Still Shining
A beautiful end to our Still Shining Series, we have the talented Ndaba Sibanda! He is a Ponder Savant regular and brings an energy to his writing style. Come see the marvelous poetry that he has written through the pandemic.
My Friend`s River Beauty
why they live in water
it`s a mystery, in a river
they possibly tuck into it–
seaweed, and swim ashore
they also diet on fish, crabs,
clams ,shrimp, oysters , lobsters
my dear friend fell in love
with one of them, his beauty!
a faraway river is their rendezvous
he confesses she`s romantic and fun!
though these days the two lovely lovebirds
barely hang-out owing to self-distancing!
I think she is human, after all
except that she has the tail of a fish
and no wonder she pees and poops
from her belly button, so says my chum!
New Kids’ Register Riddles
2026: Marking The Preschool Register
Teacher: if you’re present, say ‘present’
And, if you are not here just say ‘absent’
Corona 2020. Silence. Teacher: ‘That’s a pass!’
Wear A Mask.’ Yes’. Teacher: Say ‘present please’.
Lowdown. ‘Lockdown’. Teacher: ‘Lord have mercy!’
Cant read this.’Qua…Quarrel?’ Kid: ‘Im Quarantine’
Was Hands.’ I’m Wash Hands’. Teacher: ‘My apologies!’
Sanity-seizer. ‘I’m Sanitizer’. Teacher: ‘For a reason!’
Coffee Fit 9.’ l’m COVID-19′. Teacher: ‘Sorry, whatever’
Self-lation.’I’m Self-isolation’. Teacher: ‘Hmmm, l see’.
Loves.’l’ m Gloves.’ Teacher: ‘Like hand in glove, kid!’
Pandemics. ‘Absent’ Teacher. ‘Wow’. Kid: ‘Coz l hate ’em’
Artist:
A 2019 Pushcart Prize nominee, Ndaba’s poems have been widely anthologised. Sibanda is the author of The Gushungo Way, Sleeping Rivers, Love O’clock, The Dead Must Be Sobbing, Football of Fools, Cutting-edge Cache: Unsympathetic Untruth, Of the Saliva and the Tongue, When Inspiration Sings In Silence and Poetry Pharmacy. His work is featured in The Anthology House, in The New Shoots Anthology, and in The Van Gogh Anthology, and A Worldwide Anthology of One Hundred Poetic Intersections. Some of Ndaba’s works are found or forthcoming in Page & Spine, Peeking Cat, Piker Press, SCARLET LEAF REVIEW, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, the Pangolin Review, Kalahari Review, Botsotso, The Ofi Press Magazine, Hawaii Pacific Review, Deltona Howl, The song is, Indian Review, Eunoia Review, JONAH magazine, Saraba Magazine, Poetry Potion, Saraba Magazine, The Borfski Press, Snippets, East Coast Literary Review, Random Poem Tree, festival-of-language and Whispering Prairie Press.
Sibanda’s forthcoming book Notes, Themes, Things And Other Things: Confronting Controversies,Contradictions And Indoctrinations was considered for The 2019 Restless Book Prize for New Immigrant Writing in Nonfiction. Ndaba’s other forthcoming book Cabinet Meetings: Of Big And Small Preys was considered for The Graywolf Press Africa Prize 2018.
Sibanda’s other forthcoming books include Timbomb, Dear Dawn And Daylight, Sometimes Seasons Come With Unseasonal Harvests, A Different Ballgame and The Way Forward.
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