Ihlanya le MK by Nna Nhlanhla

Nna Nhlanhla | June 23rd, 2018 | poetry | No Comments

Poet Bio

Gah! Gah! Gah!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Bulal’amabhunu!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Vikelel’abansundu!

Gah! Gah! Gah!
Bulal’amabhunu!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Vikelel’abansundu!

Gah! Gah! Gah!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Bheka, bona basamile.
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Kuwa mina. Kufa thina.

Gah! Gah! Gah!
Bheka, bona basamile.
Gah! Gah! Gah!
Hawu! Kuwa mina. Kufa thina.

Notes on this poem

I first wrote a poem somewhat like this while I was still a student in around 2005 to 2006. This was after a strange encounter with a vagrant man at a bus stop. The man walked up to me, looked into my eyes, grumbled something indecipherable, then started banging on side of the plastic bus stop structure in short bursts.

Eventually, another student, white male, chased the vagrant man away, shouting, “Stop it, now! Don’t you see you’re scaring her?!” I was thankful to the young student but wished I had said, “It’s okay. I can hear him.” And then I could have heard more of what the older man had to say. Or maybe this was the full message.

After the protests of 16 June 1976, some sacrificed their youth to physically fight… and some of them are still paying/fighting…

Poet Bio

A former slave on cubicle farms. Words making pretty pictures and taking flight are my colour purple.

Click to rate this post!
[Total: 0 Average: 0]
(Visited 133 times, 1 visits today)