannot either..for the love they gave without asking for anything in return. It will always shine for me Love, C
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