a poem about one of the challenges facing the world |
I Write about HIV/AIDS I’m the harbinger, the ancient village crier I’m the purveyor of news from everywhere News of despair and hope I blow my Kudu horn from dawn to dusk I traverse villages and cities alike So when you ask what I write about I will tell you this, my friend I write about nothing But dark and turbulent clouds churning madly around Tempests and whirlwinds howling and fuming nearby A volcano simmering and gurgling A red eyed dragon, spitting fire indiscriminately A viral army on the warpath A disease ravaging the region I write about nothing But communities under siege Villages and cities in mourning black Frantic efforts and desperate measures Virulent invasions and sickbeds A fiend on the prowl I write about nothing But thousand infants orphaned at birth Teams of workers confined to hospitals Abandoned fields and offices everywhere Grand parents gravely nursing their grand children Communities virtually at funerals every hour A monster on the loose I write about nothing But about us The infected and the affected The fallen and the struggling The nursed and the nursing The burying and the buried I write about nothing But the village care-givers Patiently giving support to patients at home Volunteers who work around the clock Nursing, giving love and hope Leaders in home-based care I write about nothing But courageous brothers and sisters gone public Heroes and heroines of the fight against stigmatization Brothers and sisters who live and think positively Selfless educators who care for their communities I write about nothing But HIV/AIDS A reality Here And Everywhere |