by Nosipho Dhladhla
Published on: Jan 11, 2008
Topic:
Type: Poetry

I was born into the land of Umvelincanti,
I was born into the land of Jezebel,
in a land rich with resources,
in a land without supply, without quality,
in a land that can feed us all,
in a land that feeds the minority, where the poor get poorer,
in a land where there is enough for all.
in a land where the greedy take all.
I was born into a land of mystery and dreams,
I was born into a land without hope,
in a place with the window to heaven,
in a place with the window to hell,
a place where rivers run deep,
a place where the rivers run dry,
and the grass is green all year.
and the grass is no longer green.
I was born into blackness,
I was born into oppression,
black diamond, black olive,
black man, evil man,
black is my beauty.
black is my curse.
I was born into a land rich with culture,
I was born into a land where culture has divided us,
a place where Ubuntu is the essence of our identity.
a place where Ubuntu is lost, buried with the ancestor.
I was born into the motherland,
I was born into homelessness,
where a mother is mother to all child,
where a mother has no child,
where a father is father to all child,
and a father has no child,
where you are my brother,
where I kill my brother,
and you are my sister,
and I kill my sister,
where colour exists only in the rainbow.
where colour defines who you are.
I was born into a land of peace,
I was born into war, civil war, tribal war, political war,
where my brother is my brother,
where my brother is the opposition,
a land where I plough in unity,
a land where I kill to plough,
in togetherness, in harmony.
where togetherness, harmony does not exist.
I was born into a land that bares food for all,
I was born into a land of hunger and poverty,
a land where the harvest belongs to the people.
a land where the land is too dry to harvest.
I was born into royalty, I am a king
I was born an outcast, I am a shame,
I am a queen, I am a princess,
I am an abomination,
we are all heirs to this land.
I have on right to inheritance.
I was born into a land of possibilities,
I was born into a land of HIV/AIDS
I was born into Africa, the motherland.
I was born into Africa, the motherland.
I am African.
I am African indeed.

Cry The Beloved Country!!!!





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