Her ~ Banele Kubheka

Her eyes
Her nose
Her ears
Her mouth

Her smile
Her body
 Her soul

Her eyes
Betraying none of her thoughts
Her opinions
Nor her feeling

Her mouth
Uttering words that made no sense
Words that have deeper meaning
Words that have passion
A passion to entice.

Her smile
Deceiving and sly
Fooling any chance taker
Harassing them.
Yet cute and inviting
True to certain entities
To certain extents

Her frown
Voicing her woes
Her dismays and disappointments
Her broken promises and unfulfilled dreams
Yet subtle
Not loud like her grin.

Her grin
Her happy place
Her haven
Her dreams-come-true
Her hopes
But like a blue moon
Seldom does it occur.

Her soul
Her personality
Her character true to her spirit
Protective yet innocent.
Dependent
Dependent on the truths of others
Acceptance of peers
The care of everyone
Mostly the love of those closest to her

Yet she asks for nothing
Her generosity exploited
Little does she say for she knows
Pride comes before a fall
Thus she basks in humility.


©  Banele Kubheka


***
Grade 10
***

The One That Got Away ~ Banele Kubheka

Where did I go wrong?
Every day I question myself
Was I not good enough?
Was I not your type?

When I first met you
I never thought
I would so attached to you
I never thought
I would long for you this much
I would crave your company this badly
I would yearn for your companionship
I never thought at all.

I regret not taking all the chances I had
All the opportunities you gave me

Your eyes
Smiling ever time you stole a glance at me
Your hands
Finishing every sentence your mouth faltered
Your body
Moving with every bit of elegance and self-confidence
Yet you slipped right through my fingers
You never know how much you love someone
Until they leave you
The one that got away.


© Banele Kubheka


***
Grade 10
***

My Sister ~ Banele Kubheka

From the same womb
We were conceived
From the same breast
We fed.

So alike do we look
I was once called yours
So alike do we think
Every time an ultimatum comes up
I know exactly what you would have chosen.
So alike do we act
You would swear we were twins.

When I am in need
You are always beside me
When I am feeling down
Your motivational pep talk is always appreciated
When I am upset
I think only of you and my day is made

Hear me now
Let your problems be mine
For help is always at hand
Let your joys be mine
So we may enjoy each other’s company.

By blood
You are my sister
But by heart
You are the better me.


©  Banele Kubheka


***
Grade 10
***

Hope, Peace and Happiness ~ Banele Kubheka

In times of sorrow
When I have given up all
When I wish it were all over
When I see no good in me
Or in the people around me
You give me hope.

When I am at war
Fighting with myself
Fighting all that is right
Fighting against the reality of the truth
My conscience burying its mortification
You give me peace.

When I find no joy in living
Frowning at all the wondrous moments of life
When the most memorable things and characters
Become abhorrent to me
You give me happiness.

And because you do so much for me
You make my pessimism yours
My wars your wars
My woes yours
I offer you my love.


© Banele Kubheka


***
Grade 10
***

The Importance of Love ~ Banele Kubheka

If only it could be pumped by my heart
Like blood
Through every artery and every vein
To every part of my body that pleaded for it.

If only it could be harnessed
Stored
And used to save lives
Lives of those who needed it most
If only its absence could cause illness
To prove it importance.

Without love, life would have no meaning
No reason behind it
Nothing to look forward to
Life without love is like a body without blood
Useless, Hopeless, Dead.

If love replaced blood,
Would people realize it importance?


© Banele Kubheka


***
Grade 10
***

Tutsi Tears ~ Zamasomi Msomi

Mother Run, Father seek refuge, Child be still lest they hear and kill you

There! There!-Listen

Sounds of cockroaches, they say

Find, Catch, Kill

Use Knife, Rifle or Machete 

Kill all Tutsi blood

Mother, Father, Child

Mother Run, Father seek refuge, Child cries what wrong have we done

What sin have we committed?

Oh! Won’t you spare us 

We promise not to be tutsi anymore 

We promise to be good 

We will change our skin colour

We no longer will be light

We will even grow short

Just like Hutus

Spare us, Spare us

God save us 

Love protect us 

World hear us 

Rhwanda spare us

Mother Run, Father seek refuge, Child be still lest they hear and kill you

Neighbours kill neighbours 

Friends kill friends

Streets flow of blood 

Blood of you and I 

I and you

Tutsi and Hutu

Hutu and Tutsi

Lying bare in the streets of Rwanda 

Lies bodies of unloved and forgotten 

Men, and women, aunts and uncles, cousin and… 

me

As I lie on the dusty ground 

Feeling the rays of the scorching sun

I yell for 

Mother to Run, Father to seek refuge, Child to keep still lest they hear and kill her

© Somi Msomi 



***
Matriculant 2009
***

The Villainous Villanelle

The Villanelle is a more tricky form to master, but it produces remarkable results with a little bit of effort.
To summarise, it is a 19 line poem, consisting of five 3-line stanzas and a final 4 - line stanza. Two lines repeat throughout the poem, which means you have to write 11 unique lines, plus the two which repeat. In addition to this, there is a rhyme scheme, using two rhymes (a and b).
a b a   a b a   a b a   a b a   a b a   a b a a
You do not have to count the syllables of your lines, unless you want to, but lines should be consistent in length (between 8 - 10 syllables).

The first step is to write a rhyming couplet which contains the main theme of your poem. It must have a 'stand alone' sense but should also be possible to be used individually as the concluding lines of your stanzas.
Dylan Thomas wrote one of the most famous villanelles in English literary history. You can read the full text HERE. His repeating lines are:

Do not go gentle into that good night     (lines 1, 6, 12, 18)
Rage, rage against the dying of the light  (lines 3, 9, 15, 19)

Schematic:

Line 1 (a) Repeat
Line 2 (b)
Line 3 (a) Repeat

Line 4 (a)
Line 5 (b)
Line 1 (a) R

Line 7 (a)
Line 8 (b)
Line 3 (a) R

Line 10 (a)
Line 11 (b)
Line 1   (a) R

Line 13 (a)
Line 14 (b)
Line 3   (a) R

Line 16 (a)
Line 17 (b)
Line 1   (a) R
Line 2   (a) R

This may seem like an impossible task, but examples of amazing villanelles are to be found on this blog.

Click the links below:

 Cheron ~ Burnt Out

Meleza ~ A Letter to my Grandfather

Yuktha ~ Winter has been Blown Away

Pryaska ~ Far Above the Milky Way

Nsiki ~ Death of Nature

A Fatal Affair ~ Malwazi Moholi

Is it okay to push someone to their breaking point?
Is it okay to make someone feel so despicable?
Is it okay to always daunt someone?
Do you see what pain you're causing me?
Do you see my tears behind closed doors?
Do you know how much effort it takes for me to grin a smile?

Why do you hurt me with your harsh words?
Why is it that everything I do is never good enough for you?
Why are you ashamed and embarrassed of me?
What did I do to make you resent me so much?
What are you trying to execute?
What can I do make it okay?

Is it okay for me to keep feeling so melancholy?
Do I ever see myself happy again?
Why am I not good enough?
What did I do so wrong to get treated this way?

Don't we all make mistakes?

It is so monumental how people go through lengths
To make someone think they are not good enough to enjoy the gift of life.
That they're a waste of time.
THAT THEY ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH!

Or is it?



©  Malwazi Moholi


***
Grade 10
***

The Love of The Darker Side ~ Malwazi Moholi

You know what's sad?
Being one the reasons that someone wants to take her own life,
That's what!

Always trying
But never beings accepted as enough.
The feeling of failure and disappointment..
You get knowing the feeling is mutual from people close to you
Being an outcast
Among the people you once felt so close to.
Feeling like a pathetic daughter.
A sister.
A friend.
The thought of how the world would be without
You!
Me!
Smiling and laughing
Whereas deep inside I'm dying and crying.
Because I disappointed everyone I love(d)
And chose
To love the darker side.


©  Malwazi Moholi


***
Grade 10
***

Be Inspired by Music! (A Poetry Prompt)

For those who prefer a less formal approach to writing poetry, it is best to allow ideas to flow in Free Verse. Remember that correct phrasing and some punctuation is still necessary for your writing to make sense to your reader. When you do not have a fixed idea of what to write about, a favourite song can provide a starting point.

This is my favourite song of April.





 If you like it too, why not write a poem beginning with the words:

Once I was _________ years old...

Supply your own landmark years; think of where you have come from and where you are going in life, as well as those important people who have helped you on you way.

Two Short Poems by Vriti Maharaj

Poem about Poetry

Who is this poetry we speak of?
Hidden underneath the exterior,
Lies a depth of secretive meaning,
It may be colourful or dismal,
Joy or despair,
It only takes a pen and paper,
To let others see what I’m experiencing.
So concise yet so deep,
It proves,
A little can be a lot.



*************************************************

Adolescence 

Ambivalence,
Confusion,
Heartbreak.
What is this sin that I have to pay?
I search for my place,
Through this labyrinth of adolescence.
The reality breaks free rushing towards you,
This is life!
Filled with pain and pleasure.
It is time to embrace this emotional rollercoaster.
The joys and blues,
All will soon disappear,
After all I’m just a teenager.



© Vriti Maharaj


***
Grade 10
***

Fire in the Veld ~ Vriti Maharaj

Oh dance your ravenous flames as you devour the plains,
Grasping all the life within reach,
Perished to ash,
Your treacherous hold destroys the bearings of the veld,
Depositing bellows of charcoal-black smoke into the sphere,
Your inviting beauty of your golden flames cannot be trusted,
What power you have,
the velocity you possess.
And once your hunger has been satisfied,
Your superiority exists no more,
Your flames simmer down,
And the crackles soften,
You’ve disappeared,
Till your next visit.


© Vriti Maharaj


***
Grade 10
***

National Poetry Writing Month ~ April 2016

April is upon us once again, and the invitation is advanced to all Ladysmith High students to join in the personal challenge of writing a poem a day, or a poem every two days, or four poems in total, or whatever you can manage. However, I must emphasize that this blog has a strict NON-PLAGIARISM POLICY. I will be checking the originality of your material and will have nothing further to do with anyone who tries to pass off another poet's work as their own.

This year, I will share a few ideas for your writing process. When it is difficult to find daily inspiration, it is often useful to choose a simple form and a single idea and see where it will take you. In order to reference these prompts at a later date, click on the "Format" or "Prompt" label in the right side bar.

THE CAMEO

The Cameo is a purely syllabic form consisting of six lines with the following syllable count:

2, 5, 8, 3, 8, 7, 2. 

It is English in origin and is well-suited to a brief portrait in words, or character-based  piece. No rhyme is needed but an ability to count syllables will help!


Schematic (where x is one syllable, not one word):

xx
xxxxx
xxxxxxxx
xxx
xxxxxxxx
xxxxxxx
xx

RUBAI

This poetical stanza is Persian in origin, made famous by a collection attributed to a poet named Omar Khayyam. It also requires a syllable count, but each line has a standard 10 syllables. In addition it has a simple rhyme scheme: a a b a

Schematic (where x is on syllable and a / b indicate rhymes):

xxxxxxxxxa
xxxxxxxxxa
xxxxxxxxxb
xxxxxxxxxa


Have fun with these! Remember to email your finished poems to me.