Such a vast expanse;
blessed but bound,
talented but tortured…
Such a great nation,
severed by two waters,
knitted at the centre,
lubricated from its Sheol,
fluent in three tongues…
Such a revered nation,
sending ambassadors
to the ends of the earth.
Such a beautiful people;
dark, coloured and goodly,
suffering amidst plenty,
suffering but smiling,
languishing but laughing.
Such a beloved nation,
a towering giant, so immense,
yet still an accursed toddler.
by Saintmoses Eromosele
Lately my thoughts have been lucid and borders on the morbid
If I can pen these it would be hotter than scorching acid
Vivid the cries of souls that started the day calm and happyIncidentally many dribbled fate by just being placid
Net effect meant hoards met with what many can only imagine
Going forward its still a mystery like any surreal but bitter classics
Baby would have wondered just why mum called out to daddy
Everything in a blur its not the time to pretend ‘I am happy’
Yet somehow the air fills up with the din as many cant help crying
Only minutes to go yet the destination requires more than flying
Not from lack of what to say would many start realigning
Desperation sure creates bonds that makes or mare surviving
Doses of beautiful words shared lifetimes ago in hearts now vying
You only live once so it makes for horizons to be so widened
If we get through this ordeal testimonies would not stop pouring
Now that its definite it would be through but not as we want it
God the giver of everything should accept us as we transcend this……..
Adesoji Adebisi: © S.O.J/Musicwithin . 08/06/2012 ; 09:33hrs gmt
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1904)
What makes a nation’s pillars highAnd its foundations strong?
What makes it mighty to defy?
Is it the sword? Ask the red dust
Of empires passed away;
The blood has turned their stones to Rust, their glory to decay.
And is it pride? Ah, that bright crown
Has seemed to nations sweet;
But God has struck its luster down
In ashes at his feet.
Not gold because only men can make
A people great and strong;
Men who for truth and honor’s sake
Stand fast and suffer long.
Brave men who work while others sleep,
Who dare while others fly…
They build a nation’s pillars deep
And lift them to the sky.
I heard yesterday, or was it today?
I heard a loud voice say..
“120 Naira per litre,come this way!”
Blackman in a black market
Swiftly pursuing his racket.
Only glad to lend a helping hand
To a government that has gone mad.
Is it that this vampires are not satiated?
Our blood should have left them contented,
For they have fed on our flesh and our merits,
Must they also suck the juice from our spirits?
The gongs are sounding in the jungle
It says that this land could rumble
Then all gold would be rubble.
Yesterday it was fifty-five, forty-five
Today it’s ninety-six Naira for lead fortified.
A mockery of a land of oil plenty
Where a Deltan child baths in spillage daily.
Oh, what a nation of one eyed men!
Gods of this land bear us solemn witness
Another fuel hike? What a sorry mess!
That this nation so richly blessed has now turned into a source of terrible jokes amongst the comity of nations….
I have a nightmare….
That Nigeria is so unfortunate to have leaders who only plot to rape our common till whilst the people groan…
I have a nightmare….
That corruption has so entrenched itself in our national psyche that its impossible to define Nigeria without mentioning it…..
I have a nightmare….
That we the led have become so docile and foolish that we pitch tents with politicians whose stock in trade is fanning the embers of dis unity for their own selfish gains…..
I have a nightmare…..
Of a nation where the electorates vote purely out of ethnic and religious sentiments and would rather vote in a goat as long as it satisfies their base sentimental criteria….
I have a nightmare…..
Of a nation held captive by terrorism and ethnic militants to the point where it chooses to pay for their silence even when some still are not ready to end their bloody campaigns….
I have a nightmare….
Of a nation that chooses to pretend the issues it has are not worth discussing but goes about popping champagne bottles every time its October 1st…..
I have a nightmare…..
Of a nation where desperate men in need of rehabilitation go about churning out words designed to divide whilst hoping their evil posturing would endear them to those they pretend to champion their interests…
I have a nightmare…..
Of a nation that calls the name of God in everything whilst their reality is anything but Godly…..
I have a nightmare….
Of a people who lack the courage to stand up for their rights even in the face of obvious provocation….
I have a nightmare….
Of a nation that once did well without the coming of oil money….
I have a nightmare…..
Of gigantic ground nut pyramids in Kano, Cocoa from the South west and countless palm oil plantations littering the landscape of this unfortunate land….
I have a nightmare…..
Of a new generation who ought to be removed from the base mentality of old but spend valuable time arguing on cyberspace and defending those who ensure their currently bleak future remains so….
I have a nightmare….
Of a dream that once was but has been so raped that its now not even a shadow of its former self…..
I have a nightmare….
Of a dream that not only calls each and everyone of us “Compatriots”, but enjoins us to Arise….
I have a nightmare….
Of a dream that says “with love and strength and faith” all should join hands to serve our fatherland….
I have a nightmare….
Of a nations tilting on the precipice and pretending that the evil day is not near….
I have a nightmare…..
Of a nation that has Everything it needs to be truly great but spends time basking in the false adulation of men who call it a giant without having the decency to note that its at best a giant on its knees….
I have a nightmare….
Of a time when this Oil ceases to flow and like a man who didn’t prepare for the evil day, is left to wail at his avoidable stupidity….
I have a nightmare…..
Of the amount of money being spent this first day of October in celebrating mediocrity and failure…..
BUT…..
A Dream beckons…..
A Dream that one day this nation shall rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed ( Apologies Martin)….
A Creed that says “the labor of our heroes past shall NEVER be in vain”…..
A Creed that reminds us of our unity in diversity…..
A Creed that remind us of our collective responsibility to see that this nation becomes the best its meant to be…..
A Creed that says we are ONE NATION BOUND IN FREEDOM, PEACE and UNITY!!!
I have a nightmare…..
A nightmare that must of necessity transform into a dream….
A dream of hope in the face of despair and belief in the greatness that we must become……
GOD BLESS NIGERIA!!!!