we grow tired
of listening to the same tune
over and over again
we march towards
the powers that be
to relay our dissatisfaction
we are met
with a louder similar tune
from a bigger device
we return home
with nothing but hope
and synthetic fearlessness
we convince ourselves
that we stood up for
what we believed in
we retire to
be terribly tolerant
of the intolerable
we grow patient
of listening to the same tune
over and over again
Nkululeko Zondi is a Community Caregiver at Beehive Social Solutions in Soweto, Johannesburg. He is an anthropology and psychology graduate from the University of South Africa as well as a qualified journalist who writes poetry and prose in both isiZulu and English; and has been published in numerous online literary publications such as Poetry Potion, AVBOB Poetry, Kalahari Review, among others. He has also been featured in poetry anthologies like ‘Dear South Africa’ (2015), ‘ Between the Silence: Poetry for Human Rights’ (2021), ‘Calabash Literary Magazine Vol. 3’ (2022), ‘Voice of Africa: A Call for Freedom’ (2022) and the 2022 ‘Sol Plaatje European Union’ Poetry Anthology. His work has appeared in various South African newspapers such as the ‘Mail & Guardian’, the ‘Star’, ‘Sowetan’, the ‘New Age’, ‘Citizen’ and the ‘Daily Maverick’. Zondi was a finalist in ‘AVBOB Poetry’s Eco-poetry’ mini-competition in April 2022 and again a finalist in ‘AVBOB Poetry’s Family First’ mini-competition in May 2022. In 2023, he was long-listed for the ‘Sol Plaatje European Union Poetry Award and Anthology’.