With Buckets On Their Heads by Mthabisi Phili

photo by Resta Nyamwanza

what happened to Matabeleland’s water?

i hear the bureaucrats are stalling it in Harare-

and they speak of unity and impartiality only towards the ballot boxes!

so towards the vote we march singing songs they’ve forced us to sing,

but this is not Europe and snow is not an alternative for water-

no fantasy or reindeers pulling Santa

no games when people need the dam,

the chronicle reads:

‘Bulawayo’s water situation worsens!’

My Friend Samuel by Lilian Dube

Photo by Resta Nyamwanza

When the worst comes to the worst
Tell your sister I loved her
Wore on my finger
Gazed at her everyday
Tell her I couldn’t help
But be the man
born for the road
with her tender in my palm
building dreams,
& still promise
that if I don’t make it home the same,
You’d still tell her
I loved her.

Mother and Child by Anesu Katerere

Old war lord barbell fish in tin pot roasts
Eyes curse tormentors one more time before bursting into soup
Conscious that it’s grave be the stomachs of two fatherless
Generations
Never school, nasty disease between thighs
But mother and child

Seven day school uniform, hips for stale chips
But mother and child.
Two figures lost to the present
Dipping unwashed hands into old chemical container
Now plate
Smiling sadly
But mother and child.

Love Is Not Always The Same by Thelma S. Katt

They say 'if you have loved before,
You will love again'
Love is a game
And every time its not the same..

Once upon a time it played out like a song
One with a message so sweet and strong
Carrying lovers to a world only imagined
Full of adventure and places yet to be discovered..

Then it became a dream
Not a nightmare,but a sweet and sensual dream
Where lovers shared every minute,every moment
In poems from emotional poets
Full of hope,peace and eternal bliss...

Of love stories,
Time passes,sadness reigns
From dreams of 'what ifs'
To shattered hearts,
When lovers are torn apart
Some for a moment,
And others for a lifetime...

So love is a game
And every time its not always the same
Some rise from the pain
But not everyone can regain
What they once had
And nobody can change it,
Its just the way it is....