Tuesday, August 30, 2011

How to Praise




How to praise...
Timbrels and drums
Colors of glory
Noise of joy
Laughter, praise, songs
Dancing, drums, cries
Continuous cheers
Pomp, voices, colors, smiles
Echoes of joy, voices on high
Singing, rejoicing
All for His majesty


How to praise...
Silence...
Riveting silence
...And more, cricket wimpers,
Traffic of thoughts
Soliloquoy, sonnetting, stares
Blank stares, million miles,
Metaphorical sunset, Eureka!
Frantic scribbling, plot, imagery
Blazing sunset, rhymes, its all quiet
Our praise is silent
All for His majesty


By Jefumare © 2011

Monday, August 29, 2011

Patience




Patience sits at the corner
patience is Ugly
Patience is sturdy
Patience is order
patience is a New Coat
Patience, favour finds
Patience is kind
patience is Fault and False
patience is Old Garment
patience is Discarded
patience is Impotent
patience is Disregard


Patience is a virtue
Patience pays patience
Patience is a girdle
Patience keeps faith
patience is Harm
Patience is peace
Patience is pain
Patience is truce
Patience is love and life
Patience is pretence


Patience strives
patience is Chance
Patience calms
Patience is hard to swallow
patience Blames
patience is Hollow
Patience is He
Patience is She
Patience is a call
Patience follows


By Jefumare © 2011

Friday, August 19, 2011

Loud Thoughts of an Unfaithful Servant




I wonder...
If I defile
Are my tears vile?
For your love so strong
And your mercy throngs
Yet I long question
Your patient hand,
Its likely span
And tary decide
To heavenly side

Almost always...
I plead your mercy
Awing before thee
Wishing a change
Longing courage
To divest time
Time for heavenly climes
To evenly praise
Not set ablaze
Scrolls before perusal

Till date I...
Want the uncapable
Lust the reachable
Yet with scepter's stroke
Struggles are jokes
Embellished with laughter, plagues of laughter
Yes! At the stroke of His scepter
His patience superceeds
And mercy engulfs besotted greed

I know...
That I'm saved
Yet wander and crave
That which was willed
I tilled and toiled and watered desires
Yet unsure to conquer
Doubts mastered by the master
His faith like a righteous preacher
Condemns not before judgment

I've been...
Here and there
Mind juxtaposed
Doubts and desires
His offer and judgment
But like sky of earth
He lords even in my doubtful faith
I behold; He placates


By Jefumare © 2011

Thursday, July 21, 2011

After Many Moons




After many moons
My cries are silent
I weep with joy
My eyes are candles
I see in the dark

After many moons
I'm back to Egypt
My face is noon
I wander the abyss
With drunken tools

After many moons
I light the stage
I chair the princes
I pomp and prance
And declare a splurge

After many moons
My debt is Nile
Pretence is guile
I search oasis
In nemesis's courtyard

After many ...
Spare me the moons!
I seek dawn
Pious is my name
Armed with Plato's edge

Unostalgic
I'll dice
Gamble patiently waiting
No moons for supper
But hope to win win


By Jefumare © 2011

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Dying To Live Again




Dying to live
Dying to live again
Trying to reach
Climbing to meet
Mind preached dreams

Dying to live
Not as it is
Silver linings like dark shades
Mistakes like mirrors
Feedback's undelayed

Dying to live
Chance at life again
To puzzle-fix again
Piece broken mirrors again
A shot at gain again

Dying to live
To breathe again
To leap before look
To make valleys mountian tops
To taste gratitude instant

Willing to give
Not the right arm
But sweat and toil
And for all it's worth
To die to live again

By Jefumare © 2011

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Wisdom of the Drunk

Hush inspired this...

I think living outside the box for a while makes one almost a hermit; you and your thoughts become isolated - an Island.  Always chasing dreams; living imagination.  A good background: schooling, wining and dining with the privilege makes you feel like one of them even with your leftist reasoning. But when you are not something, you simply are not cut out for it. He thought himself a bird...he never was and will never be. He might be a super fly though.

Hush inspired...

Was High school was fun? No! High school was lies. Most times pain, stain and rejection. Always chasing dreams. He chased and chased, till he got there and got swallowed. Its funny how when we do not know who we until we end up being what we are not meant to be. Who are you? Yes you! You reading this...who do you think you are?

Look around you and you'll find out that many of those who seemed dope in high school are really nothing now. Did you try ''them" in school? Where you close to? Or you fence sat...you know limbo?  the middle?Well I read somewhere that it is the place between heaven and hell. Don't get it twisted some people have the best 6 or 3 years of their lives in high school and many years of misery and regret. Maybe you'll sit in middle all your life or take the risk.

Hush inspired this...

University days where a hype. How to act? Who to talk to? What to wear? How you want to look? Grade came second most times - baring those that were focused. To some it was a thing of pride. Some took pride in being one of the best if not the best. That sure saved their ass. It might sound silly but it gives them a competitive edge...don't you think? Don't get caught up in the hype. The university is no play ground. It is the engine room, where you build a future or get lost in one.

Hush...

She inspired this...she inspired most. She was a competition once. She is a stranger now. Too young, too shy, they never got by. We live to survive and experience. Life goes on. We pass by, sometimes we're noticed sometimes not. Sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes our mistakes turn out great.

Lets try not to be scared or ashamed of who we are. After all, what are we living to die for? Our pleasure or rapture? Either way ensure you do right and stand for right. We'll all die


(hic*)....wisdom of the drunk

Saturday, January 29, 2011

#Jus Saying




I wan try write suntin for brokin ( abi pidgin una dey call am) cos I feel say enuff ppl go fit relate. I jus sey make I try write one or two tin concernin’ all dis tin wey persin dey see these days. It’s been a while since I “prose-blogged” so I am gonna  try err my view on some crucial ish.

Nawadays tinz don change gannnn…y’all kno we in d jet and all dat. They say the most important time in our generation is now! #TrueDat! Tinz happen fast cette jours;  wif twirra, FB n tinz una dey kno how tinz go ASAP!  Trending, BBM, internet and all are a touch away. Good thing right? Mais dans mon avis, most  of the youth cant see the big picture as we seemto place success –however it comes- over norms and core values that make society’s work. We care less about the administration of the nation we’ll inherit in no distant future. We blog, we chat, we multi-message and spread news  fast but care less about happenings in the country. The politricksters are runnin’ our shit dry! Y’all shud be concerned about disthey’re literarily mortgaging our future.

Erryday I wake up to tweets, BBMsgs, FB posts, forwarded texts all hinting latest trends, shows or parry wey man nor suppose miss (Me sef dey go one or two), but I can’t help but think about the headlines and stories churned out week-in-week- out about stolen funds and mismanagement of power and resources meant to secure awa foolsure (future). Maybe I’m concerned about this things cuz I aint ur average Joe or we nor be rish ppl for haus so I dey fear  for future? Sum pipl go talk sey na bcos I dey conscious (*#HeadSwellsSmall*)…but on a more serious note the future is bleak and I aint gon’ mince words. #No time! Me I go yarn …dem think sey we blind…me I go yarn…dem pack awa money go France.

I think the closing of schools  - I nor dey talk abt dis wan wey dey do so una go Reg2Vote…I mean strike and tinz - is systematic.  Their freakin’ kids are in the bestest schools where strike is alien. They get ivy league education and return to occupy strategic seats in government, while the children of the masses siddon for haus bcos strike dey…sum go join cult, so go do runz, eke go, chase man must chop. The picture is real shitty!

This is just a tip of the iceberg. We suffer due to our “manage manage” mentality and the corruption entrenched by the older generation. It is a fact that corruption is now a culture, although this  is still oblivious to some. These days ppl dey perpetuate corruption and dem nor kno…its like a cultural thing – you engage in it unconsciously. Some might argue that corrupt public officials are the major problem facing the country, but me feel say since me and you on the streets corrupt , wetin person wey come dey in charge of public funds go come do? Abi if na your broad be minister and when him tenure finish una family neva turn noveau riche dem nor go swear for u? We must examine ourselves before pointing fingers.

Now wey registration dey go down, some people dey use am make small small change. Some citizens sell their right to politicians  but soon begin to complain about services not being rendered. These same citizens wallow and cry over their situation claiming to vote aright at the next opportunity. However, when judgment day comes they sell their souls for a couple of thousands or, even worse, some bags of rice. It is a vicious cycle!!!

I urge the youths to come out en masse not only to register but cast their ballot come April. It is our future they are toying with, and the sooner we embrace participatory politics the better for us. I nor talk say make una go dey do thug for dem o!!! I say make we try dey involved – make we be king makers. Our votes would count and our voice would be heard if we are conscious and participate in the administration of the nation.

I jus say make pack story nack  to stir consciousness…na kuku INEC training I dey do wey one woman call us (youths) “youth of tomorrow”. Make we do wetin we suppose do so we nor go be “youth” of tomorrow.

...God help us all


- Jefumare

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Now Your Suffering Continues (NYSC): The Sequel


                                                        


The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) aims “to inculcate in Nigerian Youths the spirit of selfless service to the community, and to emphasize the spirit of oneness and brotherhood of all Nigerians, irrespective of cultural or social background.” Since 1973, graduates from universities and polytechnics are required to participate in this one-year scheme. One of the expectations of the program is that “corps” members should be posted to cities and states far from home and states of origin. They are expected to mix with people of other tribes, social and family backgrounds, to learn the culture of the indigenes in the place they are posted to. “There is an “Orientation” period of approximately three weeks spent in a camp away from family and friends. There is also a “passing out ceremony” at the end of the year and primary assignment followed by one month of vacation. To some extent, the NYSC scheme has helped in creating entry-level jobs for a lot of Nigerian youth. However, many argue that the program is a waste of time and resources.

Recently, at Enugu state’s orientation camp, Awgu the State coordinator in a speech delivered at the swearing in of the 2010 Batch C corps members lamented the state in which contractors handling the renovation of the camp left it. Literally, the camp was left without roofs for some of the buildings. The state coordinator pleaded with the governor to look into the matter and course the contractors to sped up their work. In other parts of the country, the story is the same. During swearing in ceremonies, these administrators promise better living conditions and others but these are never delivered. How important are corps members to nation building? Do they play a key role?

Service, as it is called, is the most anticipated endeavor of undergraduates. Whether it is service to the nation or servitude is left debatable. The motivation to serve the nation is undoubted as graduates look forward to “service”, but is the scheme credible? Many might deem it subjective that corps members are more or less tricked into serving a nation that cares less for them, but the fact remains that a huge percentage of corps members slave for a system, which feeds fat on them.  Though a small percentage of corps members constantly complain, they almost never protest injustice meted out during the service year.

It could be said that the National Youth Service Corps scheme if properly executed, could do more than “integrate” Nigeria. However, these façade parades administrators who are more or less politicians and their propaganda sway corps members batch after batch. I try to imagine the amount of money released for each batch of corps members and what could be achieved if properly utilized. For example, if one investigates the alleged seventy-five thousand naira spent to kit each corps member, one’s findings would probably cause an uproar.

The NYSC kit consists: two white shorts, two white vests, one khaki shirt and a pair of trousers, one white tennis shoes, one “jungle” boot, one NYSC crested vest a belt and a fez cap. To be factual, the standard of the kit distributed to corps members in camp is lesser than second-hand clothes – They are of  the lowest grade to say the least.

The deplorable conditions in which corps members live is another issue  consistently under-emphasized out by NYSC officials.  A huge percentage of corps members across  the country live in refugee camp-like conditions.  It is a norm for corps members to spend from their pockets in order to get basic amenities in place. The NYSC posts corps members to remote areas where the basic amenities are not in place. Even corps members posted to the cities find it hard to settle.

I try to find rationale for  paying  nine thousand seven hundred and fifty to a corps member from Niger state and he gets posted to Lagos state with no accommodation. How is he/she expected to survive? There are cries from all over the country about corps members posted to remote villages with no light or water. Even the "inspectors" do not visit those places!  Yet corps members are  not only posted there but threatened with service extension if they do not stay. Meanwhile, some corps members “serve” in the best places and are furnished with the best of accommodations. The NYSC reflects the class system imminent in the society…those rich people no dey suffer jor!  Some no  even dey show camp sef…na poor man soja  go dey do gra gra for.  On a serious note, most corps members do not complain. The attitude is similar to what transpires in the country  -  Nigerians are used to mediocre services, corps members  are “ok” with whatever they get even if they deserve more! Once again the “manage manage” mentality plays out!

Corps member’s pay is another issue. While our senators are on salaries of over seven million naira monthly, corps members are paid a meager nine thousand seven-hundred and fifty naira. From my understanding that there are projects a serving senator ought to carry out in his  constituency during his tenure, and I suppose some allowance is given to effect this. We all know that most of these senators never visit their constituency except to campaign for re-election. However, corps members are posted to remote areas all around the country and in their  various community development groups they try to do what these senators ought to…but they do not get paid for this!  Na we dey there dey do things, dem dey ABJ dey flex! (I’m not sorry because it is what it is). Honestly, I look forward to a time when senators and corps members, serving in their constituencies, would work hand in hand to bring about proper development in communities all over the country.

The truth is one has to be on the orientation camp to know how things really play out. To me, camp was a naked picture and with each passing day I was irked by its reality, the lies told to naïve corps members and the way in which propaganda was used masterly. After camp, the reality faced irks more.


I am not one of those that would call for NYSC to be scrapped  outrightly…I will suggest that if it is to continue, its system must be totally overhauled! Also, attitude to corps members should also be changed. We are not slaves but graduates (some even sponsored themselves through school!) serving the nation VOLUNTARILY.   How more do our “distinguished senators” better our effort? I think the fact that no body fights for corps members rights makes the road to Zion long and difficult. God dey sha…I been dey think one day, naim I ask my padi say if corps members strike wetin go happen?  He said, “I bet the government won’t flinch!”.  I guess that answers the question of importance… but with the forthcoming elections and the plan to use corps members for the voters registration process and the election proper there just might be a plot to “show them how important we are !”


With Words, I Praise



Life...in abundance
What more I ask?
But peace of mind
To praise and worship
To breathe
To dream
He speaks, He performs
Works wondrous
With bounds unknown
I stink of grace
I'm meshed in glory
Awestruck I stand
Undeserving to mankind
Perfect in His image
I reverence, yet Pharisee
He forgives
His patience like Nile infinity
Thanksgiving's a speck
Oblivious but heard
The omniscent sweeps
He paves my past, my ways
I grumble, He mumbles
Joy to my heart
My lips overflow
With laughter and songs
Of timbrels and drums
In grace I dwell
I'll praise him well
With silence in noise
His knowledge's utmost
I'll fulfill His purpose
They'll sniff, they'll gossip
Yet dance and worship
I'll strut, He'll smile
My heart He sees
Unpure yet sober
He knows my yonder
I'll praise His name
Now and yet again
I'll thank thee O Lord
For grace to forge


By Jefumare © 2011

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Chameleon





Tides change
Quests differ
Humans are but lies
Seeking truth or reason
We chameleon

I'm upright I say
Yet dismayed at Tom's lot
I chameleon
Nothing satisfies
Society gratify

Jack's success perils
My woe, his gain
He zombies, I covet
We chameleon
At vicissitudes

Who are we?
Savages? Voyagers? Elite?
Space searching, sin craving
Usurping omniscience
Science torch, we burrow

Brother's keeper tide change
For selfish quests makes

Humans are but lies
Seeking truth or reason
We Chameleon
Till kingdom come




By Jefumare © 2011