Mr. Africa Poetry Lounge!
box & pole
we must make totems
how else can the spirits feel us
how else can they know we must reach
for them in ourselves / our spirits
roam the skies the soil & the seas
not unlike other deities / we require
homage sacrifice & offerings
those things we must give ourselves
aztecs dressed in the skins of the dead
yorubans deliver yemaya white blossoms
& champagne / incas offered gold
& coca leaves / we must build totems
for the spirits / we must worship ourselves
that the earth not be defiled
by our neglect / our ignorance of ritual
after all the universe has given us
the seasons / the warmth of loving.
Written by Ntozake Shange (1914-2018)
<----> SEND THIS POEM TO A FRIEND! <---->