It’s your time

by Chevvy, posted in Poetry

Liberate your mind–

you are much greater

than you think you are

Define who you were–

before you became a slave

to extraction and contraction

Start to know yourself–

prescribed by your own story

in the language of your tongue

It’s time to know your worth–

the value of your golden soil

your ample rivers and sun

You lose it everyday–

just giving it all away

with handshakes of bonded strife

Remember your name–

come into your own light

be the centre of your own universe

Africa, it’s your time!

Author’s note: This poem was inspired by a public lecture delivered yesterday by Kenyan nobel prize winning writer and  Professor of English, Ngugi wa Thiongo,  entitled: “Secure the base: decolonise the mind”

The map depicted in the image above illustrates how large Africa is in terms of space in comparison to other major powers. It is also blessed with a wealth of resources yet Africa remains one of the poorest continents in the world. It is still primarily  the dark continent in terms of electrification. As a continent that was colonised by many European countries while its people became  victims of slavery and oppression, there is a school of thought towards freeing our minds from colonisation and reclaiming  our identity and place in the world.

17 thoughts on “It’s your time”

    1. I was watching the public lecture that inspired this poem and was amazed when he displayed this map to see how our continent fared in size to other major countries yet we have not reaped the benefits of all we have. The funniest thing is that we have so much raw material but we don’t manufacture our own cars. Everything is shipped out and the continent remains in poverty. But I’m hopeful that things are changing. But I like your translation/interpretation to the individual as well – it applies equally.😀

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  2. It is time!

    I remember reading about this some time ago where the map we generally use was made in Colonial times and the projection used (Mercator?) deliberately shows Europe way bigger than it is – to was a means to show the “superiority”. There are some newer maps which look strangely disproportionate, but are more accurate in their representation of relative size.

    Yes, Africa is far larger than what most of us think and the continent has it all. If I may, be careful you don’t fall into the Chinese trap – I believe there investing very heavily to secure raw material for their industry.

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    1. Yes there is unfortunately the danger of re-colonisation even from our end. Corruption also doesn’t help.
      Part of our own student protests last year were about decolonisation. While I think there were some bright minds, we could do with better leadership. We’ve lost the wisdom of former great leaders across the world I think.

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      2. You know I’ve been working from home for the past year so I get to listen to a lot more news and what a year it has been. I believe that word is at the heart of our problems. However, this is part of my escape.
        I love travelling the world this way and it’s just great to shoot the breeze like this. Have an awesome weekend too. BTW, I’m missing your poetry. You know I love your work😀

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    1. Thank you Anna – I will be sure to check it out. Most of us don’t know the history of our own continent – we had to learn European history instead. I only got to study African history at university. Thanks again!

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  4. If BOB Marley read this he would be soo impressed. You know Marley preached emancipation long before Ngugi became Ngugi. It is empowering that Africans one by one are taking the right direction in freeing the continent.

    As I have always said, the donor mindset will impoverish us further, it’s time we rose, decolonised our minds and reclaimed our glory. This is well put.

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    1. I think that whatever small part we can play towards this end, we should. Change needs movements and leaders, especially from younger people like yourself.
      I watched your videos and think that your kind of outreach is needed. We’re dealing with young people or uneducated people who don’t know their power. Thank you.

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      2. I’m one who believes that there is a leader in all of us and in whatever roles we play, we must seize the opportunity to lead from the front or behind. I watched your videos because I take you seriously. But, you might have seen a post I did on Lebo Mashele who is a SA poet I admire.I found that there is not much online to capture her work. On the otherhand, you may know our Trevor Noah who has just been voted one of the top ten next generation leaders in the world by Time magazine. Trevor’s is a rags to riches story. He has been savvy in digitising his work. I think we can all learn from examples like that.

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      3. Yes, we should savor the lessons. I accept, I’ve not been too initiative with my art. I’ve been treading the same paths for long, maybe digitizing bits of my work will be justice to poetry.

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