Lit eZine Vol 4 | p-9 | POETRY | The Rejected Soul

POEM

THE REJECTED SOUL
by Njie Martin Vevanje

I am a street child,
Homeless, nasty and wanting,
In a world of shadows,
I am as poor as the dead.

I stood by a cinema hall,
And I saw Ebere, the orphan, in pain,
Over the television.
I wondered how the white man did it,
The pain reminded me of my past,
I wish my precious jewels were still alive,
But to me, it was just a dream. 

Under the rain, I roamed like a mad man
And under the sun, I sweated like a dog, 
But I thought I was the only orphan in this world, 
Till I met my fellow shadow on the street.

The street is my home, my second home,
I am the “nasty kid” of Rwanda,
Far from home just to earn a living,
No mother, no father, just me and my shadow,
Wherever I go, it comforts me.
I am Ndanga, the stray soul, 
Roaming the streets of Rwanda like a stray goat,
Until I cross the river, the street will be my home,
I can’t go back to fatherland,
For they know me not. 

When my precious jewels died, my problems began,
I became the rejected stone of my relatives,
Taking my life was not among my desires,
But when I looked before me, 
I saw the street as my next destination,
Forgetting to know the sacrifices involved. 

Life on the streets of Peru,
Was a perilous journey. 
My education ended when my precious jewels died, 
The hunger pushed me to wash cars for money,
I pushed wheelbarrows in the market daily,
For the worms in my stomach will be at rest.

When I looked at the sky at 6pm,
The bright clouds gave way to darkness,
The sun gradually went to sleep,
As the moon appeared to give me light,
Under the cold evening, I slept in tears.
 
Inuma, my friend, left so soon,
She was raped on the street in my presence,
I cleaned up her tears and the blood,
She was dead by dawn leaving me in misery.

The street is as deadly as the HIV virus,
Make not the street your home,
For there is no place for “nasty kids” there,
It’s just you and yourself over there
The street is for those who are strong,
Just like the Iroko tree despite the strong winds,
I pray to leave the street someday.