Tendai Mwanaka- Three Poems

rumour written on the wind

wet with dust

the wind is unleashing

wind-racking passions

unraveling spools of wire-flung

into the sky, shivering on top of

an open sky

into the space

opaque merry-go rounds

debauched,

the tree’s branches are

stripped naked

by the dismal demented

Augusts’ winds

And in the pools of dust

the windows are wrapped

In wind’s dust

As we spent hours

in Augusts’ windy afternoon

walking on top of

yellow leaves,

 The wind

fiercely, the burn of

the wind on our eyes,

almost protecting us

like our next of kin.

Rumour written on

the wind

whispering of

no wind-holes offered

of ante bellum gentry

gone to the south

In the hazards of

the wind’s swishes.

love on this page

love, a hug

speaking

a thumping voice in my heart

exclaiming slowly

exclamation marks

in lighting the first star

are not punctual

punctuation marks

do not answer

question marks

of her untwisting heart

i am her footnote

when did I become this?

but she is still the text

a shredded cloud

re-gilding my heart

stripped

in my mind, of

all things necessary

i am a new text with strange

symbols

odd signposts;

i twirl in rapids.

time

Desire names this place

possessive about panic

like a shadow of time.

Prone to heart’s murmurs

shift shapes of desires

wagging through this time.

Storing this time like

sunshine

into our own skins.

Our eyes pressed

to the keyholes

of our lives.

Time runs down

our spines

like a shiver.

As we rub seconds,

minutes, and hours

One against the other.

The friction

propelling us

forward.

Time falls apart

and breaks

into a puzzle.

Measuring this time.

by the mix of

these elements

Is that a poor

attempt at

timekeeping?

Bio-

Voices from exile, a collection of poetry on Zimbabwe’s political situation and exile in South Africa was published by Lapwing publications, Northern Ireland in 2010. KEYS IN THE RIVER: Notes from a Modern Chimurenga, a novel of interlinked stories that deals with life in modern Zimbabwe was published by Savant books and publications, USA in 2012. Revolution, Logbook written by a drifter, and Voices from exile were both short listed by the Erbecce press poetry prize in 2012, 2011, and 2009 respectively, nominated for the Pushcart twice, 2008, 2010, commended for the Dalro prize 2008, nominated and attended Caine African writing workshop 2012. Published over 200 pieces of short stories, essays, memoirs, poems and visual art in over 100 magazines, journals, and anthologies in the following countries,  the USA, UK, Canada, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, India, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, Romania, Mexico, Cameroon, Italy, France, Spain, Cyprus, Australia and New Zealand.