THOSE THEY LEFT BEHIND (for Micheal Nyambi Kusi) by Orok Duke

THOSE THEY LEFT BEHIND
(for Micheal Nyambi Kusi)

We are far apart now.
Distance was not a friend of mine,
So we won’t do it anymore.

We don’t want to dance to the beats
Of your own drums.
Let us follow the present,
Back to the future:
In a burnt bush,
Plants survive by sapping
The extra nutrients underground.

We emerged to forage and feed
When dusk provided the needed protection –
As crocodile hatchlings called on their mothers
From across the river bed.

Many of us perished where you left us.
It was not a combat for the toughest
Or the most intelligent,
But those who were able to adapt to change.

On the banks of our dwindling river,
We still have good times
Of a different kind
And the novices have reached great heights:
An undefinable ecstasy of victory.

Orok Otu Duke
Duke Town

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