Ode to Africa

Midnight blue
Starry night canopy
Woodsmoke and owls’ calls
Washing over me

Ancient forest in moonlit relief
Time made you Africa
But time is a thief
Continent of conflict
Rivers of smiles
Seismic dissonance
Africa beguiles!

In silence
Peace walks with soft footfalls
Amid these misty valleys
And the mountain kings’ halls
No doubt Elysium revelry
By ancient ancestry
Smiling over me

A true child of Africa
Continent vast
The cradle of man
Holds this woman
Safely
At last

Magoebaskloof April 2019