Africa my Africa – my home,
The abode of valiant men,
The archive of ancient antiquities:
- the bones of homo sapiens,
- -the crude tools of early men,
- The remains of ancient crafts,
I found your totems in caves,
And fossils in mountains,
They call you third world,
Yet, you are the first world:
Man first home,
The slave master,
Through wantom cruelty and cajole,
Your strength and knowledge are sapped,
By the slavery of thy man power,
The relics of ships, chains, shackles and locks,
Speak in recent time,
Of cruelty and inhumanities against thee,
Like a sprouting tree stump,
You cometh to life again!
Spreading your forest canopy across the earth,
For all like birds,
Come to perch and nest,
In your branches and tributaries,
You preserved hidden riches and knowledge,
Attracting and giving birth,
To nations of black and white-
A blend of all races.
© Peter .A. Onasanya.
