Antarctica ~ Naadir Vorajee

Poetry Without Words...

With Permission
Naadir Vorajee

"This place is unbelievably beautiful in its harshness."

With Permission
Naadir Vorajee

"Down South"

South African base in Antarctica
With Permission
Naadir Vorajee

Naadir Vorajee

***
Matriculant 2013
***

What If We Were? ~ Uwais Coetzee

what if we were different?
what if we were the same?
what if we realized
that we make the rules of this game?
what if we were the heroes?
the heroes that saved the day.
the heroes that gave hope to people
that never felt that way.
what if we were lovers
who'd love the way we could?
what if we were together
that way I know I would
love you constantly
irreversibly,
undeniably.
wholly.
to be or not to be?
that became the thought.
never the question because
everyday i fought
the urge to say
that i wanted to be
but never have i ever known
how you felt about me.
what if we were the same
spots in this world becoming a blur?
what if we were together?
what if we were?


©  Uwais Coetzee

***
Grade 12
***

From AbuDhabi to the World

The rush of adrenaline pumping through the jugular.
The brain pulsating with the overload of oxygen.
Each breath gets faster and deeper.
You feel as if the entire ocean has emptied itself into your lungs,
Yet in reality, you are just standing on the runway with your nose pointed towards your destination. Succumbing to Newton’s laws, you leave the ground
As swiftly as a dream that comes to you in the night.
It is time to grow your wings, take off and fly.
What is restraining your ambitions?
Is it your fear or your insecurities?
It could even be self-doubt and paranoia for always wanting to achieve perfection.
Let it all dissolve into oblivion.
Allow the ocean of air to diffuse into your imminent being.
Strive for Perfection-
It is not yet illegal.
Kill the doubt,
Assassinate the fear,
Obliterate the insecurities and
Bomb the opinions of other people.
Let your dreams be at the end of the runway.
Accelerate towards it with all your Passion, Love and Enthusiasm.
Do not let the hailstones and turbulence deter your morale-
It is all a part of the journey.
Believe that you are worthy enough
To enjoy the munsell shades of colours in the God-given sunrise.
Adjust the wing flaps, reconfigure the breaks and put it in gear.
Take a breath, envision God and move in the direction of your goals.
Advance the throttle part way…
And just lift off.


© Pryaska Goorhoo

***
Matriculant 2017
***

Sonnets ~ Uwais Coetzee

Sonnet 2

The enjoyment of this place
didn't compare to you.
But you lived at your own pace
and alone you grew.

Leaving me the single seed
in the forest, all alone.
I was enveloped by greed
and you became fully grown.

You left me to be the only stump
forced to listen to my heart's lonely thump
living in a world, being unappreciated

more and more, slowly being hated
for being me and feeling a certain way,
losing people I love every single day.

Sonnet 3

Trying to feel these things
to fit in with society.
Problems it brings
because I'm not normal, you see?

"The light in the dark
and the dark in the light
makes me want to embark
on a journey tonight"

To the lengths of the sky
he wanted to fly.
"But life is not eternal"

he said with a sigh.
Conveying his knowledge while on his deathbed.
"Live out my dreams" - the last thing he ever said.

Sonnet 4

Why I love you
is simple to me.
But my love which is true
is not normal, you see?

I love, from the bottom of my heart
and love comes from the depths of the soul.
Love, however, may not start.
But this love can be whole.

Although love is love,
love can be sore
and will hurt you right down to your core.

This is why I love,
it's the opposite, you see?
Not for love but for the pain you take away from me.


©  Uwais Coetzee

***
Grade 12
***

The Story of Our Lives ~ Pryaska Goorhoo

Dawn drowns the sorrows of the night.
The flamboyant colour frightens the demons away.
People awaken to fulfil their purposes on earth
The stars get put away and the moon gets taken down.
Blue skies mark the beginning of a new day.
The blue Celeste reminds us of the infinite possibilities we have.
Water sustains our body,
Heaven sustains our soul.
The mind is calmed until
It sees sketches of crimson on the horizon.
The scarlet sky announces the death of the day.
The blood pollutes the azure colour with its ominous shades.
It devours the sky, leaving it empty-
Vast nothingness which becomes
A playground for the demons of the unlit night.
People replay all their memories,
From the sanguine morning to the evening.
They retire,
Only to fight the fiend that night will bring.
People lie quietly with their eyes closed
For the streak of the persimmon colour
That will awaken them once again.


©  Pryaska Goorhoo

***
Matriculant 2017
***

Remember Me ~ Uwais Coetzee

Remember me
One day
When life has passed us
Both by.
Remember me
Okay?
When we both have mere
Days before we die.
Remember me
When you've moved on and I
Still think about how you made
Me happier with a smile
That wasn't meant for me.
Remember me when you find
A love worth keeping and
I'm still stuck on you.
Remember me when there's
A chance we'll never
See each other again.
Remember me as
Someone worth remembering.
Remember me and I'll
Take that as a win at life
Because if I'm remembered
By perfection,
Should I even be sad?


©  Uwais Coetzee


***
Grade 12
***

Words ~ Uwais Coetzee

paper is still my canvas
but i don't use any tools,
i don't use any colour,
i simply describe to fools.
i describe the reflections
of the birds in the sky.
i describe the depth
of the blue in your eye.
i use adjectives and pronouns;
conjunctions and verbs.
i'm like a street artist,
but my colours are my words.
i don't play any instruments
i don't sing very well.
i don't know how people feel
my hair doesn't work with gel.
i'm not an avid gamer,
i can barely cook rice,
But poetry is like talking
with just a little bit of spice.
i envy those who can draw well,
i wouldn't know where to start.
But books became my colours
and the words are now my art.


©  Uwais Coetzee


***
Grade 12
***

Is It Normal? ~ Uwais Coetzee

is it normal for me to feel exposed?
is it normal for me to feel open?
is it normal for me to be this moody?
is it normal for me to be hoping?
i find pictures, poetry,
music and people who
say, sound and feel as if they
know my struggle.
as if they know my pain.
as if i'm not standing alone
getting wet in the rain.
as if they could understand
the fundamentals of my thoughts.
as if they could know who i am.
but who brings logic to feelings?
who speaks words to pain?
we can't talk properly.
we can't begin to explain
how we experience life
or feel from day to day.
we have all had a painful love.
we have all felt that way.
we have all changed ourselves in little ways
to try to get someone to care.
we try to be "normal".
because all we do is compare.
i think that others feel the same
or at least i hope.
it's a way of not being alone
it's a method of trying to cope.
in a world of different perspectives.
in a place with different lives
living the same struggles
in different ways.
is the way i express my
pain normal?
is it normal?


©  Uwais Coetzee


***
Grade 12
***

I Still Do ~ Uwais Coetzee

i still think of you everyday.
i still do.
if anyone mentions love and happiness
in my mind is you.
do you think of me
the same way?
if i tried to leave
would you want me to stay?
would you ask me to stay?
would my absence make you
long for something that could've been yours
at any point along the way?
as selfish as it seems,
i hope you're sad
when we part ways.
i hope you bawl,
i hope you cry,
i hope when people ask if you're okay
you have to lie.
i hope you feel how i felt
for months and months on end.
not knowing if our happiness
is just around the bend.
because you kept me hoping.
wishing.
thinking we could be.
while all along knowing
that you didn't want me.
while you spoke to everyone else
and kept me on a rope.
the rope around my heart
forcing me to hope.
that one day, eventually
i'd be lucky enough to have you.
i still think of you everyday.
i still do.


©  Uwais Coetzee


***
Grade 12
***

I Say I'm Okay ~ Uwais Coetzee

I say I'm okay.
That's what I say at least.
It's what I feel during the day.
But at night it's different.
I say I'm okay
But why am I awake
Writing a poem at 1 am?
I say I'm okay but I do depressing
Things 24/7.
I lock myself up.
Skip meals.
Don't sleep.
Overthink.
When I'm not okay
I find myself in your chat
Because the simple thought
Of us talking calms
The storm.
Even if neither one of us is making
Much of an effort
It's some comfort in
My life that doesn't seem
At all friendly.
I say I'm okay
But I don't think I am.
I know I'm not.
But I say I am.
To avoid ruining your day
Yo avoid spoiling your mood
To avoid being a nuisance
To avoid being rude.
I find myself looking back
To when things were
Actually fine.
When I wasn't a nervous wreck
When I wasn't a depressing poet.
When I wrote poems about life and love
Because I tbought that was what I felt.
But it was a mindless infatuation
With you who I knew I'd never have.
I find myself hurting myself by
Still trying to love the idea
Of escaping in our conversation.
Every word is a pain.
Every leaf is a tree.
Every smile is the same.
None of them are for me.
I know I'm not happy.
I have no idea why.
But every deep breath
Simply ends in athe sigh.
You ask how I am,
I answer in the same way.
Every day is the same thing.
I say I'm okay.



©  Uwais Coetzee


***
Grade 12
***

Sober Mind Unfiltered ~ Gugu Buthelezi

Like photons through skyline I show myself
So if you think you know me you need some help
Mastered the game like I'm Roshi
We're seemingly so close but do you really know me?
I've hated telling people we're just mates
Wanted to make it more special but too high were the stakes
Like a patty on top of the bun, it's really rare
Followed her to get over you but found nothing there
Nothing quite like the sight of you together to make me despair
Learning to let it go, Anna would be proud
You're supposed to take me to the 9th cloud,
Not make me feel like I'm beneath the ground.


© Gugu Buthelezi


***
Matriculant 2017
***

The Orchard ~ Naadir Vorajee

help me to swallow this fruit
that bitters my throat with pain
that poisons both grower and picker
that kills us both in vain

help them see the Path I chose...
through this orchard maze
the Path that lead to this same tree
the Paths we trod for days

the fruit i ate, to feed my hunger
but pride it fed instead.
the idea that seemed so crispy
will only leave me dead!

but i am not the only debtor
both grower and picker pay whole
the fruit had poisoned one man's body
the other man, the soul!

forgiveness is a word in speech
it's rope is tied to two
it tightens when we pull away
it escapes nor me or you

it loosens but only with time
for some it goes by quick
for others that time does not begin
for anger they let grow thick!


©  Naadir Vorajee

***
Matriculant 2013
***

Friends ~ Lindokuhle Mbatha

Music is the answer
Poets have their own answers
Friends support you
Friends backstab you
Friends always laugh with you
Friends never leave you when times are great
Friends always have the answers when there's no trouble
But wait until there's trouble friends disappear
Friends look at you like they don't know you anymore
Friends will do somethings with you
But you'll always find yourself in trouble and they won't be
Friends think with you
Friends are friends when times are great
But when days are dark you won't have a friend


© Lindokuhle Mbatha 

***
Grade 9
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