The city of gold lures its citizens
With lofty pleasures
And promises of grandeur
Loves to pickpocket hope
from the tireless worker.
But still, we tread on,
With our families in mind
And tables to clothe with food.
The morning will beckon us
Into taxis
To sail the M1
Into the mouth of the city.
The buildings will swallow us whole.
Turn us into ants.
Assignments and red marks
will make you small
Don’t falter.
For the city is as beautiful as it’s scary.
Remember the pockets of joy
In between the toiling.
Remember the sunset gazing
While sipping on sundowners.
Remember the laughs shared
Amongst friends on Friday evenings.
One thing this city has,
Is its endless tutelage of resistance
And rewarding those who persevere.
Tshepo Molefe (pronouns: he/his/him) is a multi-award-winning performance poet and copywriter. With a career spanning over seven years, Molefe has graced many local and international stages and has been published in numerous publications.
His career highlights include being published on the 7th edition of the Sol Plaatje anthology, winning the 2017 WordnSound Poetry league, and publishing his debut poetry anthology, The Brown Bottle series.