Kenneth Maswabi
The burden of Poetry
The burden of Poetry
Poetry is not a small load of miscellaneous words
Poetry is the whole shebang in one plate
Poetry is the fine fabric of a rose
As much as poetry is the rough hands of a miner
Poetry is the delicate taste of vanilla ice cream
As much as poetry is the bitterness inside a homeless
man's mouth
Poetry is the raw material, as much as poetry is the
finished product
Poetry is the grain of sand, as much as Poetry is the
black hole at the center of the galaxy
Poetry is as relevant as it is irrelevant
Poetry is not the material part of life
As much as Poetry is not immaterial in nature
Poetry is as pure as a dream, just like it's as raw as
reality
The burden of Poetry is not on the Poet's shoulder
It is a collective responsibility
It's sometimes as light as a feather
And at other times as heavy as death
It's as dark as the darkest moment
And it is also a full moonlit night and a bright sunny
day
Poetry is not heavy, its weight is beyond logic
It cannot be calculated or explained
It's beyond imagination
Poetry is as big as the cosmos and as small as an
atom
Poetry is both peace and war
Poetry is not an emotion
It's a commotion of consciousness
Sometimes it's not even a motion
It's stillness
Poetry is a pure form of Light
It is impossible to see but its effect is clear
Like dark matter, it's a powerful force in the
universe
©Kenneth Maswabi
25 - 01 - 2024
Photo credit to the owner
