Poems

The election fever

The election call is drawing near

The election fever is in the air

People are anxious everywhere

And waiting to hear the election

call

There are private meetings

There are public meetings all around

General conference here and there

As they prepare for the election call

As MPs enter the meeting venue

They echo party greeting

And the supporters cheer

MPs make party promises

And the supporters roar

Party colour flags keep waving

But no election call

Supporters choosing this candidate

Supporters wanting that candidate

Causing a brawl

But listen

The Malahoo letter disruption

The party confusion

The dead babies scandal

The health minister shuffle

Cause a great alarm

It's crucial

It's a drag

A real drag

I tell you

- V.O. Ricketts

Jamaica a fi wi

A rada Jamaica owe mi than Obama,

Cause Jamaica a fi wi and that's a honour

Don't tek it as a burden, please

Wi caan mek wi ancestor sweat and tears blow weh like breeze

It's very humbling when Jamaica achieve

While some just choose to sit and talk and hack and cheat

I'm talking to the Parliament and to the ghetto into the streets

Wi ancestors nuh please unuh nuh si seh dem a grieve

Wi know wi dutty tough like well-cure concrete

But mek wi dig some of it before wi go to sleep.

- William Bryan Faulknor

Egypt

The river Nile is a long river

like the blood flowing from the woman with the issue of blood to see her

Saviour on the cross

only to clutch to the hem

the mothers wailing

like they did in Egypt

Pharaoh

let my people go

free the blind to see

Moses overtook the kingship of Pharaoh

Pharaoh let my people go

let my people go

give them their birthright

blood is on the door

Christ

for this you suffered, for this you died

pour your everlasting blood oh Christ

from my head to my toes

my feet, I bleed

but I touched your hem

it was better than hemp

Egypt is indeed not my home

no more second-class citizen

freedom

open up the Red Sea to the promise land Oh Saviour divine

overthrow everyone of Pharaoh's army, over wash them in the sea

send me straight through to

the promise land

the promise land

- Helen-Ann E. Wilkinson