Those sands of the Moroccan Sahara that you
Walked, you touched, you breathed, have sailed over waves,
Greedy waves, on the Harmattan wind
To cross the Atlantic;
To redden my
Sunsets;
To redden my
Eyes as I walk these cold
Salted sands at Kill Devil Hills;
Sky darkening as I look past the waves
And ask the wind to lift me, to bear me weightless.
Grains of sand flow like water at your feet–
A care-free thought carried across
Impossibility.
Visions fade: this
Sunset,
Cold wind holding
The stars above the waves–
Stopping me from thinking, feeling
Anything but the need to turn away.
I have rummaged through octaves
And skin hues and hair bushels of all sorts
Searching for my profoundly dead ancestors
In women with Emmett’s sunset eyes
And men with Maya’s sandstone-like stature
Not quite unintentionally, barely efficaciously.
Then there was you.
I liked the way your wrists bled of tragedy
And our bodies’ scars wore the same timeline –
The sounds they made when mated as soil and seed,
Singing in like and ecstasy.
His-tory became our story,
Equality enjoined our platforms of persecution,
Preaching on justices that were as real as freedom,
Malcolm, Huey, Sandra, Tamir, Trayvon all wailing
To the verses of our Love-making.
Harping tunes that our hips swayed to,
Taking us left and right and then down 6-ft below.
To the arms of mama and papa and Uncle Ben,
Whistling “Grab you a pardner an’ promenade around” Our hearts…
In the pain of the furnace my body was forged,
Longer than life have I been;
The fury of battle is where I have gorged,
On kidney and liver and spleen;
You think me a trinket so prettily shown,
Yet many’s the life I have claimed;
Parting the sinew and hewing the bone,
My mercy is leaving you maimed;
In hope I was wrought and in anger unsheathed,
Blood flows like wine where I’ve played;
I’m promised to Death and to Chaos bequeathed,
For I am the Devil’s own blade.
Oh thou fool if only you could see the sights I’ve seen,
If only you’d experienced the places I have been;
I rode the Steppes of Russia on the horse of Genghis Khan,
And hacked and slew the peasants on the roads to Kazakhstan. I’ve taken life of woman and I’ve…
Political descent and a historical narrative. The Internment was my attempt to understand how our society is structured and what it truly means to belong to a democratic civilization. someone once said that “Propaganda works best when those who are being manipulated are confident that they are acting on their free will” I think this is a powerful statement and quite reflective of the society we live in. We function based on our belief system, creating our decisions and ultimately our experiences on this planet through the scope of what we believe. As people are we simply guided by our hearts, that internal manifestation of our truest self, or is it possible that our choices are largely shaped by the influences about us. Religion, politics, education, health, justice, each is an integral pillar and the media is it’s mouth piece. While I do believe that we belong to incredibly blessed nation, I realize that there is a sort of complacency in our conquest for truth. To evolve one must be willing to explore the that which is uncomfortable, to consider life from every angle. After all it is possible that what we consider “The Truth” may just be a fabricated, if not a one sided version of it.
2) How would you like people to respond when they read or watch your poetry reading?
It would hope that “The Internment” will not only challenge the reader’s perception of the world around them but cause them to ask the tough questions. To consider both sides of the fence.
3) How long have you been writing poetry?
It has been 15 years since I wrote my first poem. I am began when I was 10 years old.
4) Do you have a favorite poet?
It really depends on how the word “poet” Is defined. It is true that I love poets such as Sylvia Plath ( Her poem Lady Lazarus is a favorite ) Edna St. Vincent Millay, Joshua Bennett and Alicia Harris. Poetry is simply anything that moves my soul and for that reason I would also consider “India Arie” and “Lauryn Hill” to also be my “Poet” of choice. They conves the truth effortlessly. In fact it was Lauryn Hill’s album “Unplugged” that inspired this poem “the internment” I am also incredibly fond of Audra McDonald. (Might not be a writer, but she certainly knows how to express the emotion of music, much like that of a writer.) It leaves you with a deep sentiment and profound gratitude for the little moments of life.
5) What influenced you to submit to WILDsound and have your poetry performed by a professional actor?
I am also a spoken word artist. The reverb of the written word against your eardrum, is a completely different experience, than simply reading it on the page. I felt that having someone perform the interment, would add to the power behind these words.
6) Do you write other works? scripts? Short Stories? Etc..?
I am a writer in every sense of the word. Verse novels, music scores, song lyrics, fiction, theatrical scripts, Essays. these are some of the things that I enjoy putting down on Paper. My poetry chapbook “Ephemorphosis” was just published by Prolific Press this year.
7) What is your passion in life?
I believe that true poetry comes from artistic and emotional vulnerability, and at the heart of it, should reflect the distinct voices and nuances of the human experience. my passion is to simply reflect this philosophy through my work by producing art that is unbound by the confines of race, gender, or political affiliation
– The theme of the poem is about life. It talks about what we perceive and what the eternal truth could be. It is about how wide and wild can our imagination go.
Watch NOT SO AMAZING POEM FOR AN AMAZING GIRL
Get to know poet Abhishek Jha:
1) What is the theme of your poem?
– The theme of the poem is about life. It talks about what we perceive and what the eternal truth could be. It is about how wide and wild can our imagination go.
2) How would you like people to respond when they read or watch your poetry reading?
– They could either respond in writing or post videos with their comments.
3) How long have you been writing poetry?
– Have started writing about a year back.
4) Do you have a favorite poet?
– “Ode to the West Wind” by P.B Shelley
5) What influenced you to submit to WILDsound and have your poetry performed by a professional actor?
– A friend told me to submit since it is a good platform to showcase your piece to the world.
6) Do you write other works? scripts? Short Stories? Etc..?
– I write short stories as well.
7) What is your passion in life?
– Passion in life is to start start my own company and do good for the world.
Desire and being taken out of reality by that desire. Being utterly at one your lover.
2) How would you like people to respond when they read or watch your poetry reading?
I would like them to have for a moment that feeling of being completely lost in someone else – that feeling where two souls become one, out of time and place.
3) How long have you been writing poetry?
A few years
4) Do you have a favorite poet?
Not specifically, but I love Wilfred Owen, Hugh McDiarmid, W.B.Yeats, Coleridge and a wonderful local poet, Liz Berry who writes evocative, beautiful poetry about the Black Country, where I live at the moment.
5) What influenced you to submit to WILDsound and have your poetry performed by a professional actor?
I have been writing bits of poetry for a few years but only for my own pleasure (or maybe as therapy). I have never had anything published. I thought it would be nice to see what other people thought of some of the things I do, positive or negative – it’s all feedback.
6) Do you write other works? scripts? Short Stories? Etc..?
Sometimes – I am an inveterate scribbler. Bits of poems and stories pop up all the time and just tend to get scribbled down.
7) What is your passion in life?
Generally being creative – I write, sing, make jewellery, paint a little and play ukulele.
2) How would you like people to respond when they read or watch your poetry reading?
Connect with people’s sense of adventure, whether good or not so good, in regards to love and life. To see and interrupt the humorous side of reaching and attaining goals when in being single offers all sorts of opportunities in finding partners, soul mates, company etc.
3) How long have you been writing poetry?
I have been actively writing poetry for 30 years. Started when I was 12 years old.
4) Do you have a favorite poet?
No favourite poet or writer. There is just too much talent out there!
5) What influenced you to submit to WILDsound and have your poetry performed by a professional actor?
WILDsound is a hub for attracting a wealth of talent, creative pieces and people with solid know how for the ‘what’s next’ procedure. Generally a great showcase of quality work from dedicated creative people.
6) Do you write other works? scripts? Short Stories? Etc..?
I write just about everything, although my writing time is allocated to poetry, screenplays and my freelance writing projects.
7) What is your passion in life?
My passion is writing without any doubt.
I love transporting readers and/or viewers to other levels. Screenwriting pushes all the buttons for me as a writer and a viewer of tidy, exceptionally, well-written scripts. Poetry is a close second.
NOT SO AMAZING POEM FOR AN AMAZING GIRL – Poetry Reading by Abhishek Jha
T H E I N T E R N M E N T – Poetry Reading by Melodic Rose. 
Flame – Poetry Reading by Carolyn Hucker
Star Attraction – Poetry Reading by Agata Zema
On A High – Poetry Reading by Patsy Jawo
The Other Side – Poetry Reading by Patsy Jawo
Who are we – Poetry Reading by Patsy Jawo
My Joseph, My JAM – Poetry Reading by Poet Adrienne Miranda
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