OUR EMILY
We all have heard of Emily, some of us fortunate enough to have met her in person. But for the whole lot of us in the entire world Emily is that existential name that carries with it a great sense of poetic beauty, in essence the sort of aesthetic pleasure that equates eternity. Most times she is known in our literary consciousness as Emily Dickinson, Emily Bronte, and so on and so forth. But never as close enough as our own Emily Kendi, favored and accredited by The Anuki Country Press as one of the finest of women poets writing in Papua New Guinea today.
We bring you now some chanced glimpses of the sort of poetry that our Emily writes.
A stolen moment
I chanced upon a special moment in nature
of one that gave my heart a gentle squeeze,
of one that warmed the cold inside,
A simple act of random kindness between a bird and a beautiful flower
and such a sight it was to behold
So sacred yet so enticing
Like a lover's retreat or a love affair
'Twas an expression of pure love
no need of words
no need of proof no harm no resistance
just nature in sync
As I watched the bird dip it's long beak into the flower,
Into the sweetness held within her depths,
I felt a love so tender settle over me
For there before me a life lesson
of love unconditional
Of love poised and untainted
given freely in grace and beauty
And as the rain fell sweetly daring not to disturb,
and I in a secret place watching
Grateful for the moment granted by nature,
to me a message ?
a sign?
Or just a chance moment?
I breathed a quiet sigh of relief
as the moment drew to an end
A thief called death
In the blink of an eye
everything changes
unexpected and unsuspecting
left standing at a crossroad
nothing seems quite the same
tasteless, sleepless, lost
the sting of life called death
a thief that comes at night
takes all and leaves nothing
but numbness and grief
sorrow and pain
and it all happens
in just a blink of an eye
On doubt and despair
When feelings of doubt and despair become overwhelming -I think of you
When the lonliness of knowing what others don't numbs my mind and dulls my senses -I think of you
When today becomes a pain in the neck and the yearning for tomorrow becomes desperation -I think of you
When all I can do is let go, believe and move on despite the odds -I think of you
But are you thinking of me?
If only
If only death were a distance one could measure by days
I would travel its length just to be with you
If only the depths of hate and greed weren't deep as the ocean
I would not yearn to sail away to leave this life behind me
If only love was as rare as Halley's dance around the sun
I would never have taken your presence for granted
If only eternity would grant me just a single wish in time
I would no doubt ask to see your beautiful face again
If only.
The sun sets in the distance
sending her
rays sprawling thru the curtain of bamboo before me
birds of sorts burst forth with their sombre trills of evening song
ushering in a gentle calm settling over the atmosphere
i find myself alone and lost in a sea of thought
my eyes gazing vacantly into fire that blazes
the heat emanating from the fire rubs gently against my
skin in such a reassuring manner
I feel a gentle pull , a beckoning into a place
my mind finding pleasure of suspending itself in space
to wonder above and beyond any limitation
oh such pure delight
it is moments like this that I pine for in life
day by day, amidst the turmoil and labour
moments of pure delight
My soul withdraws
As I hear a call -
A call from the wild side of life
I hearken unafraid
And there all alone
I find a place of quiet rest
I can hear echoes of someone crying
In a soft breeze that blows across the water
It brings me upright
As a current passes from the earth into my bare feet
My body awakens to an unseen force
As everything around me becomes electrified
I start to grow numb
My mind tries to reason and make sense
But the power that holds me
Silences the voices that speak loudly in my head
I feel passion and boldness grow within
I hear chants to the beating of drums
I hear my name being called
I hear a command
And a call of duty
For I have come upon hallowed ground
The soil I stand upon
Fertile over time by blood and bone
It is at this point that I realize
I was led this way
I was made for this
I was meant to be
This is my place
A complaint
What is this place called earth?
this place of unrest and disorder ,
this place where morals look good from the outside yet
stink of rot from decay on the inside
and yet I'm expected to flourish while chained down by
unrealistic expectations
and
Does my right to live
mean nothing ?
Surrounded day and night by untouchable walls
that listen and know your secret thoughts
for nothing is hidden!
Those deep yearnings and stirring on the inside
to break away and
to free dreams taken captive
by unbelief and fear of the unknown
But still im expected to rule
spend my days in search of what was once paradise now
lost
now ruined
now lying in waste
now destroyed
by greed and insatiable desire
A home united now stands divided
made indifferent by the drawing of lines that separate
friends and families
no peace to surpass hatred
no laughter to chase away sorrow
no future no hope
Take this burden from me now!
The crack of dawn
is life pushing thru' darkness
Where you and I are reborn and liberated from struggle
Where our fears drown in the songs of feathered creatures
Urging us toward the finish where rest awaits
The crack of dawn is a glimpse of something better
Something more stronger and vibrant
Where hope is fulfilled and a long awaited dream realised
Where a new day emerges with a reason to keep moving on
ETKENDI 08.08.16
