Poetry Pleases: Freedom's Dream In Cell 46664
Then, one day, the ripples of our hope
Grew into a crest-high wave
That tore through the dictator's barbed walls
And made us believe again...
Masimba Biriwasha writes a powerful and memorable poem about the most prizes of human possessions - freedom. The force of his words are all the greater when you realise that Masimba, who now lives and works in Thailand, is an exile from his troubled homeland, Zimbabwe.
To read more of his poems please type his name in the menu on this page.
27 years had passed, and the skin
of the prison cell No. 46664 stank of a
human right denied
Feebly, the freedom fighter
gazed at the light that beamed from the dream he had carved in his spirit,
In that prison, his dream aimed at fighting man’s domination over another still glowed
The freedom fighter lifted his left fist into the air,
As though seeking heaven’s answer,
Cherishing the idea of a free society
In that dark and cockroach-infested space
Deep in his soul he desired to pluck a seed of faith from the sky’s womb,
To carry freedom's struggle another day,
And whisper to the winds of time
To plant a fire in his people’s bosoms
So they could gather courage to rise beyond the confinement
Of man-made chains
In spite of his faith, the heavens remained still
So he put his head down, and tore into the
depth of his guerilla-skin with freedom’s spikes,
Then suddenly, his voice cracked and filled the void,
Traversing the gaping distances
Like an angel run amok
Till it reverberated across the mountains and valleys
Of the dictator’s oppressive rule
Our blood jumped hot at the sound of his call
And in our silenced oppression, we found ourselves muttering
vowels of freedom:
"Freedom Now, Freedom Now"
Even though the tyrant's chains remained stuck
Round our necks
The freedom fighter's dream burned deep in our hearts.
Then, one day, the ripples of our hope
Grew into a crest-high wave
That tore through the dictator's barbed walls
And made us believe again
In freedom’s cause -
Not just for ourselves
But for all humanity.
