Wax Poetic African Style at the Altar – Poems

Heh, as I’m writing this I have to admit I wish I were there to see how some of you dear readers would react to some of the poetry I am about to unleash, and see which you would prefer which ones would make your heart stop. I mean consider these words:

“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.” –Robert Frost

Interesting way of phrasing things, is it not? But at least it gives us an idea of how to pick what we want to use to bring a certain loved one to tears (if that is your kind of thing I find suspiciously bright eyes enough for me): emotion; thought; words.

So obviously, the fact that you are getting married to the guy means
you are in love with him. But what with the variation in taste, what one person finds a good description of their emotions is what you can see as utterly flat or too pretentious. Now, with that in mind, I’m going to provide two options: poems or proverbs both of African origin. Hope you find something to your taste. But this article will be about the poems, the next will cover the proverbs. Remember dear reader, that you do not have to be female to include a poem in your vows.

Now, before we begin, I feel it is best I warn you: this is going to be a mix of modern and older African poetry. Some of the poems are not complete, mainly because in full they would take up quite a bit of space. The ‘…’ will show where there is a part of the poem missing.

I am not just a body for you.
You have traveled further into me, with me,
beyond yourself to me,
You have crossed boundaries that encase me, enclose me,
Opened doors to new worlds, beneath new suns which know no settings,
Now you can cross oceans, you will not leave me,
A void like the silent shell on the shore.
…

Beyond this shore
Love them, stir them,
Give them all of you and me
I can enchain them, encircle them,
Encompass them all with your love and mine,
Desireless and free.
– Shakuntala Hawaldar (from Mauritius)

To love you is like having a luscious fruit ripening in my hand,
Like having dates swimming in my honey wine.
The moment lingers.
The taste lasts.
We will remain joined until the end of years.
We will remain together in the endless line of hours.
We shall join together in this taste of bread and wine.
– Egyptian love poem

I will bring you a whole person
And you will bring me a whole person
And we will have us twice as much of love and everything
I be bringing a whole heart
And while it do have nicks and
Dents and scars,
That only make me lay it down
More careful-like
“Celebration” by Mari Evans

And the list goes on. There are quite a number of love poems available on the internet, like “Song” by Paul Laurence Dunbar and “African Beauty Rose” by Kattie M. Cumbo, “Hey There Poetry” by BlueWater (I find that one quite unique, and not in a bad way), “Poetry” by Lynette Jefferies. You can also check out the book “African Love Poems and Poetry” by C. W. Leslau, which seems to be quite detailed.

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