The Poetry of Tuelo Gabonewe

I am a third year student at the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University and a budding writer of poetry and fiction. I have been writing poetry for the past two years. These are some of the poetry in my anthology that have been written with a specific nature theme.

Where did the beauty of life and nature go?

When I was a little boy
I used to observe with admiration
The beautiful charm of nature
I used to notice with veneration
The automatic routine in which nature
Underwent different transformations
From wet to dry
From dark to bright
From hot to cold
From vivid to gloom
From pale to cloudy
And from still to windy

I remember as a little child
The simple joy
Sown by the season of rainfall
In the heart of every child
As it meant a time for countless games
Such as building mud huts
Or singing along with frogs during the night It meant gazing with fascination At the beauty of the rainbow Worn by the sky At the end of every fall of rain

I used to enjoy watching
The beauty of earth during spring
After a long period of gloom
To stare at the sun rising
Above delightful horizons
And eventually vanishing
Behind titanic hills
I used to embrace the fall of night
Which in most instances appeared
As an infinite roof
Embellished with a billion tiny glints
And a mobile light bulb
That surprisingly from day to day
Changed its size and appearance

Today I am an aged man
Age has away from me
Stolen the simple appreciation
With which I held nature
Closer to my heart
And civilization has sabotaged
The charm of earthly nature
I am today trying to figure out
Where the beauty of life and nature could have gone

The rebirth of spring

It begins with small eddies of wind
Sweeping away the leaves on the ground
Big black clouds suddenly join the party Then the tantalizing scent of approaching rainfall

Back into my little hut I creep
Shut the door and wait for nature to take control Thunder bellows to break the silence Then the gentle fall of heavenly tears After some time the rain comes to a halt The outside world pulsates with vigour Out of the my little I creep And march into the wet outside world

Children run around in playful merriment Others play with the wet black mud Swallows acrobatically somersault in empty space Living up the inescapable spring fever

The sun casts reinvigorated light
Men and women embrace the rebirth of spring Farmers smile with unmitigated thankfulness Mother nature has completed her offices

The beauty of sunset

I once noticed the charm of light
One day before the fall of night

Under the clouds the sun had crept
And there for seconds it was kept

Azure skies turned to reddish brown
I was so touched I could not frown

The sun then expanded its rays
And cast them throughout open space

For a while I was filled with awe
My little heart begging for more

From my personal point of view
Nothing can ever beat that view

The desert child

Today's for me yet another sunset
Under the aged sky of the desert

And for future visitors' convenience
I will share my experience

The desert knows very little rainfall
And very seldom you see a man build a wall

To get water you need to find a well
This means you search till your feet swell

In this place xerophytes thrive
But human souls strive to survive

Some have been devoured by the sand
Of my disheveled native land

But I the desert child
Know how to keep life happy and mild

Although the desert has no city
I do not wander in search of pity

I just sit atop enchanted dunes
And listen to the wind's soulful tunes

My youngest son

My youngest son
Fell with a thud
When he tried to run
On the wet mud

Parental advice

O' my lovely child
My arteries swell with pride
As from day to day I notice
How healthy you grow
And to make sure
That you don't lose balance
As unpredictable tomorrows
Enter and exit
I have this advice for you:

Don't be like plants
Sometimes they're green
Sometimes they're brown
Sometimes they're full of life
And sometimes they are lurking
On the boundary between life and death

And don't be like the weather
Sometimes it's hot
Sometimes there's a drizzle
Sometimes it's humid
And sometimes it's overly dry

If you want to make it child
In this extremely mysterious life
Belike mother earth
Don't change your orbit

Reflection

After a heavy shower
A boy sprinted to his father
From the playground
"Daddy, daddy," he screamed
"There is another sky
In the belly of earth
I saw it daddy
In a puddle of water
Don't you think papa
That it might be another heaven?

 

Tuelo Gabonewe (Mr)

 E-mail 12940461@puknet.puk.ac.za