They have been told,
That the soil they inhabit,
Is developing, progressing
But the reality is,
It is just a wound that is healing,
From centuries of oppression,
Centuries of destruction,
And then being left alone,
To grow what they still could,
Look at them; do you see what I see?
Strength, resilience, in the villages
When the women and men join to turn their sorrows into art,
Dance and song, defying disparity
I see courage, hope
On the city side,
Billboards and lights,
The smell of determination,
Workers up and running by sunrise,
Tired but proud by sunset,
I see beauty in the grasslands,
The world comes for the lions,
They come to see the eagles,
But little do they
know,
Both lions and eagles spark inside
The people themselves – the reality of Africa
Published in Daily Times, August 15th 2018.