Spirit Remains
By Lorna Munro
I am as old as time
I am fluid like spoken rhyme
I am still here, even if you refuse to listen to my lesson
I am wise beyond my years, though I wear the clothes of an adolescent
I am confined amongst your ‘good will’ please spare me your blessing
I am hungry for change although I am weary of the sinister inner essence
I am still here amid your secret transgressions
I am present
I am unknown
I am that eerie shiver you feel when you’re alone
I refuse to leave, this is my home!
I am the gulf, the bay and the cove
I bin ‘ere’ long-time, I have watched this place grow
I continue to transcend beyond the skies, over the seas and deep below
I am a stubborn child, refusing to walk in your shadow
I am the thing in between, hereafter, the very thing you are too afraid to know
I forever sing nature’s song, my ode to ole father crow
I inspired the city beats with the sound of my mismatched feet, each step thundering an enormous blow
I will remain here even if you choose to go …
I control young minds, load warriors up with the knowledge of guerrilla ammo
I counteract your propaganda with my lyrical skills and my righteous flow.
I am responsible for your paranoia, I am the force that turns the most conservative to ‘gung-ho’
The very acknowledgement of my existence will force closure of your place of business and from your property you will have to forgo
I am chaotic
I am still the same
I make sandstone structures shake and quiver at the mention of my name
I am enigmatic
Heartfelt, vengeful and a little dramatic
I am forever studied, questions can’t be answered from where or whence I came
I smile at young women, they praise my face and sing to me but never in vain
Wise men talk about me, boys line up to play my game
They are told to beware my disguises and are warned of the bringer of pain
I represent the long line of light, an eternal unbroken chain
I had a beloved I adored, you destroyed their spirit in your attempt to tame
I am condemned to watch on helpless as you assimilate, torture and continue to maim
I shall remain in spite of the permanent tear flooded stain
With oppressed thoughts of immense disdain
Recognise my right, you have nothing left to gain
What am I you ask, who is the cause for such discontent, what is to blame?
Know that it is I, the law of this land, the creator, the maker of rain
I am the core, the spirit, the giver of life, and I can take it back again.