The Dark Poet’s poems- “Uninvited Guest” and “Past glory” – are lamentations of untimely encounter with death. Written in honor of victims of fate, these poems contain ‘graphic pictures’ of how people stepped out armed with hopes and dreams only to meet death.

Kwaghkule Jacob Contributing Editor (Poetry)

Uninvited Guest

for the late Princess Cooper

before the sun could take its seat,

the bed vomited her beautiful body,

with the day’s agenda in mind,

she took off sleep stains

a comb ran through her soft hair,

her perfume scent captured the air,

coated her skin with cream,

& sought one of her dresses

readying to face the new day

this was how life was squeezed out of her:

phones rang

& bestfriend answered

they’re killing me here!

garment stained with blood

she came down the stairs of death

like murder in the cassava patch

death crept under her sleeves;

her life was smashed

like thief in the night

visits without being invited

as the heavy downpour

that boycotts its due season

untimely, she kissed death’s ugly teeth

& there she was

on a cold cement floor

life stepped out of her

& scrolled to the end of her chapter.

Past Glory

i swear to the air i breathe, i know grief;

while learning how to walk, pain marked my skin

my ears heard a choir of guns sing from birth

& the congregation of people felt never to rise again

i didn’t tell my little brother how dad’s jaw kissed gun but

each time i see a happy family,

i think of how childbirth caused my mother’s early death

my dad too, falling prey to illness

these memories made me look insane

& pushed me to question God

i tried to cover my leaking skin by dressing in laughter

but my scars are seen deep in my eyes

i face the wall whenever i cry to hide my tears

from my little brother’s sight

we moved from place to place like in the times of war; people kicking us out

i only hope my little brother will be as Job

Contributor’s Bio

The Dark Poet, born Emmanuel G G Yamba, is an emerging writer with an emphasis on poetry. His works have been published and forthcoming in Spillword, WSA, Synchronize Chaos, Agape Review, and elsewhere.

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