The pregnant sounds of the city street below
Filter with ease into my quiet room
A sprawling expanse of shacks lay low
Tightly packed in brown and dusty gloom
Over the lake with black water aglow
Dense trees and shrubs in whose depths life loom
Dear city in which many toil and sow
Countless reaping unremitting doom
Extravagant city, whose city are you
The worker bees buzz, is the tenor of your urban floor
Discerning ears perceive it is all much ado
Toddler bellies empty albeit men’s hands quite sore
City of colour, your true colours a contrast
with shades of justice askew
The flaming orange tulip flowers are your tenants’ only shared view.
Chilufya is a woman born and raised on a beautiful continent. She used to be a child. Chilufya writes poems from as a celebration of human diversity and a useful outlet for frustration with the tribulations and rare triumphs of the world today. She lives in Lusaka, Zambia