Femi Kayode: Poetry of the Heart

Still in the spirit of the International Poetry Day celebrations, here is a poem from Femi Kayode, one of the participants of the 2012 edition of the GCLF poetry workshop. Do you have a poem to share? Send it to us: gclfblog@gmail.com

Femi Kayode: Poetry of the Heart

I pick my pen,

Cuddle my paper

Wrack my brain

Search its nooks, crannies

Nothing to write.

No words. Not about you or me

Only words for our dear country Nigeria.

Write, I must

So let me make your heart my slate

My voice, the pen

So I write…

My heart weeps, my eyes beat

My legs eat,  my hands walk

My nose hears, my ears suck in air

My teeth taste, my tongue chews

Things are upside down, downside up.

Cassowaries fly

Snails lead a hundred metre dash

Fish bleat and cocks mow

Frogs bag awards, ants threaten elephants 

Square pegs in round holes.

Leaders loot, followers look

Phone thief jailed. Mobbed. 

Treasury looter freed. Presidential Pardon.

Few feed fat on our flesh. 

We starve. They FART.

Some quench their thirst with our tears. 

We famish. They DROWN. 

My words, from my heart, I pen

...on your heart. 

Femi Kayode has a way with words. It does not matter if he is doing a poem on his name or on Nigeria, his words warm through your hearts and ruffles you in your seats. One of his poems recently won the 30House Nigeria Arts Grant.  He was part of the Garden City Literary Festival's poetry workshop in 2012. When he is not doing poetry, he is acting or writing copy for an advert.