VoicesNet.com Recent Poems of Dowell Ighohwo Oba - Copyright for all poems displayed belong to author

EMOTIONS by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/8/2009

In a world of lasting emotions,
Why is there such conflict?

In the midst of a separation by distance,
Why is there such patience?

In a time of undecided dilemma,
Why is there still a choice?

It lies in the fact that a faultless journey
Sooner or later needs a bump;

As a treasure once found
Ends the search;

And a spice once tasty
Becomes a favourite.

As it is, when that special one
Is found in you my love!

WONDER by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/5/2009

Ever peered over the rim
Of an active volcano,
Stood where a hot forty foot
Geyser gushed at your feet;
Explored the galaxies
Through a giant telescope;
Or conducted a great symphony orchestra;
Enjoyed the company of an oceanic blue whale,
Or been embraced by a gorilla
Friendly at heart?

Maybe you've gazed deep
Into a flower, gasped at a sunset,
Been awed by a mountain peak
Shrouded in mist.
Maybe you've felt a catch
At the heart upon hearing
A piece of beautiful tunes,
Marvelled at the flight
Of a migrant bird,
Or enjoyed the bright gaze
Of a creature, young,
Human or mammal.
All these - all wonderful things,
As our familiarity with them
Sometimes cloud our response.

Wonder! Residing all around us;
In our immediate surroundings,
In our land, throughout the world,
And beyond our world,
Into the universe
And distant space.
Always there, unchanging,
Never less than miraculous.

THERE IS... by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/5/2009

There's a butterfly for every petal,
And a nest for every tree.

There's a bee for every hive,
And a spider for every web.

There's a root for every plant,
And a stem for every flower.

There's a hopper in every grass,
And a grain for every wheat.

There's a shrub in the evergreen,
And a herb for every ail;

A rain in every sky,
And a you for every me!

DREAM by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/29/2009

On my steady drive to harvest comes a seed
Planted tenderly in my field of accomplishments
Watered by oceans of steadfast commitment
In the final reaping of the dividends of labour.

On my steady drive to victory storms an army
Of multitudes of many to lie outstanding,
Exploring volumes of men to remain preserved
To come, to see, but yet to conquer
Riding courageously in my attainment of victory.

On my steady drive to the pinnacle come temptations
In backsliding abruptly on the road to Zion
Though the world might bring forth its pleasures,
My prophesied prophesy must surely be fulfilled.

On my steady drive to destiny lies a step
Climbing each phase to face the next
But on I patiently march to reach the end,
To pass through the iron door my destiny rests.

On my steady drive to the apex lies a dream
An arrow I wield to arm as armour
Against my fears and hopes though shattered
A dream of life I stand to live for.

DECEIVER by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/27/2008

She is a deceiver
A Beautiful damsel with eyes
So innocent, but being a deceiver
And cunning are her ways.

It might be her sumptuous beauty
Or the way in which she is seduced
By guys with so much intensity
That has strongly amused
And made her that deceitful.

Having a new name for every player
Receiving undeserved trust
Gaining enormous attention
From every path she crossed
Transformed into a skilled liar.

But unknown to her, her fall
Was yet to come.
For when at last her secret
Was made bare, all
That once loved thee
Generated strong hate.

Poor deceiver!
Who would have thought
She would rise from grace to grass.
Thought she was fooling all,
But ended up being fooled.

WHAT THE POET KNOWS by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/25/2009

What the poet knows,
I'll tell you what:

He moulds the clay of wisdom,
Fine-tunes the disruption of misconceptions.

He listens to breaking sorrows
And leans a helping arm on society.

He is the eye of the ancestors
An encyclopaedia of generations passed.

He reflects the ills of humanity
Gigantic bulldozer, bulldozing through.

He devices a language of illumination
Shining to all who understands his dialect.

He touches starvation with a helping hand,
Fighting malice with the pen as his sword.

He knows when to strike
And where to aim,
Poised for greatness
A marching warrior.

He defeats with ease
And cures with his words,
Piercing his way
Through the hearts of darkness.

A voice of change
And a voice of the earth,
Created specifically to nurture the earth.

He is born to sing and born to shout
Amidst much silence from a quiet lot.

He deciphers solution for multitudes at ease
From his warehouse of wisdom, oh man of letters.

He was created to heal
And born to lead
His devoted urchins
That roams the earth.

He bears immortality
With the tip of his fingers,
Granting at will to preserve his cause.

He speaks the bitter truth
And embraces nature
Cos within it lies
The sincerity of creation.

So skilled in his art
His fine craftsmanship,
Posing not just a poet
But an artist as well.

So much to learn
And much to envisage
From an aged treasure house
Of what the poet knows.

DEATH OF AN IMMORTAL by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/23/2009

I was born in a time
When the thrills of a thriller
Did move the bricks
Of the thickest of walls.

I grew in an era
When the dynasty of an empire
Did expand to farthest of lands.

I adapted to a phenomenon
When the existence of a legend
Did drown the fame of mortals.

A fame in immortality
Bearing the impenetrability
Of Achilles himself,
Destined to march
Through the walls of Troy.

I twisted to the strings
Of a guitar, twanging
Spontaneously in my head,
In moves of invisibility.

I was opportune to appear
In a time, when the conquest
Of one king, did crest
Long lasting tattoos
In the hearts of many.

I was fascinated in a time
When the life within a man
Did blossom young,
As he lived unaffected
By the fading of time.

I lingered in an era
When the voice of one man
Could unify the sections
In a complex world.

I flowed in his guidance,
Dined in his glory
As though I existed
In his peak of enthronement,
His conferment of Grammies.

Bedazzled by his flexibility,
I was blessed by his power
To rein in anointed glory,
Unending immortality.

I was born in an empire
Governed by a king;
The king of pop,
A king in the world,
Father of offspring
As multiple as stars.

Electrified by a star,
There shall never be another;
Another motion slider,
Another shining star.

And though he passes on,
I shall live to declare
That I was born in a time
Ruled by a legend,
Guided by an immortal,
A world of Michael Jackson.

ANGELS by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/21/2009

In the morning, we hope for angels
Rising in an aura of natural beauty;
By noon, we yearn for angels
Hotter than the midday sun;
By nightfall, we crave for angels
Singing us sweet melodies,
The rhythms of the night,
Taking our sorrows away.
More so, when we dream,
We pray for angels
Hovering around us,
And making our dreams
The delight we crave for.
An angel in you I pray!

FATE OF THE SON by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/20/2009

A breathtaking claim in its audacity
Two thousand years ago made by he
Who impacted the world time forward
As being the very Son of God.

For much of his lifetime he commandeth
A small dedicated following few,
Considered king and promised deliverer
Coming forth from the house of David.

Much more than a man, prophet or teacher
For I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM
The good shepherd and light of the world
The coming bridegroom to the waiting bride.

I am the First and I am the Last
Did many good works shown by the father
Proved to be divine in various other ways
With power to raise and judge up the dead.
For as much as the father raises the dead
Even so the son gives life to whom he will.

Behold the virgin shall be with child
And they shall call his name Immanuel
Your throne O God is forever and ever
Superior to Moses and greater
Than the high priests.

The offering for sin the law expected
Being the fulfillment of the will of God
For we've been purified by the sacrifice
Once and for all of the body of Christ.

The Iniquity of all laid on HIM
Stricken for the transgressions of men
Had not violence nor deceit in mouth
To this we are called because he suffered,
Committed Himself to Him who judges

Uncreated Creator of all creation!

ROCK by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/2/2009

In my way comes a fuss
A thundering of marches,
In my world yearns a departure
A flee from it all.

With a strength of fulfilment
Comes a job for my headset,
Soft in motion a tune
For my beautiful lily world.

A genre of instrumentality
Softly played with an ease,
A match of Saul's fulfilment
In David's soothing lyre.

Now a feeling of conquest
As I safely conquer the world,
My path a field fertile
As with life comes delight.

Is it something about its guitar
Or the way it feels in my head?
Is it thy passionate undertone
As though a bombshell, drops?

For with me comes no competition
For I'm stirred by a Trojan horse,
My mind's profound of peace
In my explicit genre of rock.

NO WINTER IN AFRICA by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/19/2009

I walk through forests
With gigantic trees
And thick branches,
Eying tall palm trees
With palm wine tappers
Tapping on rich palm wine.
Such tasty privilege
Of nature's thick giants
Mounted bravely
Through seasons
In my rich Africa.

But never have I imagined
A scene where I would watch
My natural palm trees
Turn a frosty forest,
With its palm fronds
Covered by wintry snow.
What shall be the fate
Of the palm wine tapper
Extracting tasty flavours
In the tasty juice
Of the palm tree?

I've drove through sharp roads,
Allowed the sun's warm heat
Shine on light skinned attires,
But to imagine frosty roads
In deep chill of morning frost
Overshadowed, through my paths,
With a chill, cloaked safely
In thick attires, chilling in snowflakes.
What shall be my unpredictable fate
In having to no longer explore flexibility?

In the lifespan of each year
Two seasons have I dwelled:
The onset of the rains
In the rainy season
And the setting of the fog
In the harmattan season.
But never have I watched a scene
Of season after season,
When after the set of winter
Expects the spring sprouting
With its proceeding summer
And fall in autumn,
To re-embrace the onset of winter.

But before I panic
In a frozen spirit,
I shall live my days
With a relieving chill
Of no winter in Africa.

LOUISA SMILES by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/17/2009

The pale face of an angel's stare
A beauteous look in her eyes, a search
For a glint of smiles to arouse thy looks
In placing some charms amazingly hers
Having kept and housed beauty's scenario
On rainbow glares of Louisa smiles
Circling constantly from curves on cheeks
For shining some merry on her heart a wish
In bringing forth packs of Louisa smiles
Securely placed from the tints of her glare.

Blinking down motions of pearls of joy
And turning thy shakes for an earthly tremble
In letting down tons of a blissful glance
Clearly unrolled in a fair brow as hers.

Proudly enchanting, her Louisa smiles
Quaking thy thunder from mountains high
Inspiring visions from a glorious stare
Sharing some laughter, her delightful cheers
Meant in awakening the coming of a dawn
Slowly thought and pondered through nights
In realizing gladfully her Louisa smiles.

FIVE SONS TO BATTLE by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/16/2009

I sent five sons of mine to battle
In chariots of fire and armour of lead,
To test their strength in times of valour
And bring me medals they sincerely earned.

In the midst of warriors
Skilled in battle and fierce in combat,
Will they survive or fall, to rise no more?
Or fight their way to the very top
To die in honour and line of duty?

Who'll bring me a star,
The medal I seek?
Or a two star medal,
A masterpiece as victor?
Who'll live and who'll fall
Or make me proud
To see thee wield
A three star medal?

In splendour they march
In companionship of comrades
Bright in appeal and skilled in art;

In craftsmanship they're seen
In a mob of goldsmiths,
In chariots of fire and armour of lead.

But in case I be blessed
With medals of valour,
To stare in amazement
As five sons survive;
I'll leap in tears
And merrymaking
To've carried my name
Through conquests daring.

I sent five sons
For a six month battle
To prove their strength
In a contest of carvers;
Pray me they survive
To bring me stars
In a beautiful contest
In Voices found.

IF MY DEARLY BELOVED... by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/16/2008

If my dearly beloved chooses
Being harsh to lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She's gentle towards me.

If my dearly beloved chooses
To look not in the eyes
Of lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She looks into my eyes.

If my dearly beloved spits
In the faces of lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She kisses my face.

If my dearly beloved turns down
Proposals by lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She accepted my proposal.

If my dearly beloved keeps
A lousy admirer waiting
For hours at her gate
Who cares, as long as
She accepts me in.

If my dearly beloved chooses
To listen not to flattery
From lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She listens to mine.

If my dearly beloved chooses
To keep a lousy admirer
Kneeling in the sun
Who cares, as long as
She makes me stand.

If my dearly beloved offers
A handshake to lousy admirers
Who cares, as long as
She gives me a hug.

MY LONDON GIRL by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/14/2009

Like an infant crop
We grew from a start,
Clipped by a staple
In an impenetrable grip.

We held a flash
Linked to our marrows,
A taste of a first fruit
As struck by lightening;
Glaring rays down our glisten,
A flame unquenchable
Burning in columns.

In a bid to unwrap,
We stayed divided
In two separate worlds;
Chained by distance
Yet undefeated.

I extended my ropes
To you in your end,
Holding onto my part
As you clung to yours;
Reaching your end
Daily from Nigeria
As you held your grip
From far off London.

In your portraits daily
I found perfection,
Watching your wonders
My celebrity afar,
Chatting like always
Our jokes in thrills,
Hearing our voice
From up our worlds.

Someday in a runway
A plane shall arrive
And we'll reach for another
Like never apart,
Chilling in gazes
As safe as our grip;
Our firm inseparable hold
Synonymous to our heartbeat.

A CONGLOMERATION OF INSPIRATIONS by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/13/2009

A steady stroll
Through deep caves,
Marching through canyons
Shapely as sketched,
Exploring chefs
With recipes varied,
And foreseeing plains
Farther than imagined.

Rotating steadily
In new found valleys,
Eyeing through spectacles
That tickle our fancy,
Communicating wisdom
Of inestimable length
To stand fulfilled
In an acquired strength.

Finally relieved
We reach a destination,
A stronghold from searches
An onset in discovery,
For we'll explore this haven
To the fullest of our will
And reap the accolades
Once shed from our veins.

Before us shines a light
Brighter in visions
From headlands shining
And numerous to grasp,
Floating through spaceships
And spanning our galaxies,
Never to be outshone
In our cosy lasting haven;
A conglomeration of inspirations.

DILEMMA WITH TWO SISTERS by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/10/2009

Never knew love could be so complicated
Never knew a bond could lie this way
Never knew a charm be familiar in manner
Till a dilemma with two sisters similar.

In voice, they share a tone I never could guess
In tone, they sound as though they were same
In spirit, they bear a heart perfect in match
To carry them along as a friend indeed.

But scary, confusing, when fears come to pass
To be loved at once by the two of them,
Having a flavour to outshine the other
In their mindful contest to appeal in meaning.

What love, what emotion could ever compare
To their conspicuous love, showered, I hold?
What guilt so felt in bearing a bond
Devoted to me from deep within their heart?

How then could I tell, or yet could know
Which love supersedes the other in match?
Innocently captured in their game of love
With outstretched feelings beautifully shown.

To hear Angela cry on missing me then
And listen to Sarah's outnumbered tears,
To ponder about their risk to be with me
By travelling miles just to see me smile.

For my humane nature, I'll have to decide
To be not with any, and leave non ignored,
For I fear that day will someday come
When I'll be held and made to choose just one.

But yesterday Sarah made me fall in love
With words well drafted, I couldn't but cry,
To reciprocate my delight in a call
I spoke "Sarah", to realise Angela's passion
As she softly called her name.

WORLD'S DIVERSITY by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

9/1/2010

My day's curtain closes at another's yolk
On a cricket's humming in jumps of 'hoppers,
A whistling salute as froggy vibes croak,
Quenching my sun in silent night whispers.

My soul takes flight, embracing the stars
Where dreams are made and wishes linger,
Drifting like meteors in welcoming hours,
Another's soul begins a pace in slumber.

My day's curtain opens though faraway drift
Whence my sunlight assumes full moon,
In sprouts of dawn and darkness bereft,
Sipping my strength from another's spoon.

My day takes life in the tick of noon
Where brief slanting shadows brace my clime,
Foreseeing fresh dawn from a weather's tune,
In our world's diversity and distinct time.

When a War Loses Purpose by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

8/8/2009

Like a sheep
Grazing in the field,
A healthy determined flock
Having not the watch of a shepherd,
And abandoned to graze alone.

Like a lad
Growing in history
Through heroic scenes
And times of valour,
Bravery, and a cause
Worth dying and draining for;
Maturity seems like a clarion call
To enlist and protect thy sovereignty.

Like a horse
Manned by a rider
On a mission to ride
And carry thy mounter
In in choice of destination,
A war seems like a normal day
To carry thy mounter
Till he mounts no more.

But when a war loses purpose,
In motivation, hope is lost,
In defence, the innocent
Becomes the villain,
In bravery, it stands not
As a cause worth dying for,
In reality, it seems like a massacre,
A war without target, but to kill.

In proof of patriotism
And defence of thy nation,
Wars are fought for freedom,
Peace, security, and in defence
Of a nation's sovereign territory
Against danger and external attack.

Like a survival of the fittest,
Wars involve military combat
Between armed combatants
In name of soldiers
Labelled thy enemy
And termed thy hero.

Like embarking on a voyage,
Wars are carefully deliberated
With proof of possible threats
Before being embarked upon.

But when a war loses purpose
And loses support from nations,
United Nations and opinions,
Non valid proof nor evidence
Of weapons of mass destruction;
Then like a voyage without profit
It's like going on a worthless mission
To endanger the lives of soldiers brave,
Like a war, a needless war
On the soils of Iraq.

DESIRE by Dowell Ighohwo Oba

8/8/2009

A searching mind searching still
In conflict with an antagonizing will
On a quest in possession of that
Sought seriously on a long lonely path.

Of an endless journey of adventure
Struggling on with the forces of nature
With daydreams storming on wearied mind
Giving false hopes of acquiring false find.

Summoning the glorious heavens above
Laying curses on prince of burning stove
Casting all hindrance and wands of evil
For holy guidance and damnation of evil

Rendered on fulfilment of awaited want
With much sacrifice portrayed on risky stunt
For mere proof of true honest dedication
Of a passionate heart deserving compassion.

In recognition of a long romantic yearning
Of a heroic quest of love, worth learning
For unimaginable is an awaited craving such
Moving such unimaginable heights of rush

In avoidance of delay in losing my desire
Of maintaining a beautiful angel, worth aspire.