By Victor Uzodinma Chukwuma
76. Solitude from Betrayal
Here I am fermenting,
eaten up by worms.
And nobody cares,
except my lonely gaoler
who day and night
drains life out of me.
Here I am rotting
my flesh falling off apiece.
And nobody cares,
except my dumb executioners
who unashamedly gesticulate
and sketch the grotesque I soon will be.
Here I am pining away.
dying in bits.
And nobody cares,
except the hovering vultures
who wish to peck clean my bones
when the butchers are finally done.
Here I am inside faith’s precinct
My Lord and my God,
I cry out to you.
And I plead:
have mercy on me,
and those like me.
77. Don’t Wilt
Shed no more tears
for what has befallen me
for our goal will not a mirage be;
keep faith.
Cry no more,
for you will break me down.
Please help me, dry your tears,
hence the oppressors will triumph claim
for my cry is their sought crown.
I will defiantly go to battle for you,
should it turn out to be.
But darling could you do me another favour?
Don’t let our creaseless flag sag,
don’t wilt.
Victor Chukwuma, Professor of Physics, renowned for his immense contribution to the development of Astronomy and Space Science in Nigeria, is a Fellow of the Astronomical Society of Nigeria and the Nigerian Institute of Physics.
