Poems

No Tattoo pon Teacha

Sasha, tek yu mine off teaching

Or run yu maths class at yu yawd

Cause di Education Minista

Naw go tek yu awn!

No tattoo pon teacha!

Warn di goodly genkleman.

Madda Prim she well agree

She seh dem a spwile up har profession.

All you now, sinting mus sting yu

Mek yu waak into di place

Wid tattoo of a TILIT BOWL

In di miggle a yu face!

Is wah yu dida tink Sasha?

Yu naw get awf yu ed?

Is fashion statement yu a mek?

Or, yu decide fi jus rebel?

Yu wake up ina good, good, skin

Smood an dawk an pretty.

Is not like fi mi, for example,

Weh haffi cova, cause it spatty.

But, mi naw tattoo my poor baddy

Who doah like it - Tuff titty!

If God did want mi decorated

Im woulda neva fraid fi do i'.

Is blasphemy indirectly!

Is like yu bex wid di Almighty

Fi mek yu widdout defacement.

Im shoulda stawt yu, mek YU finish i'!

Nuh cut yu eye dem afta mi

Go cut dem afta Minista!

Im doan waan no sample teacha

In front a di nation pickney Ma!

Gallang!

Well, me did do a lucky ting wen mi decide fi sing

Cause me is walking canvass

Woi! - All mi toe in tattoo ring!

- Erica Brown Marriott

 

Traffic light dilemma

 

This gamin frequented the traffic lights

His gait like one who thinks

his weight would sink the earth

With cap askew upon his head

and shirt and pants, so large and loose

Where, two beside himself could hide with ease.

Designer shoes upon his feet

and tool of labour in his hand.

A wet squeegie he thrust upon

the woman's car windscreen

before the driver in disgust

could signal with her hand that such a job

She could do well without.

An outstretched hand he thrust to her

But she ignored its intent.

So with a whimper and a wail

like one who cannot speak

He grimaced and screwed up his face

like a squeezed up, ripe breadfruit.

Looking haltingly around

Then fumbling in his huge pocket

A frazzled, damp and dirty rage he pulled.

A grin of satisfaction on his face appeared

And with a lightning stroke

One swipe across her face he made

"Now you tek dat" he cried.

The light turned green

She made a scream!

Tyres screeched

And off she drove

- Otis May Wills

 

On Confidence

 

Trust comes from letting go of fear

Release these bonds, they keep you there

The wings of faith will let you rise

Above the negative thoughts and lies

Be explicit in knowing what you desire

Dedication and focus, will get you higher

Give thanks and expect a positive result

Then you realise, It wasn't that difficult.

Your thoughts have much power and energy

Which create your experience and identity

Because as a man thinketh, so is he

Be conscious and know, that's what you'll be.

Step into the blocks and run your race

Confidence always gets you first place

You have worked hard and passed the test

So go out there and show them your best

They've taped and studied your every move

Hoping they'll get the very same groove

They visit, ask questions do a DNA test

In the quest for answers why you're the best

They come with a vengeance, they cannot see why

This tiny country should be passing them by

So know you'll be challenged in a very real way

For Bejing left a mystery unsolved to this day.

- Winsome Miller-Rowe

 

The climb to success

 

The bottom of my shoe nervously touched the first rung of the ladder

With only a soft tap

It was not a Christian Louboutin, with its characteristic bright red sole

But I was no less entitled to take this climb

The loud clicking sounds of confident and strident steps rang through my ears

Drawing my attention upwards

My eyes flickered, fighting against the blinding glare of the sun

Shining ever so brightly

Mimicking the smiles of those pleased as punch to be close to the top

The bright smile of the sun and its sweltering heat

Almost forced me to retreat

But this climb is mine to take

I took another step

This time a little stronger and louder

There was a moving puzzle of faces staring down at me

Some with hateful and enquiring eyes

Seemingly asking: What are you doing here?

Seemingly saying:

Your complexion is not of a light and creamy hue

Your hair is not long and flowing

Where the wind tosses it seductively, with a tickle against your back

You have a wooden spoon in your mouth

Not a silver one like ours

But this climb is mine to take

Not all eyes were filled with the bubbling and overflowing vitriol of hate

Some gleamed with care and understanding

Softly encouraging me along

There was a maze of hands reaching toward me

I could feel their tug-of-war - pulling and pushing

Some trying to pull me up

Others trying to push me down

But this climb is mine to take

- Suzanne Leslie-Bailey

 

Marijuana

 

I have lost hope so I look for the marijuana

Then I looked into the tree and saw an iguana

He slithers along without a care

Why should I this burden bear

In Jamaica, it is almost legal

And it will let you feel like an eagle

You will also hit rock bottom and lose hope

When you put all your trust in this dope.

I looked in a book and saw his Name

And then I decided to play a game

I read a few chapters in Psalms

And then I stop digging my palms.

- Hortense Francis

 

***

 

The Pre-existence of My Love

 

I pre-existed in an incredibly remote place outside the universe,

Love was with me, and I was an element of love.

The heavenly realm witnessed the pre-existence of my love.

My love lived on in a state of inertia indefinitely

And it was seemingly the only one of its kind,

But I was devoid of pleasure and I knew there was something missing.

It was not the nature of my love to continue alone.

I searched the peripheries of infinity for the other element of love.

I bowed down before the Most High at the portals of heaven,

But the forbidden love I sought was located elsewhere.

My persistence grew and thus I extended my wings and gracefully flew away.

I entered the universe and countless billions of worlds appeared.

I marvelled at the wonders of the new creation.

I stood fearlessly in the core of the largest sun,

And my immortal heart blazed with the fire of eternal passion.

The cosmos expanded and aged planets melted down,

But my indestructible love shone as the glory of a trillion stars.

An intelligent force was communicating telepathically with me;

I followed the faint information in my psyche,

The spirit of my love advanced faster than the speed of light.

My urge for physical love was greater than my desire to live forever

And nothing could prevent me from pursuing the love I wanted.

I sensed the existence of an unknown force in deep space

And I was destined to find out exactly what it was.

The dynamic energy of my love led me to a green sphere,

A vast watery expanse surrounded by dense darkness,

A unique life form in a galaxy near the centre of the universe.

There I came upon the daughter of love, a terrestrial being,

The most beautiful creature I have ever seen.

At last I have discovered the complement of love!

I went down from the cloud and gazed at her in astonishment,

The sight of this gorgeous mortal being intensified my love

And I knew I could not go back to my lonely existence without her.

She felt the presence of an extraterrestrial love she thought existed only in fantasy,

But surprisingly, she was not afraid.

She reached out to me and for the first time I felt powerless.

Though I had infinite love, I was very cautious.

She became aggressive and her charm emitted thermonuclear rays.

Her love created a shock wave as many stars exploding simultaneously.

The particle of her love penetrated my force field.

My attempts to control her ended in surrender.

I could not withstand the superlative power of her love.

Her love was more powerful than I imagined,

I did not think there was any love strong enough to capture me.

I could not possess her or even touch her because I was a disembodied spirit,

But I saw eternity in her fiery eyes.

And I told her about the pre-existence of my love.

She showed me the beginning of time, an indescribable precept,

The stage where only the source of energy and power exist,

And she spoke highly of the Originator of her love.

Unleashing my full power could not alter the law of love.

She was a mortal and I was an immortal,

An incompatible union could not ensue,

And so I became mortal in order that our love could coexist.

Her love and my love combined and became one supernatural love,

And an infinitesimal presence of physical life came to be.

Our transgression would not pass unnoticed or go unpunished;

The whole creation became angry at us for violating the rule.

Consequently, time separated us and she died because of her error,

But time could not annihilate my love.

I dematerialised and returned to the pre-existence of my love

Where I shall remain in sadness for longer than eternity.

- Marlon Pitter